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Transcript of quarterback Geno Smith's news conference at his locker following our midday Wednesday practice at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center:*
On facing the Saints…
A great opportunity for us again. Once again, a tough team coming in. They have a great record, they've been playing great football on both sides of the ball, so we've got a tough task ahead of us and we're going to prepare as we always do and get ready to go out there and fight again.
On playing well against the good teams…
I think we try and go into every week with the same mentality, just stay focused and continue to prepare. I just think we've done a good job at just executing in those games. We don't do anything that's much different than any other week. I just think we do a better job at executing in those games and I think we need to pick it up in others.
On if the Saints are similar defensively to the Jets…
Yeah, just about. You can expect multiple coverages. You can expect guys to be moving around, not going to show you the coverage. They're going to disguise things. It's something that I'm used to seeing here. Obviously, having a Ryan as a defensive coordinator always makes the defense good. It's going to be a challenge for me, something that I've got to accept and prepare for.
On if he is seeing a pattern in defenses he faces…
I wouldn't say so. Everything is going to be a new learning experience for me. It's eight games under my belt and everything, every single thing, is going to be new for me. So it's another game and I'm going to take that opportunity to go out there and just try and make the best of it every single week.
On if Rex Ryan has given him any insight on Rob Ryan's thinking…
Basically, he was just telling me that you can expect anything. From what I've seen on tape, and that's usually where I get the best tell, the best feel for coordinators, he's 100 percent right because they'll dial up just about any blitz, no rhyme or reason to it. That's just the way that he thinks, talking about the Ryans. They're just going to dial it up. It's going to be game-plan-specific. It's not going to be the same thing I expect to see on tape. Be prepared for anything and just get my eyes in the right place and just stick to my fundamentals.
On if he sees similarities in the Saints and Jets defenses…
I see guys flying around. Guys are disguising coverages. You can see guys moving from side to side trying to make it hard on the offensive line to get a tell on protection as well as the secondary. That's about the only similarities I see other than both Ryans being coordinators, defensive-minded guys. You can expect it to be one of those challenges again.
On if coaches have talked to him about interceptions thrown on passes outside of the hashes…
No. No matter where it is, it can't happen. I think that was more by circumstances that it happened to be outside the numbers. But you just never want to have interceptions or turnovers, especially when it results in points for the other team.
On why it is challenging to face defenses that give multiple looks…
The game's about getting into a rhythm and a lot of times when you see different schemes and different things on the back end, it kind of throws your rhythm off. That's what it's basically there for, to try and throw your rhythm off, don't allow you to see the same things over and over and over because nowadays quarterbacks are good enough that if you show them the same things too many times, they're going to pick up on it and then they'll have an answer for it. It's usually to throw you off as a quarterback, especially as a young quarterback, so I can expect those things from that defense.
On how important it is to get off to a good start against the Saints offense…
Well, it's always important for us to get started early, but especially with matching up against a defense like this with their offense on the other side of the ball that can score points. We fully expect our defense to step up and come out and play well as they always do, but we want to put points on the board every single time. That's just our mentality. We've got to be especially mindful of it this week because we have to put together drives early and put points on the board.
On if the Saints defense having 15 takeaways adds pressure for him to protect the football…
Yeah, we've got to protect the ball, I've got to protect the ball. They have caused a few turnovers and that's kind of the mentality of the defense. They try to throw a lot at you and get you out of rhythm, get you to rush some things. So just starting patient, knowing where I'm going with the ball and just being sharp.
On Coach Ryan joking about being better-looking than his brother…
I'd agree with that [joking]. No, he didn't joke much. Rex, that's that brotherly love thing. I believe they have a great relationship. As for me, I'm just going about it as I usually do and Rex is always going to make jokes. That's the way he is.
On if Coach Ryan has told him anything about facing his brother's defense…
Yeah, he mentioned a few things. One in particular is that he's going to give you every single thing that he has. He's not going to hold anything back, especially against a rookie quarterback, so I can expect a multitude of coverages and looks from the front. That's about it. Other than that it's just been film study and things that I've been doing with the offensive coordinator and on my own.
On what he has learned in the first half of the season…
Being patient is the key in this game. Not to force things, not to try and put too much on your own shoulders and take the game into your own hands. Just getting the ball in the hands of the playmakers, allowing them to do all the work.
On if he is happy with his improvement in his recent games…
It's always good to see progress and see improvement, but by no way, shape or form am I happy with the way that I've played over these past eight games. I think I could have done a lot better. I do understand that there's lots to learn, but I know what I'm capable of. For me, it's just about sticking to it, just continuing to work hard, staying level-headed. That comes naturally. So I'm just going to stick to my guns, just work hard and try and improve every single day.
On if he is not happy about his performance because he sets a high standard for himself…
Yeah, I just set a high standard for myself. I always have that standard regardless of what happens so I just think I could have done some things differently, but you can't get those things back and my job now is to learn from it and get better from it.
On what he has to do with young receivers with several veterans out…
Not too much different. We obviously practice and we work on the timing, so things in terms of just getting into the meeting room after practice, which is something we've been doing as of late as a group, we collectively come together just to emphasize some things to those guys, to let them understand how we need to be on the same page, the way, if they happen to get into the game, that Jeremy [Kerley] runs certain routes versus certain coverages and things that Stephen [Hill] does well and things that Jeff [Cumberland] does well. Just getting those guys up to speed and keeping them on the same page.
On what he has seen from Zach Sudfeld…
Zach's been great. He's a tremendous teammate, has a bunch of upside, big hands, tall guy, can run, can catch, can block. I think he's got to continue to progress and I think it will be fine.
On how much effort he will put into the rest of the season…
Max effort. I try and give every single thing that I can every single day, not just in games. Max effort.
On what he will focus on every game… Every single game, just focus on taking care of my job, putting us in the best situation to win games, and when the game's on the line, going out there and getting it done.
