Defensive Coordinator Dennard Wilson
Q: Last time we spoke to you, you were pretty open about being unhappy with the team and the guys' effort. How do you think they responded?
DENNARD WILSON: They responded in a great way. They responded the way I knew they would respond. Honestly, we talked about watching the tape and seeing ourselves not running to the ball. You know, they're a proud bunch. I really didn't have to say much. They knew that they had to come out and they had to run to the ball and play with toughness and physicality, and that's what we did in the game.
Q: (Linebacker) Arvell (Reese) had a play where I think he missed the sack and then he chases the guy down. I mean, I imagine that's everything that you're talking about. That's an example of it. Did you make that a point in meetings this week to point that out as like, this is what we're talking about?
DENNARD WILSON: Every week we show what we call high-power plays, plays like that. Then we always show the make-it-right plays, so some of the negative stuff. But within that play, obviously he should have got a sack if he didn't jump. But once he jumped and he put his foot in the ground and you saw the tenacity and the effort that he had to run to the ball, that exemplifies what a good, nasty defense should look like. That play within itself is what everybody should strive for in defense in terms of running to the ball with that type of energy and effort.
Q: What does it do for a defense when it's the youngest player on the field, just putting out that example?
DENNARD WILSON: He's all football and he's all gas, no brakes. I mean, that's what he is. That's what we saw in college. That's why everybody in this building wanted to bring him in this building to be a part of this defense and be a part of this organization. He loves football and he takes nothing for granted. That's part of his life, his journey to get to where he's at. When he was at Ohio State, his journey to get here to the NFL, that's who he is. And he had ups and downs as a young man and he's fought through them. And just like as a player, he fights through everything. He wants to be the best player on the field when he lines up out there.
Q: You're not going to say anything publicly that you wouldn't say to players in private. But is there a danger when you're a coach, is there a calculation when you're that aggressive in speaking about players?
DENNARD WILSON: No, I think we get too caught up into not speaking the truth, right? The film doesn't lie and it never lies. And it's always evidence. It's the silent tape. And what I said in front of this podium, they've heard me say it from the first day they were here. So it's nothing that they haven't heard before. It's not calling out a specific player. It's calling out a behavior. It's calling out what we're not doing collectively. Because at the end of the day, it's me as well. So, if I let it slip, shame on me. So, it's about us upholding the standard that we set in that room that we want to exemplify on a daily basis when we go out and play. You know, I think too many coaches these days are scared to have those hard conversations. And it goes back to this. What is your relationship with the group? What is your relationship with the player, right? See, if you build a relationship and you have this bond and you have this tight-knit group, you can speak to them in a certain way and identify certain things without attacking them personally. It's not a personal attack. It's a behavioral attack. And that's how I go about it, and that's how I've been trained to do this since I was a young coach 20-some years ago.
Q: How did everything go with (Linebacker) Micah (McFadden) being the communication between you two and the new Green Dot guy?
DENNARD WILSON: You saw the tape. You saw the tape. How do you think it (went)?
Q: Good to me. A lot of the communication I'm talking about to a degree. Is it something you've still got to iron out?
DENNARD WILSON: No, I mean, Micah was playing the Mike position in training camp at practice when he had reps. When (Linebacker) Tremaine (Edmunds) wasn't out there, it's the same thing. Micah has a thorough understanding of what we're trying to do. Like I said a couple weeks ago, Micah has played and started in the National Football League, and he had his opportunity, and he made the best of his opportunity. And that was the expectation when he signed back, and that's the expectation going forward. He's a hell of a linebacker. He's a starter in his league, and he exemplified it when he went out there and played. So we love where he's at. His communication is great. The guys, they gravitate to him. He has leadership ability. And he's going to keep getting better and getting better as he keeps playing.
Q: The Eagles made a quarterback change. What do you know about Joe Milton? When a guy's making his first start for a team, is that your chance to attack him?
DENNARD WILSON: They're going to do certain things they want to do with him because he's an athletic guy. We understand that. Some of the stuff that they did with (Philadelphia Eagles Quarterback) Jalen (Hurts) probably resurfaced that they haven't done. He has some tape. It hasn't been starting tape in the National Football League. You've seen him play in the preseason. He's a big man. He can run. He's elusive in the pocket, and he can throw the ball 100 yards. So we have to be aware of that. He's going to bring a different dynamic to the offense, and we're really aware of it. It's not going to change what we do. We're going to play attack-defense, and that's what we pride ourselves on.
Q: A couple weeks ago, you said that (Corner Back) Greg Newsome, his presence is known in that room. I'm curious, when he came in, how did he go about establishing that just to make sure that guys knew what he was about?
DENNARD WILSON: You know what, Greg, it's just his personality. He has this great demeanor about him. He has this infectious personality, so you kind of gravitate to him. He was just one of the guys. That's like the first meeting we had with him in free agency with the coaches being around him. We knew the player. We always respected the player, but then when you meet him as a person, you like the person even more. It's so rewarding for him to get a contract here extended. It's so rewarding to see a guy that bet on himself, and he picked a place that he was comfortable in. A guy that took the bull by the horn and took his preparation, added to success thus far, and he was rewarded for it. I'm so proud. I'm so happy that he's here. He's a leader. He's a great person. Sometimes it doesn't get said, I really appreciate the two DB coaches I have in that room. I think those two guys, Donald D'Alesio and Addison Lynch, are (the) two best DB coaches in the National Football League. It's starting to show, and everybody's starting to notice it. From a collective, from the whole group, I'm just so excited about all of them. The way they go about their business, the way they communicate, the way they handle everything that's going on inside and outside the building. Because what people don't know about Greg, Greg is the guy that has the team dinners with the DBs. It's not just about playing. It's not about being in the building. It's creating a relationship and connection outside of the building that makes a unit strong.
Q: You really haven't had your corners travel with a number one receiver like you did with (Cornerback Deonte Banks) Tae. What went into that decision, and how do you think he handled that responsibility?
DENNARD WILSON: He handled it extremely well. It was really a match-up thing for us. We thought that Tae could line up with (Houston Texans Wide Receiver) Nico's (Collins) size, athleticism, speed, and he was up to the challenge. We can move the guys around, but when we feel we're out there with Tae and Greg and (Cornerback Paulson Adebo) Debo, when they go out there, man, we think that they can match up really with anybody. They're going to battle. They're going to fight. They're going to be persistent with their technique. At times, you really don't need to do it, but that was a match-up we wanted to have. Tae came out of it with flying colors.
Q: What are you seeing from your defensive tackles beyond (Defensive Lineman) DJ (Reader)? You were up here a few weeks ago talking about how well DJ is playing. The other guys, when DJ gets a blow, what are you seeing from those guys?
DENNARD WILSON: Man, you know what? I see guys getting better. You see (Defensive Lineman) Bobby (Jamison-Travis) come out there, and you might not have noticed, but Bobby started at the nose tackle. Bobby has played two games, and as a rookie, he keeps getting better and better. (Defensive Lineman) Shelby (Harris) has been very stout against the run. He's moving guys. He has an anchor point. Those guys are growing. (Defensive Lineman Darius Alexander) DA's getting better. DA had a half a sack, I believe, last game. His run game is getting a lot better. He's growing. He's still a young player that's developing in his second year. (Defensive Lineman) C.J. (Okoye) came in and had some nice reps as well last game. So guys are getting better. We're trying to figure out all the combinations, how to get DJ Reader a blow here and there because he's playing at such a high level. But I think they're all growing together, and we'll see where it keeps going as the season progresses.
Q: Going back to Greg's infectious personality, besides the team dinners, how does that show itself? Is there something he does that shows that personality of these guys drawn to him or that he's made himself so friendly to the guys?
DENNARD WILSON: Greg communicates with everybody. He goes out of his way to talk to people. When he comes in the meeting room, it depends who it is. He gravitates to them or they gravitate to him. It's organic. It's hard to explain what he's really doing. He's just being himself. He's being Greg Newsome, and guys love being around Greg Newsome.
Offensive Coordinator Matt Nagy
Q: Matt, I feel like every week I read around the NFL about teams struggling to get their number one receivers targets. What are you doing? Everybody knows you're going to throw the ball to (wide receiver) Malik Nabers. Whether it's him or you, or what is it about the two of you that are able to, even though everybody knows where it's going, he's still able to get 100 yards and seven catches every game?
MATT NAGY: I guess some of that goes to the beginning of the season when he threatened me (laughter). When you get threatened, you have to be able to make something happen. No, but in all seriousness, he does make it easy because he's such a good playmaker. And the other part of this, too, is you see some teams where you run into maybe one guy that doesn't have complementaries on the other side. So, some of the credit, without a doubt, has to go to these other players that we have to help get open. So, whether you double team, you don't double team. That's been a big part of it, and probably also just learning what routes he does well, what he likes, so that we can put it all together. And then he inevitably has to make the plays.
Q: This running back group is going to be an interesting one without (running back Tyrone) Tracy. So, I guess, what do you like about (running back) Greg (Derosiers) and some of those other guys you brought in to kind of help with Skatt (running back Cam Skattebo) and (running back Devin) Singletary?
MATT NAGY: I would start off by just saying that for us, the confidence there, it's been a point of emphasis all year. We talked about the run game to the actual players, and we had the four running backs. And so, for us, we want to be able to just lock in on whoever those guys are, make sure that we give them a great opportunity to succeed in the scheme. And so, whoever that is, whether it's Skatt, whether going back to weeks ago with Tracy, with Singletary, or some of these other young guys that are here now, put them in a spot to where we can use their strengths. But then they also, too, got to be able to help us out schematically. So, we'll see where all that goes, again, early in the week. But for us, it's going to be the utmost importance to keep the run game going. We talked about that in Houston. You can't be one dimensional and just be dropping back, throwing. You've got to be able to keep that run game going. So, no matter who's back there with the carries, we've got to be efficient with the run game.
Q: Matt, the quarterback, we talked just about (quarterback) J.J. (McCarthy) and the playbook, and how much can you give him, can you give him a piecemeal during the week. When it comes to a running back, and Greg comes in last week, the idea, I mean, I know (running back) Eric Gray was here, but if you need him to be out there, can it be a situation where you just have a sub package of plays that he's learned and he's ready for? Is it easier to do that with a running back than it is another position? Tell me about that perspective from you.
MATT NAGY: I would say, to answer your question, whoever it ends up being or whoever it is, that person, that player, they have to know everything. It's a little bit different than the quarterback position, like we've been talking about. So, it's Coach Tags' (Running Backs Coach Willie Taggart) job as a running back coach, you have a new guy come in or you have somebody that hasn't played to get them up to snuff and get them ready. And that's the challenge, that's our job, and those guys will do it. We'll get massive reps at practice with those guys. And so far, the last couple days that we've seen these guys, and mentally, physically, they've done a good job. And it's kind of the state of the NFL right now. Injuries are a part of this game, and every team is going through it. And if that's where we're at, then we lock in on that, and we have ultimate trust in the end with those guys.
Q: What do you appreciate most about a guy like Singletary?
MATT NAGY: The story I'll give you with Motor Singletary is this is a kid that's been in this game for a long time. And he's a savvy vet. As a football player, I can remember going back to when I was in Chicago evaluating him coming out. And I remember not being able to put the remote down. I was so excited watching him as a runner. And now here we are, however many years later, and I got to meet the person and we went through the whole thing with the different running backs and four or five guys and he's been here from day one, from OTA's, and through training camp, through the season, wasn't playing, wasn't active. And he'd sit back in practice when he wasn't playing and not say a word, but just be completely professional. And we talked, and we talked about great things happen to great people and I just think back to that Texans game, and when he scored that touchdown at the end, the discussions that we had in practice when he wasn't playing, he never became negative, he never made it about him. He was as great of a professional player as there was, and look what happened. And I think it's a story for young kids, it's a story for vets to be patient, to understand things happen for a reason and when he scored that touchdown, I couldn't think but anything of how he handled himself the entire last five weeks. And we talked about it in the locker room, and I think for him, what a credit and we're lucky to have him.
Q: We haven't asked about J.J. What did you see for him in that game in Houston?
MATT NAGY: It was impressive in the fact that, you guys keep hearing me talk about the operation. You hear the words calm, stoic, I think. Cally (Quarterbacks Coach Brian Callahan) was telling me how great he was in between series, with being able to understand some of the things we saw. He never panicked, the moment wasn't too big. That was not an easy challenge going into that environment against that defense for the first time. And so, we want to be able to use that. It came at a good time with the bye, him being able to understand kind of what we do, also understand what he does. It's still young, right? I think the biggest thing for us is to make sure that we keep all that in perspective, but we also use what he did as a leader and as a player, because it's really powerful, it's good stuff. So, take that, use that momentum, and help him because we can do really great things. But that game, collectively, from him, selfishly, was a really good game.
Q: How much changes now that, that first game you were running no huddle, it was late in game. Now the teams have that full scouting report kind of like, okay, what's he going to look like in their offense? At least they have a full game to work off now. How much does that change things for him now, and you guys in general?
MATT NAGY: Not a whole lot. For us, we're still kind of even ourselves working through the concepts that he does well, everyone knows that he has legs, he can do the QB driven runs. They know that, that's no secret. Probably what most people saw was, what was really impressive was the drop back game, or play-action game, with some of the vertical downfield throws, and the trust in his receivers. So, we want to continue to use that. We also think it's important as a staff to make sure that he's very confident with where he's going in his progressions, that's pivotal. You got to have that, make sure that he feels good. And so, if there's some plays that we put in that he's just, 'Eh', by Friday we'll just take the play out. If there's a play that he wants in that we've done and maybe we didn't think about, we'll get that play in. And so that's important right now because just remember, and I told you this last week, every rep that he gets and some of the stuff we've been doing from OTA's and training camp, a lot of these are his first time doing it, second time, third time. So, we're still building this thing around him, and we want it to get better and better, and I just love the way he's handling everything.
Q: We got to see (wide receiver) Malachi (Fields) kind of break free a little bit in Houston. You look at the stats, and maybe you say, okay, we finally got t him involved, but he's been involved in this offense from the very beginning. So, from your perspective coming out of the bye week, how much more can Malachi give you in this passing game as you guys continue to grow?
MATT NAGY: He can give us a lot more, the deal is there's only one football. So, we have this fiduciary responsibility to get Malik a bunch of catches, right? (Laughter) So, he can be pissed off at Leek (Nabers) for that one. But for real, Malachi has done so much good stuff for us. Very, very impressed with him and what he's done. And then for him to be able to get a couple throws there early on, the sky's the limit with him. He's doing great things, love his attitude. His talent is really, really good. He's still a rookie. So, his time's going to come, but really impressed with where he's at.
Q: You obviously have a past with (Philadelphia Eagles) Vic Fangio. What do you think he's going to throw at a quarterback who is still pretty young and new to things? Just how does your past play into this whole approach to this game?
MATT NAGY: Vic's one of my all-time favorites, was only with him for one year. I have so much respect for him. It was a quick year together with him, but what he does is some of the best ever in the history of this game as a defensive coordinator. He's always adapting his defense. He understands what the weaknesses are of the offense. And so, he's going to bring some changes at times and some unscouted looks. But just a ton of respect for what he does and how he does it. The resume speaks for himself. And we know that he'll have some things up his sleeves and he's got great players but him as a coach and his coaching staff really make that defense very, very good.
Q: As the offensive coordinator, the trade deadline is next Tuesday, how much would you welcome the addition of another weapon in general?
MATT NAGY: Again, brutally honest, love where we're at right now. Love everything about it. We know that Coach Harbs (Head Coach John Harbaugh) and (Senior Vice President and General Manager) Joe (Schoen) are always going to do everything that's best for the team and we understand that. So, whatever that is, we'll give our input on that. Love our guys, we know there's great players out there and wherever that takes us, if that's somebody else coming here, we're going to give them everything they got to help us be better. Because we have one goal, and that's to go 1-0 every week. That's for real, to win every week, take this thing to the top. It's going to be awesome.
Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Chris Horton
CHRIS HORTON: Good morning. Good to see everyone. Just as we get ready for the divisional game, you know, our guys came back. They're fired up. Ready to continue to play. Really, just try to play consistent football, because we know that the things that we're working on consistently, that's going to help us achieve greatness in our phase of the game.
Q: What did you see off the kickoff return when you watched it back?
CHRIS HORTON: The kickoff return. It's just something as simple as we need to be right where we need to be. From a fundamental standpoint, every kickoff return needs an edge. We played some younger guys. We put a guy out there, and the ball just runs down the sideline. That shouldn't happen.
So, that's an easy fix, and those things are the things that I'm talking about, that we need to be consistent in kind of how we play and how we operate.
Q: You talked about how much you guys have faith in (Kicker) Dominic (Zvada), and (Head Coach John Harbaugh) Harbs told us yesterday that he believes he can be a long-term solution there. So, with these latest misses, how do you continue to keep his confidence up, knowing that he is someone you guys have a lot of faith in?
CHRIS HORTON: I've said this before, man. Just continue to believe in the kid. Just help him understand some of those misses, a lot of those things are fundamental things that I know we can get fixed, we can take care of, and we spend a lot of time on the bye week, just kind of diving into it and just thinking about what can we do on these kicks, and we just watch those kicks over and over and over again, and he will be consistent, and those are the things that we are expecting of him, and he's expecting of himself.
Q: At what point, though, does it become a worry or a concern? When is it like, "yeah, we're sticking with it, he'll figure it out," to like, "we might have an issue here?"
CHRIS HORTON: I don't think that's something that we think about. I think we think about the process of now, where are we now? And so far, you think about the kicks that he has missed, the five kicks that he's missed, again, to me, those are all fundamental things that we can work on. I don't think you go into it and say, "hey, alright, we need to be worried about this, we need to be worried about that." We just let him go out there and we perform, and we believe in him, let him know we believe in him, and then, yes, we expect kicks to go in. That's a requirement, right? And so those are the things that we are asking of him, and he's asking of himself, and we put him out there, and he'll go get it done.
Q: With (Running Back Tyrone) Tracy out, what are some options you're looking at in the return game?
CHRIS HORTON: This is a next man up business. So we've got guys in the building, man. Whoever we put back there, we expect those guys to come out there and have the same kind of success. But everything that Tracy's done, everything that (Wide Receiver) Charlie's (Jones) done, everything that (Wide Receiver) Braxton's (Berrios) done, it starts with everybody. It's 11 guys, it's not just that returner. So we've got to make sure that we're blocking. We have to make sure that we're giving lanes to whoever we put back there so they can continue to have success.
Q: As big a role as he's playing now on defense, would you consider putting (Corner Back Deonte Banks) Tae back there at all?
CHRIS HORTON: It's a possibility. I don't think anything's off the shelf. We talk about trying to win football games. And if that gives us the best opportunity to win a football game. We're talking about one rep. We're talking about one rep where we can go out there and have the most success. So I don't think anything's off the table from that regard.
Tight End Isaiah Likely
Q: What do you expect from your first Giants-Eagles game? You've played in a lot of Ravens-Steelers games. What do you think?
ISAIAH LIKELY: Yeah, competitive bunch. Heard it's a great rivalry, a great team that we're going to be faced up against. Just always trying to have the mindset of leaving 1-0.
Q: Did you get the sense that the guys really want this win mainly because they have not won in Philly since 2013?
ISAIAH LIKELY: I feel like every win should be the team's mindset, whether you haven't won in Philly in 13 years, whether we beat the opponent earlier this year and you got to play them again. I mean, every mindset, every week should be trying to finish 1-0 whatever record was in the past. I mean, I wasn't here 13 years ago. So, my mentality is winning the game at hand.
Q: Do you get the sense that the guys really want to win this game?
ISAIAH LIKELY: Every game. Every game.
Q: We could see (wide receiver Malik) Nabers was limited. What does that do for you if you're out there without him, the one-two punch is just one?
ISAIAH LIKELY: I'll say just being where my feet are. I mean, obviously, Nabers is one of one. Knowing that I still got a job to do whether he is or isn't out there, but I know most likely uno (Malik Nabers) will be good.
Q: What do you make of the fact that you guys are now considered favorites in the division? I know a lot of you early in the season, the underdog card was something that a lot of guys wanted to play. Does that change now? I mean, the fact that the outside world looks at you guys differently?
ISAIAH LIKELY: Not necessarily. I mean, in my mind, I feel like every time we play, we should be the favorite. And that's just the mentality I have cause I feel like the mindset should be winning your one-eleventh, snap in, snap out. And if you win a your one-eleventh, then that means you winning the game. So, whether you're underdog, whether they got you winning, it doesn't really matter.
Q: What did the bye week break do for you? A reset?
ISAIAH LIKELY: Absolutely. I mean, probably the most snaps I've got in my career so far. So, definitely trying to be a pro's pro, got to be able to get off my feet, get a lot of rehab, treatment, and get ready for this stretch.
Q: How much do the players, like yourself, pay attention to the trade deadline buzz? Everything out there is Giants are going to have this guy, Giants are going to have that guy.
ISAIAH LIKELY: I mean, if I know the player, I'll probably send the eyes emoji to the player, but just that's just me just being funny. I don't really necessarily try to get into it. I let people upstairs do their job. And if they're my teammates, great, going to help us win games and if they're not, your loss.
Q: Do you take it as a vote of confidence though, that the front office or the coaching staff sees a team worth adding to that can make a run?
ISAIAH LIKELY: Absolutely. I mean, the more the merrier when it comes to great players. And I feel like when you're in a position to be division leaders with everything in front of you, I feel like the more so that you add to your component of combat, it's great.
Q: What changes for you guys, you think now that there's at least one game of tape on (quarterback) J.J. (McCarthy) and what your offense is going to look like? What are your expectations from opposing defenses and how they're going to sort of react to that?
ISAIAH LIKELY: That's a good question. I'd say really just sticking to what we know about J.J. I mean, obviously not trying to make it about the defense. They have to react to us. And I feel like the more so that you play into the game of trying to react to what the defense might do, might dwindle your skill players. And I feel like making the defense react to us as an offense, whether it is J.J., whoever it is at skill positions, whoever it is at running back, making them react off us, it's in our favor.
