Willie Anderson Guys Quotations

I get tired of hearing about the Bengals' draft picks, ... They talk about picks in the early '90s. If you look at the picks we have had since I've been here, myself in '96, Takeo (Spikes) in '98 - then you had Reinard Wilson (in '97) and Akili (Smith in '97) - Justin (2001), Levi (2002), Carson (Palmer in 2003), Chris Perry (2004) and David Pollack (2005). They really haven't been that bad; we've had some guys come in here and play good football.

Guys were infuriated. But I know him. He's not a dirty player. His momentum just kept him going into Carson. It wasn't a dirty play.

Guys have to realize that it took us 15 years to get here. It's not going to be easy for us. They don't start throwing you bones for another five, six, seven years. We've got to come to work, take the shovel, and break up the rocks with the sledgehammer. It's not going to be easy. It's just the hand that we've been dealt.

Our job is to make those guys successful. We know no glory is going to come to us. But if we can get our quarterback throwing for 300 yards and after the game he's not limping and his jersey's not dirty, and Rudi's jersey is dirty and he's running, that's a good game for us.

Our job is to make those guys successful, ... We know no glory is going to come to us. But if we can get our quarterback throwing for 300 yards and after the game he's not limping and his jersey's not dirty, and Rudi's jersey is dirty and he's running, that's a good game for us.

Regular guys don't have that kind of attitude. Only elite guys have that temperament.

Our motto is still keep shoveling. We want to be the guys with the shovel in our hand, getting dirty and not getting all glamorized and Hollywood after two games.

I was one of those guys who wouldnt stick around. (After practice), I was gone,

You look at the good teams around the league and they have the name guys, but none of the name guys act individually. The Patriots, the Falcons and the Eagles. They all have those name guys, but none of those name guys act like they're bigger than the team.

That's great coming from you quarterback. It makes guys like Levi want to get back out there and protect him.

It was funny. I knelt down next to all three guys and said a prayer and they all jumped up.

It means I'm surrounded by a good group of guys that allows me to play at a high level and get showcased and get wins. Anytime you get an individual honor, to me, it always comes back to the guys around you. The guys I'm playing with on the offensive line - Bobbie Williams, Richie Braham, Levi (Jones) and (Eric) Steinbach - those guys allow me to go out and get my talent showcased because they're playing so well as a unit. Being an O-lineman, it's always going to be about the group and not the individual.

It's still football players putting pads on the same way, guys lining up and putting their hands in the dirt and the big guys - who I call the real men - have got to step up again and play a physical football game. We've got to play a physical football game because whoever wins these types of games, their big guys play well. Point blank.

These guys have been successful for years. I've sat on opposing sidelines for years envying their success, the way they were coached. Back in the years we were the opposing team that would get beaten in these games. I came out years ago and said I was mad that we weren't progressing.