On playing against the Ravens this weekend: "I'm looking forward to this matchup of playing against Baltimore with what we have at stake, as far as getting out on the field and trying to get back into the win column and get this thing rolling. We know this is going to be a tough task, playing against (Ravens head coach) John Harbaugh, who has those guys going. He is developing a young quarterback who is really playing well. The defense is very aggressive. It's going to be a challenge, in all phases of the game, for us to go out and get back on track."
On whether he regrets not knowing the rule about overtime ending in a tie: "No, because I think 100%, everybody in the league knows now. If I'm a trend-setter, then I have kind of set the trend."
On whether the offense will do something different to become less stagnant: "There is obviously a shock value when you get into a situation like that, of being able to pull a defense back and try to figure out what it is that you're doing. I think, in this game, it's about being in a rhythm. If that's in the run game, in the pass game, on defense, it's important that you get into that rhythm. If you can get into that rhythm early, you begin to get things rolling. We haven't been able to do that in the last couple of weeks. We found periods of the game in which we have gotten into a rhythm that have led to points. It's important that we get back into that mode. Being the quarterback, it obviously starts with me. It starts with me completing passes, getting us into the right running play if that's what is called for. That is something I have to do in order to get this team moving forward."
On how the last couple of days have been for him: "This is 10 years for me, so I have been through the down days, the down weeks, and I've been through the highs. I don't let anything like this affect me in any way. I know what my job (requires) me to do and I know what these guys in the locker room look for me to do. That is the only thing I concern myself with."
On why he thinks his accuracy has dropped over the last couple of games: "I see myself, whether it is footwork or if it's pressing a little bit. Just like I tried to talk about rhythm, you look at that pass maybe being something that gets you going, so you kind of get on the ball too much and the ball sails on you a little bit. I watched these last two games thoroughly and I also watched the beginning of the Seattle game. (I just need to) get my feet under me, relax, and be able to go from there. I've watched, as games continue on, I have seen that. It's important that I get back into that mode starting early and continue on with that throughout the game."
On whether there is a reason for him pressing and not being in his comfort zone: "If it's adrenaline, especially that Giants game, we know what was (at stake) in that game. We were looking forward to starting fast on those guys and scoring points. If you look at our division games when we've scored points and done great things, there may be one or two plays in that game that really have cost us. Whatever I can do to change that is something that I've tried to correct and be able to get us in a better position to win."
On whether it bothers him that a lot of fans want head coach Andy Reid to be fired: "It does. It bothers me when it comes to any of my teammates or coaches. I think the way I can try to eliminate that is just to go out and play football and win games. We know that you're not going to please everybody. Everybody is going to have their own opinion about what is going on around here. People think that change is the answer. Andy is a guy that I feel to be here for a long time. I expect to be here for a long time. The thing we are really focused on here in this building is just going out and doing what we have to do to win. Believe me, all of this will be forgotten and nobody will be talking about it."
On how he feels now that there has been so much discussion about his lack of knowledge of the overtime rule: "It doesn't make me feel bad at all. I was truly being honest. The thing about it is that now other people are starting to say that they didn't know it either. Am I wrong for that? No. Should I have known that rule? There are a lot of rules that coaches, officials, players, they don't know. Any time an official goes out on the field and then you see (NFL vice president of officiating) Mike Pereira trying to correct that mistake, that shows that officials don't even know everything in the rule book. (Neither do) coaches (or) players. What people may say about me, it doesn't bother me. As you can see, every time something happens that I have been a part of, more and more things have come out and people begin to sit back and say, 'Oh, maybe he was right.' Should I have know that rule? Yes. But, there are a lot of rules in that rulebook that a lot of us don't know, and we ask questions."
On the fact that ties have been around since 1970: "The rule has been adjusted. I know that there is a tie. I was expecting to at least go to another overtime, maybe with less minutes. The last time it happened was Pittsburgh, I believe, in 2002. From what I understand (Steelers WR) Hines Ward was a part of that and didn't even know it was still in there. So, I guess I'm not the only one."
On the Ravens defense: "When you watch those guys, they feed off of each other's energy. I look at their defense all across the board and their adrenaline and style of play. Their front four (RDT) Trevor Pryce and (NT Haloti) Ngata, for a defensive tackle to have two interceptions is uncharacteristic. Then you go to the linebacking corps, where early in the offseason, they were having problems with whether they were going to franchise (ROLB) Terrell Suggs or trade him. Now, I believe he has five sacks and two interceptions for touchdowns. (FS) Ed Reed is a guy who has that ballhawk ability. He can make big plays for them on defense, and the same goes for (LB) Ray Lewis. Those two guys, Ray and Ed, have really been playing at a high level. When you look across the board, everybody has kind of fed off of that."
On whether it is too much pressure on him to throw 60 times in a game: "No. As a quarterback, you want to throw the ball. I think it would be different if I was into that rhythm and was connecting on some of those passes, or if some of those passes that were dropped were caught. Again, it all changes each week. We're not going to throw 60 times every week. Yes, we do have to get our running game going. There are a lot of different things in a course of the game that we have to improve on. If it calls for me to throw the ball more, then I'm willing to do that."
On whether it makes it easy for the defense when you throw on all 18 third downs: "I don't think so. When the play is called, we have to execute. It is incumbent on all of us to come together and do it and get the job done. We weren't able to do that. When we were called to run the ball, we weren't able to pick up the first down in the run game either. Again, it's important that we look at all phases of it. If it's running, blocking, passing, catching, we (need to) elevate our game and make sure we get the job done."
On how he would respond to people who think he doesn't have the desire to win because he smiles: "I don't (respond). I just go out and play football. There's no reason for me to sit up here and try to answer every question that people may have about me. You're not going to impress everyone. I have learned that throughout my career, I have learned that growing up. For people to say they don't like the way I walk, talk, smile, play, dress, it doesn't matter. That's not something that I try to entertain to try to persuade people to move to my side. The only thing I can do is do my job and do it at a high level."
On what the confidence level is on the team: "I am truly confident in these guys. I practice with these guys, I work out with these guys, I see these guys on and off the field. The confidence level has never swayed in another direction. These guys are truly confident in each other, they are confident in themselves. Really, what we have to do is get into a rhythm like in the game. We felt like we had that rhythm in that three-game win streak we had going into the Giants game. We need to get back to that. That really entails, whether it's me or any of the other guys who have been here, or even the young guys to step up and set the tone. It has to be done and it has to be done now."
On whether he regrets throwing a pass to Bengals WR Chad Ocho Cinco before the game: "No, I don't regret doing that. I threw one ball to him. Chad, I'm sure, did that for a reason—to run and catch a ball. I still look at it as me warming up. He caught one ball and got out of the drill. Anything that involves me is something to talk about. Am I sorry it happened? No. Is it an issue? No."
On why he thinks everything involving him seems to become an issue: "I'm not even going to waste my time trying to figure out why. I'm just going to do my job."
On whether winning games would alleviate criticism like that: "Absolutely. Things would be different if we were winning. Nobody would be talking about any of these issues. If we had beat the Bengals, nobody would even be talking about it. Again, the thing we need to focus on is what we need to do to beat Baltimore. We focus on that and get the job done, then we move on."
On whether he thinks there is any frustration among players about the playcalling: "No, there is no frustration."
