Patriots Blog: Aqib Talib Working Into Shape, Ready To Face Jets
FOXBORO (CBS) -- Aqib Talib has found himself in the center of Patriots media sessions as of late. The new corner came in last week and made a splash in his first game with the team. His pick-six touchdown was the equivalent to a welcome-to--New England call.
He said the media scrums here in Foxboro are bigger than they were in Tampa. As for the short turnaround and getting ready for the Jets, Talib says he's ready.
"Getting on that tape, getting a good feel for your opponent. We're about three or four days short of a regular week or whatever, so that's the biggest challenge right there," Talib said.
The short turnaround could pay dividends to a player like Aqib. He's been away from the game, so the more he plays, the faster he'll round into shape. Also, he'll get a crash course of spending time with his teammates.
"The more you play, the more you mesh as a secondary," Talib continued. "The more time you get together, the more it helps."
Rex Avoids Trash-Talking Pats
Among other things, Pats-Jets week is a chance to hear from Rex Ryan. The Jets head coach always seems to ruffle feathers in this rivalry but for some reason -- maybe the holiday -- Rex seemed to be in a thankful mood this week. He gave praise to Tom Brady, and by praise I mean he was almost gushing over QB12.
"You can almost say he's a machine back there," said Ryan. "The thing about him, he's a machine, yet he's a passionate and fiery leader. You wish he was just a machine. His competitive side elevates his team. That's what you get with those once-in-a-generation type quarterbacks."
He said all of that and at times it looked as if he was going to break down. Rex got back to his normal self when the subject of Rob Gronkowski was talked about. Rex reminded everybody that his team is without wide receiver Santonio Holmes and all-pro corner Darrelle Revis. Then, he threw in the usual Rex Ryan jab.
"Clearly, Gronkowski is one of the premier players in this league, so I hate the fact that he's hurt," Ryan said. "But if he's going to miss a game, I'm not upset that he's missing our game."
The Jets coach even had something to say about Aqib Talib. He would have liked it if the Pats would have waited until after Thursday to insert him into the lineup. Rex said Aqib is talented and his team will have to adjust.
"As if they needed another great player," Ryan said. "Obviously, Belichick does a lot of things on defense to take advantage of players' talent, so it will be very interesting to see what he does with Talib."
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