Patriot

Patriots players comment on their upcoming AFC Conference Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens during locker room media access on Thursday, January 19, 2012

PATRIOTS LB DANE FLETCHER

(On how difficult Ray Rice is to stop)
"He has a lot of components to his running ability. He is quick, he can get out quick and he can also catch the ball. He is a good receiver as well."

(On what it means to the defense to have Patrick Chung back)
"Having Chung back there brings a lot to communication. He knows what is going on and he is a good leader as far as getting the communication. He is quick and brings a lot to the defense. Having [Brandon] Spikes back brings some force as well."

(On if it will be difficult to control the excitement on Sunday)
"Yeah, controlling your emotions and what not and just bringing yourself back and just saying that it is a game and that is always something that you have to bring to these playoff games."

(On the impact of having Patriots alumni serve as honorary captains)
"Having guys like Troy Brown and everyone out there, they brought a lot to this organization in the past with Super Bowl wins and everything else. Having them out there reminds younger players like myself and a lot of other guys on this team what it is all about."

(On the success of the defense last week)
"The defense played well last game and we take a lot from that and carried it on to this game, I guess. We take as much as we can from it and hopefully that carries on."

(On if the defense's confidence comes from the return of injured players)
"I think so. I think it is just as a unit combined. It is not one individual. You feel confident in everybody that you are playing around, so it just carries all over."

(On if this team looks forward to creating their own legacy in Patriots history)
"I think that is something that everybody kind of wants, to make your own little niche in the organization and kind of be remembered. One of my coaches always said, ‘do not be soon forgotten and long remembered,' and I kind of live by that."

(On the difficulty of defending the hurry-up offense)
"You have to get a lot going on with that hurry-up offense. You have to get your signals in, you have to get your front lined up that much quicker and you have to get the coverage organized that much quicker, I guess."

(On how difficult it is to get to this point)
"It is not easy, there are four teams left and two teams left [in the AFC]. There are 32 teams in the league, so it is not easy."

(On the difficulty of getting prepared with the lockout)
"That is something that all 32 teams had to deal with, so I can't say it is just our team that had a shorter camp or anything. It is something every 32 teams had to deal with and it was a tough process."

(On the play of Joe Flacco)
"Flacco is good. He can step up, he can throw the ball, he has a big arm and he can get it 65 yards down the field, as well as he can scramble a little bit and find what is open. He is a really good quarterback."

(On if he does anything special for a game of this magnitude)
"I'm just going to do everything I do in the past. I'm not going to change a thing and just get prepared like it is an everyday game."