NYG Postgame (vs. Washington Football Team) Transcripts: DL Leonard Williams
November 8, 2020
Q: Is finishing plays the way you have been this year refreshing and rewarding?
A: Definitely. It’s not about money for me, it’s not about anything like that. I think about this game and my love for the game. It’s more about respect and proving who I am and gaining respect from my peers. I think it’s all coming together at the same time. I have a lot of guys on the defense to thank for it. Our secondary players help me get to the quarterback when they make them hold the ball. Overall, our defense is playing pretty well, and it’s helping me flourish.
Q: You think your game isn’t respected enough?
A: I wouldn’t say that. There’s obviously been a lot of stuff out there in the media in a negative outlook, and from my perspective, I’ve always known who I am, I feel like I’ve proven I can get to the quarterback, and now it’s being able to take them down when I get there.
Q: At 2-7, you’re one win away from going into your bye as a contender in this division…
A: Realistically, we’re a few points away from having a winning record. Our record doesn’t show the type of talent and the team we have. I think Coach Judge has turned this place around and is doing a great job. I’ve been on teams where we’ve had a one-win record by now and you could feel the energy of the team start to drop. I feel like that hasn’t happened once, and I think it’s because we’re in these tight games. We’re in these tight games with playoff teams. The Steelers are undefeated, the Buccaneers, and a bunch of other teams where we’ve been in tight games. I think that’s the reason why no one is hanging their heads and giving up, because we’re right there. We just got to keep working hard and we’ll get over the hump.
Q: At one point in the fourth quarter when you guys were on the sideline, [Head Coach] Joe Judge came over and had you huddle up a little bit and challenged you to close this game out. As a defense, to not just do it once with [Safety] Jabrill’s [Peppers] interception but with [Safety] Logan’s [Ryan] interception, how big of a change was it for this unit that obviously has been on the opposite end of this several times this year?
A: I think those guys came up big time. We keep getting in these close games, hopefully one day we’re not taking it to the last two minutes of the game and we’re just able to close it out before we get to that point. But this defense is pretty good and I think everyone believes in each other, so when we were challenged by Coach Judge, we took it in a positive way, we were like, ‘Okay, let’s do it, let’s put the team on our back, let’s go out there for another drive and do it again.’ The guys answered the challenge and we got the win.
Q: Given what you just said about how the team’s attitude is still good, no one is hanging their head, you know you’re right there, how seriously are you taking the NFC East race? Despite the record, you are right there. Are you looking at the standings, do you look at this Eagles game as a pretty big game in the division?
A: I think, like I said, the fact that we’re getting close in some of these games with top teams in the league right now is one of the reasons why we’re not hanging our head, and then also the fact that our division is so open and everything is right there in front of us still. Guys are just not hanging their head down, we still have a lot to fight for and you can really feel the energy. Like, I’m not just saying it just to make it a good answer, you can feel guys working hard every single day. Guys are coming up to each other having their own individual meetings when coaches are not around. It just seems like everybody is on top of their stuff right now and that’s what I like to see.
