Head Coach Ben McAdoo
Postgame vs. Bears, November 20, 2016
Tale of the two halves today. I'm proud of the way the guys responded at halftime. 13-0 in the second half. Came out with the fire burning. We still have a lot of work to do, we realize that, and we look forward to doing it.
Q: To what do you attribute the difference defensively between the two halves?
A: That's a good question. We'll go back, we'll take a look at the film. We made some adjustments at halftime, but I think we played inspired football there in the second half from a defensive standpoint.
Q: What was your message at halftime?
A: Just stay the course. Live and learn from the first half, flush the first half, and get back out there and play your tail off in the second half and we'll like where we'll be at the end of the ballgame.
Q: How important was it for you to stop them at the end of the first half? They could have made it a two-possession game but you stopped them
A: Every possession in these ballgames is important when it comes down to the end. Everything seems to count.
Q: On going for it on fourth down just prior to the first touchdown.
A: We thought it was going to be one of those types of ballgames that when you're on the fringe area, whether you kick a field goal, whether you go for it. We needed to go for it on more fourth downs today than normal. We have confidence in the guys to be able to punch it in there, so going for it on fourth down seemed pretty natural.
Q: How did you have to factor the wind in today?
A: It was very tough to handle the ball. Even the last punt that we got off, you saw how it was a tough catch. Catching the snaps today was even a challenge for those guys in the punt game. But the kicking game was a challenge today, the pass was a challenge and it was nice not to turn the ball over today even in a game like this where the elements factor.
Q: On Victor Cruz's 48-yard catch.
A: We just converted into a scramble drill there. Eli stepped up, came out of the pocket, Victor reacted and they had some nice chemistry on the play.
Q: On Landon Collins' performance.
A: Landon came up for us big again today. Anytime you can end the game on a play like that, that's encouraging. Sideline was fired up, we were fired up for Landon, he made a heck of a play.
Q: On the first touchdown, did you decide right then to go for it on fourth down or did you plan that ahead?
A: Was going to take a look at the stakes.
Q: Two missed extra points for Robbie Gould today, have you spoken to him to see what was wrong?
A: We'll address it and we'll move on; it was a tough day to kick the football.
Q: Would you attribute that to the wind or something else?
A: We'll go back, we'll look at it, we'll talk about everything. The wind obviously was a factor every time you had a play in the kicking game today.
Q: Did you consider going for two in either of those point after situations?
A: We considered it, yes.
Q: Three straight games at home, you've won them all. How much did the team impress in front of the home crowd?
A: It was nice to get three wins. It was nice to play in front of the home fans. They were great, they were fired up today, inspired the defense there in the second half. We look forward to this week, getting ready to go back on the road. A road trip will be good for us.
Q: Five-game winning streak for you, how does it feel?
A: It was good to get the win today. We only played once this week. We had a good week of preparation, a short week. It was nice to see it pay off here in the second half.
Q: You're 7-3 after 10 games, how would you describe your position?
A: We're 1-0 this week. We like where we are, we liked how we finished the ballgame today with a win. We'll get ready for next week starting tomorrow.
Q: How much do you think the play of the defense is inspiring the offense?
A: I think that the defense didn't want to play the way it unfolded in the first half and they got it fixed at halftime, they came out, they played inspired football in the second half. The offense came out of the tunnel too with some energy and punched it in twice, that was encouraging to see. We believe all three phases have the capability to step up and make plays in the ballgame to help us win.
Q: How do you feel Eli Manning played?
A: I think Eli handled the elements well and took care of the football on a tough day to do that.
Q: You mentioned having no turnovers today. What are you doing to improve in that regard?
A: We're going to keep working on it. It's not finished, it's not over. Every game is a new game, every week is a new week and we just have to keep working on taking care of The Duke.
Q: They say that the progress a player makes from year one to year two is a very important part of their career. Have you seen a guy like Landon make that much progress from year one to two?
A: I think he's productive. He's just a productive player, he's been productive ever since I've been standing up here in front of you. But he's confident with his ball skills now and you see that showing up any time the ball is in his vicinity. He's a ball hawk.
Q: When Olivier Vernon got called for that flag on the first drive, any explanation on the roughing passer?
A: I believe they felt he took his shoulder and drove Jay Cutler into the ground, that's where the call came from.
Q: What do you think about the way Olivier Vernon and Jason Pierre-Paul rushed the passer?
A: There were some good rushes today. We forced them into second and long and third and long, there were some very good rushes, even by some of the other guys out there. Everybody played a part.
Q: What exactly did you do in the second half to shut down the run game?
A: Not necessarily the calls, just more of the way we were playing some techniques.
Q: How would you describe the mood of the players at halftime?
A: These guys don't blink, they don't flinch. It's my job to show them that demeanor and I think they feed off of that. I think they understand that. I think we have a good, high character locker room that's not going to flinch, that's going to play the game as it unfolds. Again, they're confident no matter what. Halftime is halftime. I think they're confident no matter what that we're going to pull the game out.
Q: On winning tight games.
A: It's usually the way it turns out in this league. It would be nice to get some games with some larger margins, but that doesn't seem to be the case. We'll play tight games, that doesn't bother us.
Q: What is Marshall Newhouse's status?
A: He jumped back in the game.
