Russell Wilson: “It’s a 17-round fight” | New York Giants

Russell Wilson: “It’s a 17-round fight” | New York Giants

What did you see after watching the film? Yeah, I mean I think the biggest thing is we didn’t execute enough on first and second down. But I think the biggest part of that game was the, you know, the red zone ball in the one. You we got to get the ball in. We got to find ways to score down there. Um, you know, and so I think that’s the biggest part of the game. This game is 14 to six with like six, seven minutes to go. So, uh, we had two opportunities down there. We didn’t get it done. What did you think of the way you played? I I didn’t play good enough. I think I think you always want to play better. Obviously, whenever you don’t win, you always feel like there’s more to do. and uh and so I think that that’s the biggest thing and just focus on playing it great this week. Ross, when there’s a a first round pick behind you and sometimes the offense struggles, the cries are going to get louder and louder and louder for for change. I mean, how do you block that out? You know, I I think that you you embrace challenge. You know, I don’t think I run from challenges. I don’t think I run from, you know, anything. I I know how confident I am in myself, confident I am the guys that we have, how much confidence I think that we’ve, you know, established through our work. Obviously, we played a really good football team. Last week they went to NFC Championship game in division. Um, you like I said, we had the ball in the one. We we like let’s not make this overly complicated. We got to score, you know, we got to make, you know, make plays down there. And I think that’s that’s the name of the game. That’s the history of the game just forever, you know, ever since I’ve been playing and ever since the game started is, you know, and I think for for us is is just staying together, uh, staying upbeat, staying positive, but also understand that there there’s things that we got to do better. um and and figure out those things every day. And I thought we had a great practice today and control what we control. And I think for me personally, you know, my confidence never blinks. You know, I just I’ve been through everything, guys. You know, I’ve I’ve been through all the biggest highs there could be. I’ve been through a few lows, but at the same time, I also know that my confidence never waivers. And and I think that confidence one comes from experience, but two, um just from the work, you know, and um you know, and so the great part is is that um you know, I I thank God every day. you I got breath, I got lungs, I got I got the ability to play this game, the game that I love, and I get to do it with great great guys and great people around this building. So, uh, my my my mission is always to lead today and and to do that the best way possible. And, um, and so I’m excited to to play football again and to do that today like we did today. And I thought it was a great practice. Thought guys responded in a heck of a way. Russ, in that context, I think you’ve won 130 games in this league and yeah, including playoffs. How close or how far away are you from becoming a consistent winner again in your mind? Yeah, I think it’s a team game. You know, I think the biggest thing is is that uh I think we have the collective guys here to to win and win often. And I think part of it is is not worrying about um you know the stuff down the road, not worrying about yesterday, just being really freaking great today. And that’s what winners do. They they obsess with today. They obsess with the moment. They um you know, and I I know what that looks like. I know that um you you you know that when your expectations are always high um if anybody beats themselves up from o over loss you know I know I do more than anything else I hate I hate losing but at the same time you know it’s you know at the same time it’s part of growth and part of a process and I think it’s a pruning process you know and so for us um you know we just got to get back to to um to just the fundamentals of the game you know like I said ball’s on the one we got to score like you know I mean like little things like that uh you know and I I think ultimately um just play cleaner football across the board. Russ, when you heard what what Dave said after the game, there was sort of like a little bit of an open door there for a couple of hours about where he was going to go with quarterback, I guess. Did did you wonder if that if that was going to be a change? No, I don’t I don’t want that. And I don’t look into syntax and diction like all the little words somebody says or doesn’t say. I don’t I think at the end of the day, um you know, I’m I’m uh grateful to be the quarterback here. I’m grateful to, you know, to to lead these guys every day and I’m grateful to, you know, you know, try to help our football team win. That’s my mentality. Did Brian tell you after the game or anything like that? He’s like, “Hey, you’re starting week two, anything like that? I mean, is that just a conversation you don’t?” No, he just said there’s people trying to make noise and this and that, but he didn’t really we didn’t really talk about it to be honest with you. Um, you know, so I think the biggest thing is just uh, you know, like I said, I I never blink, guys. You know, that’s that’s the thing about me is I I just I I know who I am and know what I bring to the table and what what we can do as a group. And it’s not about me, it’s about us as a collective group. And I think um you know, if we can play a little cleaner on first and second down, I guess that’s that’s the name. We had so many second and longs and third and longs. I mean, it’s hard to hard to win that way. And and we still had a chance to win. That’s the crazy thing. We still had a chance to win uh down there and down down low. So, I think that’s what we got to clean up and do. Russ, um um these are still fairly new teammates for you. Yeah. Um this was the first game you played. You guys lost. What was your sense of the guys on offense around you? Did you need to kind of pick them up a little bit? Were they a little shell shocked about this? You know, you guys were so excited going into the season and obviously was not what you wanted. No, I don’t think anybody was shell shocked. I think we were just trying to play football, trying to play the game. The thing about the game is you can’t be analytical in the game. You got to be in the moment and just play the next play as a player. you know, as as you’re playing as a player, you just want to play the next moment, the next play. And um I think that’s important to do. And I think we embraced that. I think we we took on that challenge. And uh we got to do it again this week. We know that it’s going to be tough weeks every week and teams got to play us, too. And it’s a two-way street. And uh we got to set the tone this week coming out playing a really good football team in Dallas. How does mental toughness manifest itself in a given week for you guys coming out of that game? Yeah, I I think I think language is everything. you know what you say in your internal language, internal dialogue as a player, as a group, as an offense, as a defense, as a team, special teams, offense, everybody together as a building, all that matters. I think um Coach Dave spoke today. They did a great job of that. I think us as players connecting and talking and and just not um you know, there’s never been a team win the Super Bowl that goes 17 and0. That’s just the truth and that’s facts, you know. So, you got to be able to respond and know that it’s going to be, you know, season of of ups and downs. hopefully a lot more ups, a lot a lot of highs. We believe in that and that’s we believe in that. It’s not makebelieve. I been a lot of teams and you know of great winning teams, you know, and I think when you think about the great winning teams, it’s it’s uh it’s never just easy. It’s never just a you know, walk in the park. you got to play. These are really good football players on both sides, you know, and um and so we understand that, you know, it’s going to be a battle every week and you got to, you know, it’s a 17 round fight and we got to go win round two and that’s that’s what’s important right now. When you’re like when you’re boxing, you’re fighting, you’re playing and you know, you can’t think about round 10 or round 15. You got to think about round two. Um and so I think that’s important right now for us. Russ Malik was talking earlier before you came in about um you know his sideline demeanor you know that got some attention seeing him and Dave’s going at it. He says I have natural face. That’s what he said. You know what I mean? And and um you know maybe he’s got a I mean does sideline demeanor matter? You know I mean does that you look at that and say well yeah that’s not a good look for yelling at the coach things like I don’t think they’re a yelling age. I think that you know they’re uh we’re competitive individuals. We like we this is a game that’s a a passionate game. This isn’t always high fives and always, you know, uh, smiles all the time, you know, but I think I think that, uh, you know, Nabes is a great competitor. I thought he competed his butt off. Uh, he’s a great teammate. I mean, I mean, I just think about, you know, we have our Tuesday meetings, all the guys come together and everything else. And he’s one of the first guys there ready to go, ready to rock and roll, ready to steady, be on his stuff. He’s working his tail off. He’s getting all the treatment. he’s ready to play, you know, and um you know, and I think a lot of it is is, you know, in the midst of the moments of the game, you know, there’s uh the great competitors I’ve been always been around, there’s always a little moment every every once in a while, you know, so I I I think you want that, you know, if you’re not passionate about the game at all, you know, um and so I I love I love him as a team, man. I love him as a leader. I love him his engagement on the field, in the huddle, um in the locker room. He’s he’s special and uh you know, he’s a great teammate, great friend, and a great competitor. You mentioned you mentioned having that focus on every rep every day. Yeah. Is there any extra urgency there when you’re coming off a loss to avoid going 0 and2? Yeah. I think I think the thing about the National Football League is you always want to be able to respond, you know, and respond um the right way. I I think it, you know, it really shouldn’t change. It should always be high, you know. I think when you win one, you got to be able to repeat it. And you if you if you lose one, okay, cut it off and make sure that we find ways to win the next game. You got to play the next game. the next game is a history of its own. It’s not a it’s not the game from before. Um and so I think that’s important, but I think there’s always a sense of urgency, right? It’s in division. It’s a game that um going on the road. Um you know, it’s a great crowd, you know, a tough environment, all those things. They got great players, too. And and so I think all that is just the response of loving the game and loving the process and loving our football team. And I think that that’s what’s really matters right now is to to capture that um every play in in our practice. I thought like once again I I thought we did a tremendous job of that today. And it started with it started with Monday and Tuesday. It didn’t just start today. It started with how we processed, how we took in the film, what we what we learned, what we studied, what we can get better at, and then you you you uh you clean the slate. You here go and do it again and let’s go back to study and learning and and u on Tuesday and and practicing on Wednesday. So I think tomorrow will be important day. Tonight will be important night just study and get ready for third down and red zone and all those things. So, um, yeah, I’m looking forward to watching our response. We got the right character guys and the right competitors. What’s your message to your teammates in terms of how to turn the page, how to put that stuff in the rearview mirror quickly? Yeah, you got to have amnesia, you know. I think um I know it’s the baseball probably in me maybe a little bit, but I think you got to be able to look at the next pitch, you know, and I think part of that is um like I said earlier, you know, real winners, they’re able to uh understand that the games that you just won, you’re able to wipe the slate and do it and clean it up. And then real winners, if you’re if you if you lose a tough one, you’re able to wipe the slate and get back to work. And so we’re um we’re trying to capture that daily. And I think that’s part of my job too is um to help lead that in every way. Um and so like I said, I thought we had a tremendous response. We got a lot of great leaders, a lot of great competitors, a lot a lot of guys that are really talented. And so I thought the coaches did a great job this week too and so far and we got more to do.

Quarterback Russell Wilson speaks to the media after practice Wednesday at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center.

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