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Postgame Quotes (9/8): Coughlin, Manning, Cruz

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View the best photos from the game vs. the Lions

HEAD COACH TOM COUGHLIN**

Opening Statement: "We played very poorly, don't have a lot to be proud of here. We couldn't move the ball, couldn't stop them, turned the ball over, got into that business again, got a punt blocked, so you name it, it was nightmare performance. Give them credit. They played very well they did what they had to do, they executed. We didn't have much yardage or what have you for the evening. I thought we could somehow, someway run it a little bit better, although their front is very good. There's no doubt about that, so very disappointing and expected better and in a short week we are going to have to do an awful lot to improve."

On the interceptions: "The one where the ball's rolling around on the ground, I mean I thought that the ball ends up getting flopped around I thought it was on the ground, but it wasn't and somehow the ball stayed up in the air long enough for the ball to be secure, so that certainly wasn't good. The other one he was rolling to his left trying to get enough on the ball and Victor (Cruz) was open, but he ended up floating the ball and the ball was intercepted. There may have been a chance there for Victor to go knock the ball down. I won't know that until I look at the tape. They're ill-advised no doubt and he's under pressure most of the night. We've done a good job of that the whole preseason and so we come in and have a couple of those and then didn't get any. You're not talking about a team that didn't turn the ball over last year themselves. We benefited from an interception returned for a touchdown against them. They were able to play a game without a turnover."

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On the pass protection:** "Whether you go pass protection or inability to run the ball, one of those two is right at the top of the list and certainly you're not going to be effective unless you can do that, so we go back to work."

On patience with the offensive line: "That's one way to look at it. The other hand, it's this is our team and whenever we get back healthy enough they'll play, but this is what we have"

On going with CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie against Lions WR Calvin Johnson: "Why? Because we felt like we could matchup best that way and we also thought we could get some help from others from time to time depending on the formation."

On the running game: "You saw it, it wasn't always clean. I thought there some opportunities on a couple of occasions for more yardage, but the third-down run on their end of the field, you know, we're cracking the back with a tight end and we crack back and pick our own tackle, so we don't have anybody clean to block the next defender. The runner should have gone north and south regardless, but there were some opportunities."

On the poor offense carrying over into regular season: "I'm worried about what just happened tonight and what's going to happen next week. The psyche? For what? This is the thing that we have to contend with. We have no one to blame but ourselves, so let's figure out a way to do a better job than what we did."

On his concern for QB Eli Manning: "There's no one individual, I mean, it's a team game and it's a team concept and certainly I don't want him throwing interceptions. That's not what I'm saying. He's no more to blame than anybody else. Blame me."

On prioritizing for next week: "There's a lot of work to do, obviously, and in a short week we'll see what we can accomplish, but I don't think there's anyone in that locker room that doesn't realize the bubble's been burst. There's a lot of things that have to be improved upon and they have to happen pretty quick."

On drops from the wide receivers: "There's no question. Victor (Cruz) did make a heck of a catch in traffic and then an over-the-shoulder catch he didn't make. The ball down the middle, that was a simultaneous hit and most of the time you figure he's going to catch that ball, but he didn't. So, there again that has to be straightened out as well."

On going with RG John Jerry over Brandon Mosely: "You been to practice the last couple of weeks? Has Mosely gotten hurt? Has he been on the sideline? That's why. The other guy practiced."

QB ELI MANNING

On the team offensively tonight: "Well, they're a good defensive team and they did a good job of slowing down our run game. They got good pressure at times and we've just got to find a way to get a better down distance and convert on third downs. Obviously, the two turnovers to start the third quarter hurt us a lot as well."

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On what happened on the two interceptions:** "The one to Victor (Cruz) was a bad decision by me. They had good pressure and I tried rolling left, but it was just a bad decision on trying to make that throw. Rolling left, I couldn't get as much on it as I wanted to. The first one was just a bad decision by me as well. I thought I saw a pocket, based on what I gave, but it was a wrong decision by me."

On if the team can blame some of the loss to learning a new offense: "I knew that we would have to get better as the season goes, but we could've definitely performed better than we did tonight. There's no reason for the turnovers, that's not a part of the offense. There's no reason to have those. But besides that there were a couple of other opportunities to make some plays. We just didn't make them."

On if there's something to latch on to with the offense tonight: "I thought our communication in the no-huddle offense was good. I thought we had a good pace. We had some long drives with that and I thought there was definitely something to build off of. We just have to keep going and keep working. We have to fine tune some areas, but there are definitely some things to build on. Overall, we need to improve."

On his protection tonight: "I thought I had some opportunities. I had to move in the pocket a few times and had an opportunity to get the ball down field, but again, (the Lions) are good. They have a good front four. They brought some pressure with the linebackers a few times, but we knew we weren't going to be able to sit back there all day and hold it and do a lot of seven-step drops. We were going to have to get the ball out quick. When we get the ball out quick, we have to find completions and hit the guys in strides and get them better down a distance."

WR VICTOR CRUZ

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On the team's offensive performance:** "We just couldn't get into a rhythm early on, struggling to get first downs and things like that. We kind of got into a little rhythm in the second half, but we just have to build, build on the things we did right and continue to work on those things."

On if he believes these are the same types of problems as last year: "It's too early to tell. I don't think it's anything. Last year was a whole different year and different personnel. It's just a matter of going in and continuing to work on the things that we have in our offense now and getting better for next week."

On what the team can do in practice to improve upon the offensive issues: "Just continue to get the work in, continue to work on different personnel, make sure we're paying attention to detail, making sure that we're assertive in what we do, be confident in our plays, be confident in our route running and blocking assignments. We'll take it from there."

TE LARRY DONNELL

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On the success he had tonight:** "The timing was down. We had the correct plays, executed correctly and we made plays down the field. I wish there could have been some more of that. It's tough with the loss, but we're going to get better, we're going to work on that and we're going to get this offense going. "

On if he feels a chemistry building between him and QB Eli Manning: "Yes, it's coming along. It could be better, but it's the first game. We're going to gradually grow, get better and make some big plays in the future. "

On the incompletion in the end zone followed by his touchdown: "I was smiling ear to ear when I came down to it. Coach gave me another opportunity and I came down with the next one."

CB PRINCE AMUKAMARA

On if he is surprised that there was so much miscommunication: "Yes, I don't know what happened. I don't know what happened tonight."

On how much of the plan was to have CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie follow Lions WR Calvin Johnson around: "That was the whole plan, I can tell you that now."

On if there was supposed to be help with Johnson: "It was DRC to match Calvin and Prince (Amukamara) just go to the opposite. Some of it was one-on-one, some of it we played man, some we played two, but yes I was the opposite of Calvin besides the first play where I got him out of bounds and he caught the ball."

SAFETY ANTREL ROLLE

On the disappointment from the first game: "Extremely disappointed. You give credit to that team. I think they came out and their execution was great and I also feel like we helped them a lot with their execution defensively. I don't think we played assignment football. We didn't play our technique the way we've been taught and it felt like guys were trying to cover for other guys' mistakes and once you get out of whack and once you get out of sync, it's kind of hard to recover from that. You allow big plays when you're supposed to be off the field, but we just got to get back to the drawing board and critique little things and it is little things. It's little things that allow big plays to happen. We'll get back to work come Wednesday and make all the corrections we need to."

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On if he was surprised the secondary was not in sync:** "Yes I am, I am a bit surprised because we don't display that even in practice, so I don't know if it's first-game jitters or guys trying to do too much, but we don't display that in practice. We have pretty crisp practices, we create a lot of turnovers in practice and everyone's pretty much in sync. So, like I said, we just have to get guys right, get them squared away, understand that it takes all 11 to be in the right place to execute correctly. We got to get better, definitely got to have more fire, you know? It wasn't enough fire out there. We didn't lay down, but it wasn't enough fire, so we need to pick up that aspect also."

On Lions WR Calvin Johnson: "Well, you know, the first play the quarterback scrambled, we missed a sack on that play and allowed the quarterback to extend the play that much more. Stevie Brown was trying to get over the top of the scramble, DRC's (Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie) on Calvin Johnson, Stevie Johnson and DRC collide and leave Calvin Johnson wide open. Matt (Stafford) made a couple plays off scrambles and keeping the play going and finding that open guy, he did a great job of that. Like I said, we need to definitely get more pressure, get the quarterback out of his rhythm a little bit and in the back we need to execute and be in the right place at the right time and not try to do too much."

LB JON BEASON

On if he believes the team is panicking: "Are we panicking? No, it's way too early for that. But we also have to be honest with ourselves and look at yourself first and where you can get better individually, then get everyone on the same page collectively. That's how it looks from the outside looking in and when I say that I mean, I haven't watched the film yet, but I know the call and I know what was going on out there. It was more so a lack of what we didn't do. Let's just be honest with ourselves, be men about it, own up to it so we can get better."

On if he would attribute the big plays to a lack of communication: "Anytime you have a breakdown in coverage and there's no one in the vicinity of a great player like Calvin Johnson, or any receiver when it's third down and time to get off the field. That's when we have to be at our best. That's a lack of communication and execution. But like I said, I haven't watched the film yet but that's what it comes down to. They executed and there was a lack of execution on our part, which gave them powerful plays."

On how his body feels after his first game: "I'm sore. Anytime I'm sore right away I know it's going to be a rough Tuesday, but I haven't done this. For eleven weeks I've been rehabbing and trying to stay in shape as much as I could. You get out there and it's physical so it's something I can build on. I'm healthy but I am sore."

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