Antrel Rolle clears up quote about Brees

It wouldn't be the NFL playoffs without a little drama and some bulletin-board material. Cardinals safety Antrel Rolle provided both this week and spent Wednesday trying to back-pedal his way out of it.

What set things off was this quote attributed to Rolle about Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers that reporter Michael Silver wrote on yahoo.com:

"Let me tell you something - that dude is scary. We have a great defense and we were up on him and ready to pounce, and he found ways to tear us apart.

"I don't ever want to face him again in my life. I am dead serious. I'll face Drew Brees any day of the way before I face him again."

The quote quickly made its way to New Orleans, where Rolle and the Cardinals are to meet Brees and the Saints on Saturday in an NFC divisional playoff game at the Louisiana Superdome.

Brees brushed off the remark on Tuesday telling reporters, "I think that's just part of the game. We've encountered that over the year. The fact is, that doesn't affect the way I prepare."

Rolle, however, said his quote was taken out of context, that Silver "twisted and turned" his words around.

"It's a complete and total lie," Rolle said. "First of all, I wasn't even talking to Michael Silver. Adrian (Wilson) and myself were having a private conversation and I was simply praising Aaron Rodgers.

"(Silver) decided to throw Drew Brees' name out there and I was like, 'I'm not even talking about Drew Brees. I'm talking about Aaron Rodgers. . . . I have all the respect in the world for Drew Brees. His game speaks for itself."
Rodgers passed for four touchdowns and a team playoff-record 422 yards in Green Bay's 51-45 loss to Arizona on Sunday.

"Michael Silver threw Drew Brees' name up as I was walking out of the locker room," Rolle continued. "After a game like that, who's going to be thinking about Drew Brees? The guy that just ripped us was Aaron Rodgers. That's who I was talking about. That's who I was giving praise to."

But if the Saints want to hang the quote up in the locker room, Rolle said they can have at it.

"If they want to go out there and use that as motivation, then let it be done," he said. "I don't back down from anyone."

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(azcentral.com)