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Replay: Patriots Postgame Show Mon Oct 14 - 06:00 PM | Tue Oct 15 - 11:55 AM

Bill Belichick Conference Call Transcript

New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick addresses the media during his conference call on Monday, December 26, 2011.

BB: Hope everyone had a good holiday weekend with your families. We did. We're back at it, finishing up the Miami game then moving onto Buffalo. Like I said after the game, there were some ups and downs in the game but I give the players credit for adjustments that they made in the game. Hopefully we can work on little things and get better. We need to do some of the things that we've been doing well that have helped us win 12 games this year. Buffalo of course had a big win over Denver; turned the ball over, played well on offense and defense, got big plays in the kicking game as well. We know what they're capable of and we'll have to do a good job this week.  

Q: Did you get to enjoy Christmas at all yesterday or was it just pedal to the metal and you're working all day?  

BB: We kind of treated yesterday as an extra day. We all took some time off.  

Q: Can you recall many in your coaching career that you were able to get the holiday right on the holiday like that?  

BB: You always do the best you can on that. Some years it fits a little cleaner than others. Thanksgiving this year was after the Monday night game and then on the road in Philadelphia and all. It all evens out, I guess, over time. It's nice when it works out like it did yesterday - that was great.  

Q: How did Shaun Ellis handle seeing not seeing as much time during the course of the year leading up to Saturday's game?  

BB: Shaun is a very professional guy. He's done a good job for us all year. He's done whatever we've asked him to do; mentally he's always into his job and his responsibilities. Everybody feels confident in counting on him in whatever situation.  

Q: Peter King reported this morning that there was an emotional scene involving Robert Kraft in the locker room after the game. Is there anything you can tell us about that?  

BB: It was kind of between the coaches and players and Mr. Kraft and his family. If anybody else wants to talk about it, I'll let them talk about it. It's kind of a private [matter], emotional but private.  

Q: In terms of what took place along the offensive line, how much do you look at Dante Scarnecchia and what he's able to accomplish as he's able to be a key to help the team pull through in situations like that?  

BB: Well Dante does a great job for us and he has since I've been here. We go back quite a ways - back to the '96 season here. Dante, as I've said many times before, is really just an outstanding coach at every level - whether it's working with experienced players or developing young players or game planning against sophisticated schemes or teaching the most basic techniques to rookies, undrafted players, things like that. He really is very thorough, well prepared, smart, communicates well with his players, does quickly - I've seen that many times before. I have a lot of confidence in him. He's done a great job all the years that I've been here. I'm fortunate to have him as part of the staff.  

Q: What indications do you have right now in terms of Logan Mankins and his availability going forward?  

BB: I don't really know much more than I knew on Saturday. Yesterday was Christmas, so today's not a normal Monday. We'll see where everybody is today and more importantly Wednesday when we hit the field again.  

Q: You're one of the best in the AFC in terms of turnover differential. You kind of made a turnaround around game eight. Did you have to say something or did the players take it amongst themselves to get going in those areas?  

BB: We talk about it every day. We talk about it from the first day of training camp. We talk about it every day, every week, every game. It's a top priority for us: protect the football whenever we handle it, whether it's on offense or in the kicking game or if we're on defense and get possession of the ball. There's never a day that goes by that it doesn't get talked about and emphasized. Of course the players are aware of it, as they should be; they know how important it is and so does everybody else.  

Q: What are your thoughts on Alex Silvestro in terms of what you liked about him to promote him to the roster on Friday?  

BB: Just the way we were going into the game, he gave us a little versatility and depth in different positions on the defensive line and also in the kicking game. In the end, he was active because of his depth and quality of the play as well but also in terms of the positions he gave us; he was able to do multiple things.

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