Head Coach Brian Daboll

Q: Now that we're in week 1, I'm curious how you're going to manage the QB reps in practice?**

DABOLL: We'll have a walkthrough today and focus on today and then as the week goes on, the backup quarterbacks will get a lot of reps on the look teams and then we'll decide what we want to do on some of the periods, but we're full steam here on Washington.

Q: In the past, I feel like you basically had the number two quarterback take most of the look team reps. Is that correct? Are you maybe going to split that up a little more? Is that your plan? Is that what you're saying?

DABOLL: We've done it a variety of ways, but we'll do what we think is best for each week.

Q: I know you say you're full steam ahead on Washington, but this is the last time to really look back I guess on the preseason because we are in game mode. With (quarterback) Jaxson (Dart) and the plan to develop and that obviously shifts to a different mode now. When you were in the training camp in the preseason, you could manipulate things. Were you focused more on building his confidence or having him deal with adversity or is there a balance there?

DABOLL: Yeah, no, I appreciate the question, but we're on to the regular season here, so it's all on to Washington.

Q: Obviously the proof could be in what we see on the roster as far as asking you about your confidence and your comfort level with your offensive line. I mean it's the same group basically, so can you speak to that a little bit as far as what do you see from those five guys, hopefully (tackle) Andrew Thomas is in there, and the fact that you didn't make any moves. What does that say?

DABOLL: Those guys do a good job of communicating with one another, have a lot of confidence in all those guys that play those spots. It's a collective effort offensively. It's not just on the offensive line, it's on all the positions and we're focused on playing good offensive football.

Q: Do you think that a quarterback can make a big difference in how an offensive line plays and how it looks?

DABOLL: Yeah, I think it's on all 11 guys out there on every play. So, we'll do what we think is best for all of our guys. Our guys are going to compete as hard as they can, but offensive football is a collective mindset. It's everybody doing their job at a high level at every position.

Q: Anything on Andrew Thomas for Wednesday, do you have any thoughts yet on, even today, what's going to happen with him?

DABOLL: Yeah, we're going to have a walkthrough today and everybody will be out there participating.

Q: Kind of going on that note, whether or not Andrew is available, just how have you felt about (offensive lineman) James Hudson's development at left tackle?

DABOLL: Yeah, like I said, I think all the guys in the offensive line room, players, coaches have done a good job throughout OTAs, throughout preseason, training camp. So, whoever's in there will be ready to play.

Q: I guess specifically, like you said, you liked what he's brought just as far as just filling in and stepping in that role and just holding it down, just his development. Is that what you expected out of him from signing him?

DABOLL: He's a guy I'm glad we signed. He's done everything we've asked him to do, just like all the other guys have. Offensive line is five collective guys seeing it through the same set of eyes, or two tight ends, one tight end, whatever it may be. So those guys are doing everything they can do each day to be as productive as they can.

Q: Since you are on to Washington Week, have you decided who the number two quarterback on game day will be?

DABOLL: Yeah, any roster decisions based on who's going to be in the backup or who this player is going to be, we'll have that out there on Sunday.

Q: So, does that go for maybe starting positions? Have you decided who won your right guard and cornerback two position battles?

DABOLL: Yeah, we have a good idea of how we're going to play.

Q: You don't want to share who's the starter?

DABOLL: Yeah, that'll all come out on Sunday.

Q: Then as far as Washington, obviously a team that was in the NFC Championship game last year. I'm sure you guys, I know you're going to take it one game at a time, I'm sure you guys are not naive to the fact they were in the NFC Championship game last year. Does that help in terms of getting their attention, the idea that maybe this is a chance for us to start hot, make a statement, measuring stick kind of game?

DABOLL: Yeah, I mean our focus is solely on this week on Washington and the players and their schemes. That's unique about the first game of the season. You don't know, you can study all the tape you want to study from the previous year schematically, the players, that helps quite a bit, strengths and weaknesses. But, you don't know how they're going to play or what they're going to do different. They've had a whole off season to prepare and study and look at the things that they think they can do well. So that's the first game of the season every year is being able to adjust and do the things you need to in-game. But no question, it's a good football team. They're well coached. They improved their scoring offense by nine points, a little over nine points a game from the season prior to that season, which is the biggest increase since 2020 of offensive teams. Six come from behind wins. Excellent special teams unit with three special teams aces in (Commander' safety Jeremy) Reeves, (Commanders' linebacker Nick) Bellore and (Commanders' safety Tyler) Owens. And then a defense that is very opportunistic, that plays fast in the way I know (Commanders head coach) Coach (Dan) Quinn likes to coach. So there's a reason why they were in that game. Again, our focus is on this year and doing the things we need to do to be as good as we can be.

Q. What do you expect from (Commanders quarterback) Jayden Daniels? You were around (Bills quarterback) Josh (Allen) when he went from rookie to second year and we know you were fond of Jayden as a rookie. What do you expect from him?

DABOLL: I just go off of the tape that I've watched. He's a dynamic football player, he's accurate, he's good under pressure, he's good in situations. He can bring his team from behind, he gives his players opportunities to make plays in the passing game and he's unique in the running game, the way they utilize him. He's a tremendous football player, so I expect to see a tremendous football player.

Q. Is there a change at all to how (quarterback) Russell (Wilson) comes into the building for a game week that you've noticed?

DABOLL: No, Russ is consistent as they come so his preparation in an OTA, preseason, training camp practice, is at an elite level and I know he's been doing a lot of film work and I know he'll show a lot of the young guys, particularly in the quarterback room but meeting with the skill guys, the offensive line, what it looks like from his point of view, which is, I'd say, very good at preparation. He knows the league, he's done it for a long time, but it's good to have a guy like that in the room.

Q. I know you said you're onto this week but when you reflect on the preseason, what were the factors that went into you playing your starters more this preseason than in the past? What's your confidence level you guys can get off to a better start with that adjusted approach.

DABOLL: Yeah, I appreciate the question again. We're focused on this week, not much of what's happened over the last month or last couple weeks. We have a good challenge ahead of us, a big challenge ahead of us, against a team that made it to the NFC Championship game last year and played really good football. Our focus is on us doing the things that we need to do to be as ready as we can be.

Q. You talk about how opportunistic the Washington defense is. From an offensive perspective, you guys have talked turnovers vs takeaways and how big of a difference that is in the NFL. Has it changed through the years or is it just a constant of finding that balance of not losing aggressiveness as a quarterback or play caller but also being wary of knowing how that one big mistake can swing things in the other direction?

DABOLL: I think it's important for the players to be aggressive, the play callers to be aggressive. There's a difference between being reckless and aggressive, and you really study how they create the turnovers. What are the situations that you're in that are prevalent in terms of taking the ball away? How they run to the football, they play with tremendous speed and aggressiveness and they do a great job of gang tackling and get the ball out. It's more of how they generate the turnovers and the situations that you're in as an offense that gives them advantages to get the ball out. I never want the quarterbacks to go in and think like, 'I can't do this or I can't do this.' I want them to be aggressive and make proper decisions. When you have confidence, when you're out here at practice and they do that, and they've shown to do that throughout OTAs, throughout training camp, that's really where our focus is. How have they created the turnovers that they've created? Was it a huge score differential? Did you play a lot of third-and-long or second-and-long situations because they got you in some situations that are good for the defense, bad for the offense? Who are the players that do a good job of getting to the ball and taking the ball away when the running back has it? Our finish level that we need to have to make sure that we're chasing the ball and getting those extra blocks for the guys that have the ball. How can the line protect inside out? The timing and the rhythm in the passing game. All those things that play into playing good offensive football. You're always going to have some of those situations come up and you have to do a good job of coaching off of it and then players have to do a good job of going out there and executing when we're in those situations.

Running back Tyrone Tracy Jr.

Q: You guys start the season with a team that was in the NFC Championship game last year. Is that an attention grabber for you guys? I mean, obviously you could have started with anybody and you're going to find out right away how you match up with the best.

TRACY: No, not really. I would say, obviously, that's the obvious – they were in the NFC Championship last year, so hats off to them. But at the same time, it wouldn't matter if you're playing the best in the league or the worst in the league. It's the first game of the season. And it's the NFL. It's a hard league to get any type of win no matter who you're playing. If you don't come with your A game, it doesn't matter who you're playing, you're going to lose. You're going to get kicked off the field. It wouldn't matter if you're playing the best team or the worst team. With it being Washington, obviously it's a divisional matchup, so that adds a little bit to it. But at the same time, we're just going out there and playing our best ball.

Q: What does it mean from the stance of getting off to a fast start? Who knows what would have happened if you guys got off to a fast start last year or before you were here. But the Giants started 0-2 eight of the last nine years, which is kind of a season killer. How aware are you guys of that and the need to get off to a better start?

TRACY: To start off with, you're talking about years past. You're talking about eight years ago. That has nothing to do with what we have going on right now. You're talking about we started slow eight years in a row. That has nothing to do with the people we have on our team. The people we have on our team weren't here eight years ago. Do you understand what I'm saying? So, it really doesn't matter what happened last year or what happened two years ago. Just like my personal stats from last year don't matter right now. What I did in college doesn't matter right now. Everything you're talking about from the past, I understand we've got to get off to a fast start, but it has nothing to do with what we have going on right now. We're trying to go out there and play our best ball for the first game of the 2025 season. Obviously, if you win that first game, it's kind of a ripple effect into the next game. We're trying to go out there and have a fast start. But with the stats of going back to the past, that has nothing to do with what we're doing here.

Q: What was your reaction, what was the team's reaction last Thursday when the (Packers defensive end) Micah Parsons trade came down? You guys heard about that.

TRACY: To be honest, there really wasn't (any) reaction to be honest with you. No disrespect to Micah, but we didn't really care, to be honest. Just because it's the NFL. Stuff happens, you know what I'm saying? It's life. They didn't like what they had, so they traded him to a different team. It happens. It wasn't a big deal to us. We weren't even around each other. We were off, we were at home. That's really all I've got to say to that.

Q: We talked about the offense coming back, basically, you have 10 returning starters and a new quarterback. How much more confidence do you guys have in that position this year? I know you were confident last year, but how much more is it this year?

TRACY: There's a lot of confidence going around. I feel like it's a different energy. I feel like we've been saying this the whole offseason, it's a different energy in the locker room. It's a different energy on the team. But at the same time, none of that really matters if we don't go out there and do it. But it also starts in practice. Confidence is built off of your practice habits that you do every single day. So that you go out there on Sunday and let it rip and play fast. At least for me personally. I can't really speak for everybody else, but for me personally, the things that I do throughout the week will allow me to go out there on Sunday and just play free. Be very confident with my skill set and the way that I prepare.

Because if I do it the right way, you can go out there and just be a baller.

Q: As a guy who's on the field to run the ball, flick your will, gain yards, can you give me two mindsets? The first one is, what is the mindset when you're out there and you know you're running the ball well? With your offensive line, with your quarterback, with you, with anybody. And then conversely, what do you think the mindset is of a defense when they know they've got you and you can't run the ball?

TRACY: To answer your first question, when I'm doing well, I think my mindset is just dominate. But I feel like that's my mindset no matter whether I'm doing well or if I'm not doing well. That's always been my mindset. I think that, and then also just being an energy magnet. Making sure that whether you're at the game, you're my teammate, you're the opponent, you're at home watching me on TV, you're feeling my energy. If you can feel it, see how passionate I am because that's just who I am as a player. I want my energy to be contagious. So whenever I get the ball, I want to make a play to where the sideline, my teammates are turnt, my defense is turnt, everybody is having a good time on the field because of me. Conversely, for your second question, I think that the defense, when they have me pocketed up, I really can't answer that question because if you've got me pocketed up, that happens. It's going to be a couple more times, I'm going to have a good run. I really can't answer that question for you.

Q: Is there anything more dominant in your mind and you're probably biased than inflicting your will on another team when you're running on them?

TRACY: No. I think that that's my mindset. Inflicting my will, running the ball until we can't. And then when you try to stop it, we throw it. I think that's my mindset, personally.

Q: And the whole team, the whole offense. You've been in offenses where you run the ball well, you're not running the ball well, you're throwing the ball well, but when you've got the offensive linemen and they just keep saying, 'run it again, run it again,' you know it, is that the definition of dominance in football, do you think?

TRACY: Yeah, I do. I think it is. Inflicting your will on someone over and over again until they quit. I think that's the definition when you're talking about football.

Q: Just in terms of you individually as a running back, we know we've all told the story, you've told the story time and time again about transitioning to becoming a running back. When you watch your film, and I'm sure you haven't watched last year, now, but how different are you? Is there something that you look at and you see the running back as a rookie versus where you are now that you can point to and say, you know what, this is going to be a big difference for me this year, this is where I've improved the most?

TRACY: That's a good question. I think that first and foremost, I think my IQ, just the way that I think about football in general, is higher than it was last year. I think my confidence level, the way I carry myself on the football field, is different than it was last year. Last year, I was kind of just going with the flow. But this year, it's more like I'm out there, I'm playing, I know that I'm playing, I know that I'm starting. It's a different type of energy, a different type of confidence that I'm carrying myself with this year. Also, last year, it was a little bit of, 'am I good enough to play at this level?' This year, I have the reassurance and the confidence to know that I can do this. And then, when I look at my game, I think I just have to be a little more decisive, understanding defenses a little bit more, coming back to football IQ. But other than that, I'm really just trying to produce at a high level, execute at a high level, that's really it. I feel like if I do that each and every game, day in and day out, I could be a really good back for this team.

Q: Obviously, preseason is preseason, it's the regular season now. When you see this offense put up 30 points in every preseason game, granted, again, it's preseason, but does that give you guys more confidence going into this week about the potential of what this offense can be this year?

TRACY: I wouldn't say, we don't try to put too much into the preseason like you said, because it's preseason, but at the same time, I think it kind of gives us the confidence to know that we can do it, because we've done it in the preseason. The players that we have, our skillset, the O-line, the quarterback, running back, receivers, whoever we have on our team, it's enough. We don't have to go out and do anything extra. You've just got to go out there and be yourself. I think that's what really reassured us throughout the offseason, and then obviously the work that we put in. We're doing the right things, but we just have to make sure that we're doing it at a consistent level when the games get here.

Cornerback Dru Phillips

Q. You guys faced (Commanders quarterback) Jayden (Daniels) twice last year. What challenges does he present trying to handle a quarterback as quick as he is?
PHILLIPS: Yeah, we faced him twice last year. He's a great quarterback, brings a lot to the table in the run game and passing game. Our game plan is our game plan. It's just try to contain him and do what we can do.

Q. (Head Coach Brian Daboll) Dabs just told us you can look at last year but obviously expect some changes and tweaks so for you guys, how do you try to evaluate and try to stop him? Is it looking at last years tape or do you consider that there's going to be changes in scheme and whatnot?
PHILLIPS: Yeah, last years tape was last years tape. That's in the past. It's a new year, we're trying new ways, do whatever we can. I'm not sure what the guys on the d-line are doing but it's a new year, trying to do some new plans to try to get at him.

Q. Is it an attention grabber when you open the season against the team that was in the NFC Championship game last year? In terms of you'll know exactly where you measure up after game one, is that an attention grabber?
PHILLIPS: Yeah, we wouldn't want it any other way, especially after the year they had last year and we're coming in with a new team as well. You know, you're going to find out real fast but we're excited. We wouldn't want any other competition, especially a division rival.

Q. How about for the defense? We spent four months hyping up the defense and whatnot. Is it a good chance to measure that against a potential MVP quarterback and explosive offense?
PHILLIPS: Yeah, we're just trying to go show who we are. It's not too much about them. Do what we can do and kind of see what we've been working on this whole offseason.

Q. What do you think you guys can do?
PHILLIPS: A lot. I'm not going to just put numbers out there but we have a damn good defense so I'm ready to go show it.

Q. With some of the new pieces that Washington has, how much do you guys dig into as to where they were elsewhere? Like (Commanders wide receiver) Deebo (Samuel), where we know what San Francisco did with him but not sure what Washington is going to do. Do you go to the point where you study where guys were in their previous places or just what is presented to you by the coaching staff this week?
PHILLIPS: Kind of a mix of both. You don't ever really know with a guy coming over to a new team just because it's a brand new scheme and what not. You know who Deebo is. He's been a great player throughout the years and whatnot so you know his strengths but in Washington's offense, you're not sure. It'll be something that we can kind of assume but you won't know until we go play him.

Q. No matter who's starting out of (cornerback) Deonte (Banks) and (cornerback) Cor'Dale (Flott), what do you think of this secondary? What can you do in terms of takeaways to improve on last year.
PHILLIPS: Yeah, whoever's out there, it doesn't matter who's out there. We have a really good secondary in my opinion, and from what we do, we're all really good players in what we do. Like I said, I'm not going to put numbers out there and what not, but I mean, from what we have on paper and what we've shown in practice, we can do a lot and we're just trying to do the best that we can each and every day.

Q. What was the reaction from you guys last Thursday when the (Packers edge rusher) Micah Parsons trade came through?
PHILLIPS: That's cool. I don't know (laughs). I was just like, 'Oh that's cool.' And then I just moved on from it.

Q. Some of your teammates had some funny things to say on social media about it.
PHILLIPS: I didn't see it. What'd they say?

Q. (Quarterback Russell Wilson) Russ said he'd help him find a place in Wisconsin because he went to school there. I know (offensive lineman Jermaine) Eluemunor has been pushing to get him out of the division for a while.
PHILLIPS: I'm sure some guys had some stuff to say, probably just being cool but good for him. Whatever's best for him.

Q. What did you think of that situation? Besides moving him out of the division, just the economics of the league and the way teams value players?
PHILLIPS: I didn't think much about it. That organization is that organization. I don't know. I know the Giants are a little bit different. I honestly didn't think much about it. I was like, 'Oh wow, that's crazy.' And then I just kind of moved on with it.

Q. Will it be nice to face them in Week 2 without him?
PHILLIPS: Of course. I mean, I don't have to go against him (laughs). That's why I probably didn't think much about it because I play defense. He's a defensive guy.

Q. Can you talk about what it's like to defend Russell Wilsons moonball? It's different than most deep balls. Receivers talk about how it just kind of drops right into their arms.
PHILLIPS: It's one that I got to see in games last year and in practice this year so it's one of those things where it hangs up there. As a DB, especially sometimes when you're guarding man to man, you're looking through, it's like this ball's never going to drop and you always get there early just because of how high he can hang them so it's unique for sure. When you're going against him, it's tough to beat. In practice I'm like, 'Okay, let me stall a little bit.' But it's really neat and it's real talent from him like I haven't seen it from anybody else so it's really cool.

Q. There's a belief that when you face a rookie quarterback you don't really know what you're getting into especially with a new head coach, new system, new everything. Is it easier to prepare for Jayden Daniels than it was last year now that you have a years worth of film on him?
PHILLIPS: No, I mean it's still the same player. You kind of knew what he was going to bring. He is very talented so you can always mix it up. I mean yeah, we've seen now what he can do but he's still the same player, he still gave everyone problems last year so it's another – still the same task at hand so it's exciting to go against a quarterback like that because you don't know what they can bring each day. It'll be exciting.