Transcript: Defensive Back Logan Ryan

Defensive Back Logan Ryan

August 3, 2021

Q: So what happened there?

A: We had a competitive practice. Guys getting after it. First day of pads, it gets physical, it gets chippy. Obviously, can’t have penalties. It’s unfortunate, but I think everybody’s protecting their sides and just trying to establish physicality the first day, but we’ve got to keep it within the rules.

Q: Have you seen (Head Coach) Joe Judge that angry before?

A: Yeah.

Q: Really?

A: It’s not the first – yeah, I have seen him. Six years with Joe Judge in my career, I’ve seen him mad a couple of times.

Q: Logan, I know you were defending your teammate, but do you regret kind of hitting a guy in the back like that? I mean, isn’t that kind of the way some guys get hurt?

A: I regret any penalty. If I would’ve cost my team any yards, I would regret it.

Q: Have you ever had a coach line the team up to do pushups and run gassers like that after a fight breaks out like that? Has that ever happened to you?

A: Uh, yeah.

Q: Was it Joe in New England?

A: It was in New England, yeah. I mean, look guys, it’s not my first time running laps at practice, not my first time having punishments at practice. I mean, I’ve been coached by some pretty tough coaches in my career, and I don’t think Joe’s reinventing the wheel with running laps for penalties or gassers. It’s just you’ve got to be more disciplined.

Q: Logan, how does this team move on from this? I mean, you guys have to be in the same locker room.

A: We’re great, man, it’s football, you know? It’s a physical sport. If you’re not tough or chippy, I don’t know if you can play at this level. So, it’s football. Everything matters between the lines and we’ll pay our dues, but I mean, we’re great. Me, (Tight End) Evan (Engram), we’re locker buddies. We’ll be fine. Whoever else was involved, you know, I think (Quarterback) Daniel Jones might’ve jumped in. I think everyone respects Daniel. So, this stuff, you might write about it, I’m sure, but this is a football team and practice gets physical and chippy, but everything is left in between the lines for sure.

Q: What did you think about your staring quarterback going in there and ending up at the bottom of the pile?

A: I was at the bottom of the bottom of the pile, so I don’t know anything that happened after me. I was just trying to defend my teammate and at the end of the day, I have to defend my teammates and I’m going to try to do it within the rules of the game. But first and foremost, I mean, I’m going to defend my guys. It’s my job as a leader on this team, just like it’s Daniel’s job, just like it’s a lot of our jobs. I’m sure (Running Back) Saquon (Barkley) would’ve hopped in there if they cleared him to. I don’t know, he might’ve hopped in there. I don’t know. I’m OK with guys that are willing to respect each other because right now we’re against each other, but when another opponent comes in here, hopefully we’ll be on the same side.

Q: Was Evan’s hit a cheap shot?

A: I got to look at the replay. I got to talk to the refs.

Q: Do you regret that you hit from behind him?

A: I’m gonna pay my punishments. I don’t regret anything I did out there. I’m protecting my guys, so at the end of the day I’m a grown man and I pay my dues. That’s what this league’s about.

Q: Have you ever seen anything like this in regards to the running afterwards?

A: Yeah, I have. I have seen stuff like this before. I’ve seen stuff. I’ve seen some training room fights.

Q: I just meant to that extent, like in regards to the running afterwards – Joe’s penalty for you guys.

A: Yeah, I have.

Q: We heard one word repeatedly from Joe from a distance, but what was his message to you guys when he pulled you all together?

A: You know, there’s consequences for penalties and we’re a team all together. So we broke it down as a team. Everyone who had differences said they’re good. I mean, I don’t wish for any more training camp fights, but it’s not my first training camp fight. It’s not my 10th. It’s not mine personally, but on a team – it’s training camp. Like, there’s going to be some animosity between the sides, but I think it’s all well and good for sport.

Q: Daniel said that he believes whatever Joe said, he got his point across to everyone that was out there. Do you feel the same way?

A: 100 percent. Joe’s the leader of this team and he’s got our respect and what he says goes. He definitely – I mean, we’re a team. I think you ask any guy in that locker room, we’re united. We’re happy to be teammates and looking back at it, I understand what everyone was doing in that situation and I think people respect protecting what they thought was done wrong.

Q: Was that a record for f-bombs that you’ve heard from Joe?

A: It was a lot. It was a lot. I’m happy my kids weren’t at this practice.

Q: Logan, can something like that threaten team unity or from your experience, when it happens does it bring teams together?

A: We had Kiwi (Mathias Kiwanuka), Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora come speak to us yesterday and they talked about how great teams, they respect and they take the identity of their head coach, which is Joe Judge, which was Tom Coughlin, but the players run the locker room. So, if me, Evan Engram, Saquon, Jabrill Peppers, Daniel Jones, if we want to stay together, the team will stay together. I’m standing here right now as a leader on the team, Blake Martinez as well, James Bradberry, we’re fine. We’re together. Players got to take ownership. Players are tired of losing games around here. The fan base is tired. Us players are tired. Management gave us an opportunity. They gave us a better roster this year. They allocated the funds to it and we’re coming out competing, but we’ve got respect for each other. 100 percent. But we’re going to protect our sides and we’re going to compete. If our nucleus, our key veterans, are together, the locker room will follow. Just like the great defensive linemen and the great linebackers and the great leaders of this team in the past – you don’t think they had chippiness about them? You don’t think they had griminess about them? We play in New Jersey, man. There’s going to be some chippiness. There’s going to be some griminess, but we’re leaving it within the lines, and I’ll take a team like that. I’ll take a team like that every single day and I told the secondary, I’m their leader and I’m going to protect them. If I feel like something’s wrong, then I’ll take my punishment like a man, but there’s no bad blood. Me and Evan, we’re close and we’re going to push each other to both be great players. He’s a tough tight end to cover and I’m trying to make him concentrate each and every play, and I’m going to try to make it the hardest day of his life every single day out here, and Daniel. I’m trying to make it hard on those guys and they’re making me better, too, as a safety.

Q: Obviously, when you’re back in there, you’ll see him when you guys are in the locker. What are you going to say to him to kind of hash this out?

A: What do you want to eat for lunch?

Q: Do you view this as an opportunity when some of this stuff happens to be able to establish that rapport and those relationships? Can you view this as a good opportunity for you as a leader?

A: I view every day as a good opportunity. I think as a leader, you’ve got to come in with a certain energy. I think it’s not only my job to do my job, but I think it’s my job to pick other people up around here with some experience under my belt, some Super Bowls under my belt. Sometimes guys look at me to bring the juice a little bit on my side and in the locker room side. As long as they respect me, then I’m doing the right job. I view each and every day – look, we’re in full pads tomorrow, so I’m excited to see how we come out and how we can lead into tomorrow and have a cleaner day out here. It was definitely physical today. The offense moved us off the ball a little bit. They had, in my opinion, their best day today, so we get to get them back tomorrow. We’re all Giants and whoever comes in here this year, hopefully, we have a homefield advantage with the fans and we’re going to be a chippy, grimy group. If I learned anything from those veterans who came in yesterday and spoke about winning Super Bowls, you need a tough locker room and I’ve been in a couple tough locker rooms and I’ve won a couple of Super Bowls and I know what it takes, and I know what those training camps were like. So, like I said, it wasn’t my first time as part of a training camp fight. It wasn’t my first lap. It wasn’t my first f-bomb, my first pushup. I’ve been in this for quite some time. It’s not necessary all the time but understand there was a lot of passion out there, and I’ll take passion.