Giants S Landon Collins
Postgame vs. New Orleans
September 30, 2018
Q: Landon, how difficult is it to play that well as a defense against that good of an offense and get this result?
A: Hard; it’s hard. At the same time though, we have to continue working and staying loyal to this team and by playing together, we’re going to figure it out. We have all the keys, we have all of the weapons, we just have to put it all out there.
Q: Did you think as you were holding them to field goal after field goal in the first half that you were letting the offense set up for success in the second half?
A: Our offense? Yeah, definitely. I mean, even during the first half, we felt like every time we just held them [the Saints], it was giving our offense confidence that we’re not letting them score [the Saints] and every time we give you the ball, you would march it down the field. We were giving them total confidence and we had confidence in them to do that.
Q: Is it disheartening when you’re down like that at halftime even though you have played so well?
A: Is it disheartening? No, I mean, it’s a game, it’s the NFL; they get paid on the other side of the ball too. They’re going to play well, we’re going to play well, and it’s the better team that makes less mistakes that wins.
Q: What changed in the second half that they were able to score touchdowns like that?
A: I guess I could say just not wrapping up in tackling. We were getting a little tired on defense and we were just trying to finish.
Q: Landon, how hard is it to hold Drew Brees and that group to field goal after field goal?
A: It’s very hard, it’s very hard. Just knowing their route concepts and how many different formations they give, the guys they have on their offense, it’s a difficult test, but we did a good job if I would say so until the fourth quarter.
Q: You know what you have on your offense, does it surprise you that your offense is struggling?
A: I mean, I watch how hard they work; they work very hard and they have their keys and techniques and assignments down and the key is just that they have to transfer it over to the game. Once they figure that out, they’re definitely going to be good.
Q: What did you see there in the fourth quarter with [Alvin] the Kamara runs?
A: Just a tired defense; we were just trying to get him on the ground from that point on. I would say just a tired defense.
Q: What makes him [Alvin Kamara] so special?
A: He’s just a solid, great-balanced running back. He has great vision, he can hit it, he plays very patiently and I love that about him. He’s a patient running back and when he needs to hit a hole, he’s very hard to get to.
Q: With all of their other weapons in [Drew] Brees and [Michael] Thomas, was there not as much attention on Kamara?
A: No, the focus was definitely on [Alvin] Kamara and stopping him and making sure that he doesn’t get the gains that he got. Honestly, he just had the better game than us.
Q: What is the level of concern here one-quarter of the way into the season?
A: No concerns. We have a long season; it’s a long season.
Q: Landon, how deflating are some of these plays where they have the fourth-down conversion on the fake punt early in the game and then they called the horse-collar, which was debatable, and then coming back at the end of the game on that third-down pass interference, those are just some plays there?
A: Well, the P.I. (pass interference) is something different. It’s a bad call, but with the other stuff, we just have to work through it. We have some bad refs sometimes, but it happens.
Q: Did you see the horse-collar replay?
A: Yeah, I think everyone saw it. We all saw it though.
Q: Is there anything that you think you Jack Rabbit [Janoris Jenkins] could’ve done differently on the horse-collar play?
A: No. I mean, it was a good tackle; it’s honestly a great tackle. His hand was on the right shoulder on the man, it’s a good tackle. There isn’t much that you could do differently.
Q: Did you guys feel like the defense played well enough to win?
A: Yes, I thought so yeah. We tackled well, we held them predominantly to almost three points every time until the fourth quarter. We played really well.
Q: Landon, four games in, how much is this season is challenging you?
A: I mean, it’s still early right now. A lot of stuff is going to change; concepts, routes, just different things are going to change throughout the season, so we’re not worried, no. It’s a long season.
Q: Do you think that there were equally bad calls on both teams?
A: From the refs? They went hand-in-hand. They got some bad calls and we got some bad calls. I think our calls were worse than theirs, but yeah.
Q: Sometimes at home though, you get the benefit of the doubt from the officials though, right?
A: I mean, it’s all on the officials though, honestly. If they feel disrespected by a player, then they’re going to call it against you anytime. It’s all on their discretion. I appreciate you guys, thank you.
