Patriots Blog: Brady Feels For Colts, Wishes Freeney Was Out
FOXBORO (CBS) - New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had the same answer all the other players, and their coach, had when asked about the Colts and their winless record.
Tom said, you don't play the record you play the team.
"Sometimes we take for granted winning here because we've done that," said Brady. "It's hard to win an NFL game. Every team has talent. Every team can only spend to the cap, you can't spend over it. The draft and the way that's built. It's hard to win games, it really is."
Read: Records Don't Matter
"You never want to see a team have that kind of a season, because you know how miserable [the Patriots] are when we lose two in a row," Brady added. "At the same time, it's our job is to go out there and perform as well as we can against them this week. That's what we plan to do. We don't take anything for granted. The record? When the ball kicks off, it doesn't matter what their record is. It doesn't matter what our record is. The team that's going to win is the team that plays the best that day."
The Pats have played the Colts often, so the teams know each other well. While Brady said he will miss Peyton Manning lining up for Indy, he did say he there is one Colt he wouldn't mind not suiting up on Sunday.
"I wish defensive end Dwight Freeney was out this week," joked Brady. "He's in there again. He's a phenomenal player. If I could be a defensive end, I'd be like him. And Robert Mathis on the other side, both of those guys can really wreak havoc [especially with] strip sacks. Coach [Bill Belichick] said this morning that I think Freeney's got like [99.5] career sacks and [42] forced fumbles. So almost half the time he sacks you, he strips the ball from you. He's a great player."
Read: Levan Reid's Patriots Blog
With Sunday being their first game in December, the Patriots have been trained that this is the time to hit their stride and get ready for what is expected in January.
"I think Coach Belichick has always stressed that the best teams get better this time of year. I think that's the kind of team you want to be; you want to be a good finisher," said #12. "If you play poorly down the stretch, you're not going to give yourself much of a chance to accomplish any of the goals that you set at the beginning of the year. You can put yourself in a decent position and we're in a decent position, but Coach always says, 'Eight wins doesn't get you anything in this league.' We've got to try to get our ninth."
Tune in to the Patriots-Colts game Sunday on 98.5 The Sports Hub and WBZ-TV at 1 pm. Pregame coverage begins on 98.5 at 10 am and on WBZ at 11:30 am with Patriots Gameday. Stay tuned after the game for all the reaction and analysis on the postgame show, and on Patriots Fifth Quarter on WBZ-TV.
