FB B.J. ASKEW
(On if he’ll get more carries this week)
“That’s a question that coach will probably have to answer, but I really don’t know.”
(On how he felt physically after last Sunday’s game)
“No issues, I came out feeling pretty good, a lot better than I expected I would. My role as far as special teams goes expands. That was something we kind of wanted to wait on and make sure I was able to run, so I’m kind of ready for that too.”
(On stepping up when players get injured)
“That’s really the NFL, period. If guys get hurt, you’ve got to have interchangeable parts. That’s why we all study so hard. That’s why we spend so many hours here, because you never know when you’re name is going to be called on doing a job that you don’t normally do.”
(On the Bucs having success even with having to plug in so many different players)
“It doesn’t always work. The teams that can manage it the best, they’re the ones that go to the playoffs and ultimately win the Super Bowl.”
(On how Cadillac Williams looks)
“In my opinion, I think he’s ready to roll. But again, I’m not him. I don’t know how his body feels. As far as looking at him, he looks pretty good. It’s just another one of those things. I know everybody is waiting for that return of Cadillac. We’ll have to see.”
LB DERRICK BROOKS
(On if inside knowledge will be a factor in Sunday’s game)
“No. Again, we’ve got to keep the focus on us. Looking at some of last year’s tape this morning, they took it to us pretty good early in that game. The emotions of former players, former coaches, that again has nothing really to do with Sunday. We have to keep the focus on us and make sure we’re ready to go getting off that plane up there in Detroit.”
(On if the Lions are a team the Bucs should beat)
“We’ve got to get ready to go. This is the NFL. Records are very meaningless every week in this league who you’re going against. Again, I’ve been a part of two teams that have had some struggles and if a team took us lightly, they were setting themselves up for failure. Records really don’t mean anything in this league. It’s week-to-week, it’s a real game. This is the NFL and you’ve got to respect every opponent.”
(On Daunte Culpepper)
“It’s more or less, as a I say all the time, we prepare for offenses, not necessarily personnel. They were running the same plays when someone else was at quarterback as when Daunte is at quarterback. So we’re not really preparing for personnel, we’re preparing for the offensive system.”
(On Detroit’s offensive system)
“They’re doing a good job running the ball. Their tailback is a rookie, but he’s a very talented player. As I’ve said before, they’re a good football team and their record is meaningless. We’ve got to be ready to go.”
WR ANTONIO BRYANT
(On the ability of QB Jeff Garcia to make something out of nothing)
"Jeff gives us another dimension on offense. I think that any quarterback that has great feet like him gives more opportunities. Sometimes it can backfire but for us it has been working well. He has been discipline with the ball as well. A rookie with skills like him is probably more susceptible to turnovers. I think he has been making great decisions when he is running and scrambling and getting first downs for us when we don’t have open receivers."
(On opening up the offense)
“I just try to be consistent and trust the coaches to push that button and get those types of plays called. Hopefully, when we do, it is a home run every time. Right now it is about winning games and whatever it takes to string them together, that is what we are trying to accomplish.”
K MATT BRYANT
(On if he can consider this his best season being only three points behind the current leading scorer)
"I’ve had some good solid years since I have been here in Tampa. I had a pretty good year the first year I was here and a pretty good year last year. This year has gone pretty well. It’s hard for me to look at that. If I only had 18 tries, it wouldn’t make me any less. I’ve just had more opportunities. I guess you could say that with more opportunities there are more times to fail as well. I have managed to stay away from that and that’s good."
(On if he and P Josh Bidwell create one of the best tandems in the league)
“Josh can be a game changer. He can hit it a long ways and if he needs to, he can get it inside the twenty which with the way our defense is playing is huge. It helps with our field position. It helps me to be able to trust him on the holds. It’s a good factor to be able to work with somebody going on our fourth year now. We have a little bit of a chemistry there.”
WR MICHAEL CLAYTON
(On more long plays in the offense)
"We definitely want to take shots down the field. We think we do a great job here utilizing everybody, wide receivers and tight ends. With Joey Galloway being healthy it gives us an opportunity to really stretch the defense. Like I said, we'll pick and choose. We know what we do here as an offense. Everybody's comfortable in that, and when it's time to take a shot we'll take it. We've left a lot of plays on the field with incompletions, and those are just plays that we've got to connect on, get better as an offense, take those shots and really execute and get it done."
RB WARRICK DUNN
(On how he felt after the game)
“I came out of the game fine. I think I started off a little bit slow, I didn’t have a couple of the reads that were questionable early in the game, but I got it going in the second half and I felt good. I look forward to just playing and going out and having fun.”
(On if he expects more playing time)
“I expect to play a lot more but at the same time we have other guys who can come in and make plays. I am going to do my part to help us move the chains, score touchdowns and win games.”
(On if it helps knowing his workload going into a game)
“Well I know I don’t have to go out and press. I think now I can really just let the game come to me and have fun, just really relax and have fun and let the plays come. When you are in there constantly, you tend to do that and the plays do happen on their own. I just look forward to playing and having fun. It will all work itself out.”
(On how he can help RB Cadillac Williams)
“He has been away and if he is up this week, just talk to him a little bit. Just try to make sure he stays patient, not try to force anything, and just let it happen. He doesn’t have to go out and make the big play or make the run, he just needs to go out and get his first lick, and after that just really get into himself a little bit so he can get comfortable.”
QB JEFF GARCIA
(On if he is nervous facing the Lions after playing there in the past)
“ It is another game for me as far as I am concerned. I am going back there hopefully, to do better things than what happened last year, and I think that is the main thing. We went back there last year and didn’t play to the best of our abilities, and had some crucial mistakes that cost us a chance to win that football game. They have a lot of guys on their defense that have played here, that understand what we do offensively, so we are going to have to be very careful about what we do, and whatever we do, we have to do it well.”
(On RB Cadillac Williams)
“I think that Cadillac has practiced extremely well. He looks sharp out there, he looks fast, and he looks fit. He has worked extremely hard to get back to this point and to overcome the serious injury that he dealt with. I think, from my stand point, it is exciting to see him back out on the field, practicing at full strength and full speed. Now that is up to coach and whoever else is in the decision making process as far as where he stands, as far as play time is concerned.”
(On WR Joey Galloway and the receiver corps)
“I think Joey Galloway is definitely a player that we need and will be in a position to help this team at some point, and I hope that that happens soon. I think that from the receiver position as a group, they have played extremely hard and have done everything that we have asked them to do. Michael Clayton and Antonio Bryant have done an excellent job at played the X and the Z positions. Ike Hilliard is another quality player that comes onto the field that gives us opportunities to move the chains and do positive things. It is tough to get everybody the football. There is one ball out there and there are at times, eight or nine receivers or players at different positions who have opportunities to catch the ball. So I am just trying to do the best job that I can do as far as making my reads and giving our players chances.”
DT CHRIS HOVAN
(On the influence that the Lion’s inside knowledge had on the outcome of last year’s game)
“They run the Tampa Two style defense up there. It is a lot of the same checks, a lot of the same calls. We have to be on that and change some of our verbiage up so they don’t feel comfortable with our language at the line of scrimmage. I just think that they hit some more plays than us, they were a little more physical than we were last year, but I think that we have to be more physical this time around.”
(On QB Daunte Culpepper)
“Daunte is a proven veteran. I played with him in Minnesota, he has played in Miami and Oakland, Daunte is a proven vet. We have to be ready for his best. I have played with him, I know how he prepares himself, he takes his job very seriously, and he is a consummate pro. I am sure that he is taking advantage of his chances, his opportunities, and making the most of it.”
(On the depth of the defensive line)
“Well I mean that is great for every defensive line. You want a great rotation, you want guys that are coming in who are fresh. When given the opportunity, if it is there turn to come in and play all out. Go out there and make plays, when you are out there you are a starter. That is the philosophy that Coach Kiffin really reinforces and he wants everybody to have that mentality.”
T DONALD PENN
(On his play against Jared Allen and other top pass-rushers)
"I always knew what I could do. That week's behind me and now I'm looking at Detroit. I'm not going to live on that week anymore. Week-in and week-out I've got another D-End coming up, and another one after that and another one after that. I'm just stepping up to the challenge."
(On former Buc defenders on Detroit knowing the team)
"I know they do. They went against the offense in practice every single day, so you pick up some stuff. You've got [Ryan] Nece there, you've got [Dewayne] White there, Brian Kelly who was just here with us last year. And they've been here for a long time before that so you know they've picked up on some of our calls, some of our schemes. We've just got to go out there and execute. We can't let that be a reason."
(On if it helps the Bucs knowing the Detroit defenders)
"It didn't help us out last year; we still lost. Like I said, they're a scary team because they're better than their record shows. You can't get caught up in the record. You've got to watch out because they're a good team."
(On if Allen got frustrated during the Vikings game)
"He was jawing a lot towards the end, trying to take me out of my game. I just went out there and played. I do what I can do. I tell people a lot, I like being unknown. I like when they say, 'Donald who?' and I just go out and bite them. I'd like to play the rest of my career like that. But he threw everything he had at me. He's a great player, a great player. He's going to bounce back. I've just got to make sure I keep playing the way I've been playing."
TE JERRAMY STEVENS
(On Detroit)
"They're going to be playing hard. Everybody in the NFL has a lot of pride and every team has a lot of talent. We've just got to go out there and execute, play our game.”
(On if all the former Bucs playing for Detroit are a factor)
"I don't think it's going to be a deciding factor. It's something that you've got to prepare for, and respect the fact that they are familiar with what we do. You've got to take that into account but it's not going to be the deciding factor in the game."
(On running backs stepping up with Earnest Graham out)
"That's what it's been about all year on offense and defense, when someone goes down someone else has to step up. Obviously Warrick [Dunn], he's a vet and he knows how to handle that situation. B.J. [Askew], you're going to have to tote the rock a little bit more from the tailback position. The offense will be fine. We're not going to change our offense at all. We've just got to step up and get the job done."
DE GREG WHITE
(On if facing QB Daunte Culpepper is an advantage since he was previously out of the league)
“I think he is like two or three games in already and he has started two of them, he is starting for a reason. So whatever it is that Detroit sees in him it is something that we have to look forward to.”
(On the depth of the defense)
“Well we all think we are starters, from the second guys to the first guys, obviously. We just play like that. So every time that we have an opportunity, we want to be better than the guy that is starting in front of us. It is just friendly competition, it is nothing personnel, we all understand and we all know.”
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