The Jets keep building up Sunday’s AFC East showdown with the Patriots. The Patriots keep playing it down.
At Gillette Stadium this morning, there were questions related to ring-kissing and information-pumping. The Pats weren’t taking the bait.
“We know it’s gonna be a tough game,” said Patriots head coach Bill Belichick. "(The Jets) have their home opener, they’ve got a good football team, they’re playing with a lot of confidence. We’ll have to play our best. I’m sure they’ll be ready to go. They were ready to go last week, I’m sure they’ll be ready to go this week.”
Asked his feelings about Jets head coach Rex Ryan, Belichick said, “I have a lot of respect for him and his football team.”
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who figures to be looking at a Jets defense with bad intentions, was a little more colorful. But not much.
“They play with a lot of confidence, I wouldn’t expect them to roll over for us,” Brady said. “We’re gonna have to play a great game...we need to match that level of intensity (the Jets are bringing. They’re a confident team. Talk is cheap, we’ve gotta go out there and play.”
“They can treat it however they want to treat it,” Brady said when told that Jets defensive tackle Kris Jenkins said the Jets were preparing for this game like it’s their Super Bowl. “We’re gonna treat it like we treat every game. We’re gonna put everything we have into it. It’s an important game, no doubt. Division game, playing on the road in a tough place to play, but uh, it’s not the Super Bowl. That’s not until February.”
Patriots running back Kevin Faulk said that Belichick spoke to the team Wednesday morning about the way he wants them to act in the face of any verbal water balloons lobbed by Gang Green.
"(Belichick) said he’s known the (Ryan) family for a long time and they’re not going to think they’re second to anyone, they want to be No. 1 and there ain’t nothing wrong with that,” said Faulk.
Added Brady, “We follow the lead of our head coach. We expect to go out and play well so to go out there and make a bunch of predictions, ‘We’re gonna do this’ and ‘We’re gonna do that’ and ‘This is how we’re gonna be’ it really doesn’t mean much. We feel if we do our work and go and play to our abilities the outcome will be what we are hoping for. If not, it won’t be no matter what you say on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.”