Head Coach John Harbaugh

HARBAUGH: Thank you for being here. Praise and glory to our Savior. And to our guys, nothing but respect for finding a way to win a tough game in the fourth quarter. That's the way these games go usually in the National Football League. And for (safety) Jevón (Holland) to come up and make that play, for the defense to rise up and make a play to win a game, that's really what's required in this league. And I was really proud to see those guys do that. I think it says a lot about who they are and where they're going, hopefully. And that's the plan. So, proud of those guys. What questions do you have?

Q: What was your vantage point for the game-winning interception? Kind of what did you see as the play unfolded and your feeling when it first happened, or when it finally happened?

HARBAUGH: My vantage point?

Q: In terms of what you were seeing from where you were standing on the sideline as the play unfolded.

HARBAUGH: I just saw the quarterback got pushed out of the pocket. Tried to make a throw to, I think, someone coming in on the back line, and Jevón, I'm sure he didn't see Jevón. Jevón did a great job. He was kind of a poach player there. A little bit of a free player. And I think he had a good sense of where the routes were, obviously. And he just got in position to make a great play. He's been doing that all year so far. He's been our turnover guy on defense. He's done a great job.

Q: John, what was the approach for you and the offensive coaches – with the conditions, what did you want to stress? And what did you think maybe you couldn't do because of the conditions and things like that?

HARBAUGH: I think the biggest thing is it was going to be that kind of a game. I think both teams understood that. (Head) Coach (Robert) Saleh, I could tell he looked at it in a similar vein. I mean, it was going to be a field position game. It was going to be a turnover game, takeaway game. Run-the-ball game. Try not to put the other team in a short field. That was really the way the game was played. And that's the way it played out.

Q: What's your message to your team after a game like that? It probably wasn't the cleanest game you've ever played, but it is tough conditions. But you are able to leave with a win, obviously.

HARBAUGH: Well yeah, I mean, that's just how it is. I told them that's really how it works most of the time. I mean, there's very few wins where you walk in and you're really happy with everything. Where you feel like you played this great, amazing game. And even when you did, even the few times you have those games, you go back, you look at tape and you're disappointed by a bunch of stuff. I mean, football is really – it's crazy. It's crazy out there. So, that's what it's all about. It's finding a way to win a rough game. It's just – they're never pretty. They're never perfect. But they need to be us doing what we need to do to win games. Find a way to win games in those kinds of moments. There's plenty of times we could have put this game away. We should have put this game away. We're going to look at our red zone offense and be really, really unhappy about the penalties. I mean, you get the ball down there inside the 5, inside the 10, and we penalize ourselves out of scoring position. That's going to be, obviously, a major point of emphasis. So, to your point – but then our kicker – our kicker comes in there, our rookie kicker, in these kind of conditions, and kicks all those field goals. I'm really proud of him for that.

Q: Do you feel like manufacturing ways to win games is an actual talent that you can be developed? Have you identified that talent with this team? Do they have that?

HARBAUGH: Well, I think they showed that today. I mean, the punt team. How about the punt team? How about the field position that was flipped? We had numerous long punts with great coverage, even created a few penalties that backed them up even a little further from the top of the catch. So, that – and then defensively, they might've had one first down, maybe, in the first half. So, that's tough. That puts them behind the eight ball. That's what set it up for us. It would have been good to close the game out on offense. We really wanted to do that. We didn't want to put our defense back out there. We didn't want them to drive down into the red zone. That wasn't the goal. But they come up with a play. I think it's really important to keep your poise. I think maybe that's one of the traits you're talking about. The ability to make plays. All of a sudden, they're at the 7-yard line, they're going to get four shots at this, four cracks at this. You still have an opportunity to make the next play no matter what happened on the last play. For our guys to step up in that situation and do that, I think, and see it pay off, is a big step towards where we want to go as a football team.

Q: John, what's your assessment of (quarterback) Jameis (Winston) so far? You've seen him for two – almost two full games now.

HARBAUGH: I thought Jameis did what was required in this game. The first thing you have to do is what's necessary. What's required. After that, then you can do what's possible. Then maybe the impossible becomes possible. That's from St. Francis of Assisi, in case you were wondering. I thought he did what was required. He did what was necessary.

Q: What did you see out of (inside linebacker) Arvell Reese today? He seemed to be all over the field.

HARBAUGH: He had a game ball. I felt enough of him to give him a game ball. He had 14 tackles, maybe 10 or 11 unassisted tackles. He was definitely all over the field today. He sprang onto the scene today.

Q: John, you talked about, late in the week, the idea of the moment you were going to find out about this team first this week was Wednesday morning's team meeting. Short week, everything that transpired last week, does that even add to the character of this kind of win for you?

HARBAUGH: It definitely does. Even before the game, I mentioned on the phones to a couple of people, we're going to find out a lot about ourselves as a football team right now in this game. I didn't really expect it to go the way it did, but it never goes the way you expect it to go. So, it was a big plus. It was an A-plus type of a game in that sense. Handling the adversity and overcoming the challenges. There's something to be said about that.

Q: You guys ran the ball really effectively today with 138 yards. How proud are you of your offensive line and your running game today?

HARBAUGH: Very proud because that's the strength of that defense. Their defensive front and their defensive front seven is really, really good. They probably, maybe, have the best defensive tackle in football. And he was a problem, yet we were blocking him. I thought our O-line played really well. I thought Skatt (running back Cam Skattebo) had a lot of tough yards against a tough run defense. And I thought our wide receivers did a great job blocking. (Running back) Najee (Harris) did a great job running the ball, north and south with some power. All those guys did really well. We had Trace (running back Tyrone Tracy Jr.). Tyrone had a huge third down conversion there on a crack toss. So, it was good to see that. Jameis Winston had some rushing yards, didn't he? I think he did.

Q: Do you have any update on the severity of (outside linebacker) Brian Burns' injury and then also on (fullback) Pat Ricard?

HARBAUGH: Pat Ricard got his nose lacerated. It's really unbelievable, all the way through, like deep. I don't know what happened. Maybe someone got their hand in his face mask. And then Brian Burns will get an MRI hopefully tonight. We're trying to get that scheduled for tonight. There is some hope there, but we won't know until we see the MRI.

Q: Thinking on that wildcat play, first-and-goal, was there supposed to be a receiver down there? It didn't look like there was.

HARBAUGH: The wildcat play?

Q: The direct snap to Skattebo.

HARBAUGH: No, that was the right formation. It just –

Q: Well, it looked like he was ready to throw it.

HARBAUGH: No, no, that wasn't part of it. I saw what you saw, and I thought to myself, 'He's not going to throw that, is he?' Because there was no throw involved in that play. So, that was not our best – that was not our finest moment, for sure.

Q: John, you mentioned Jevón, obviously. He's been your playmaker on defense this season. Through three games, just, I guess, what can you say about him raising his level to kind of be that leader you guys expected him to be?

HARBAUGH: I mean, honestly, I mean, that's what I expected. Because when you knew him coming out, you saw what he did at Miami. That's the kind of player Jevón Holland has always been. So, to see him flourishing right now, the way he is, is just – it's wonderful.

Q: John, were a lot of those offseason moves, bringing in experienced veterans like (inside linebacker Tremaine) Edmunds or (defensive lineman DJ) Reader, who were able to close out a game like that? And could you already see their kind of experience and resiliency translating into the younger guys in the locker room?

HARBAUGH: Right. To me, a very good point in the sense that I thought our defense kept their poise. They didn't panic, they didn't fall apart. We're going to be mad about jumping offides, but they did a good job of just keeping it together. We executed the defense. There was no major mistake. Everybody did their job. I thought the pressure was good. We didn't get as many sacks as we want, but the pressure started to be good there. He was getting moved around the pocket a little bit. And I'm watching him. They're bringing it. So, I just thought everybody kept their poise really well and tried to do their job. And that was – that's what you want.

Q: How much did how Jameis play today – how much will that influence the decision you make at quarterback moving forward here?

HARBAUGH: Not at all. Not at all. The plans are the plans. The opportunities that you have are the opportunities you have. No matter what, we're going to do everything we can to make our team as strong as we can based on what options we have.

Q: Just to follow that, just regardless of who you might bring in at a quarterback in the coming days, do you expect Jameis to be the starter next week or is that still –

HARBAUGH: Yes. Yes, I do. Yes, I do.

Quarterback Jameis Winston

Q: What's your thoughts when you see your safety intercept the ball at the end?

A: Elated, praise God, so happy and grateful that he did what I thought he was going to do. I told him he was going to do that. He did it.

Q: When did you tell him he was going to do that?

A: I told him he was going to do that Friday. Friday, I told him, I said, when the play is on the line, you're going to make the biggest play.

Q: Why do you have that confidence in (safety) Jevon (Holland), just from his approach, how he carries himself?

A: Just how he comes every single day. He comes to work with a desire to be great. And when those big moments come up, the best players, they show up.

Q: How much of a focus was it heading into this game to protect the ball, regardless of yards, points, plays, just to protect the ball?

A: Offensively, that's your focus every single week, is making sure that you win the turnover battle, you win the sack battle. You win the (inaudible).

Q: You've played in tons of different conditions. What would you say this was like as far as your ability to throw it and move around, things like that?

A: Yeah, I think when you are presented with a situation where your defense is better than them, you do what's required for your team to win.

Q: So, what does that mean? You're not going to put the ball in harm's way? Not going to take those extra shots?

A: Well, when you say that, do what's required, you focus on protecting football, being efficient on first and second down. And eliminating negative plays.

Q: What did you think of your overall performance?

A: Really, every quarterback is really judged off if they won or lost the game. So, I'm grateful that I get to be judged off of won not a loss. And I've had games where I've thrown for 500 yards, right, and the game didn't turn out the way I wanted it to be. And anytime, any day, I would rather win.

Q: How did you feel about your connections with (running back Cam) Skattebo, to put yourself in the position to kick the field goal?

A: I think Scatt is a tremendous player, and we're definitely grateful to have him as our running back. That's how he comes to work every single day, and his energy, his dawg mentality, I really love it. So, we trust him, we trust him to make the plays when they're there to be made.

Q: Jameis, your takeaway from this game. You did all those things you said, you protected the ball, you were efficient on plays, but 12 points won't be enough going forward. Is that a message for the offense going forward?

A: I believe, I think sometimes people get confused when they say going forward. All that mattered was today. Today is the only day that we have. And today was enough.

Q: Jameis, there were a lot of reports leading into this game about other quarterbacks the Giants might bring in. What did you think of that?

A: Those reports, so thank you.

Q: Did it spark you? Did you ignore it? You've been around a while, you've seen a lot of different things in this league.

A: Oh, no, man, look, I am so happy and grateful that the New York Football Giants won the football game. Anything else that is outside of me, it is what it is. I'm grateful that we get to celebrate as a team. Played great complementary football. Our punter was amazing. (Punter) Jordan (Stout) did an incredible job. And I was talking to the guys in the locker room, it's a confidence that's created when you're able to win games like that. You guys have been here over the past few years. Let me ask you something, would the old New York Football Giants, would they have won those games? They said no. So, it's good when you're able to find a way to have one of those days. It reminds me of the first day of training camp in West Virginia. It was pouring down raining and no one had the excitement. But it reminds you of a football game. The purpose of the football game in the NFL is to be your best and win the game. No matter who makes the play. The play don't care who makes it. It's something that (former Florida State Head Coach) Jimbo Fisher used to say all the time. And our safety Jevon Holland made the perfect play to seal the victory for us. Our offensive line did an incredible job all day dominating the line of scrimmage. And our defense, man, they were a brick house. That's a different way to look at it. They did an incredible job. And that was a great team win.

Q: Why do you think this team was able to pull it off and win?

A: Belief. Faith. There was no doubt on the sideline that it was going to happen. Obviously, we are our brother's keeper. Winning this game for (quarterback) Jaxson (Dart). Twelve points. Six times two. It's for you. That's twelve. So, we found a way to will to get this. Then (outside linebacker Brian) Burns went down. So, we had to find a way to be our brother's keeper. But we never lost faith. We kept going. And our objective was to be 1-0. One play at a time.

Q: What does this game teach you about yourself as a quarterback?

A: This game teaches you so much. Week in and week out. But I'm always learning. I'm always looking to find ways to get better. And I'm looking forward to finding ways that I can get better from this game.

Q: Jameis, when there is a lot of talk about the Giants need to go get help at quarterback, even though you're team focused, is there a part of you that wants to go out there and show, I'm enough. We don't need a better quarterback. I'm enough. Is there any part of you that feels that way?

A: Well, I believe a part of me already knows the greatest he is in me than he is in the world. So, worldly opinion does not really impact me. I know what I put into this game and I take that. I'm just grateful. If y'all ask me, how does it feel to win your first game as a New York Football Giants starting quarterback? That's the stuff. I choose to focus on the seed of good in everything. The Maras and Tisches, they give me amazing opportunities to represent this organization and to be able to put up a W, right? You're talking about me eating W, but to be able to put a W in the win column is something that I am proud about. So, no matter what they say or what they do, I know it's what's in me, not what's on me. Today, we celebrate a W.

Q:  Jameis, your longest completion was down the field to Skatt (running back Cam Skattebo). I'm sure that's not the way it was drawn up. You're flushed this way. Can you just describe that? Skattebo, he said he's not even sure that you saw him.

A: Yeah, well, he told me to look for him. So, I did. Yeah, so the scramble drill is a great part of the game. So, I'm happy that our receivers coach, Chad Hall, puts an emphasis on getting open. Because we do got quarterbacks that can make people miss and extend the play. So, that was good to be able to put that on tape.

Q:  There was a big run there in the – it was the third quarter. Take us through what you saw there and what happened there.

A: Offense was holding up as long as they could, so I had to get out of there and escape. I'm just happy to have enough wheels to get an explosive run.

Q:  Jameis, I know you guys had no choice. It's a short week. You had to do what you had to do. You had to deal with what you had to deal with emotionally. When you take a step back and walk out of here tonight knowing you've won, how challenging was this week for this team and did you learn a lot about maybe what you didn't know about this team right after?

A: Yeah, and I felt like that win really taught us a lot. You guys concluded that we could find a way. It doesn't matter the opponent. faceless opponent. But when we are making plays when they are required to be made, and when we are doing what is required as football players to begin to lead this organization to a win, that's all that matters. I want to give y'all something else to write about, but that's why you're all world-class at what y'all do. So, get to work. But at the end of the day, we're all going to be able to say the Giants won. If you choose not to use that in your column, then I'm sorry. But I hope y'all finally see the good. It felt good. It felt good to get a win like that with the conditions, the way we did it. And I'm looking forward to doing more of that.

Q: How much did this team need a win like that?

A: Oh, we did. And that's why I said with (quarterback) Jaxson (Dart), it was required. I'm sure he doesn't care how we won the game. I'm pretty sure (outside linebacker) Brian Burns doesn't care how we won the game. But that team morale is so much better when we find a way to do it, especially when we do it in a collective way. I think that's – football is the ultimate team sport. And we miss Jaxson. And he means so much to this team and organization. So, I'm just happy we were able to get that win to support him.

Safety Jevón Holland

Q: Previous 41 games going into this year you had two interceptions. You've got three in your first three games this year. What's changed in how you've seen the ball, locate the ball, taken the ball away this season?

HOLLAND: The ball is just coming my way. Anybody can tell you there's no rhyme or reason to it. I'm just trying to catch the ones they throw to me. I have been on the jugs every day, just in case they do, but other than that they come in bunches. The ball has just been coming my way, and I've been trying to make sure I'm on my keys and technique so I'm in the right spot.

Q: What about the defense fitting you maybe, is that part of it too? Your role in this defense playing into your strengths?

HOLLAND: Yeah, I think this defense is definitely very sound. I think because it's so sound and has so much structure to it, I'm able to find my role and adapt in an effective manner. That was similar in '23, '22, '21.

Q:  You guys lost this game a lot last year, and truthfully before you got here, they lost this game a lot. The last couple years they let the team hang around and then they don't close it out and lose. What does it say that you guys were able to close this one out?

HOLLAND: This is 2026 and the last previous years have nothing to do with us.

Q: On the last play, as it developed, did you think Cam Ward might run the ball? What was your whole mentality on that?

HOLLAND: Yeah, actually, lowkey. I saw him break the pocket and I was like, I'm the free player, so I was going to hold them up, basically. If he sees me running at him, he might stop and try to let the ball go, but then I saw him step to stay lateral and find people. He does scramble with his eyes downfield, and I just stayed around the front of the endzone.

Running Back Cam Skattebo

Q: You are a guy who is always psyched up anyway, but when you kind of know what the weather is like and that it's going to be a ground-and-pound, I would imagine you're even more excited?

SKATTEBO: Yes, a lot of caffeine to get me going a little bit and to be ready to play football. As a running back, you kind of pray for days like these because you know you are going to touch the football a lot. It's awesome. I felt great, I was ready to go, and (we're) moving onto the next game.

Q: Jameis Winston is the starting QB now and obviously, he did everything he had to do today, what was the offense's function with him?

SKATTEBO: It was good; it was wet out there, so it was hard to do certain things, but we executed as well as we could. Everything looked good. Like I said, penalties killed us. It wasn't (anything) that a certain person did. There were a couple of plays inside the red zone, inside the 10- or 15-yard line and we get a penalty. We just have to stay away from those and clean that stuff up. We have his back, he's a hell of a ball player and we know what he can do with the ball. I am proud of him and proud that he was able to lead this team to victory.

Q: I don't want to give special teams the slight here, because your punter (Jordan Stout) was incredible, and your kicker (Dominic Zvada) made all four of his kicks, so that has to be a big plus, right?

SKATTEBO: Absolutely; shout-out to Dom (Zvada). He has been through the ringer in Training Camp. Me and (outside linebacker) Abdul (Carter) give him a headache when he is kicking field goals at practice, so shout-out to him. He has a level head and able to stay focused and he knows what he is doing with his leg. I appreciate him and obviously Jordan – when you punt the ball 90 yards in the air, that is really good for the offense. You're not too upset about a third-down stop, obviously you want to get those, but you are proud of who you have to punt the ball down the field and be able to switch the field completely.

Q: (Outside linebacker) Brian Burns is also one of your emotional leaders like (quarterback) Jaxson Dart; that is now two weeks in-a-row where you have lost one of your emotional leaders to an injury. I don't know yet what the deal is with Burns right now, but how does that affect your guys' psyche?

SKATTEBO: Obviously, we are praying for him. that really sucks. It sucks to see anyone on the team go down, especially those two guys. The defense, even when he went down, they held their ground. I am proud of them and they are going to get back out on the field and continue to work. I'm hoping that Brian is okay.

Kicker Dominic Zvada

Q: So, 4-for-4 on all of your field goals, inclement weather, but then again, you kicked at (the University of) Michigan. So I got a hunch that even though they were talking about heavy wind and heavy rain, you probably didn't blink at all, did you?

ZVADA: I mean, for me it was just another opportunity to go out there and just do what I do. Credit to the O-line. They did a great job. Credit to (long snapper) Ben (Mann) and (punter) Jordan (Stout). Did great, didn't have to worry about any of that sort of stuff. Operation was great. So, yeah, all I had to do is go out there and do my job. That's what we're able to do.

Q: Given your experience in poor weather back in Michigan, what do you look for? What are the key hurdles or the key factors that you want to check on as you go through your pregame warmups, knowing that you're probably going to have to kick some in the game?

ZVADA: Yeah, no, it's just ball contact for me. It's all ball contact, making sure that I'm hitting the ball in the right part of the foot and hitting the right part of the ball. So, for me, that's all it is, and if I'm able to do that right, I'm going to hit a strong ball.

Q: Do you know what your range is before the kick in a situation like this, because fortunately they didn't make you have to kick a long one like last week?

ZVADA: It kind of fluctuates depending on the situation and then the wind–especially with how it swirls in the stadium. So, it's kind of, it changes every so often. I'll be next to the and we'll kind of discuss it as we're getting closer to where it could potentially happen. So, I don't really have a specific number, but that's kind of the answer.

Q: How gratifying is it for you–an undrafted rookie free agent on this team–and it turns out your four kicks, the difference in this game today and the Giants are now 2-1?

ZVADA: I mean, it's awesome. Showing up here in the summer, these guys took me in, treated me like family right away, and I felt at home. And so, for me to be able to go ahead and do that and help these guys out, those guys—it means a lot. So, I'm really happy, really excited to keep going and keep trying to help the team win.

Q: Dominic, you have a ball in your hand. Which one is that, and what's the significance?

ZVADA: Well, actually, it's a game ball. Jordan Stout got it, and then he gave it to me. So, I appreciate that from Jordan. He had an excellent game too. He kicked the crap out of the ball, but he wanted to give it to me, so I really appreciate that.