Fewell on what changed to improve communication on defense…

“It was just a combination of, some of our young players started to grow up. We did have a number of young players on the field at the same time. Chase Blackburn has been a tremendous welcome coming back to our squad and being able to communicate with our guys and get on the same page with our guys. I think it’s just the work throughout the whole season, guys are listening to each other, talking to each other, and never stop communicating with each other, and believing in each other.” 

Gilbride on where the Packers are schematically vulnerable…

“I’d rather not share that with you right now at this point, but I’ll say this, they have a lot of playmakers. I know their statistics, where people talk about where they rank, but I look at the other thing – their guys make a lot of big plays and they get a lot of turnovers, particularly interceptions. That’s the thing that’s scary to me, is that they have some players on that side of the ball that are very willing to take chances and gamble and if they give up a few plays they don’t mind because they’re looking for an interception. Hopefully we can stay away from those bad plays because when I think you employ that style defensively you also hopefully give us some chances on the offensive side to make some plays.”

When the punter punts the ball and the guy doesn’t touch it, is that a shutout?

Quinn: I think so and I know coach likes it and I like it when you get really good returners that don’t touch the ball so it is always a positive. We did have a good net so it is not like we shanked it out of bounds. They were good quality punts. That is what we strive for, it is good.

Fewell on getting a second shot at Packers’ QB Aaron Rodgers…

“I think anytime you have an opportunity to put the ball down, you have a chance to prove how good you are. I think that after playing them twice, knowing a little bit more about them, we’re up for that challenge to see if we can hold that guy down. It’s a big challenge for us, he’s one of the best players in the league. This is a playoff game. You’re throwing everything in the past out the window as far as everything he’s done in the past, we want to find out what we can do on Sunday.”

Gilbride on how he handles the massive heat he receives from blogs and the media…

“No one likes it. Anyone who says they like it is being less than truthful, but I think you know as a coach whether or not you’ve done a good job in, A, putting together a good plan, B, preparing your guys the way they need to be prepared. You understand the limitations and strengths that your team has. I think that most guys are pretty comfortable knowing that they’ve done about all that could be done. You live with the consequences. The bottom-line is you try to put your guys in a position where they have a chance to be successful. If you’re doing a good job, you know what your guys can do and that coupled with what is the defense doing. I think good coaches – the majority of coaches in this league are very good coaches – they’re going to be able to maximize what their guys can do within the framework of what defenses are allowing you. I think most guys can come away saying, ‘I know what the public is saying, I know what people are saying, but the reality of it is we did about all that we could do.”

quotes courtesy Giants communications dept

The Giants defense has allowed exactly 28 points in their last three games. That’s less than ten per game, or in other terms. championship-style defense. Head coach Tom Coughlin knows what it takes to win a Super Bowl. He knows if his Giants continue to stuff opponents the way they did to Atlanta today, he just may find himself in the big game again.

“I think today we played outstanding defense and that set the tone for everything else that happened in the game. It was wonderful to see it and it has happened over the last two or three weeks of the season. If we can continue to play defense like that, we can make ourselves heard in this tournament,” the coach declared from the podium after the game.

The noise will have to come from within because the Giants will be taking their show on the road for the remainder of the playoffs should they advance past the defending champion Packers next week in Green Bay.

Coughlin was pleased with the way the home crowd responded to his team’s effort – the first home playoff win in eleven years:

“We were very pleased to have an opportunity to play at home in front of our fans, it was great to have a home playoff game and have our fans involved as much as they were. Our players greatly appreciate that…I thought it was great to have a playoff game at home and to have our fans as excited to be involved in the game. The fact that it has made a huge difference and our players really responded well to it and we are excited that the fans feed the players and the players feed the fans. It was nice.”

more from Coughlin….

How important and big was the interior rush?
Those guys did an outstanding job not only that way but also against the run. You are talking about Canty and that rotation with Rocky Bernard and Linval. Those guys did an outstanding job and when it went to the nickel, you see 91 in the middle and 71 as well. A lot of guys contributed today and did a very good job.

How big were those stops when it was third or fourth and short?
The two fourth down stops were just outstanding and both were in the shadow of the goal line as well. That really inspired everybody, to be honest with you. Those plays that our defense made really inspired everybody.

Can you talk about the defensive effort in stopping the Falcons offense?
We started with stopping the run and that was not easy with Michael Turner, who is an exceptional back. They are a powerful group and they run the ball extremely well. The guy has over 300 carries this season but we did a good job with that. You are not going to shut them down but we did a good enough job keeping them off balance and forcing them to do other things. For the most part, we were able to contain and control the breakout play which was critical and also kept the clock running. The big play by Hakeem was outstanding. You are talking about a situation where they had done a really good job back and forth with their fronts and coverages. We were able to hit that ball and then split it and that is what happened in the game. Hakeem took off and ran away from everybody, which was good to see.

Was today your most effective day running the ball this season?
I think numbers wise it will be, but it was a difficult time getting started. That first half was tough.

What happened on the safety?
We had pressure on the edge right in front of the quarterback and we didn’t protect him very well. He was trying to escape and get away and unfortunately he let one go and there wasn’t anybody in the area. The result was a safety.

How big was Hakeem Nicks today?
The catch that he made on the touchdown over the top was an outstanding catch as well. How about Mario, Mario had a big day and he played well. He really worked the sideline and he caught that really nice over the top pass from Eli. I thought he played well today as well. It was also good to get Jake Ballard back in there although he was coming off an injury, to have him play in the game of this nature, with the pressure of the game and perform because he will be another target for us going forward.

Can you talk about playing the Packers again and on the road?
I just heard that a second a go and I am sure we will have enough time to talk about that all week. We weren’t sure where we were headed but we are headed to Green Bay. We look forward to doing the best we can to prepare for the trip to Lambeau again.

How much confidence do you have knowing how close you played them earlier this season?
We did and of course they had a lot of yards and we had a lot of yards. It was a lot of points scored and our defense is hopefully better. When we go back and look at the tape and study what has happened over the last few weeks, hopefully we can do a little bit better job.

What did you say to the guys who were playing in their first playoff game?
They were all anxious to play, they were looking forward to it very much. I think it helped us to be at home but we use various themes this week and this one was ‘you have to believe.’ ‘Anything is possible if you believe’ and ‘keep the dream alive’ and of course, they did that today.

Did your heart stop when you saw JPP on the ground?
Well Aaron Ross was down right next to him. Anytime you have players on the ground, your first thought is, I hope it is not serious. Fortunately, JPP was able to get up and go and I just saw Aaron Ross and he just counted fingers for me so I hope he will be alright.

How big was that Eli run?
That was instrumental when he pulled that down because we were struggling to make a first down. He was able to clear that side of the field, get a first down and give us some momentum. The timing of the play was outstanding.

Can you talk about Eli just making things happen?
He has done an outstanding job of that all year. We didn’t always have great protection but he was able to maneuver and get some things done, probably not as clean as we would like when we look at the tape but nevertheless.

Why was it so important to stick with the run?
Balance, you have to have balance and we were able to do that. I was surprised myself when I looked at the stats.

transcript courtesy Giants Communications Dept

Coughlin’s assessment of Atlanta:

“The start of the second season against Mike Smith and a very, very good Atlanta football team that we have been preparing for – a team that’s 10th in the league on offense, 12th in the league on defense, outstanding special teams – number one punt coverage team in the league. A very fast, very physical football team – plays in a very good division, a 10-6 team that certainly, offensively, has many, many outstanding players. They run the ball very well with a 1300-yard runner in Michael Turner. Two or three exceptional receivers and Gonzalez at tight end, Rodgers as a changeup back. So a very, very good and talented team.”

On the potential impact of the predicted inclement weather for Sunday…

“It will impact on game day if it does hold true. Do we study it? Well, we talk about it probably every 20 minutes, but we’re planning, we’re going, we’re in the north. You know it’s going to happen. We’ve been really blessed with the weather that we’ve had. Sometimes these storms that they’re predicting move in early, sometimes late. So we’ll wait until the hour, probably, prior to. We talked about it last Saturday night as if it was going to be a really miserable day as well and the wind wasn’t the factor that it was predicted to be.”

On DE Justin Tuck calling the Atlanta O-line “dirtbags”….

“I have no idea what that’s all about. I’m not even going to comment on that one. I’m not going there.”

On if simplifying the defense has fixed the cracks….

“We have more people involved. I don’t know that it has anything to do with simplicity. It has a lot to do with the kind of belief that I think they have in themselves and what they’re trying to prove and their confidence level rising and their situational defense being much better.”

On if his team is peaking right now…

” I think we played a couple of games in a row where we played well. I think we can play better. I think we’ve come closer as all three phases have come closer to playing better together and complimenting one another and realizing how the other is playing and how that affects the other phases of the game. But we’re getting there. I think these two games have given us momentum, have given us confidence. Hopefully we’ll just continue to improve.”

Transcript courtesy Giants communications dept

After last week’s pasting at the hands of the Saints, Giants’ head coach Tom Coughlin had to feel better about his team’s effort in this one, even though a loss is still a loss in the standings.  For Coughlin, there are no moral victories…

“We played hard and did a lot of good things but we didn’t win. There is no hanging your head, it is a tough business and you have to do the things you have to do to win the game.

I give credit to a lot of the players that coming into the stadium didn’t know they were going to play in the positions that they played in. Mitch Petrus, Kevin Boothe, the defensive guys that got shuffled around because of injuries and all the guys that had to turn around and play special teams, those guys deserve a lot of credit. We battled back and forth and I thought that it would be a close game.

I thought statically, believe it or not, the two teams were very close. Obviously, it was a few yards here and there but coming into the game, we felt pretty good about it. I had a number in my mind that I thought we would hold them to and what we would score and obviously it didn’t work the way I planned. We have four games to go and three of them in our division.

We have to regroup and I think this brings us together even tighter than we have ever been before as a team. Guys laid it on the line for each other tonight and they played hard. The accurate quarterback on the last drive, what can I tell you? He made a couple significant plays late and we felt that we would be going into overtime. It was not to be.”

Can a loss like this have a positive effect?
It can have a positive if you play the way that we played and if you give the effort that we gave and if you play with the intensity that we played with. We fully, I think every guy that took the field, believed that we could win. Those are the kind of emotional things that bind you together.

Do you think this game will benefit the Giants like the regular season game against the Patriots did in 2007?
I hope so. I would hope that would be the case. As I said, we have four games to go and every one of these games is critical to our future.

Does it sting a little more knowing that Dallas didn’t win?
I don’t know if it can sting any more than it does. If you are in this business, at this level, and you lose, it is very difficult.

Was it a busted coverage on Green Bay’s first touchdown of the second half?
Yes, it was busted coverage. They ran a switch route and we didn’t fall off outside.

Was it shocking to see them go down the field with 58 seconds left?
Shocking? You stood there and watched it. I don’t know how shocking it was. It hurt and it should not have happened. I thought we were in pretty good shape but you try to play coverage and you don’t get enough pressure on him and you try to put pressure on him and you leave some holes in your coverage. It was back and forth. Yes, we should have got this thing into overtime. With 58 seconds, they elected to stay in the end zone so they had 80 yards to go.

Did Jacquian Williams try to make a big play on the first play of the last drive?
I would have to see it but that is basically what happened. He wasn’t able to make that play and the receiver advanced up the field with the ball and gave them a heck of the play right off the bat.

Do you want your guys to be aggressive like that in that situation?
You better be aggressive. Every time you walk on that field, you better be aggressive. That is a young guy trying to make a play. Like I said, I can’t really comment until I see the play on the film.

Was Prince on the field the last drive?
No. He and Will (Blackmon) were working on that position and I think he got a little fatigued and they made the change.

What did you say to the players after the game?
Basically what I said to you. No solace in playing well and losing. We are way past that.

Was there any thought to taking more time off the clock before scoring at the end?
I love that question. We were fighting like hell to score. Yes, it would have been nice if we knew we were going to score and we will run it down, but it doesn’t work that way. I wish I could tell you that it did but it doesn’t work that way.

Were you surprised with some of the calls didn’t go your way?
I wouldn’t put it that way. We thought that we had a legitimate reason to challenge the call right in front of our sideline. We thought we had a couple angles that proved that they would be going our way. I don’t have any other information other than they didn’t.

How did Chase Blackburn play after not playing for so long?
We matched interception for interception. They ran it in the end zone and it took us a couple plays but it was a big play.

Do you feel better about your chances down the stretch after today, more than you did a week ago?
I felt the same way all along. You guys are quick and my memory is pretty good. We lost by a touchdown, we lost by a touchdown and we lost by a lot of points. We came back tonight and battled. We will battle. We will battle. We have to find a way to win. These are all tight games except for one and we just have to find a way to win. We won a bunch of tight games before and we need to win a bunch of tight games again.

When did you find out about Baas?
Around two o’clock, thank you very much.

Can you talk about Eli Manning’s play?
He made a lot of plays. He stood in there and made plays. He made plays when he was off balance. He got the ball in people’s hands so they can have run after the catch. He had run-pass option on the touchdown pass, which happened twice tonight, and he stuck the ball in there.

How is Kenny Phillips?
He has a sprained knee, they are calling it a sprained knee.

transcript courtesy Giants Communications Dept

“We came to win, we didn’t win. We played hard. We fought hard and that’s the one thing we can take away from this. We had our opportunities, didn’t quite work that way. We did not win the turnover battle. It was two-to-one, in that regard and we knew that we could not make any mistakes along those lines because they were 12 coming in here. We did a pretty good job with [WR Ted] Ginn [Jr.] and special teams, except one of the punts was, obviously, way out of bounds and way too short. Too little, too late, not enough – whatever you want to describe it as. They’re a good team. They’re a sound team. They play very good defense. They don’t give you much. When they did pressure, we got the ball over the top, we took advantage of that, but that only happened a couple of times. We’re a good defensive team and they came out and ran the ball six times in the first half, which was a surprise. They made some plays with the passing game and made some plays over the middle into the second half. The crossing pattern there at the end of the game – I’ll have to look at that, but that’s too easy. The run, the final touchdown, was too easy. We had a lot of young guys that had to go in and play and play as hard as they could and they’ll learn from this and hopefully we all will as well. Very disappointed in losing. We didn’t come here to lose. We came to win. It just didn’t happen.”

On the last play, the fourth-and-two, was there anything that could have been done?

“[DT Justin Smith] decided not to rush and he’s a veteran player and a good player. There have been games where he’s had to make a play and strip the ball out, for example. This time he just guessed right. The ball was in his neighborhood. We changed personnel, which is something we do very well. Most of these people can do that in their sleep and he just knocked the ball down. I didn’t think he was going to get to that anyway. We almost had the first down prior to that, but the run wasn’t for much.”

Your back [RB D.J. Ware], he’s got to be in there, right?

“He did a good job. Every time we looked up and he had the ball, he did a nice job. He ran with power, caught the ball in the backfield, made a nice catch on an option route there as we drove the ball down. I thought he did a nice job.”

How do you assess your quarterback’s play?

“I think he’s been outstanding all year long and there’s nothing different about today. The only thing that happened today that he wouldn’t be pleased with and I would either would be the turnovers.”

The last one that he threw, did he not have much to throw to?

“The ball was led inside and it looked like the receiver was interpreting a little bit differently. I’m not sure that they were on the same page on that play. Then he makes the strike in the end zone for the tying score. It’s an extension where [WR] Mario [Manningham] has really got to reach out there and the ball just doesn’t get caught. You’d have to explain it to me. Some times they catch them, some times they don’t.”

How bad is [LB Michael] Boley’s injury?

“I don’t know. I know it’s a hamstring. How bad it is, I don’t know.

How badly did you miss Boley on [TE Vernon] Davis’s touchdown?

“Obviously with your starting middle backer out, the guy that calls all the defenses and has had an outstanding year, you’re going to miss him. You want to play with everybody and that’s the point. The point is that everybody, you need all of your people. San Francisco has played with everybody, all year long.”

How did [LB Spencer] Paysinger do filling in for Boley?

“He goes in and tries hard. I’d like to look at the tape, but he goes in with the look in his eye and just goes to work. I can’t tell you exactly what happened.”

On fourth-and-six, you went for it. Were you not sure about your defense?

“No. I just felt we were moving the ball and why would we stop? I wasn’t going to stop ourselves. We thought the quarterback could make the play, and he did.”

Why was there more Ware than [RB Brandon] Jacobs in the second half?

“There was a lot of third down, a lot of three-wides. I think that’s probably the only explanation.”

Are you surprised you didn’t come back in the fourth quarter after pulling out so many this year?

“I’m very disappointed. We had time, we used the clock very well. Had we been able to drive and score they would have had very little time left for them to do anything about it. It would have been overtime. I thought we were in perfect control. I thought we would get there, score, and send it into overtime and win it in overtime. I’m very disappointed. We’ve done very well in those situations and I expected to do well again. Didn’t happen and you can call it percentages, or whatever you want, but we’re prepared to excel in that area and we’ve done just that. So, am I disappointed because we didn’t? Yes. I’m thinking we’re going to win and so was everybody else.”

Transcript courtesy Giants communications Dept.

He also is not willing to dwell on Super Bowl XLII: “It seems like a long time ago…”

Q: Osi’s shoulder, what happened?

A: He fell.

Q: Do you know what play he hurt it on?

A: No. All I know is he had a sore shoulder after (the game) but seems to think that it will be manageable.

Q: Is he working today?

A: He’s not working today, but that’s normal. He normally has Wednesday [off]. Last week he did work on Wednesday and Thursday as well, and Friday.

Q: How did Tuck do after the game?

A: Sore because he hasn’t had much action, but okay. He’s still treating a couple of things, just being smart about it now.

Q: Will he practice today?

A: He is practicing today, yeah.

Q: Last week you were saying, ‘Don’t overlook [the Dolphins].’

A: I didn’t say, ‘Don’t overlook.’ I didn’t say that at all. I said, ‘Respect all, fear none.’

Re: The Patriots.

A: This is a very, very good football team, as you well know. They’re 5-2. They’ve scored an awful lot of points. They’ve given up some yards, no doubt about it. They lost earlier in the year, which was prior to our Buffalo game so we had a chance to look at that. And I’m sure they would say the turnovers were the demise in that game. The other day Pittsburgh did the formula that anybody would like to copy. [The Patriots] really only had 50 plays. Pittsburgh had the ball for 39 minutes, 22 seconds. Pittsburgh was able to keep the Patriots’ third downs under control. I think that was 30 percent, even though they are 50 per cent on the season on third down, which is an awesome stat to be honest with you, to be able to do that. They went into Pittsburgh. It was a very physical game. They’re 5-2. They’ve won 20 straight (regular season) ballgames at home. We’re excited about having an opportunity to play against a team of this caliber.

Re: Upcoming schedule.

A: We’re playing this one game this week I think, not the other ones. We play it one at a time. Everyone is aware of the schedule, but we’re excited about that.

Re: covering Wes Welker

A: Well I think you have to mix it up. Ike Taylor obviously had a good ballgame, but Welker made his plays as well, as he always does – extremely difficult to cover one-on-one, very, very quick, used up the field much more than you would think in the vertical game as well. Certainly is one of the two go-to guys, if you will. The two tight ends are playing an awful lot. Hernandez is used as a receiver and defended as such. What’s happened there is Green-Ellis and Ridley, along with Faulk coming back, have really given them a great combination in terms of their running backs as well and the ability to throw it to their running backs.

Q: Can you talk about the contributions of Jake Ballard and Bear Pascoe?

A: Jake has fought his way into an opportunity. He’s taken full advantage of it. He’s played very well. He came here as a practice squad player and was utilized in that capacity as a blocking tight end and has developed into much more than that. Bear is Mr. Versatile. He’s used in a lot of special teams. He’s used as a tight end, used as a fullback. He’s been caught for holding a couple of times here. That, we’re trying like to crazy to work on, to make sure he’s not a marked man in that capacity. He’s done a good job for us.

Q: How much did your life change by winning the Super Bowl?

A: I don’t know how much it changed. It was the fulfillment of a dream come true, without a doubt. It seems like a long time ago.

Q: How much was that victory amplified by the Patriots’ undefeated record?

A: No doubt they were an undefeated football team that was very, very rare in our league, to go through the entire season undefeated, which they did. Certainly a tremendous challenge for us at the time, because of the quality of their football team, both offense and defense. All the things they represent. How well they played. The number of Super Bowls that they have won. Same basic unit still together. Sure it was a heck of a win for us, no doubt about it.

Q: Have you ever looked back at that game to see what you had to do to win?

A: There have been a few of those, thank you for asking. I can’t remember it right now, it’s so far back. That’s a pretty good job by us.

Q: Is Hakeem going to practice today?

A: We’ll see. It’s going to be day-to-day and he tells me he’s better and says all the right things, but he’s not going to work today.

Q: Barden?

A: He’s going to get pushed a little harder this week. We’ll see. He’s practiced. He practiced probably about 50 per cent of the time last week and we’ll see if he can’t continue, along with Prince. Before someone asks, Prince will get a little bit more this week too.

Q: How about Bradshaw?

A: Bradshaw is not practicing today.

Q: Was his foot just sore or did he injure it?

A: Just swollen and sore.

Re: New England’s tight ends.

A: Gronkowski is very good as a blocker, as a receiver, as a big, strong individual in the passing game, in the middle of the field or wherever they might choose to use him. The young kid is very good up the field, a polished, if you will, receiver. They use them as a part of their significant passing game. Whether it’s two tight ends and three wide receivers, two wide receivers, two tight ends, no matter where they are.

Q: Anything come up in Baas’ tests?

A: No.

Re: How is Haynesworth doing?

A: They’re stout. Six of the seven teams have not rushed for 100 yards.

Re: The Patriots’ coverage.

A: First three games they played a lot of man.

Q: Did the research you did on finishing the season better result in any findings?

A: Play better in the fourth quarter, play stronger, be the more physical team.

Re: Eli Manning‘s play, especially in the fourth quarter.

A: He’s played very well, the first through the fourth (quarters). The fourth quarter has been a big emphasis for us and he’s played exceptionally well in the fourth quarter.

Re: Patriots pass defense

A: Obviously they’ve made some philosophical changes. They’ve had some players that were starters that are not there, that were starters that are not starting, so on and so forth. They’ve maneuvered to try to be the best that they can be back there and of late they’ve settled on a certain style and would assume they’re still trying to work in that area, as we all are in the areas that we’re not very good at.

Q: An ESPN analyst, in his ranking of the top quarterbacks, said Cam Newton was a better quarterback than Eli Manning. Does that bother you?

A: I don’t pay any attention to it, to be honest with you. I never heard that, but I don’t pay any attention to it.

Q: Given Nicks’ status, will the other receivers have to step up or do you have to make adjustments?

A: Well you have to make adjustments, but you’re still expecting, like under any circumstance, we ask the guys that are coming along to step up and get their game going. And we ask the guys that are currently there to play better.

What is there left to say after you’ve had two weeks to prepare for an 0-6 team? Not a whole lot. Tom Coughlin is trying to stay focused as his team appears to be finally coming together health-wise…

What does Justin Tuck’s return from injury mean to the defense?
If we can get the more players of his caliber on the field, the more flexibility we have. It is going to provide some opportunities for us to get some matchups that are in our favor.

Did Brandon Jacobs practice full today or was he limited?
We listed it as that only until we play a game and he plays a full game and so on and so forth. He has no limitation as far as practice.

Do you think he can play full go?
Yes, sure, provided that we have positive signs.

How are you keeping the guys focused while preparing for an 0-6 team?
We haven’t played in a couple weeks and if you study them, they are in every game. They play hard but they haven’t been able to get themselves a win. It is not because they don’t have talent and it is not because they don’t play hard because they do. We are concerned about our team and our team playing the best that we can play. We want to continue to ascend in terms of our execution and not turning the ball over and all of those things. The challenges are great for us.

Do you think Prince will be ready to go?
He is working his way through practice. He is a limited guy who is just getting on the practice field. He made a play today but he is limited.

Does he know the defense?
He does.

Was the Buffalo game Eli Manning’s best game this season?
It was a very good game but it was one of many good games and hopefully there are many, many more.

How has Eli Manning kept it together this season in the face of the criticism and the loss of personnel?
He has spent an awful lot of time with the receivers, the tight ends and the runners. He just continued to do that and work with them just making sure that they understood what he was looking for, what the adjustments were going to be and he meets with them every week. He continues to do that and he stayed with the idea that he was going to get this thing right and he stayed on the same page. Once they got on the same page, he truly believed that good things would happen and he has basically forced that issue since day one.

Would good things have happened without a guy like that in that position?
He has taken that responsibility since day one. All he has done as younger people have come along is get them more involved and making sure they knew exactly what he expected of them.

How has Barden looked?
He has done a good job. We have rotated him in there as a scout team guy and he has done a good job. This week in particular it was good to have him in there because he and Clayton can wear that number 19.

What is the key to continuing to improve the running game?
Blocking them. The keys are obviously to do a good job with the run and the play action pass so that the question is ‘what is next.’ That then becomes execution and the last time we played, it was a little better execution.

Are you aware of what Jacobs said in the fitness article
I am not aware of anything.

Did Henry Hynoski do anything today?
No. It is not a setback; it is just that progress is slow.

What do you think about the greatest show on turf offense?
That was a long time ago. There are many types of open offenses that try to run the ball as well. I appreciate all kinds of football as long as the execution is there.

Do you expect to pass more?
No, it is all about balance and balance means that we try to do a good job of not turning the ball over.

Tony Sparano and the Dolphins
Tony is a good coach. I haven’t had a chance to visit with him but I always will think very highly of him and I enjoyed the time he was with us. I know very well that he is in the position that he is in because Parcells wanted him and that says an awful lot about him as a coach.

“They are a good road team. If you look at their record last year, they are a good road team…”

“Good morning. We are back into action talking about the Miami Dolphins. My thought on them is that the Dolphins have played hard. There are a couple reasons why they would tell you they are where they are. They are minus-7 in turnovers and they have given up 22 sacks.

They have lost their quarterback, so now it is Matt Moore. He has had a couple games under his belt. ‘Respect all and fear none’ is the approach we take. What we are trying to do is be concerned with our team and making sure that our team plays and takes our execution to another level. We want to eliminate any lull in our play and continue the concept of not turning the ball over.”

Q: How is Brandon Jacobs?

A: They will practice.

Q: Does not winning any games do something to a team’s mindset?

A: Sure it does, but it only takes one spark and whether it was last weekend and if they would have won last weekend at home. They are a good road team. If you look at their record last year, they are a good road team. Even if you look at the game that I left out against the Jets, they had opportunities that they didn’t take advantage of. They could have very well had 10 points in that first quarter or maybe 14. They haven’t taken advantage of a lot of opportunities. They have very few takeaways. They only have two fumble recoveries and two interceptions. They have no starter in their secondary with an interception and not a lot of big plays.

Q: Did Corey Webster feel a responsibility to step up his game when Terrell Thomas went down for the year, and how has he done covering the other team’s best receiver every week?

A: I think he’s looked forward to every opportunity and every challenge. I think he’s focused on each outstanding player that he’s gone against. He’s studied them. He’s worked hard at it. He looks forward to the challenge and to this point, he’s done a good job of it.

Q: Do you think Terrell Thomas being injured has any influence on that?

A: I think Corey’s Corey. Whether that is or isn’t [the reason], I wouldn’t be able to answer that.

Q: What do you think about the Dolphins’ approach against the Jets? Seemed like they went after Revis? Did that surprise you?

A: It surprised me when [Revis] picked a 100-yarder off. That wasn’t a good idea. How they go about their business, that’s their business. That’s not for me to say. Taking Bush and flanking him out and doing all of those kinds of things, of course, they’ve seen that before and I’m sure that’s what they had in mind when they brought him there.

Q: They had seven sacks last weekend, 15 on the year. What was different?

A: Wake is a good pass rusher with five sacks. Of course Taylor historically is physical. Dansby is physical at the mike backer. Their safeties – Bell coming out of the secondary, he is a very physical player. They’ll look to get Jones back and have two physical players in that safety spot. They were successful in getting there for any number of reasons. Of course it’s a first time start for a young quarterback. You know they’re coming. That’s just the nature of the game.

Q: How important is it to get off to a quick start against the Dolphins?

A: I think it’s always important to start fast. Your questions will come after a bye week and so-on and so-forth – how are you going to be? We’d like to think that our execution will pick right up where it left off a week ago.

Q: How are Ramses Barden and the injured players who practiced Monday?

A: Ramses is fine. He practiced. They’re all practicing.

Q: How did they did they respond to Monday?

A: Did a pretty good job.

Q: Is Hynoski practicing?

A: He’s going to be out there, but he’s the one guy that I’m not sure how much he’s going to get.

Q: Every team has outstanding players. What’s the difference between an 0-7 team and a 6-1 team?

A: Very small margins. Very small margins.

Q: Can you define it?

A: I could define it if we had an hour, but I think the basic thing is who’s making the plays and who’s not making the plays. Who’s taking advantage of it.

Q: Did you remind the guys of the game Matt Moore had here a couple of years ago when he was with Carolina?

A: I did.

Q: Did you mention how accurate he was?

A: How successful he was.

Q: What have you seen out of Daniel Thomas? Seems like a powerful running back.

A: Yes, he is, and he’s coming along. He is a good runner and they’re using him more and more in that combination, a tough combination.

Q: Teams are 3-9 after the bye this year. Anything to do with the mandatory four days off?

A: Probably too early to pass judgment on that. There are a lot of teams that work earlier in the week – once, twice and give [the players] a sizable break. I don’t know that even though it’s mandatory it hasn’t been done in the past, depending on where the bye falls. You’d have to wait and see, maybe not even this year, maybe another year under our belt as everybody gets used to the new system.

Q: Is there a good time for the bye?

A: Yeah, right in the middle. Usually it’s right [around] there (after eight games).

Q: How happy are you with Stacy Andrews helping out the power run game?

A: He’s had that job for quite a while. He was taking real pride in that. Hopefully we’re making some progress along those lines.

transcript courtesy Giants Communications Dept

Tom Coughlin has a short media session today and the team will be off the next few days due to the bye.

How is Prince Amukamara?

He is coming along. If he stays on schedule, he will start to do some things once we resume.

Do you think he will play when you come back?

I have no idea. We will have to wait and see.

Did Chris Snee have his exam today?

He is having it as we speak, I think. I don’t know the total picture on that.

How is Brandon Jacobs doing?

He is doing alright but there are some things that they are trying to get under control. He actually feels pretty good but there is still some work to do.

Is this a more difficult year to be a coach with the new rules of practicing and training camp?

There is a lot of things to be adjusted to but once it starts, it starts and you just go from there. Do you get the same benefit from a jog through and a practice versus two practices, I don’t think so. That is my opinion.

Did the bye come at a good time for this team?

The bye is like anything else in this business. It is there. And whatever your thoughts are about game three, it is there; game six, it’s there; or game eight, it is there. The ideal time for everyone is absolutely midpoint of the season but you take it when it is there and do the best you can with it.

Why did you give the players off after today?

I just feel like we got organized and got a chance to look at the film. We did some film work and we talked about what the plan is so I think we are good.

Will you take some days off?

We will be here.

Are you surprised the Raiders gave up two first round picks for Palmer?

I don’t know if I am surprised by anything.

Will Brandon Jacobs be here for treatment?

He will be treated no matter where the arrangement is. Those that are injured and in the training room, their treatment will continue, no matter what the site is. If he travels, then he will be treated wherever he is, and the arrangements will be made by our medical staff.

What was your thought process in challenging the no-touchdown call on Manningham on Sunday?

The idea was that the ball was in the end zone and the ball was on his stomach while he was on his back on the floor of the end zone. At that point in time, he had control of it. Upstairs, they were asking is it or isn’t it. Why would I let a play like that go by without something? Maybe we don’t have as many camera angles. Maybe it is something that they see, and there have been three or four of these plays where there has to be some consistency established from a standpoint of getting it one way.

We saw one on television that looked exactly like this one and it went the other way for a touchdown. I just felt like I did not want to let that one just go by if there was any chance at all that it would be overruled and be called a touchdown. I had all three. Sometimes there is a reason to challenge even when you don’t have the full evidence or really don’t believe you are going to win it. You do it anyway at certain points in the game and you may have an ulterior motive and in this case, my motive was that if there was any chance at all after a play like that it could be ruled a score, I certainly didn’t want one of you coming to me and saying, you know that was a catch.

Did you want to send a message to the league?

At that point in time, that wasn’t what the thought was but after the weekend, I am certain that they are taking a hard look. Normally they just verify that this was the right call and this is the way all the calls should have been made. I am sure they will.

Do you address your team on things that need to be worked on?

We did all that this morning and we have just a little more to go. The normal stuff about being safe and taking care of yourself, understand where we are, rest up and keep your eye on the prize.

Transcript courtesy Giants Communications Dept.

Coach Tom Coughlin on being 4-2 at the bye:

I would like to be 6-0, but this is a hard-earned win. To be 4-2 right now and have the bye and to be an optimist if I may, maybe we do get some guys back after this two week period. That can help us. You have to take your hat off to the guys who went out today and played the way they did from a team concept, displaying once again the mental toughness that we always talk about. We are a team and whoever is called upon has to step up and make a play.

On the win over Buffalo in general:

No turnovers and plus-two, 122 yards rushing and outstanding play. I thought Eli played very, very well. We did have some opportunities to run the ball and Bradshaw did a good job. The offensive line did a good job. We made the plays when we had to make them.

To come back down the field against a very good football team who does an outstanding job in all three phases really, that is a very good win at home.

On the team’s overall effort today:

We always talk about complementing and the only thing that prevents me from talking about that is the (blocked) field goal. Otherwise, we did a pretty good job of tying up two pretty good return men as well.

Quotes courtesyGiants Communications Dept