SUPER BOWL XLIV RECOLLECTIONS

New Orleans Saints 31 vs. Indianapolis Colts 17
February 7, 2010
* Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, Fla. *

NEW ORLEANS LB JONATHAN VILMA

 (on the play of the defense against the Colts offense) "We did a great job. This is what we worked for all year. We came out here and showed we belonged. It was a great job by our entire defense. I can't thank our coaches enough. They did a great job getting us ready."

(on what winning the Super Bowl means to the Saints and the city of New Orleans) "This is a blessing to the city of New Orleans. I am so happy we were able to bring it to them."

(on winning the Super Bowl in Miami) "It is a dream come true. I cannot express what it means to win this game, it is absolutely a dream come true."

(on Tony Dungy's prediction that the Colts would blowout the Saints) "I didn't watch SportsCenter, NFL Network, or any of that. I don't know about that. A blowout? That didn't happen."

(on his emotions after the interception) "We wanted to be excited at that point, but we remember watching that New England game. We watched that on film. They were up by two scores with minimal time on the clock and Indy was able to pull it out and win the game. We were happy at first, excited that we got up by two scores, but we realized that we still had to keep the pressure on, especially with Peyton Manning."

(on limiting Peyton Manning's production) "That's what we want to do to all quarterbacks, we try to limit them. We know he is a great quarterback, if not one of the best quarterbacks. We understand that he is going to make those plays. He is going to make tight throws and get the ball downfield, but we want to go out and keep the pressure on him."

(on switching schemes) "We didn't really switch too much. We started getting a little more aggressive in the fourth quarter. That is what we did all year, be aggressive and get after the quarterback. We felt like if we were going to win the game, or lose the game, whichever one happened, we were going to play that way."

(on Porter and Greer) "With Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer in the game, we are a better defense. There is no doubt about it. With them healthy, we are a great defense. They came out and have been healthy throughout the playoffs and it's been great for us."

(on the defense during the fourth quarter) "That's what we've been doing. The fourth quarter we've always said we're going to blitz. We want to go out there and play our defense and if they score, so be it, but we are not going to back down to anybody. We are going to go out there and play tough defense."

(on the goal line stand in the fourth quarter) "The key was really playing to execute. We really didn't do anything magical down there, we just executed."

(on what winning the Super Bowl means for the city of New Orleans)"The win for us is great and exciting, it truly is. But words can't describe what it means to be a champion for the city of New Orleans. The New Orleans Saints are Super Bowl champions and the city of New Orleans are Super Bowl Champions."

(on Saints Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams' plan) "He does a great job (and) he's done a great job all year with play-calling, game planning and understanding not only the offensive coordinator, but the quarterback, the running back."

(on being the captain) "At this point, being the captain comes natural. It's what I do. I am glad that my teammates voted me captain. It comes with a lot of responsibility. That right there is part of the responsibility, getting the defense into the right checks, making plays on the ball."

(on what he was saying to the team when they took the lead) "It is not over. With Colts QB Peyton Manning, it is never over until it's 0:00 on the clock."

(on winning the Super Bowl in Miami) "It's something that I was really downplaying all year long, but this is a tremendous feeling. To be selected to the Pro Bowl in Miami and not play in it because I'm in the Super Bowl in Miami and to come out here and win, this is great."

(on how winning the Super Bowl compares to winning the National Championship at the University of Miami) "The feeling is pretty much the same. We were so dominant back then and it was a blowout game. We knew we were going to win the game early on. This game was a little different and it makes it that much more satisfying."