A SPANISH INQUISITION: Bears DE Alex Brown

AB: No, 'cause their offense doesn't change. They do the same thing. As long as #5 is in there, they don't change much. I mean, [Donovan] McNabb is--oh man, I don't think he gets talked about enough, as being one of the top quarterbacks in the league, and he definitely is that. So, we got our hands full. They have a rookie running back and he's really good. Those receivers are excellent--they're super fast. The offensive line is good, too. So, as a defense, we have to get after the quarterback. We gotta get after Donovan. If we let him sit back there in the pocket, he'll kill us.

SS: Yeah, your pass rush was really solid at the beginning of the year. You guys were on pace to double your sack total from last year and then it kinda dropped off. Can you pinpoint a specific reason why it hasn't been as effective?

AB: You know what--people block different! They look at what you're doing well and they try to take it away. So what we have to do is continue to get that pressure on the quarterback even though they're trying to take it away. So, I'm hoping we can get that done this game. But, that's the reason. People watch film and they adjust.     

SS: There's been a lot of talk about Lovie Smith's job being in jeopardy. Do you think the guys feel added pressure to win to get their head coach off the hot seat?

AB: No. Well, I don't believe that the media puts a person on the hot seat. I mean, just because the Tribune, or just because the Sun Times, or whoever--or ESPN--or whoever, says that Coach Smith is on the hot seat doesn't mean he is. I mean, Coach Smith has done a lot for this organization. I was here before Coach Smith and I remember how it was. And it was nothing like it is now. We've come a long way with him. We've been to the playoffs a few times--we actually went to a Super Bowl. We won the NFC Championship with him. You just don't get rid of a really good coach. Now it's up to the players to go out and play. But I don't--personally I don't feel pressure to go out and play better, I guess. I play as hard as I can, regardless, because I love football. I don't play mediocre until my coach needs me or until people say my coach needs me to play well. I don't do that. I go and play as hard as I can and see what happens, you know?
 

SS: In light of all the negative media coverage, do you feel like this team needs to come out and make a statement Sunday or do you think, at this point in the season, it doesn't matter what you do on the field anymore, you're still gonna get that bad press?  

AB: I think that regardless of what we do Sunday, we still can't listen to it. Whatever happens outside--I mean, this changes week to week, I think. We go out and we play well and we win this game, some people will say "okay, well they're back in it" or they... We can't listen to it. We can't--we have to believe and do it each and every week. It's about being consistent. I mean, we have a good team, but if you ain't consistent then your record is gonna show it. And we're, I mean, we're playing at about a .500 level right now. If we can be consistent then it'll--this season will change around in a hurry.  So, we got two games against Minnesota. We still have Green Bay again. We've got a big game Sunday night against the Eagles, so we gotta start there.

SS: Fans of teams like the Browns and the Redskins, they don't believe that their organizations are trying their best to get better. Now the Bears, they've put a lot of money into players--they signed a lot of people in the offseason that they thought would make a difference. Guys like Frank Omiyale and Orlando Pace, guys that just haven't panned out the way they thought they would. Do you feel like the organization is trying to make you guys better and they just need to make better decisions with their money?

AB: That's not my decision. And it's not my place to even say anything about that. The organization makes decisions to make us better. I mean, why wouldn't they?

SS: Well some people think teams are only going to work to get good enough to make a big profit and that they're not willing to put in the money and effort to take the next step.

AB: I don't believe that about the Bears. I own a volleyball team in Puerto Rico. [Los Indios de Mayaguez] I'm not gonna make a decision to bring in a player that I don't believe is gonna make my team better. I'm not gonna bring in a player that I think is gonna actually make my team worse. I mean, it makes no sense. So no, I don't believe that. 

SS: If you had to sign any player from the Bears to be on your volleyball team, who would it be?

AB: Hmm...Greg Olsen.

SS: Yeah, he's tall. And mobile. And he's got that bleached blonde California beach thing going on.  

AB: Yeah he can jump a lil bit. He probably has played a little bit in his day. [laughs]

A fan does the "Gator Chomp" with Florida alum Brown.