|
Running back LaDainian Tomlinson is coming off another rushing title and while that may be reason for celebration, his only thoughts center around the NFL playoffs and not reliving the disappointment he felt a year ago when the Chargers were eliminated. Philip Rivers said that was the most physical game of the year when you played in Nashville. Do you agree? “Yeah, it was pretty physical. It was definitely if not the most then one of the most – top two at least – physical games we’ve played in this year.” Did it feel like a playoff game? “Yeah it did. It did feel like a playoff game last time and it had that atmosphere. It was like a playoff game. That’s kind of what I’m expecting again this week, the same type of intensity level, the same kind of atmosphere. It should be fun.” Will the “extra curricular” things that went on in that game have any impact this week? “No, I think you throw all that out the window. You just focus on this week. You don’t really worry about that too much. You just…we’re focused on trying to play a good game, a good solid game against this team. It’s going to be tough, it’s going to be physical again. That’s the way we’re approaching it.” Is this the match-up you wanted to see in the first round? “I really don’t think it matters at this point. We’re playing Tennessee. There’s no sense in worrying about match-ups. I always think of whatever happens is going to happen. You can’t control it. There’s no sense in worrying about the match-ups. We’re playing Tennessee and our focus is on Tennessee this week?” What might you have learned in two playoff losses that could help you this time around? “Hopefully how to deal with adversity and emotions a little bit better, of being in the atmosphere of a playoff game. An emotional atmosphere, emotional for everybody: players, coaches, fans … everybody that’s involved and how to deal with it and not letting the pressure really get to you.” How often do you think about the loss last year to New England? “Not at all. It’s not something I think about anymore.” How long did it stay with you? “Probably a couple months or so.” How advantageous is it that the game is being played on Sunday and you’ve got a full week to prepare? “We kind of get to get back on a regular schedule for us. It was a short week last week and I think the coaching staff handled it well as far as the way we prepared. On Wednesday we didn’t practice. We kind of did more of a walkthrough. I think that helped us just kind of get back into the week of a short week and preparing for it and getting off our legs. This week it’s a normal week so we have the typical today where we do get to rest a little bit all day tomorrow and we get back to work on Wednesday.” Do you think this team is peaking at the right time? “We’re pretty encouraged. That’s what we talked about all year long, so we’re at the point where we’re doing that. Hopefully it can continue.” Are you surprised at the way local fans reacted to the incident last week with Philip talking to Jay Cutler on the field? “I didn’t see that part. I didn’t see the fans say that. Again, we talk about the time that the fans were booing us. At that time we said they have the right to their own opinion. They pay their money to come watch us play. They have the right to voice their opinions. It’s the same way. I feel like the fans can say whatever they want about any individual player because they have their right. They spend their money to come watch us play. Obviously when things like that happen, you’re going to get fans that are weighing in on it. I remember, I think it was my second year after we lost to St. Louis in St. Louis and I said something about not having any heart. Obviously fans kind of came back and said I wasn’t worthy of talking like that. People have their different opinions. That’s the fans and that’s how they feel.” Are you surprised at the way the local fans reacted to the incident last week with Rivers talking to Jay Cutler on the field? “It’s pretty much done with. Really I’m looking forward to the playoffs. I’m really past the rushing title now that it’s done. My focus is really on moving forward and trying to win playoff games. That’s about it to be honest with you.” Do you have any New Year’s resolutions? “Not really. I just try to be a better person this coming year than I was last year. That’s kind of my goal on and off the field as a husband, whatever it may be.” Not to win a playoff game? “That’s a New Year’s resolution now, to win a playoff game. Come on, now! That would be something that’s been missing in my beginning a new year’s time, a playoff win has been missing.” When people talk about the “change in speed” from the regular season to the postseason, how different is it? “To me it’s very noticeable. Obviously preseason to the regular season, the beginning of the season, people are always…the step is much faster because everything is new. You’re 0-0. Everybody’s hopes are high. Then that hope goes even higher when you get to the playoffs because you’re that closer to winning a championship. It seems like it steps up even more. I think what happens is there’s a never-die attitude in the playoffs. You’re not going to get a team to really quit late in the third quarter, fourth quarter where they say, ‘You know what, these guys got us.’ You’re not going to get a team to do that. We’ve seen time after time teams come back from 20 points down, two touchdowns down, they come back because there’s a never-die attitude that teams have. That’s why the intensity is so high throughout the whole game. That’s the difference.” Have you allowed yourself to think what it would feel like to win a playoff game? “I have. I always believe you have to envision it before it happens. You have to picture it happen and then it happens. I have. I have a vision of it happening.” What do you think it would feel like? “I think it would feel like almost a normal game, but meaning that you get another week to play on. You’re not going to go home. You get another week to continue to play for the championship; nothing more, nothing less. You don’t want to get to a point where you say, ‘We won a playoff game’ and you breath a sigh of relief, but also you’ve got to understand that it continues. It intensifies everything that you’re playing for. We’ve got to approach it that way.” How do you think Norv is going to be in the playoffs as opposed to Marty? “I don’t know. The whole season really, Norv has been just kind of really laid back. Obviously he’s had a couple of things that’s on his mind to us at times throughout the season. I think he’ll be the same way he’s always been, just kind of cool and relaxed and letting it hang loose. I think that will be his approach.” Does that mean he won’t go for it on 4th-and-11 from the 30? “No, I won’t say that.” Did Marty seem different come January? “I think Marty played the percentages more. I really think he was a guy that looked at the percentages in different situations and said, ‘The percentage says let’s run the ball here and make them drive on us. If we have to kick it away, let our defense play.’ I think Marty played it that way. Not to say that that was wrong. That’s the way he believed, that’s the way he has won his entire career playing the percentages.” Looking at New England, did you ever think a team could go 16-0? “No, I never thought a team could. I didn’t think it was impossible, but I just thought that while I was playing in the league it would never happen because of the way football is today with the salary cap. It’s hard to get a core of guys on the same team that believe in the same thing and are willing to work for it, both veterans and young players. It’s hard to do that. So many guys are switching teams. Also we talked about the loyalty factor. The loyalty factor in this game is pretty much gone with trades and stuff like that and guys saying, ‘You know what? I’m not going to play for this organization.’ I thought it would never happen, but once again it kind of shows you that New England really defies all the odds of everybody else. They just find a way to show everybody in the league how it should be done.” When you were drafted, how long did you think it would take for the Chargers to be a postseason success? “I don’t know. I really didn’t know, but my focus was just on being a part of the puzzle to help us be successful. I didn’t put a number on it but I was willing to do whatever it took to make it happen sooner than later.” Do you feel that a postseason win is overdue at this point? “I mean, we’ve been talking about that for a while so I don’t think it needs to be mentioned. We’ve got a big game this week. It’s going to be a tough game. We know what we’re up against. It’s not going to come easy.” Are your offensive linemen holding their heads higher today because of the rushing title? “No, they feel the same way (I do). In fact, it was a just a congratulations. We all said that to each other. It’s moving on. They feel the same way.” How do you feel about this team going into the playoffs compared to last year? “Last year, the season we had was…it felt so easy throughout the year. Winning something like 10 straight, you had to get to the point where we were kind of a little arrogant and saying, ‘You know what? We don’t think anybody out there can beat us. We won 10 straight.’ You can have a tendency, its human nature to do that. We did that last year and we paid for it. This year things have come tougher for us. We have really been in some tough games. We have lost some close games, some tough games and we’ve had games where we just got embarrassed. I think all that said, you go into the playoffs with a new-found respect somewhat.” Did that arrogance extend into the New England game last year? “Of course. We had just come off 10 straight. Obviously the first seed and looking at a New England team back then who we felt like we matched up well against and we would be able to beat them.”
|
Print
E-mail
Del.icio.us
Digg
