Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press

Ndamukong Suh took part in a teleconference with reporters covering the New England Patriots today and was asked about this future with the Detroit Lions, his off-season workout routine and playing Tom Brady.

Here's the question-and-answer session, as transcribed by the Patriots:

Q: What do you think of the challenge of facing the Patriots offense with the way they've been playing the last month or so?

Suh: They've been playing at a very high level. It's always a great challenge to go against Tom Brady and the type of guys that they have. It's exciting, and I look forward to getting to Foxborough and preparing for them the rest of this week.

Q: Do you get up a little bit more to face a guy like Tom Brady?

Suh: He's a normal quarterback or any other guy. I wouldn't say I get extra excited, but I'm always excited to go against any type of quarterback and have an opportunity to have success against them.

Q: You've only been called for three penalties and you haven't been fined yet. Have you gone out of your way to play more within the boundaries of the rules?

Suh: I think I'm playing the same exact ball as I played last year and in years past. It's as simple as that.

Q: Did you like having the reputation of being a little bit of a villain? Did you embrace that role a little bit or did you want to change that?

Suh: I didn't give myself that so I didn't take it away. I think that's more something in your guys' hands that want to elevate that or not elevate it. It's as simple as that in my opinion.

Q: It feels like you are playing the best ball of your career now in your fifth season. Is it just something where you feel more comfortable in the NFL? Did you change your training? What do you point to for your outstanding play this year?

Suh: I think if you aren't adjusting, adapting and trying to find ways to get better each and every year, you are going in the wrong direction, which is backwards. I'm not a person to ever want to put myself in that position. So, whether that's changing different things – the way I work out, understanding different ways that people want to block me, different offenses, understanding the ins and outs and understanding what I need to do on the defensive side of the ball for my team and what my expectations are and how I fit into my role on this team – that's what I focus on every single year. I think it's really just honing in on exactly what you need to accomplish and going from there.

Q: Did you prove this year that attending OTAs and mini-camps is completed overrated?

Suh: I don't necessarily look at it like that. I more or less understood what I needed to get done for my particular self and my body so I can play all 16 games and plus and really just go from there. The great thing about this world and how it grows is that technology is very, very advanced. There's ways you can learn things without physically being in a place. We have iPads. I can start looking at New England Sunday night after we have a loss or a win and then be able to come in and talk to my coaches about it and go from there. However you look at it, people want to create different stories and different things. I don't really pay attention to it. I just understand what my goals are and how I need to accomplish them and find that path and that direction and go from there.

Q: How much do you think about your future and what it entails for you in terms of the NFL?

Suh: I don't really look at my future that far in advance. I just kind of look at things and enjoy the moments that I have right now and kind of go from there.

Q: How well are you guys playing this year? Are you looking forward to the challenge of the number one defense going against the number two offense?

Suh: It's always fun to play against great opponents. Very challenging – the things that they bring. Every single week in the NFL is a challenge. That's what you've got to look forward to – understand what the challenge is that's ahead of you, digest it and get ready to play on Sunday.

Q: You guys are winning a lot of close ball games this year, where in years past you didn't. Has Jim Caldwell and his influence played a big part in that?

Suh: I think he understood the type of team that he was coming in to and that he was going to be the head coach of. He understood that some of the issues that we had late last year was finishing out games. A lot of people know in this league, its three points or less or sometimes maybe a little bit more but not much, how games are won; the spread between games in the NFL. If you don't know how to close out a game and find ways to get that done, you are going to lose quite a bit of them.

Q: You guys lost a tough one to Arizona last week, and now you have another tough one against New England. Does this feel like a must-win so you don't drop to 7-4?

Suh: I think every single game in the NFL, whether it's Week 1 or Week 10 or Week 15, they are all must-wins, no matter what your schedule looks like. I think they are all important games, and they are always going to continue to be that way. The only ones that you could kind of exclude and say that they are even that much more [important] is after you are out of the regular season, since those no longer exist and you get into playoffs. Every one going from there is that much more important.

Q: How hungry are you to get to the playoffs?

Suh: I'm definitely excited to be able to get back there and get another true taste of the playoffs. We've got a long way ahead of us, and we've got a lot of work ahead of us to start looking ahead or doing anything of that nature.

Q: What were your impressions of watching Jonas Gray's performance against the Colts?

Suh: [It was] very impressive. [He] runs very hard and [is a] pretty big, good-sized back. It'll be a good test for our defense to rally to him and make plays and gang-tackle him and make sure we get him down.