Jay Fiedler Interview

For Immediate Release – New York Jets

Jay Fiedler 8.11.05

On how comfortable he is with the offense?
I’m very comfortable. I think I’ve picked up the offense very well throughout the months of offseason work and the last couple weeks of training camp. It suits me very well. I think coach Heimerdinger and myself are on the same page with the way we look at routes and the way we analysis the game.

On his feelings going into the first preseason game?
I want to go out there and score points. It’s like any other game. The first thing is that you want to be sure of is the tempo. Coming in and out of the huddle you get guys lined up in the right spot. You make sure everyone understands what their job is. Then you just go out there and play. It will be nice to get that first hit out of the way and get that physical part going and being in live competition again.

On what a preseason game can offer?
I think anytime you go out on the field, preseason, regular season, even in practice, you try to get better and you try to learn about what you can do offensively. As much as we communicate in practice about certain situations that can happen, (you don’t really know how to handle them) until you get into a live game. When they are going full speed against a live look, that?s where you learn what the other guys can do and what they are thinking.

On coming back to New York to play?
Everything and more, it’s been great. Coming back here, I have a lot of respect for these guys from the top on down. Coach Edwards is one of the most exciting coaches that I’ve been around. He’s a guy that really knows the game on the field and off, from a player’s perspective, and knows how to handle the players well. He’s someone that you really want to go out there and play for.

On Chas Gessner?
Chas is doing a great job. For a receiver, you have to get to a point where you are not thinking so much and you start reacting on the field. I think he’s really turned the corner in that respect. Once those guys learn the offense well enough that they don’t have to come out of the huddle thinking about where they have to line up and what my adjustments are and they are just going and reacting to what they see, that?s the point you want to be at when the regular season starts up. Chas is getting there.

On throwing to Chas Gessner, a fellow Ivy-Leager?
It’s very rare. I think myself and Keith Elias both came out in the same year and we were the first ones, especially in a skilled position, to come out of the Ivy League in quite a few years. There have been one or two guys every year that have come out and there have been some Ivy League guys who have gone to the Pro Bowl and have been stars in the League. It’s exciting to see that, but it?s very rare to get two skilled position guys especially from the Ivy League to be on the same team.

On having a sense of urgency going into tomorrow’s game?
I don’t know if I’d say a greater sense of urgency. Anytime you go out on to the field there’s that sense of urgency to produce and make sure the team is moving forward. Whatever the situation is with Chad (Pennington) and with my situation, that’s not the way I approach going out there and getting myself better. I’m going to go out and try to react to what I see. (I want to) play a better, clean game, limiting the mistakes I can make and try to make a few plays while I’m out there.

On working with both the primary and secondary teams?
I’ve gotten a lot of work, especially in the offseason and then though out this camp. I’ve worked with the number ones at least once a day, everyday, with Chad (Pennington) only really going for one practice. I’ve gotten a lot of great work with them and I’ve also gotten a lot of work with the number twos when Chad’s in. I have a pretty good feel for the first and second string guys, so who ever goes out there, the communication is there with me.

On the offense coming together?
I don’t know if anything has really kicked-in for me personally. I think it’s a team effort. It’s when all 11 guys start clicking. The QB looks a lot better when all 11 guys are practicing at that pace and practicing well. Early on in camp, there are a lot of things that go on. You make mistakes and then you talk about it and the next time out, hopefully, you don’t make those mistakes. I think we’re getting to a point, as a team, that we are really feeling each other out the same way and looking at the defense the same way, so it’s easier to anticipate things and know where the receiver is going to end up. That communication is going to continue throughout. Certainly, in the preseason games you see a lot more that can happen and a lot more ways that they can react. We will learn a lot from the game film after this game.

On how much he will play on Friday?
I’m not really sure. I think right now the plan is to go the first quarter, for me. I don’t know how much the rest of the team is going to go; if (they will go) a series or two or if they are going to finish up the quarter with me.

On living in Miami?
Miami is the sixth borough, so there where people coming out of the wood work down there. I had some family in Miami as well. I think I’ve been around long enough that I know how to handle those distractions.

On being back in the New York area?
During training camp I don’t get to visit much of anything. Since I’ve been up here, since March, I’ve gone around seeing a bunch of places and some buddies that live up here.

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