It's all about the Jets! Patriots LB Robert Spillane joins!

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7 in a row! It's a short week for the Patriots but its all about the Jets! Patriots LB Robert Spillane joins! How does Spillane and this defense keep focus on a short week? What does Maye bring as a leader?

Transcript

00:00This is seven in a row for this team.

00:02You're 8-2, 5-0 on the road.

00:06How do you guys avoid hearing the noise about how good this football team has been so far?

00:15You keep the main thing the main thing.

00:18And what's important right now is Thursday night football against the Jets.

00:21So I think we've done a great job this week getting our bodies back right,

00:25recovering, and just moving on to the Jets.

00:28We came in here Monday morning early and got right to the Jets

00:32and have just been pure focus from there on out.

00:36Was it accurate that Coach Rabel said gave you guys the option of practicing inside yesterday

00:44and avoiding the elements and a bunch of you guys said, no, we want to be outside?

00:51Yeah, as a leadership committee, we decided to practice outside and I think it went great

00:56and we'll be back out there in the elements again.

01:00These banked reps in the cold are going to pay dividends for us down the line.

01:06Robert, I never played in a Thursday night football game.

01:11What's the most difficult part of playing on a Sunday and then having to play on a Thursday?

01:15Everyone recovers different after a game day.

01:20For me, it will not be a problem to go out there and perform on a Thursday.

01:24Other people need seven days every week to get recovered.

01:31So you never know what to expect.

01:32You never know if certain guys on their team are going to end up making it to the game or not.

01:37And we've just got to focus on what's in front of us, our practice reps today, get those right,

01:42make sure we're locked in on the red zone and go from there.

01:46Robert, after the win, you spoke very highly about Drake May, not only his toughness, but him as a leader.

01:52Can you just speak a little bit more of what makes him so tough?

01:55What's been the most impressive part about that toughness this season?

01:58He continues to show up every day with a big smile on his face, wanting to get better,

02:05wanting to be the top dog of this team, wanting to take this team to heights that we want to get to.

02:11So just his passion and love for the game and how he comes in every day looking to get 1% better

02:16and be the best leader he can be.

02:18As a player, that's all you can ask for out of another player.

02:22Robert, you guys are doing a lot of things right.

02:25But when you look at your defense overall, the one area it seems like you guys are, you know,

02:32having a little bit of a situation, it's not crazy, but it's your pass defense.

02:37What do you feel like you guys need to do differently to kind of get the pass defense

02:41a little bit caught up closer to what you guys have been able to do against the run?

02:47Yeah, I think it's continue to dominate in the run, put them in must-pass situations.

02:52Behind the chains, make them have to earn it down the field.

02:58I think there's a lot of things you can do.

03:00You can look at all three levels of the defense,

03:02and I think we're all holding each other accountable and ourselves accountable.

03:06So the D-line wants to get home better.

03:09The underneath coverage wants to provide more depth for the back-end players,

03:13and the back-end players want to be tighter.

03:15So on all three levels, we're working together to get it fixed.

03:19I believe we have a question here from sports journalist Rob Ninkovich.

03:25Yeah, Rob, this is Rob here.

03:26Do you think that your first name is the best name of all time?

03:31Truly has to be such a strong first name and such a great name.

03:36I'm glad I get to share it with you.

03:37A true Patriot legend.

03:40Oh, I appreciate that.

03:41You get to see me in the cafeteria every day.

03:44I'm looking over the wings.

03:46I have pictures up in there.

03:48It's great.

03:49My mom, when she named me, she thought I was going to be a lawyer,

03:53which, unfortunately, I must have not fulfilled her prophecy,

03:57and I became a meathead and smashed into people for a living.

04:00Well, there was one of those who played for the Patriots also.

04:03Right, Curtis?

04:04There was.

04:05And, by the way, this segment's sponsored by Catch Us Law.

04:09It is full circle.

04:11I would like to say one thing, though.

04:12I really enjoy watching you play.

04:14I think you have a heck of a mentality.

04:17And as an inside linebacker, linebacker in general,

04:20you kind of have to captain the ship, so to speak, defensively.

04:23I think you've done a great job coming here

04:25and kind of taking over the defense and being the leader inside.

04:28So continue to do that great work.

04:32Well, I thoroughly appreciate that,

04:33and it means a lot coming from a true Patriot-grade defensive player,

04:37so I appreciate you.

04:38Who's a better Patriots linebacker, Robert?

04:41Vrabel or Ninkovich?

04:42Oh.

04:44Hey, listen.

04:45I haven't really dived into the film that much on those two,

04:49so I would love to go back and do a little historic meeting one day.

04:55Listen, I wish I played next to Seymour or Ty Law.

04:58Or not to, Ty Law, Seymour, some of his interior pieces.

05:02This is Hamilton.

05:04Anthony Pleasant, Willie McGinnis.

05:06Who was the other guy next to him?

05:07So it was, who was the other big tackle?

05:11No, no, no, next to Vrabel.

05:12No, you're talking about Ted Washington?

05:13Ted Washington and Ty Warren.

05:16Ty Warren.

05:17Yeah.

05:17If I played next to them guys on a double team, see you later.

05:21When I think of Vrabel, I think of, you know,

05:23the big plays in the Super Bowl, the touchdowns on the goal line,

05:27and the big sacks and the fourth fumble.

05:29So those are some legendary plays.

05:32I tried to get on the goal line for, you know,

05:35those one-yard situations, and I was told, you know,

05:38what do you want, take Gronkowski out of the game?

05:40I was like, yeah, you're right.

05:41I guess you do.

05:45And now we got big Tonga back there.

05:47Yeah.

05:49So that's fun to see a defensive player on the offensive side.

05:52Quick story on a big fullback.

05:55One time we were playing Cincinnati,

05:57and they had another big, you know, massive tackle.

06:01Pecco?

06:01Yeah, Pecco back there.

06:03And we had Brandon Spikes was the inside linebacker.

06:08So Brandon was really good.

06:10He was really good at talking to you before the snap.

06:13And he had Pecco so worked up that he false started

06:16and backed him up five.

06:18So it went from first and goal to first and six on the one to the six.

06:24So it worked out.

06:25But they brought him in there,

06:27and Spikes was able to get him all amped up.

06:29Wiggy was talking.

06:31Wiggy kind of said earlier,

06:32it's really tough to nitpick on this team.

06:34But I'm sure you guys talk about it a little bit.

06:39Tiny little criticism, I'm sure, internally you look at it.

06:42You guys end up sometimes giving up kind of a slow start DUIs

06:47and giving up points.

06:47Is that something you guys are, you know, their first drive,

06:51opponents' first drive?

06:52Is that something you guys are trying to identify what's going on there?

06:56No doubt.

06:57And we're going to continue to trust each other,

07:00play with good eyes, play team defense, and get off the field.

07:04We're so close to making these stops early in the game,

07:07and they're going to be crucial for us down the line.

07:09So we look at every aspect of our defensive performance,

07:12and definitely something we want to clean up

07:14and get off to faster starts.

07:16Do you guys ever say to yourself at times, though, like,

07:19all right, the offense generally has their first 15 scripted.

07:23They kind of know what they want to do.

07:25You know, defense is always a reactionary thing, right?

07:28That's the thing about defense.

07:30So do you say, hey.

07:31Yeah, but we're not out there to make excuses

07:33for letting up touchdowns.

07:35No matter where we get put on the field,

07:37when we get put on the field,

07:38we're expected to get the drive stopped.

07:39And we take pride in that.

07:41So at the end of the day,

07:42our job is to get off the field without letting up points.

07:45And we need to just keep the main thing the main thing,

07:48which is finding ways to get off the field.

07:50Similar to after the Bills game,

07:52some people wondering if this could be a trap for you guys.

07:54What has been the message in the locker room

07:56to make sure that doesn't happen?

07:57Focus on giving your best performance Thursday night.

08:05Recover, take care of your body,

08:06take care of your mind, sleep well tonight,

08:08and go out there with confidence tomorrow night,

08:10knowing that you're going to perform.

08:12All right, Robert.

08:13Well, we'll let you get to work.

08:14One last one from me,

08:17and that is we were talking about it earlier,

08:19the back and forth on social media

08:23with regard to the Nor'easter uniforms

08:26that you will wear tomorrow night.

08:27Do you like them or you don't like them?

08:30Oh, they're going to be sweet.

08:33Okay.

08:34They're going Nor'easter color pants, too.

08:36I wish that they're going full on.

08:38I think they go white.

08:38I think they got white.

08:39I wish they went Nor'easter color pants.

08:41Are they white pants?

08:42Yeah.

08:43One little veteran tip for you, Rob.

08:45You know, we used to call it Cadillac week.

08:48So when you have a short week, a Thursday game,

08:50you wouldn't put your cleats on

08:51because you wanted to keep your feet nice and comfortable.

08:54So I'd put the Cadillacs on just during the first.

08:57Because you're not really practicing crazy.

08:59The little rubber range shoes.

09:00The little rubber, yeah,

09:01the rubber, like, gym shoe type.

09:04Yeah, little turfs.

09:04That's right.

09:05The little turfs in the Cadillac.

09:06You're on the grass.

09:07Give yourself a little cushion.

09:09It's a nice little recovery.

09:10Where you could just go Mack Hollins.

09:12Like, no shoes.

09:13No shoes.

09:13What about, like, the fertilizer they put down?

09:16Is that, I think it's good for your feet?

09:18There's something wrong with that, too?

09:18Is that absorbing up to your feet?

09:19You've got to wash the feet like the chicken.

09:21It's natural.

09:22Oh, it's natural fertilizers?

09:24Okay.

09:25All right.

09:25Robert Splane.

09:26Thanks, as always.

09:28Appreciate you guys.

09:29All right.

09:29There he is.

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