00:00Robert, good morning.
00:02Good morning, guys. How's it going?
00:04We are doing great. We're out here at Wachusett Mountain with a whole bunch of people who want to wish you luck right now.
00:10So let's, there you go, Robert. The people love you.
00:16Well, thank you. Appreciate you guys.
00:19Are you one of those guys who dreamed about playing in an AFC championship game when you were in high school or college?
00:28I mean, you hear those stories. Did you dream about this?
00:34There's no doubt about it.
00:36I think you kind of have to dream about it to be able to get yourself here, to will yourself to find a way to make it happen.
00:43And so many of the guys on this team have dreamed about this since they were little kids.
00:49And we're finally getting this opportunity on Sunday.
00:52Well, we were talking about it earlier because Wiggy was discussing, Wiggy, who has been to a couple conference title games,
01:03was talking about the difference between the pressure in this game and we brought up big college games.
01:11Is it, and you prior to being here, went to a couple of playoff games with the Steelers.
01:17Is that pressure unlike anything else when you're playing in a game like this?
01:23I really think our confidence as a defense, our ability to communicate with each other and trust each other on the field,
01:32just, it doesn't make you feel like it's such a pressure situation.
01:38You know there's other people around you that you can trust and rely on.
01:42Robert, when it comes to prepping for this game, not a lot of tape on Jared Stidham.
01:47What's it been like as a defense prepping for this?
01:49And how has your coaching staff been able to do so?
01:54Yeah, they're going to run a lot of the same plays that they've been running all year long.
01:58They have tendencies, they have formations that they'd like to go to.
02:02They have schemes that they'd like to go to.
02:05We're going to continue to trust what we see on film and then adjust on Sunday when we get there.
02:10Robert, you talk about the ability to communicate confidence.
02:15I know it's obviously a tough game on the road.
02:17You guys have been road warriors all year long.
02:20Talk a little bit for fans that don't know what it means to play on the road for a defense
02:25because you actually, when you're on defense, the crowd's not as loud
02:29and how you're able to communicate a little bit easier versus being at home.
02:34Yeah, I mean, these games mean so much.
02:40And every single play throughout the game just means a little bit more
02:44because you know what's at stake.
02:46You know what's on the line.
02:47So to have that confidence to go out there with the guys is everything.
02:54It's everything to know that we're going to be in the defenses that we want to be in
03:00and we're going to trust each other for 60 minutes.
03:04Robert, the coach of the Broncos appears to have guaranteed a win.
03:07He told the media out there that the tired players in the Broncos
03:10will have two weeks of rest before their next game.
03:13Do you guys aware of that and how does that impact your preparation, if at all?
03:19That doesn't impact my preparation at all.
03:22We've got to prepare, do whatever it takes to get the win on Sunday.
03:26Do you want Coach Vrabel to reply, guaranteeing your win, sort of go right back at him?
03:33I'll let Coach Vrabel speak for himself.
03:36Have you guys been able to feed off perhaps the fact that this defense
03:44has been overlooked a little bit here when it comes to discussions
03:50about defenses in the NFL, the playoff season, regular season?
03:55Yeah, I know we've got a bunch of guys with big chips on their shoulders
03:59with a lot to prove.
04:03We've continued to rely on each other as a defense.
04:07Our back end has been phenomenal.
04:10I know as good as any back end in the league,
04:12and our D-line has been getting home and rushing the passer
04:15and stopping the run as well as anyone in the league,
04:17so I know that they're hungry.
04:21For us to get recognition, it's going to take us winning.
04:23Robert, when you look at this defense, it's one thing I give you guys a lot of credit.
04:28You wanted a top defense, especially in the postseason,
04:31of just making it a nightmare for offenses
04:34and what you've been able to do against Houston and the Chargers.
04:37What do you feel like you guys have maybe done differently
04:41a little bit in the postseason versus the regular season?
04:45No, I think we've just continued to raise our standard of play.
04:50We want to get better each and every week throughout the season,
04:53and it's great to be playing our best football here in January.
04:57Robert, I know that the playoffs are different,
04:59but what is it about this team as a guy who's been in the league for a bit
05:02that you've been so successful on the road?
05:04I think it's we've just continued to seek to get better throughout the season.
05:11Every day we come in here with great energy,
05:13with a great plan of preparation and what we need to get done for the day.
05:17And then we have guys that come in here with big smiles on their face
05:21that want to compete, that want to do things the right way,
05:24that want to go out there and win the game.
05:26So I'm just really proud of the guys in the locker room
05:29that have stuck together and just continued to want to work
05:33and get better throughout the season.
05:35Well, we'll let you get at it and get ready to fly out there.
05:41And, you know, depending on the storm,
05:44you may be stuck in Denver for a couple weeks.
05:46So try to figure out something to do while you're out there, Robert.
05:50Yeah, hopefully.
05:52That'd be fun.
05:55All right.
05:57Send him off.
05:57Send Robert Splane off to get this win.
06:01All right.
06:03Everybody's got your back here.
06:04So go out and do it, man.
06:06I appreciate you guys.
06:07Have a good one.
06:08All right.
06:09That is Robert Splane on a Patriots playoff Friday.
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