Byron Jones – December 1, 2021
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Wednesday, December 1, 2021
CB Byron Jones
(I know everything is one week at a time here, but in a quiet moment, have you allowed yourself to think about the possibility of competing maybe for postseason? And knowing that it is realistic, which no one would’ve envisioned at 1-7.) – “No. We are just focused on the Giants. This league is too hard, everyone is too good to put your mind too far forward. We have a long way before we can start thinking about that stuff.”
(With that said, does it feel like a different purpose now? Just a few weeks ago, the purpose was just ‘oh my goodness, we are better than this.’ Now there is something more of a season that could be made out of this.) – “The goal – any week you go in, whether you’re 1-7 or 1-10, is to win the next game. Our mentality was just that and to the credit of the players, we all stayed in a foxhole and we understood there was a lot of football to play and that the season could turnaround in an instant. Credit to the coaches, the staff, the players for believing in the message all the way through. Again, there is still a lot of football to be played, and that’s the exciting part for us. There is a lot of opportunity out there.”
(How has it felt playing defense over the past four weeks for you guys?) – “It’s been fun. Guys are making plays, we are putting pressure on offenses, we’re forcing them to respond to our calls. It’s been fun. We’ve been causing havoc and of course there are plays here and there that we want to get back, but guys are stepping up and guys are making plays. That’s exciting. It’s fun for us.”
(What are your thoughts on QB Daniel Jones and if he can’t go, QB Mike Glennon?) – “They are both good quarterbacks. They’ve both played in this league for a good amount of time. No matter who is out there, I think we’re going to get the Giants’ best. We’re preparing for both.”
(For a rookie, has S Jevon Holland’s handling of calls been everything you could possibly expect for a first-year player in terms of quick recognition, comprehension and relaying it to other members of the secondary?) – “His growth has been impressive – his leadership, his ability to understand plays and get us into the right calls. For a young guy to come in and play like that at this level is really impressive. The goal for him is to continue to push in that direction and continue to be the leader that he is. He’s been playing well. I wouldn’t tell him to his face. I want him to keep playing as hard as he can, but he’s a guy that I have no doubt that he’s going to continue being a better player. It’s fun to see that growth.”
(What do you think changed that enabled this defense to put that kind of pressure on offenses, like you just mentioned, and force them to respond to you rather than the other way around?) – ‘I think everyone took it upon themselves. I think everybody from the coaches to the players looked themselves in the mirror and said, what can I do better? That’s one thing I love about defensive guys. I think we’re a little bit different than any other person on the field. We take that personal responsibility to the heart. I think a lot of guys took the time to look themselves in the mirror and ask ‘what can I be doing better?’ and to their credit, everyone collectively came together and kind of got it done. The exciting part is how much we have to go and some of the plays that we left on the field the last couple of games. That’s the fun part. It’s a continual journey.”
(It’s interesting that players were talking about plays you left on the field when you’re coming off a game where you gave up 10 points and a 5.8 passer rating.) – “I know everyone looks at the final score, but we understand that every single game you go into, you need as many plays as you can to push the tide and win the game for you. You never know what it’s going to come down to. We don’t take those plays for granted. Obviously the score was one thing, but we look personally on the defense and say we left some things out there and we gave some up when we really shouldn’t have. We understand that this is the NFL and the offense will make plays, but when it’s on us, I think take that to the heart.”
(This is My Cause My Cleats week. Can you talk a little bit about the foundation you chose to support?) – “I can’t even pronounce the name, so we call I CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease). It’s a rare brain disease. It pretty much puts you in a late stage of Alzheimer’s. You could be a perfectly healthy functioning person and I guess these prion proteins just de-nature the proteins in your brain and you just die within the next year. It’s very hard to determine exactly what the issue is until you pass away, unfortunately. It’s a rare disease, but there are enough people who have experienced it. Every time I post the shoes, I get a lot of messages from families across America thanking me for putting that cause at the forefront. I had a very close friend pass away from that – her name was Diana Hunter. She was in her 30s. She was vibrant, she had her own job and she was doing her thing. She passed away suddenly from that disease. I try to uplift that family anyway I can by having cleats and by putting it on the forefront. I try to do my best.”
