Head Coach Brian Daboll

Daboll: How's everybody doing? Tough game. Give (the) Dallas (Cowboys) credit. We didn't get it quite done tonight. They made more plays than we made. And give them credit. Get back to work and get ready for (the) Chicago (Bears) here soon.

Q: What was happening with pass protection? It seemed like they were around (quarterback) Daniel (Jones) quite a bit.

A: Yeah, they were. We were chipping; we were slamming. We were doing a lot of different things. That's a good defensive line, and they got the better of us.

Q: What do you say to (offensive lineman) Evan Neal? He had a rough night. I know he's a rookie, and he's going against good players. But that was tough.

A: Just keep your head up. You know, get ready to work next week. We all have days or plays that we wish we could have back. Go back, and work on it. And get better. Get ready for next week.

Q: What do you think about the way Daniel handled all that pressure?

A: I thought he did a good job. I thought made a lot of loose plays. He had about 80 yards rushing. I thought he did a good job keeping his eyes downfield when he couldn't get out. He made a couple of good plays there at the end that we couldn't quite convert on. Had some dropped passes. The last play that (Cowboys cornerback Trevon) Diggs picked off, (wide receiver David) Sills fell down. It was a timing throw. Again, I think he's making progress. It's tough after a loss. Nobody did well enough, and we understand that. I think he's making progress. And he fought and battled. He made some really good plays out there under some duress.

Q: Do you have an early word on (wide receiver Sterling) Shepard?

A: I don't. I don't. I went in there to see him; he's in the shower. And I didn't stop to talk to the trainers. It didn't look good on what I saw.

Q: How hard is that to see that? I mean, this guy just came back from a serious injury in a short period of time.

A: It's tough. It's a tough sport. Guys work their butts off to get back from injuries, and if this is something that he's out for the whole season – which we'll probably know tomorrow morning or maybe we even know now – you hurt for those guys because they put everything into it. You watch them in the rehab room. You watch them in the offseasons. It's just a shame.

Q: Big play there on the plus 41 fourth-and-4. That hit to (Cowboys wide receiver) CeeDee Lamb, it looked like he might have been a little short of the sticks. Did you think about challenging that?

A: On the fourth-and-4 one? No. They said he made it upstairs. I had the red flag. They went quick, but they ended up seeing a replay and they said, 'He's got it.' Again, we had used a timeout. If I had a clear view on it, I would've just thrown it, and it would've been the one timeout. But the guys upstairs said that he had it.

Q: (Wide receiver) Kenny (Golladay) talked this week about wanting to be more involved in the offense, and you guys gave him the opportunity. He didn't have a catch and then obviously had the drop on third down. Did you talk to him at all after?

A: Individually? No, I just talked to the team. You just go back, watch the tape, see what we need to fix. But again, from the day that I talked to Kenny – I talk to him a lot, all the players.

Q: What do you think they did offensively in the second half there? (Cowboys quarterback Cooper) Rush had a lot more success.

A: Well, I'd say they controlled the line of scrimmage. They ran the ball for, what was it, 180 yards? We had no sacks. So, when you can control the line of scrimmage and you're not getting a lot of pressure on the quarterback, you can usually stay in rhythm pretty good. They had a couple of plays on the sideline off a little switch-release routes, and I thought he did a good job.

Q: You talked about all the different things you tried to do to help with pass protection. Do you feel you have the personnel – the talent – to be able to figure this out?

A: Yeah. Look, we didn't play our best. But the guys worked their tails off. They competed until the end. We came up a little short. Give the other team credit. So, we have to get back to work and get ready for Chicago.

Q: Any concern about the physical beating that Daniel's taking? Obviously, he's a tough player.

A: Yeah. You never want to have your quarterback hit. But I'd say he takes care of himself. Again, the more you can keep them off the quarterback, the better for the quarterback. And he's athletic enough to make some loose plays, and there might be some hits in there when he's scrambling. But yeah, there's no question we got to do a better job of protecting him.

Q: What did the referee tell you on the offensive interference call they called on Shep (Sterling Shepard)? The pass that Kenny did catch.

A: He said it was offensive pass interference.

Q: Getting back to Shep's injury – you never want to lose any player to injury. But Shep's a leader. If you lose him, how much does that hurt the team with his leadership?

A: I think anytime you lose a good player that has leadership qualities, there's a void. But that's why we have the other guys that are going to have to do a good job of stepping up. I just feel terrible for the guy.

Q: In a game like that when your quarterback is under that much duress, is there anything he can do other than hope the protection is a little bit better? Or is it just sort of a rough game for the quarterback?

A: We were trying to get it out quick at times, and they were jamming a fair amount. It didn't just come from the edge. It was stuff coming up in the inside, whether it was on a (running) back or inside. No, it was a factor.

Q: How tough is it for you when it is coming from various spots to try and fix it on the fly?

A: I think the coaches did a – you can only call so many things, whether it's jams, full slides, a back and a tight end, just a tight end. Sometimes we have to do a better job at chipping, too, and chipping when we need to chip. Again, give those guys credit. They did a good job up front on the defensive line. That's a tough group to block, and they certainly played well tonight.

Q: I know you have to watch the tape, but any early read on (outside linebacker Kayvon) Thibodeaux and (outside linebacker) Azeez (Ojulari) being out there today?

A: No. We'll look at it tonight and tomorrow. It's a short week, so we got to get on to Chicago as soon as we can and do a better job.

Q: Were they on a pitch count, or is that how you think you'll rotate them?

A: They were on a pitch count going into the game.

Q: Does the short week help you get over a loss like this? Or can it be a detriment that there's really not that much time between the two?

A: I think that you just take it for what it's worth. We didn't do a good enough job – all of us – and you recognize that. You own it; you take responsibility for it. And you move on. You can't let these things linger just like you can't let a win linger. You have to move on and get ready on the next opponent. To ride the rollercoaster, there's going to be a lot of ups and downs throughout the league, throughout the year for any team. I'm just speaking for our team. Be consistent. Own it. Take responsibility for it. Move on and get ready for the next week. That's all you can do.

Q: What did you see in the blocked field goal in the first quarter?

A: They did a good job on the rush. That was a point of emphasis in, I'd say, both in their field goal rush and their punt rush. They've gotten close a lot of times when you're getting ready for them. We worked on it; obviously, we didn't do a good job with it.

Quarterback Daniel Jones

Q: General thoughts about the game, the loss, first loss?

A: Yeah, it's tough. Tough one for us. Just didn't do enough to win down the stretch and got to find a way to make a few more plays. Tough game, I thought we fought hard but just didn't do enough to win.

Q: How do you feel physically right now?

A: I feel good. I feel good. I'll be a little sore tomorrow but feeling good.

Q: (Head Coach Brian Daboll) talked about all the different things you tried schematically to try to help with the pass protection. How frustrating was that that you could not figure out how to stop that?

A: Yeah, I mean they're a good front. They're a good defense, you got to give credit to them. They played hard but yeah, I think there's things we can all do better with that and that starts with me and finding space to step up, finding space to move around the pocket and make some plays. I'll study that and we all will. Credit to them, they're a good front, they're a good defense.

Q: What are your thoughts on (Wide Receiver Sterling) Shepard going down in the game?

A: It's just real tough. Real tough to see that, for sure. A guy who works so hard, he's battling back from an injury last year. I feel for him as a teammate, as a close friend and yeah, that's tough to see.

Q: You talked about what you can do, does there come a point in a game like that where you guys are having trouble protecting where you have to fight the urge to take off quickly or get rid of the ball quickly? Or is it just something you deal with on a play-to-play basis?

A: Yeah, I think it's play by play. You want to trust your instincts and feel throughout the game and not let that be affected – I think that's when you get into trouble. I'll study it, see where I could have done things differently and where I can improve but you want to trust yourself, you want to trust your feel in those situations.

Q: Where do you feel you're at with your receiving corps tonight? They had a couple of drops on you tonight, didn't get the separation that you want. How do you assess where you are in your development with your receivers?

A: I thought they played well. I think you look at the secondary, they're a good secondary Dallas has. They played well and we'll look at how we can do things a little differently and it's my job to find them and give them the ball.

Q: Is there any concern with the number of hits you've taken in a game like this? Just physically?

A: No, I feel good. It's football, it's part of playing the game. I feel good and we'll keep going.

Q: Have you considered with the pressure your decision making seemed to be spot on for most of the game, do you agree with that and what was that like battling through trying to get away but still making proper decisions?

A: Yeah, I think there's always a balance there. I think, like I said, you want to trust your feel, you want to trust your instinct in the pocket and feeling when to get out and when to hang in there. I'll look at that, I'll study that and see if there's chances to hang in there. Overall, I tried to make quick decisions and things that kept the ball moving forward and kept us in good positions. As always, I'll study that and see where I can improve.

Q: What would you say if I told you that there were 23 or 24 pressures – this is the most that any quarterback has faced this year?

A: Like I said, they're a good front, they're a good defense. They play hard, they play fast and you got to give credit to them. That falls on all of us, that falls on me and finding situations where I can get the ball out of my hand quicker.

Q: How much did it feel like to you that you were just under, every time you went back, that you were under pressure?

A: I think we knew going into the game that they're, like I said, they're a good front. They've gotten pressure on every team they've played. We had a plan for it and like I said, we'll go back, look at it and see where we could have done better.

Q: You guys have nine points in the fifteen first-half possessions. Is there anything you can put your finger on for that slow start?

A: Yeah, I don't think there is anything in particular. I don't think there is one thing, I think it's overall execution and finding ways to get in the endzone early in the game. We'll look at that, I think that's something we got to work on and improve.

Q: You've seen how Brian Daboll responds after a win, how is he after a loss?

A: I thought he was good. He was the same and his message was, 'We got to get back to work. It's not going to change how we prepare, how we go about this week. It's a short week coming up. We got Chicago on Sunday, so we don't have time to hang out heads or feel sorry for ourselves, we got to get back to work and that's what we're going to do.' That was his message.

Q: What was your feeling at the end when you took over at the nine-yard line, no timeouts left knowing you needed a touchdown to win it. What were you thinking at that point?

A: Let's go score a touchdown. I was excited. I thought it was a good opportunity for us to go down the field and score. It was something we've practiced a lot, those situations. I was excited and looking forward dot getting in the endzone.

Q: Do you think it's going to be hard for you guys to win the way you had to play the game tonight, the way you had to run so much? Will it be hard to win that way going forward?

A: I think every game is different. To say that every game is going to play out like that, I don't see that happening. I think we'll look at it, see where we can improve and like I said – we didn't make enough plays. We got to find a way to make a few more down the stretch. We'll do that and I'm confident in our group. I'm confident in how we'll respond.

Running Back Saquon Barkley

Q: Aside from the game, I know (Wide Receiver) Sterling Shepard and you are very close. It has to be difficult for you to watch him get taken off on a cart like that.

A: Yeah, any player that gets taken off on a cart is not a good sight. Obviously, the relationship I have with Shep (Wide Receiver Sterling Shepard), it definitely hurts a little bit more. But at the end of the day, I'm his brother and I'm going to be there for him. I've dealt with something like that, you never know until you go in there and get an MRI. Always have high prayers whoever it is, and he knows I got his back and we (the Giants) have his back. We appreciate everything he does and energy he brings to the team.

Q: Were you able to talk to him at all? Did you get any read on his emotions and how he was doing?

A: Anytime you're in that situation you're definitely high with emotions. Best thing I could do is to be there for him and that's what I'm going to do.

Q: As far as the game, third week in a row the first half was rough sledding for the offense until you guys started getting the spark going. Is there a common thread there at all as to why you guys (Giants Offense) can't start better earlier in the game?

A: I would disagree. I feel like we just have to finish. I feel like this was the best start we had. Definitely better than the first two. We came up with a blocked field goal. Next time I think we came up with three. We have to do a better job of finding a way when you get in that situation. Not just finding a way to get three but find a way to get seven. It's early in the year. Dallas did a really good job. We'll go back, watch film, learn from this and see where we can go.

Q: The two things that people always talk about with Dallas's defense is their twisting and stunting up front and their speed. Were those two issues the biggest you guys (the Giants offense) had to overcome to gain yardage on them?

A: They're a hell of a team. They're a really good team. They have a lot of great players over there on both sides of the ball. You want to go against a team like that and we get to do it twice. We get to see them later down the line. We have a lot of improvement to make and we know they're going to make a lot of improvement. Just go back watch film, put it in the past and move on and get ready for Chicago.

Q: A couple of the receivers flat out said the offense needs to be better for (Giants QB) Daniel (Jones), that he fought his ass off tonight—that was basically a quote from (Giants WR) David Sills (V). Do you guys feel, I mean are you watching when Daniel is kind of bouncing off guys, running all over the place, that there's almost a sense of responsibility for everybody to kind of pick their game up?

A: I mean that's all of us. All of us, we've got to be better. We've got to make plays for him. Daniel, he's a hell of a competitor, a heck of player. I know a lot of people say a lot of negative things about him, but like I say, he comes to work every single today and he made some great plays today—one of the best throws I've seen I think—that throw to (WR) Richie (James) on the sideline. It was a heck of a play, especially when we needed it most. But, yeah, we've got to be better as a team and the way we do that is we're on a short week, coming in, get our body right, on a short week, and get ready for Chicago (Bears).

Q: How about you? You went to the sideline, missed a couple plays. What was that about?

A: To catch a breather. I mean, I'm human. I'm out there a lot of plays.

Q: The range of emotions on that last play, I mean, what were you seeing? You go from the interception and then realizing that (Giants WR Sterling) Shep(ard) is down. In an emotional game, that's certainly a gut punch of endings for you guys.

A: Definitely a gut punch ending. (Sighs). It's tough. It's definitely tough. Especially just the type of guy Shep is, his character, the energy he brings to this team. One of my best friends, if not my best friend. So, it sucks to see him go down. But at the end of the day, knowing myself, he knows we've all got his back and going into this, I've been in this situation. Nothing is said until you get the MRI, so no one knows anything, you know what I mean, so you go up there with high hopes, just pray for him and whatever happens, happens. We will be there for him and we will have his back.

Q: What did you say to him when you jogged over to him as they were driving him off?

A: I've been in that situation so, you know, everyone's around you and they do the test, so I kind of just try to like get a sense and read what happened. He just gave me a look of disappointment, but like I said, I know this, I've been through this process, so I'm definitely going to be there to help him if it is that, but also go to sleep, definitely say a prayer and hope for the best. You never know.

Q: On a touchdown run like you did, do you see the second level when you're on the first level? Or do you just make the first tackle miss and on to the next?

A: We ran the same play earlier, cut it back, and Malik (Hooker) made a really good tackle for like six yards, so I kind of knew what I was going to be able to do if the opportunity came again, so made a good guess I guess, but yeah.

Q: From what you've seen from this team in two or three weeks, does this team have what it takes on a short week to bounce back against Chicago?

A: One hundred percent. It's the NFL. There's only one team that ever went 17-0 or 16-0 or however many playoff games they played in '72. It's the NFL. You're going to have your ups and downs. You'll have your peaks and your valleys. You can't get too high, you can't get too low. That's why when we won two games, I was like you can't get too high, but you have to continue with the process. We had a great week of practice. I feel we had a great game plan but you have to do a better job of executing. We were in the same type of game the last two weeks. We came out on the right side. This time, they made more plays than us. So we just have to go back, watch film, see what we can do better and get ready for Chicago, who I think came off a win. They're 2-1 or something like that. They're a pretty good team, a young team over there. Get ready to go after them.

Q: How hard is it to separate the loss - you said losses will happen in this league - and the Shepard situation? You walk out of this building tonight, both I'm sure are weighing heavy on you. But only one of them you're going to have to rebound from and play again in a couple of days.

A: It's hard. I'll say I'm one of the biggest competitors, but when I saw Shep, I was like what the heck just happened? Once I realized it was a pick, I thought it hit the ground, but when they reviewed it that Diggs made a big play. But in that moment, you see him on the ground, I didn't want to even walk over there. I just dropped, said a quick prayer. It's tough. It's really tough. Especially because he's dealt with a lot of injuries recently and it's hard to come back and battle from an Achilles. And then to go down on a play like that, it's tough. He's resilient. He's a heck of a guy. He's a hard worker. He's going to be alright. He's got a great family and great friends. I'm going to be there for him. I know we're all going to be there for him.

Center Jon Feliciano

Q: How difficult is it when the pocket's not clean the way it wasn't today – how difficult does that make it on Daniel and just on the offense in general too?

A: It's not good. I think that's more a question for him (quarterback Daniel Jones). I've never played quarterback. I mean, I'm guessing it's a lot harder.

Q: Why do you think in the first half, you were struggling to score touchdowns? When you come out of halftime, it seems like you guys have solutions.

A: I think we got to come back and watch the film. I think every game has been different. We just got to come out and get in a better rhythm and have 8's (Daniel Jones) back, like I said. I don't think particularly we played very well up front and other places that are not my job. And they know. Everyone knows we got to help 8, especially when he's out there doing what he's doing: just never giving up on the play, taking big hits, making plays with his legs. I mean, he did everything he could out there. And this loss is on us up front, not on 8.

Q: They way you're sounding, it sounds like you guys kind of let him down.

A: 100 percent.

Q: Is that the vibe from your group?

A: I mean, the game's in reach despite our performance up front this week. And that's all on him. He kept us in this game, and we have to be better for him.

Q: How hard is a tough night to end (when) you watch Shep (wide receiver Sterling Shepard) get carted off?
A: That's the worst thing to me. That's the worst thing that happened tonight. Losing to a division opponent is never great, but it's Week 3. Losing Shep, seeing him down on the ground. I haven't been here, but since I've been here seeing how hard he has worked to get back on the field and what a great guy he is and fun to be around. I don't know what happened. We don't know the significance of the injury right now, but it'll be tough just not having him around.

Offensive Tackle Evan Neal

Q: What's your first inclination of some of the things maybe weren't going right for you in pass protection?

A: I got edged a lot. It's my set angles. I wasn't staying true to my set angles. I got beat on the edge a lot. That's something I'm going to have to clean up.

Q: How difficult is that group?

A: They're a really good group. DeMarcus Lawrence, Micah Parsons, those guys are who they are for a reason. They're really good players for sure.

Q: Was it a little perplexing because I remember you saying that last week you felt really good about your set angles. It's perplexing that it would crop up here. Why do you think that happened here?

A: Sometimes it just happens like that. I don't have an answer or explanation why. Sometimes in a football game, it just pans out that way. It wasn't the result that I wanted. We just have to focus on coming out and being better for Chicago. That's really all I can do.

Q: What will you be looking at on film when you watch it, besides your angles?

A: I just got to play better. There's no other way to call it. I can get technical with you guys all day long, but I just gotta play better. There's no other way to slice it or sugarcoat it. I gotta play a better brand of football.

Safety Xavier McKinney

Q: It seemed like for a while you guys were bending but you weren't breaking. You were coming up with some big plays on third down and getting off the field.

A: I don't even like that 'bend don't break; mentality. We have to get the ball because at the end of the day they are still kicking field goals, scoring points. Tonight, we needed to get turnovers. We didn't get them. That is something we will be emphasizing the following weeks.

Q: Is this a game you miss (Defensive Lineman) Leonard Williams a lot in the middle?

A: Yes. Obviously, we haven't been able to have the whole group play with each other yet. He's a big key to what we're trying to do as a defense and how we game plan. He wasn't there because of injury so hopefully we'll get him back soon.

Q: What do you think when you look out there and see the duress (Quarterback) Daniel (Jones) was under tonight? How do you think he played?

A: I thought he played well. I think they want to be able to get the ball into the end zone a lot more than what they did tonight. We can only worry about what we are doing defensively, and it wasn't enough. We didn't put them in the best situation either, so it works hand in hand.

Q: What did Cooper Rush and their offense do that made it difficult on you guys in the second half?

A: I don't think it was anything that they did. It was more of what we didn't do. We'll clean it up but it's nothing that they did.

Wide Receiver Kenny Golladay

Q: Kenny, you told us last week that you wanted to be more involved [in the offense], what did you think of your workload and your involvement tonight?

A: To be honest, I'm really just looking forward to getting in tomorrow [into the practice facility], looking at the tape, getting ready for Chicago [the Week 4 matchup against the Chicago Bears] and making the corrections that we need to make from this game. Whenever they put me in, I'm going to be ready to go. I missed one opportunity, I wish I had it back, but at the end of the day, it's a short week. We're going to look at the tape, put this to bed, and get ready for Chicago.

Q: What happened on the drop [the dropped pass on 3*rd* down]

A: Me just not looking it all the way in. Me just trying to make a play for the team and get up the field. I was running before I really secured the ball. That's pretty much all that that was. That's stuff that can't happen, especially when 8 (Daniel Jones) is pretty much doing everything to get us the ball and to get us in position to win the football game. I want to be a guy that can make that play, so I definitely put that on myself. It was third down and that can't happen.

Q: With the limited opportunities that you've had, how difficult is that when you have it there and you know you have a chance to make a play there on 3*rd* down?

A: It's very difficult. I'm beating myself up about it. I definitely wish I could have it back.

Q: Did you find hard to get in a rhythm at all with the amount of work that you are getting?

A: I mean, to be honest, it really doesn't even matter, you know what I mean? That's just something that you have to do. If you're not in rhythm, you just have to stay locked in and be ready.

Q: Kenny, why do you think the offense is struggling to score touchdowns in the first-half of games?

A: You could just look at my play pretty much. Just execution; we just have to execute better and that's what it really comes down to. We just have to execute better.

Q: You mentioned how Daniel [Giants QB Daniel Jones], did you feel like he was trying to put the team on his back so-to-speak?

A: I wouldn't just say put the team on his back. DJ [Daniel Jones] is a competitor; I don't expect anything less. Man, he was making plays with his arm and his legs. I don't expect anything less [from him].

Q: There was a report today from NFL Network Pregame that maybe the best solution for both you and the Giants is a trade. Are you open to that?

A: I'm not worried about that right now. I just got done with the game.

Q: Did you see the report? What did you think about it when you saw it?

A: I didn't see it. I was trying to get ready for this game.

Q: Kenny, your wide receiver room took a big hit with Sterling Shepard getting hurt today again. Knowing what kind of leader he is, how much does that hurt the wide receiver room?

A: It's huge for the team. Period. That's my brother and I know all that he did and put in to get back to play. He was ready Week 1. He just comes with a lot of energy on the sidelines and in practice and throughout the meeting room. It definitely hurt me when I saw him go down like that and grab his knee. It still hurts. It almost choked me up there a little bit to be totally honest. I've grown a relationship with him and I know how much he's actually put in and how much he actually cares about it. That's tough.