Head Coach Brian Daboll

BRIAN DABOLL: Tough game. Give Tampa (Bay) credit. They did everything better than we did today.

Q: How do you explain that performance for your team?

BRIAN DABOLL: It wasn't good. It wasn't good. For a variety of… Missed tackles, converting in the red zone, turning the ball back over in the red zone. We had a good week of practice. Did a lot of work and obviously it didn't show. So, no excuses.

Q: You say you were hoping that (quarterback) Tommy (DeVito) would provide a spark for the offense. Why do you think that didn't happen?

BRIAN DABOLL: They played well and we didn't play well. So, we get down 23-0 and that changes the complexity of the game some. We had a good drive coming out of half, turned the football over. So, just not good enough and that all starts with me.

Q: How much do you feel, if at all, everything that happened this week with (quarterback) Daniel (Jones) and the situation? Any effect on the team?

BRIAN DABOLL: No excuse on that. We just didn't do a good enough job.

Q: Do you regret benching Daniel (Jones)?

BRIAN DABOLL: We're moved on here. We didn't do a good enough job today all the way around, and that starts with me.

Q: I mean in the context of doing it to spark the offense and improve the way the offense looked…

BRIAN DABOLL: We weren't good. So, no excuses. It wasn't a good day.

Q: What do you tell the team after a performance like that?

BRIAN DABOLL: Just that. I think there's a lot of pride from people. But what we put out there wasn't good enough. We can't make excuses, we got a short turnaround. But didn't do a good enough job. We had a good week. We started out slow, got down 23-0. Things compounded and battled there in the second half but ultimately not good enough.

Q: What does a good week mean? What makes you feel like the week was good?BRIAN DABOLL: Good energy at practice. Good detail. Bouncing around. Again, no excuses. It wasn't good and that's my responsibility.

Q: You guys are averaging this season 14.8 points per game, which, I think, is the lowest in over 25 years for this team. Why has it been a week over week issue with the offense?

BRIAN DABOLL: We're not doing a good enough job.

Q: What did you think of (Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback) Baker (Mayfield) taunting the fans in the stadium with the (Tommy) DeVito?

BRIAN DABOLL: I think they played well. He played a good game. So, I'll give those guys credit.

Q: You started to talk about about having a good week at practice. I'm sure you sensed, the team's healthy, you were going to come out and play a good game. When it doesn't happen, do you question, 'Am I getting through to these guys? Am I not reading them right?' Because the performance does not match anything you thought before the game.

BRIAN DABOLL: I understand the question. We didn't do a good enough job. We got to be better.

Q: What are some of the issues you're seeing with the defense?

BRIAN DABOLL: We got to do a better job of tackling. Third down conversions.

Q: Are you happy with the pursuit of everybody? Gang tackling to the ball?

BRIAN DABOLL: We're just missing them. We missed a bunch today. It's something that we focused on. Obviously not good enough. At the end of the day, that's my responsibility.

Q: Your decision, fourth and one early in the game…

BRIAN DABOLL: Had two plays there, thought we had an opportunity to get a first down and keep the drive going, try to build some momentum and didn't get it.

Q: (Wide receiver Malik) Nabers didn't have a target in the first half, why was he not involved?

BRIAN DABOLL: We didn't have very many plays. Certainly, had some there dialed up and they had, whether it's a coverage designed to, I'm not saying double him or anything like that, just a better coverage for the play in and of itself. But didn't have very many plays. We tried to mix in the run. Started off the game with a good run and not much after that. The game got away from us and turned into a pass-a-thon, which is not what we want to do.

Q: How do you convince the team that the big move you made this week is in the right interest of the team when you have this performance?

BRIAN DABOLL: I think we moved on here with it. We just got to get ready to go here, for this week.

Q: I understand you moved on from it, but there were a number of players who stressed and said that they believed Daniel (Jones) was this team's best quarterback, namely (defensive lineman) Dexter (Lawrence II). Then to have this performance, is there a concern? Are you worried?

BRIAN DABOLL: No. Again, we're moved on from it. We've talked about the Daniel (Jones) situation. We just got to do a better job, play better all the way around.

Q: How much did you think this was a possibility? When you were weighing the pros and cons of making that kind of decision, that this is a possibility? That you might not get your intended result which was, like you said, to create a spark

BRIAN DABOLL: I'd just say we're… Daniel (Jones) is not on the team anymore. We've talked about that. We got to do a better job all the way around.

Q: Will Tommy (DeVito) be your starter next week?

BRIAN DABOLL: If he's healthy and ready to go, he will be.

Q: How do you think he played today?

BRIAN DABOLL: We'll go back and look at it. Nobody did a good enough job, starting with myself.

Q: What's he (Tommy DeVito) dealing with health-wise?

BRIAN DABOLL: He just got dinged up a little bit. I think he had the wind knocked out of him back there. He took a couple shots. So, hopefully he'll be okay.

Q: Six straight losses, any concern that this could snowball?

BRIAN DABOLL: Just trying to get a win. Again, do everything we can do each week. Certainly not the performance that we set out to have, no question about that. Got to do a better job.

Q: You've talked about execution all along, are you concerned with the fight in this team right now? I know you've seen during the week, but..

BRIAN DABOLL: We got to do things better. But, no, I don't question our guys.

Q: You mentioned missed tackles a bunch of times. The natural inclination is to say, 'Well, missed tackles is an effort thing.' What do you say to that?

BRIAN DABOLL: I'd say we missed some tackles. I think guys were giving good effort and we missed some tackles. They made us miss and had some opportunities.

Q: Why have you been missing so many tackles this year if you don't think it's effort. What's the other explanation?

BRIAN DABOLL: Technique. Give credit to the other guys, making us miss. But certainly not good enough.

Q: What's the thinking with calling the timeouts on that last drive?

BRIAN DABOLL: Just try to finish the game. Give Tommy (DeVito) an opportunity to finish the game and keep competing.

Q: Tommy (DeVito) did take quite a few big hits, as you mentioned. How do you address that in improving pass protection?

BRIAN DABOLL: We'll see why the hits were the hits. We'll take a look at that and try to correct what we can.

Q: (Running back Tyrone) Tracy (Jr.) came back in for the game, was he out for a few…

BRIAN DABOLL: He turned the ball over. Gave (running back) Motor (Devin Singletary) some burn and (running back Eric) Gray and then put (Tyrone) Tracy back in.

Q: How big a concern is that with him (Tyrone Tracy Jr.) moving forward? He has a bunch of fumbles this year.

BRIAN DABOLL: It's something we got to continue to stress and work on. But I have a lot of confidence in (Tyrone) Tracy. But we can't turn the ball over to the other team.

Q: Do you have concern about your job security after a game like this? Or do you feel like you're safe and can coach out this season?

BRIAN DABOLL: I just feel for the guys that go out there and play and the result that we had today. We'll focus on getting better for next week.

Q: How much do you even consider that? How much does that even go through your head when you have performances like this?

BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, the only thing that goes is, 'How are we going to make it better?' And that's what we'll try to do.

Quaterback Tommy DeVito

Q: How are you feeling? Know you took some shots at the end of that game and came out of it, so how are you doing health wise?

A: Good. Little things that, first time being out there in a while, and hadn't played real football again since preseason. So, it always takes a little bit to get adjusted to getting hit again, but I'll be okay.

Q: Why was it so hard for you guys to get anything going today consistently?

A: Yeah, it was tough in the first half. Just figuring out what they were doing, just know it sounds cliché but just coming down to execution. Started to get a little bit fast in the third quarter, we finally got things clicking, and the run and pass game, the run game we got going, passes opened up, vice versa. Kind of slowed them down a little bit defensively, because they were bringing a lot of pressure early on. I was just starting to figure that out and just let everybody just play. We started to get going, but it was too late.

Q: What was it that New York Giants WR Malik Nabers had no targets in the first half, was there anything specific they were doing with him?

A: No, not necessarily. Kind of just going through my reads. Kind of just how it played out.

Q: How frustrating was it to, every time it did seem like you guys were getting something going, something happens that stalls the drive?

A: I mean, that's just adversity, right? You never know when it's going to happen, in the first half of the game it happened early on in the drive. We weren't able to convert and then obviously, just being able to go down the field and then something like that happen, just stay tight as a group and that's just again just attention to detail. The small things. Staying on a block this much further, me carrying out a fake that can pull a guy apart to help keep someone away from the ball and then, ultimately everybody just plays a part in that and the ball security aspect, but just have to finish. I know it's a thing that's been going on for a while, but it's definitely something that is being hammered in the meetings, in the film, on the practice field. It just has to click, that's it.

Q: What do you think the key is to getting it to click?

A: Just finishing. Details. Yeah.

Q: With all the emotions of the week and to get out there, and for them to jump out the way they did against you guys. To come in at half time, what's the mood and how do you get a read on this team and where you guys are at right now?

A: Yeah, at that point it was in our eyes, we treat it as 0-0 ball game. You don't have to try to get it all back at once, you can't get it all back at once, not in one drive, but to go down and put together a drive and to go down the field and give the offense back our confidence. I think that obviously, we did a good job going down the field, we just have to finish it to really solidify that and put us back in the game, but at half time everybody was up, motivated, ready to go. That's never a question. There's no hanging heads, nobody allows that to happen, and nobody does that. So, we've got to keep that going but ultimately, we've got to come out faster in the first half.

Q: Do you sense a lack of confidence at all in this offense?

A: No, no. I think it starts with the leader. I think it starts with Dabs (New York Giants HC Brian Daboll). He's a very confident guy and then obviously, it trickles down and I think when it gets to the quarterback group, the receivers are confident. I think everybody's confident. I think just when it comes together just breathe into each other and just when things do go wrong or when something does go wrong, say it was a missed block or the ball's on the ground, just bringing that whole group together to that one guy. Just bring that confidence back into him knowing he's going to be good for the next play and we've got his back.

Q: What was your reaction to Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield doing your touchdown celebration?

A: I honestly really didn't know until somebody just mentioned it in the locker room. They were having a good game. They celebrated. It is what it is. It kind of happened last year and it's going to happen, I guess.

Q: Most of the quarterbacks get most of the blame and too much of the credit, too much of the blame, do you kind of sit there and say, they wanted me to give them a spark, but it was kind of hard today to do that?

A: Yeah, I mean I pride myself on that. You always want to be that spark. The quarterback gives the spark on any offense, not just right now what it is with the way things are going but across the NFL, everything flows through the quarterback. So, yeah I do. I take that heavy being able to get more points going and get things going in the first half. I take that hard. I am going to go watch film to see what I could have done better on my part, whether that's on the field, whether it's off, energizing the guys, keeping the guys going, like anything, any way, shape or form, I'm going to analyze but obviously, like you said quarterbacks get when it's good it's great, when it's bad it's bad. So, being able to just stay even keel through it all, understand what my job is and make it better for next week.

Q: I think you've said in the past that maybe the number one quality you have is confidence whenever you step out there. Did you see something like this kind of transpire overall today? It just seemed that things never got going.

A: Yeah, it was tough. I mean, but that's just a testament for the guys, especially the guys up front, everybody around us. At certain points, the scoreboard, it was 0-0. We're just going out and playing and trying to put our best football forward. Obviously, like I said before, we got going way too late, but it's there. It's there. We're able to go up and down the field. Those little things that just bite you and just kill the drive and just don't allow you to go down there and especially put points on the board. It just needs to get nipped in the bud, and it will. I know it's been a while, but it'll happen.

Q: You've played a lot of football in your lifetime, and you've been on teams where you see it, think it's going to come, and it doesn't come. Why are you confident at 2-9 that maybe it's still coming?

A: Because I see the way we practice. I mean, a lot of the older guys talk about it. (Defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence II) Dex talks about it all the time. (outside linebacker Brian) Burns talks about it all the time. We're the hardest-practicing team that they've seen. They've been around. Me, personally, I think that as well. The way we practice, if you go out and watch us, we do not practice like we're 2-9 or whatever our record is. We are going out there like we are undefeated, and every day is like a game. It just has to translate from practice to the field. That's the biggest thing. Confidence is not an issue on the offense, defense, or special teams' side of the ball. I think the locker room is tight knit. I think that everybody has a lot of juice going into the week, especially with how things have been going on the field. There's no fingers being pointed. Everyone's kind of honing in on it, but maybe we just need to hone in a little harder. So, we've got to figure it out this week.

Q: Did you get the wind knocked out of you on that?

A: Yeah, just the wind knocked out of me.

Q: Does it help at all that it's a short week? Not much time to think about this one when you have Dallas coming up or do you almost wish you had more time to kind of figure out the little details like you talked about?

A: There's good and bad to it. I mean, you're going to flush it. Obviously, you have to go on to next week, but you still have to be able to go back and watch it and see what went right and what went wrong and why. But that needs to be a quick fix, nip in the bud, and then we're on to Dallas right now. So, I think there's a 50-50 with it.

DL Dexter Lawrence

Q: After a game like this, are you angry?

A: Extremely, we played soft, and they beat the s--- out of us today.

Q: When you say you played soft or your ball club played soft, can you be more specific?

A: We missed a lot of tackles, we didn't contain (Buccaneers quarterback) Baker (Mayfield) well in the scrambles, we didn't cover well, it's soft to me.

Q: Are you more disappointed with the effort than you are with the execution in general with this team?

A: I don't think we lack effort; I think we're just not doing well tackling and covering on defense.

Q: Why do you think you guys played soft?

A: Because we didn't tackle and cover well.

Q: Was there anything you saw leading up to this that kind of gave you warning signs that…How was the week, did you see things?

A: I thought we practiced well, that was my message at halftime. We practiced too hard, we practiced too good to go out there and play like that. And it just continues.

Q: How would you describe your level of frustration right now?

A: Probably a 10.

Q: Do you think it can get better? And if it does get better, how does it get better?

A: I think it always can get better, it's a process, right now it's a long process that I'm here for, I'm going to keep leading, doing all I can on the field to lead. Talking to the guys I need to talk to, the defense, the guys on the offense, whoever, but yeah.

Q: Do you think everyone is bought in to what this program is right now?

A: I think so. Like I said, I don't see lack of effort. I don't see selfishness, just got to execute better, man. We got to tackle better, we got to cover better, we got to be mentally locked in on whatever is being called out there, it's just the little s--- that keeps popping up from one player after another player after another player.

Q: Sometimes this happens late in the season, but there's still a lot of games left, are you kind of worried?

A: Like I said, I think our effort is good. I think our mindset is we want to win, we just got to execute better.

Q: When a young guy like (wide receiver) Malik (Nabers) says that he is tired of losing and he's only been here for one year, what is your message to him?

A: I'm with you, I'm tired of losing. This season we have a good team, and this season is not turning out the way it should, and it's frustrating and I get his frustration. I have it, too. But you just got to go out and lead, keep going, keep giving my all, that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to do my best to bring guys along as best as I can.

Q: In that moment after the touchdown, you went to the sideline, you were standing there with your hands over your helmet, kind of rocking back and forth. What are you doing in that moment?

A: Frustrated, keeping my cool.

Q: Obviously you saw Baker Mayfield do the (quarterback) Tommy DeVito after scoring a touchdown?

A: I didn't see that.

Q: What do you think of the fact that he did that in front of the crowd in the stadium?

A: I didn't see.

Q: This could happen any week, but when it happens in the same week when the Giants cut the starting quarterback, do you think that had any effect on the locker room and the way guys reacted?

A: I don't think so. That's just a coincidence. I don't think that had an effect on the team. They just played well. Tampa Bay played well, didn't have many mistakes and we had a lot.

Q: Soft is about as damning of an indictment on a team, on a defense. Is that fixable in just a few days or a season?

A: Like I said, I'm saying soft is we didn't execute our calls well. We played with a lot of effort. Soft is not executing well and soft to me, is soft to not execute well.

Q: So, if you guys have a good week of practice, which you indicated to the guys, you told the guys, 'Hey we practiced well'. So then why does that happen where you have soft execution in a game?

A: I don't know. I can't answer that one.

Q: Do you feel that the connection between the coaching staff and the players is still strong? Sometimes there's a disconnect and that leads to bad play.

A: Of my knowledge, I think so. I don't know, we can have more accountability all around. But as my knowledge, I don't see any disconnect.

Q: Do you feel like you're being put in the best position to have success?

A: I think so, defensively. Like I said, we just got to be mentally locked in on our job on that one play, in that one moment, be in those moments, and got to execute.

Q: Is it draining for the defense when the offense can't put points on the board, especially early when they're shut out in multiple first halves?

A: They put 30 on us, or however many points they put on us. So, we didn't do our job to create short fields, or create turnovers, and it's going to be hard. We had a new quarterback in, so they were going to do whatever they did, blitz the s--- out of him every play. So, we got to take it as a defense, we got to understand that, and we got to play harder for the guys across the ball.

Q: How do you think you've played yourself?

A: They tried to ice me out a lot of the game. I had two hands on me the whole game, until the end of the game pretty much. That's what I got to expect. I got to play through it. Whatever it is, try my best to defeat those and depend on the guys around me to make plays.

Q: Do you think it's worth having a players-only meeting at this point to just have everybody air out their thoughts and see if you can't resolve some of these issues?

A: I think we talked to the team a lot, as leaders.

Wide Receiver Darius Slayton

Q: I asked Daboll [New York Giants Head Coach Brian Daboll] if he regretted benching Daniel [former New York Giants starting quarterback Daniel Jones] and he said 'We have moved on from that', do you think that the locker room has moved on from that? Or do you think there are lingering effects to that move as far as how the team played and how you guys feel about the promise of this season?

A: I don't think that is the reason why we came out here today and got beat the way we did. At the end of the day, DJ [former New York Giants starting quarterback Daniel Jones] wasn't on the field today. He had no affect on how well the people that were out there did their jobs and at the end of the day, the people who did play today did a terrible job and that is why we got beat.

Q: What do you think when you guys see the other team sort of mocking the Tommy thing [the Giants QB Tommy DeVito's hand-gesture celebration] and have to sit there and kind of take that?

A: That's what happens when you lose. When you lose, you allow people to do stuff like that.

Q: Darius, given the emotion of this week [with the Giants benching and releasing former starting QB Daniel Jones], was it hard in retrospect to go out there and have the energy level up?

A: No, I think the energy level was up until we started playing badly and were getting beat. It just builds at that point. I mean, obviously we came into the game not expecting it to go that way, but it is what it is.

Q: Darius, sometimes this happens late in a bad season, but there are still six games left [for the rest of the 2024 NFL Regular Season], do you sort of worry it can go from bad to worse?

A: I sure hope not. I hope not.