Head Coach Tom Coughlin
September 13, 2012
Q: What is it like having the long week, and trying to keep these guys focused for that extra time?
A: Well, I mean I think that part of it…We handled this weekend. We never did get time at the end of training camp, which we usually give the players. It came after the game. Is it an unusual stretch? Sure it is. You play when they tell you to play.
Q: How were the practices this week?
A: I think we’re getting better, I really do. Yesterday, the effort was very good. The execution wasn’t as good as you’d like, but I probably can never say that. Today was, for the most part, pretty good. I didn’t think the last period was good. The effort, again, and the focus was better.
Q: Update on left tackle:
A: No. There will be no change there unless I let you know.
Q: Nicks practiced today?
A: He did. We’re going to hope that he’s going to be able to work on Thursday. I think it was really good for him to be out here on the grass. The fields are exceptional. He moved well, he moved well.
Q: Update on Prince:
A: Prince, I didn’t really see anything that made me think otherwise. I know it’s a slow process, and he’s in the process.
Q: He said he was limping yesterday. Did you notice anything?
A: He said that? I think he had a couple moments, which is not unusual for what he’s going through. It’s just how well does he comes back from that.
Q: Do you feel like your first defense is motivated by the Cowboys game?
A: Well, I’m sure that they’re going to be motivated, period, but we remind them as often as we can about the way in which the game went, and what the key statistics were in the game, etc. They’re very well aware.
Q: How unusual is it for your three main defensive ends to not record a sack?
A: Well, it usually doesn’t favor us when that sort of thing happens. We’re much better off when the pressure is distributed, and the ends…whoever gets the sacks or pressures, I don’t really care, but we need it. We need more of it.
Q: They didn’t even get credited for a quarterback hit?
A: That’s unusual. That’s not what we design.
Q: Do you try to bring it up with them?
A: No, I think they’ve been well reminded. We do, we take it individually.
Q: Did they just not win their one-on-one matchups for the most part?
A: There were a lot of reasons. They ran it well, the ball was out quick, there were a bunch of reasons for that, and we broke down containment, which put their quarterback on the outside and gave him all day.
Q: What did you think of the Bucs’ third down defense?
A: They have a good scheme. They work hard, they have a good scheme, they were timely in what they were able to do, and they caused pressure and hits on the quarterback. They certainly did play well on third down.
Q: The players see a high sense of urgency from you. Are they reading you correctly?
A: They pretty much got it. They’re right on. We talked all week about playing and practicing better, having better energy, having a sense of urgency about getting our football right, right now, as I say it. I think they’ve got the message.
DE Jason Pierre-Paul
September 13, 2012
Q: Is it more bothersome that you didn’t get a sack or didn’t get the quarterback hit?
A: It didn’t bother me at all. It just makes me want to go out and work harder. … I’ve just got to go out there and play even better.
Q: The fact that the three of you ends didn’t get a sack
A: We’ve got to practice harder. That’s what we’ve been doing this week and you’ve got to get to the quarterback and stop the run.
Q: How hard is it with the long week to get back in the Sunday schedule?
A: We had a couple days off, but that can’t stop us. We’ve got to come back here and hit the ground running. We can’t let nothing stop us and we lost one and it’s still a long season and we’ve got to get back in this thing.
Q: Were you guys highly motivated this week in practice?
A: We’re motivated a lot. Everybody is running to the ball. Everybody is doing their job and ready to go out and play a football game this Sunday.
Q: What do the Bucs do well?
A: They had a very great game against Carolina and they did a great job. We’ve been studying a lot. Running the ball, they did well. Passing the ball. They’ve got a great quarterback, so we’ve just got to go out there and handle our responsibilities basically.
Q: Have they changed their style that much under Schiano?
A: Yeah. They come off even harder. They’ve got big guys and we’ve got to play against them. It’s going to be a tough one, though. It’s not going to be a game that’s given to us. Everybody that plays us is going to come after us, so we’ve got to stay focused and we’ve got to give ‘em 110 percent, too.
Q: Is it better reading your keys or physically beating your man?
A: All around. Everything you just said. We’ve just got to go out there and not try to do nothing extra. Don’t try to hit the home run. Don’t try to get a sack going inside. Handle your responsibility and do your techniques.
Q: How hard is that to do?
A: It’s very hard, especially when you just want to get after the quarterback, but we can’t just try to hit home runs. We’ve got to build on handling our techniques. We got to do our techniques and stop the run and then get to the passer.
Q: Did you find yourself doing that last week?
A: Yeah, I did, but we watched the tape and it is what it is. Now we’ve just got one more game to play.
Q: Was it very quiet in the meeting rooms?
A: Not at all. We’re the same way. We go in there and look at the tape and go outside and do corrections and then it’s a whole new game plan for the Bucs.
DE Justin Tuck
September 13, 2012
Q: With the three of you guys getting shut out, do you take that as Dallas just played well?
A: They played well. They did. Their offensive line played great.
Q: When you see Tampa Bay on film, what are some of the things they do well offensively?
A: I think they run the ball. I think they’ve, obviously it’s one game, but they were very physical. Kept the sticks in their favor. A lot of third and three and short situations. Not really putting a lot of pressure on Freeman. A lot of comfortable situations for him and that’s predicated on the fact that they’re physical up front and got that running game flowing a little bit. Wasn’t a lot of pressure on them, too, so the offensive line right now, I think, is a strong suit. That’s what I’ve seen from them.
Q: How much have you emphasized being better individually?
A: I think we all emphasized just the individual standpoint, every guy getting in and getting a little bit more film, running faster, being up to speed quicker in practice. As a unit, obviously the better we play as individuals, is the better we’re going to play as a unit, but we have to keep in mind we only do this thing as a team, so making sure we’re on the same page with each other. Make sure that our calls are all right and making sure everybody gets on the same page and has the same call.
Q: Has this been a frustrating period because you’ve only had that one game to focus on for so long?
A: Maybe. I think it’s frustrating regardless of how much time you have to think about it when you lose a football game. You always want to get back on the football field as quick as possible and that hasn’t happened, so in this case, maybe we have been a little bit more frustrated by it. Our time to get back on the football field is coming. We’re excited about it. We’ve got a great opponent coming in here and a great challenge and it gives us an opportunity to redeem ourselves. Get back on a positive track.
Re: No pressures and hits on Romo by the ends?
A: We didn’t. We didn’t. I don’t think Romo was rattled at all.
Q: Is it more what they did or more of what you guys didn’t do?
A: A combination of both. I think we pressed. We were trying to make plays. We sacked him twice, but for the most part, he stood there comfortably and those tackles, that O-Line played well. They did what they had to do to kind of stifle our pass (rush) attack and it started with their running game. I think in the first half we stayed with somebody in his face a little bit because the running game was in their control and Murray got them rolling a little bit. That’s when things kind of unraveled for us as far as that goes, so it starts with us stopping the run.
