Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Lucas giddy with Colts on tap

As cornerback Ken Lucas addressed the media Monday in the Panthers locker room, he did so with refreshed mind AND body. It?s been months since both existed at the same time.

?The bye week was definitely needed, and it came right on time from my point of view,? said Lucas. ?It allowed me a week to rest, because I was really hurting. For it to come in the middle of the season, it?s perfect. We had some banged-up guys get the opportunity to heal a little bit. I think it served us well.?

What?s even better is the Panthers 4-2 record coming out of the bye. It?s a record that belies some of the struggles the team has faced, especially with the loss to injury of both the starting quarterback and middle linebacker. But at the end of the day, 4-2 is 4-2.

?It?s good that we are where we are right now, but still, we have an ill feeling inside of us because we know we haven?t really played a complete game yet where the offense, defense and special teams have been! clicking all on all cylinders,? said Lucas. ?We feel we have that game in us, and hopefully this will be a good game to do it in, against the Indianapolis Colts.?

The Colts are 6-0, a record they are used to, having accomplished it three years running now. The defending Super Bowl champions are used to success and bring one of the top quarterbacks in the League, a multitude of offensive weapons, and a revamped defense that has speed to burn, as it showed in Monday night?s 29-7 victory at previously 4-1 Jacksonville. 

?It?ll be a great test for the defense, as well as our offense,? said Lucas. ?So this will be a good measuring stick for us to see where we are as far as the season goes. We have gotten better the last two weeks, but I feel we can get a whole lot better than we have been playing so far.

?I think everybody knows this team is full of talent, but sometimes we don?t get out there and play like we have a lot of talent. That?s where a lot of the fr! ustration comes from the media and the fans. They feel we?re n! ot perfo rming the way we?re capable of performing.?

One of the reasons fans have been restless is that all four of the Panthers wins have come on the road. Most teams don?t even win four road games all season, but they do take care of business at home. Two lackluster performances at Bank of America Stadium are the reason first place in the NFC South has been accepted, but not heralded by the home folk.

?The coaches, the players?everybody has been trying to figure out what does it take in order for us to play with that same intensity and fire that we play with on the road, to play at home,? said Lucas. ?Because it?s embarrassing for us to go out and play the way we do at home and not give the fans something to cheer about. We?ve been trying to come up with answers and figure that out. So we?re just trying to come up with a game plan.

?We need to go out there and figure out a way to go out and perform at a consistent and high level, regardless of who we?re playing, w! hether it?s the teams we?re expected to beat or if we?re the underdogs. That?s the key to winning on this level, because everybody has talent to go out there and win on any given Sunday. We?ve been on a roller coaster. We?ve got a two-game winning streak right now. Hopefully, we can make it three this week.?  

By: Janathan Budd

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Source: http://www.panthers! .com/Common/Article.aspx?id=26324
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