S Jabrill Peppers -- October 14, 2019
Q: You’re only one game back in the division. Can you guys win the NFC East?
A: We’re not really worried about that. We’re worried about what we have to take care of week by week, day to day. Right now, that’s getting prepared for Arizona. We’re only worried about what’s going on in this building. We have a good team coming up that’s coming off a good win. They have a lot of weapons that we have to prepare for, a lot of spread offense, so that’s where our main concern is.
Q: How happy have you been with the way the team has done that? In regard to the focus.
A: You know, we definitely want more wins out of it, but the focus has definitely been there. We just have to crank up the attention to details, the little things that matter big in big moments. I think we’ll be alright.
Q: It seems like you guys had that for three quarters the other night. How do you carry that over to this week and how do you build on it?
A: We just have to keep playing fundamental ball. Make the plays when they come to you, play complementary football.
Q: When you watch (Arizona Cardinals Quarterback Kyler) Murray’s tape, is his speed unique?
A: Absolutely. I also think he has great footwork. I think his arm, we have to talk about his arm. He was going to be an MLB pitcher. He’s definitely surprised me the more I’ve watched the tape in depth. I see the growth there from college, he still has all of the athleticism, but he tries to be a pocket passer when he can, let the routes develop downfield. Those guys do a great job of making plays for him. We know we have a tall task at hand, but we’re always up and ready for it.
Q: Does Larry Fitzgerald look 37?
A: No way, I was just watching the tape against the Falcons – he’s jumping off at the take, still running like that. Larry is always going to be Larry, he’s a guy that we have to account for. He’s going to be a big part of their game plan, we’re going to do what we have to do to manage those guys.
Q: So, you flipped on that tape this morning and he didn’t look that?
A: Yeah, it’s crazy. Whatever water he’s drinking, I’m going to need him to send me a case. Him and AB (Antoine Bethea).
Q: How confident are you guys as a unit to be able to keep them in check?
A: We’re confident in the matter of if we do what we do and communicate effectively, no mental mistakes, no shooting ourselves in the foot, we think we can be as good as anybody and play with anybody. It’s just executing for four quarters, playing complementary football, and I think that’ll get the job done.
Q: Do you feel like you’ve seen growth over the past few weeks?
A: Definitely.
Q: Because of how much Murray is used as the dynamic double threat in their offense, have they changed the role for (Arizona Cardinals Running Back) David Johnson that you know of?
A: I don’t really the know the ins and outs of that, I just know they do a great job of putting guys they need to make plays, their schemes, a lot of motions, a lot of jet sweeps, a lot of smoke and mirrors to complement their run game, their play action game. As far as all of that other stuff, I’m not really sure.
Q: You said you’ve definitely seen growth. How so, can you describe it?
A: You guys can see it on tape, I don’t really like talking about that stuff too much. From Week One to where we are now, I think we are miles ahead.
Q: You’ve talked about how impressive Kyler (Murray) has been. Were you skeptical of that when he came into the league? He’s a different type of quarterback than the NFL has seen.
A: No, I wasn’t skeptical.
Q: Do you foresee that sort of quarterback evolving, is it like your college days?
A: I mean I’m a football player, so the way I evaluate guys is different than the guys who don’t play football evaluate guys. He’s unorthodox, but he can and will be a phenomenal quarterback in this league. I knew that coming out, as well as a lot of other quarterbacks that were in my draft, the year after. So, we know we have a tall task at hand, but we are going to go in ready for it.
Q: When you look at the season, six games in and you’ve only got two wins. Do you sit there and say everything is still in front of us?
A: Absolutely. We have to take it one week at a time. We know we gave some games away that we shouldn’t have, but everything is still right in front of us if we take care of what we need to take to care of.
Q: Do you bother scoreboard watching at all, like this past weekend?
A: I’m a fan of football, but I don’t really call it scoreboard watching. I enjoy watching the games.
Q: What happened with Dallas and Philly, you’re right behind them now.
A: That’s not really of my concern. My concern is Arizona and what we need to do week to week.
Q: It’s obviously good for the Giants when the teams in the division lose, though, right? Do you look at it that way?
A: Not really, because we’re 2-4. We don’t really care about what anybody else is doing. I’m going to keep reiterating that. If we take care of what we need to take care of week to week, we’ll be alright.
Q: Is it almost like you have to earn it?
A: You have to earn everything in this league. Nothing is given to you.
