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Transcript of quarterback Geno Smith's news conference at his locker Monday afternoon at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center:*
On if the offense watched game tape of the Cincinnati game…
I watched it.
On if he watched it alone…
Yeah, Coach [David] Lee and I watched it and just wanted to talk over some things that we saw in the game and basically just kind of put it behind us. Some [tape review] and then move on from it.
On what Coach Lee wanted to go over…
Basically just every single play like we always do. Break it down, the good, the bad, the ugly. We were just trying to learn from every single play and just move on from it.
On Cincinnati's first two sacks using a safety blitz…
It was a free guy. Every single protection has a weakness and a strength and it's our job to identify that. I think they did a good job early at scheming things up and making it difficult for us to get things protected with the clock running down. My job is to not take those sacks, to get the ball out and to find an outlet other than getting sacked.
On how difficult it is to stick to a game plan when down early…
Well, we can't worry about that. Honestly, we do obviously understand the circumstances of the game, but we've got to go down there and score and it's our job to lift our defense up when they give up scores. That's something that I think we should have done a better job at, but we didn't get it done, plain and simple. We didn't get it done in any phase of the game and it's very rare for us. We've got to move on from it very quickly and just come back and respond.
On if anyone stood up and said anything in meetings…
Well, Rex [Ryan], he's the leader of the team. He stood before the team and told us that, quite honestly, we didn't get it done. The best thing for us to do is to learn from it, to move on from it, and to come back and respond.
On how difficult it is to get ready to face the Saints…
It's going to be another challenge. That's been a week-to-week thing for us. Every single game has been a tough challenge for us. The Saints have a great team. They're led by Drew Brees and Sean Payton and their defense is playing a lot better than they were last year so we've got to prepare ourselves for it and just come out swinging like we always do.
On if he has noticed a common denominator in games when he has struggled…
Turnovers. That would be it. I think managing those third downs. I think in the games that we won we did tremendously better on third downs and gave ourselves a chance late. Other than the turnovers, I don't see any difference, really.
On if he has struggled because he has faced good defenses…
Yeah, that would be a reason. But also I just think we need to do a better job of executing. Defenses are going to be tough in this league every single week. Everyone has first-round picks and everyone has a great defensive coordinator, but we've got to do a better job of executing and just getting the ball in the end zone.
On Coach Ryan's message to the team…
Today his message was simple. Put it behind you, don't focus on it, don't dwell on it, and prepare ourselves for another hard-fought game.
On if anything stood out as better or worse after watching film…
When watching tape, it's never as good or as bad as you think it is. It's pretty much as we thought it was coming off the field. We just didn't execute well in all phases of it and it's something that we've got to get better at and we're going to work hard in practice and try to correct those mistakes.
On what he learned from the game…
Turnovers, once again, and just staying patient, sticking to the game plan. We got behind early and it kind of got us out of our game plan. But just staying patient, sticking to it and just following the reads.
On if it is easy to put this game behind him…
Well, it has to be done. I'm the type of guy that's always going to put it behind me because you can't get it back. It's come and gone. As bad as I want to take some of those throws back, to have some of those plays back, you can't get them back, so you've got to move on from it.
On if there was a miscommunication with Jeremy Kerley on his first interception…
No. That was all me. Interceptions are always on me, and I've got to do a better job of not putting us in that situation.
On if he normally watches film with the whole offense in addition to with Coach Lee…
Yes. Yeah, we normally have an offensive meeting time and then Coach Lee and I, we watch the film together and I'm usually in here watching it on my own as well.
On if he only watched film with Coach Lee today…
Yeah, that was kind of the way things were scheduled.
On what the strengths of the team are…
Defense and the running game. The offensive line has played great up until this point and I look for that to continue. Our ability to make plays on third downs, our ability to stretch the field vertically. We have a ton of strengths, but I think it's all about execution. We've got to be consistent and we've got to execute every single week.
On how he would evaluate his rookie year halfway through the season…
Now is not the time for evaluation. I'm still working, I'm still learning, I'm still trying to go out there and be the best that I can be every single week.
On what gives him confidence that the team has a good enough offense to win…
Well, we're 4-4 right now — at .500. We're in a situation where we've got to keep climbing. We've got to stay confident, and I'm forever going to remain confident because we have a great bunch of guys in this locker room and we're led by a really good offensive line. The backs run the ball extremely hard and they pick up first downs, and then the wideouts have been doing a great job. We've just got to stay the course, continue to prepare as we always do and just get better.
On what he has seen on the interceptions returned for touchdowns…
Interception for a touchdown. You can pinpoint a bunch of things that could be done. We can speak hypothetically here, but it just can't happen. That's pretty much the best way I can put it.
On if he talked to Adam Jones about getting upset about a David Nelson block…
No, I didn't. I don't know how that went. I did see David get called for one flag. I don't know if it was just or unjust, but I don't really get into that.
On how the first eight games have lived up to his expectations …
Well, we've won some, we've lost some.
On his expectations for himself… Personally, I don't worry about my own expectations. I don't worry about that. It's about this team and it's about us winning. Those things will come later on down the line, but right now I'm focused on winning every single game.
