<span style="">New York Giants vs. New Orleans Saints ● Sunday, October 18, 2009  

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS COACH SEAN PAYTON

"The only thing really to report on the injury front – Scott Fujita had a calf. I don't know the significance of it yet. After the first quarter, he came out.

"Obviously, it was a big win. We did a lot of things well. Of course, the turnovers were important. There's a lot of individuals to bring up and their performances but I think it's more appropriate to talk about the team. I was real proud of the way we responded, especially against a good team.

"Obviously, Drew (Brees) got a hot hand. He was locating the ball down the field. The receivers went out and made plays. (Marques) Colston had one of his better games of the season. We did a great job, a great job in protection. I thought that was a significant rush we saw, and that was important.

On attacking middle of the field: "I think early on we wanted to be somewhat aggressive. We wanted to take advantage of the inside lanes. They mix coverages up well. It wasn't one specific area, one specific throw. We were able to spread the ball around again. I thought protection was key. Defensively, we came up with turnovers and those were huge.

On Jeremy Shockey: "I thought he did a good job all week. Certainly, Jeremy's a high-profile player. I think his focus was on the team and winning the game and not going back and playing against his old team. It's about doing the things you have to do to win a football game, and I think he handled it real well.

On finesse vs. physical play: "I've read some of that stuff. We play a lot of good physical teams here. We try not to pay attention to some of that. I don't know if it's really accurate.

On game keys: "There were a couple of things we felt that were important. We thought we needed to win the third-down battle. We thought we were going to have to win the turnover battle. And we thought the team that had more rushing yards would win the game.

On the Giants: "We've got a lot of respect for that team. When you look at the numbers they've put up as an organization the last three or four years … we're trying to do that ourselves."

"We're going to have more big games and just got to continue to improve each week. We have to improve in the kicking game. We gave up some yards in the return game and had a PAT blocked. It was a good win and I'm happy with that, but there's a lot of things I think we can do better.

"We know it's early in the season. We've got a lot of football ahead of us. We like starting off fast, but you also understand that's not always the case."

On "big picture": "I don't think you can talk big picture yet."

WR MARQUES COLSTON

On big day (8 receptions, 166 yards, TD): "That's just the way it unfolded. I felt like we came into this week knowing exactly what we wanted to do. We had a great game plan and put in a lot of work throughout the week. That's just the end result.

On finesse label: "We know exactly what we are in this locker room. We don't really feel an outside pressure to prove it to anyone. We were just able to come in and do some of the things we were able to do on offense today.

On bye week: "This team has been able to focus on the week at hand. The previous three years, we heard about it all week. We really didn't focus on that; we came out and focused on getting a win against a great team."

On Giants secondary: "We came into the game knowing they've been banged up in their secondary. Their safeties haven't really been able to cover some of the better receivers, so we knew with that, we could exploit some weaknesses.

On working with Drew Brees: "Even if I am covered, he has the ability to throw to me … a lot of the back-shoulder stuff. There's never a play where I don't think I'm going to get the ball.

On meaning of this victory: "It means we're 5-0 and we got to go down to Miami next week. This team has had the ability to just approach the week at hand and take care of that business and not really look too far ahead. We're just going to continue to do that."

On the challenge of staying grounded: "I don't really think that's an issue in this locker room. This group has been together long enough to see some of the great times and the last two years have been pretty difficult for us, so staying grounded is definitely not an issue in this locker room. We have some great veteran leadership and guys just know how to handle their business.

On the yardage and points scored on the top rated defense in the NFL: "We were definitely rolling today from the opening kickoff. We went into the game with a great gameplan. We went into the game with a great gameplan. The o-line held up great. We were just able to go out and execute.

QB DREW BREES

On the gameplan: "Coming into the game we wanted to be balanced. After watching the film we just felt like there were some shots we had and opportunities we could take advantage of and we wanted to really dictate the tempo of the game the whole way through with the run, the heavy play action throwing the ball down the field, the empty packages, just really keeping mixing it up, keeping them off balance and to just be able to utilize our entire offensive package, spreading the ball around, which we did. Seven different guys scored touchdowns today. That's big. That's the type of rhythm when you get in, you feel like anything you call will work."

On the feeling of experiencing success against a top notch defense: "This is a good defense. I think first and foremost we knew we had to handle the guys up front and I felt like our offensive line did a tremendous job. I think we had a huge emphasis on that this week. I felt like if we were protected, that obviously we'd be able to get the ball out downfield and make some big plays. They did a great job not only in the passing game, but in the run game. All our skill position players stepped up and played big. Marques Colston, (Jeremy) Shockey playing against the old team, all those guys played extremely."

On the large margin of victory in the second half: "It's never over no matter how many possessions you are up on a team, especially against a team like this. Their offense was tied with us for number one in the NFL in big plays. We knew their big play capability and obviously their ability to run the ball and throw the ball very effectively, so we felt the entire way through we could never score enough points because they would always have the opportunity to come back. We just kept hammering away at it, stayed aggressive. We were able to continue to make big plays, continue to possess the ball, continue to keep our defense off the field and just take advantage of the opportunities presented."

On keeping Jeremy Shockey happy: "Yes. All week long he was pretty tame, but you knew the inner fire was burning and just about to explode. You hoped that would be in a very productive way on Sunday and it was. Obviously I know those emotions from playing against the Chargers last year and it's one where you just kind of have to try extra hard just to kind of keep everything subdued somewhat and make sure you're focused on the one play at a time and that time of the thing. On every play he was given to he played extremely well. I'm extremely happy for him."

On what would have happened if he didn't score a touchdown: "It wouldn't have been a big deal, as long as he was involved and getting the balls that was supposed to go to him. Everything was fine and Shockey's a guy who works extremely hard during the week in practice and his preparation. We get a lot of time together. Everything that we practiced this week and talked about ended up happening today. That's what we expect."

On why he seemed upset on the sidelines in the third quarter when they first half to punt: "It was a third and four play I felt like we should have gotten, so I'm frustrated about that. It's not like it was third and 15 or just chose to check down. At that time you're rolling, you feel like you can't be stopped at third and four and that's one completion that you hope to get and continue the drive. Especially opening drive, three and out, they punt to us. Now it's our time first drive in the third quarter to make a statement again. We didn't make that statement and that was frustrating.

On if the win validates the confidence you guys have in yourselves: "I think coming off the bye week when the last three years we were awful after the bye week, we made a huge emphasis of that and a huge sense of urgency that we needed to makes sure that we handled our business during the bye week and that when we came back on Monday we were ready to prepare ourselves to win a big game. I felt like our preparation was great and that was a big difference. Number two, just the fact that you have the 5-0 Giants coming into town, a team that won the Super Bowl two years ago, was the first seed in the NFC (playoffs) last year. They know the formula to win and one challenge for us was to play our team like this in our home stadium. What can I say, everybody showed up. The fans were awesome. The defense played great. On offense we did what we had to do.

On if that signals a change from recent years: "I think it does. We've learned a lot from the three seasons that we've had here thus far, probably most importantly from the last two seasons when we didn't achieve the goals that we had set for ourselves of being one of those teams that is a playoff team every year and fighting for that one or two seed, knowing the formula to win and following it via discipline. I think we've over the years lacked consistency; we didn't do a very good job of making the plays at the end of games to win the games and I feel like we've learned from that. Our ability to remain focused coming off the bye week, playing one of the best teams in the NFC – the Giants – and to win the way that we did, I think that says a lot about the guys that we have, the coaching staff that we have, and our mentality."

On if some people may have labeled this team a finesse team after recent years and if this game make a statement otherwise: "I think we have had that reputation for the last few years but now you look at us and we're in the top three in rushing, top three in total offense, top five in total defense, and outrushed one of the best rushing teams in football today. That says a lot about the guys that we have up front blocking and the guys that we have running the football. It says a lot about our defense and their ability to rise to the occasion and defend against a very good rushing offense, a really good offense in general. We're trying to get rid of that label because I don't think it applies."

#32 CB Jabari Greer

(On putting defensive pressure on Eli Manning): "I think that's what you have to do to be a successful defense. You have to create pressure. We are doing that with our defensive linemen, linebackers and blitzing safeties. They are creating pressure and forcing the quarterback to make quicker throws. It speeds up his reaction time. When your reaction time is sped up, it's more of an opportunity for something to go wrong."

(On the team's performance today coming off the bye week): "We were coming off a bye. Our record coming off the bye week hasn't been good the last few years. So, we committed to preparing really well for this game. Our coaches gave us all the tools necessary to become successful. They gave us some time off during the week to rest and re-cooperate. They believed in us to come out here and take care of business."

#78 T Jon Stinchcomb

(On the offensive line's performance today: "It's a very talented group. We were able to stay in situations that we could manage. I think we came in with a good scheme. It allowed us to do some different things with the protections. On some of the long shots down field we were able to switch up the looks. At the end of the day, we have to go back and look at what we did and continue to improve."

(On if he believes in statement games): "We are one week again for the next big game. When you play in the NFL, you win some games. You are going to play in big games. We have a lot of respect for the Giants. Most of the guys in that locker room have Super Bowl rings. We have our work cut out for us the rest of the season, but we are off to the start we want."

#91 DE Will Smith

(On if he believes this was a statement game): "I wouldn't say it was a statement game. Today, we went out there and executed. We played really well on defense. The offense played phenomenal. We had a lot of big plays out there. We just played New Orleans Saints football. I wouldn't say it was a statement game. We don't listen to the experts anyway."

(On the defense not carrying the offense today): "Defensively, we know we have got to go out there and win the game no matter what the offense does. The offense struggled the last couple of weeks and they relied on us. We know that our offense is going to be explosive at times. Sometimes, they may struggle, but we have got to be good every week."

#51 LB Jonathan Vilma

(On today's impressive win): "I think that we were clicking on all cylinders. After the bye, you can be rusty. That wasn't the case today. We played hard against a very good opponent. They are a legitimate team and we did a really good job against them."

(On his impressions of Eli Manning): "I thought Eli was Eli. I thought he snuck some good balls in there. He made some good checks off a couple of our blitzes. I thought that we kept coming after him and it turned out good for us."

#42 S Darren Sharper

(On the way they won today): "That's impressive. It's good to see us do that and it comes from working hard in practice. Our coaching staff does a great job preparing us. They preach to us every day in practice that we can get better. It makes us a lot better by going against our offense in practice. It makes us both better because you have the top offense in the league going against one of the better defenses. You don't get that too often on game days. I think going against them in practice really helps us out."

#23 RB Pierre Thomas

(On this being a statement game): "Definitely, we knew we were going against a great team with a tough defense. They have a good offense with a great quarterback. We had to come out here and really take it to them. We knew we were going to have our hands full. I believe we did a heck of a job."

(On the difference in the offense this week): "We wanted to start out fast and get after this team. Our main focus was to go after there defense. We believe that we could control the game if we went after their defense. Our passing game opened up a lot. I think they thought that we were going to run the ball a lot. They had a lot of guys in the box, which opened up our passing game. When we passed a lot on them, then it opened up our running game. We did a great job of balancing our offense."

#16 WR Lance Moore

(On the receiving corps performance): "We had a lot of time to prepare and watch these guys on film. We put things together out there. I think that we are complimentary guys. We feed off of each other. We all do things differently, so it is tough for the secondary to get a bead on us. It's just one of those games where we had a lot of opportunities and we made a lot of plays."

(On how he feels coming back from the injury): "I felt great. It has been a long struggle for me this season because I have been injured. It was awesome being with my teammates and playing in front of this crowd. Hopefully, I am able to stay healthy."

#88 TE Jeremy Shockey

(On how good it feels to beat his former team): "It's something special anytime you can get a win in this league. It makes it special beating a team that was 5-0. I'd be lying if I said it didn't feel a little bit better than some teams. I had been in that system for six years and know a lot of the players, coaches and trainers. It was a little awkward, but it was all about getting that win. They were 5-0 and now it is our turn to be 5-0. It's exciting. I have never been 4-0 and I have never been 5-0. I know everyone on this team is going to enjoy it and then move on with it and get ready for our next opponent."

(On if the referee told him to tone it down at one point): "They always say something to me every time. So, it's nothing new. He told me to tone it down a little bit. You can't have fun anymore I guess."

(On if it felt like he was beating his brother out there): "It feels something like that I guess. I'm sure we will face these guys again somewhere down the road. They are a good football team. I am just glad that we started out strong. The fans helped us out tremendously. It's definitely different because you played there. You know signals. You know players. You know philosophy. Playing against them was awkward, but it's football. It is something that I will always remember, but the positive thing is that we won.

NEW YORK GIANTS HEAD COACH TOM COUGHLIN

"The Saints played very well. They deserved to win. They executed extremely well on both sides of the ball. I didn't think we made enough plays. Early in the game there were some plays that I thought were well designed. We had people in the middle of the field. It looked like we had people open and we just didn't get it done. They were making those plays. We were not making those plays. Obviously, we could not stop them. We couldn't get them out. There are no excuses. We played poorly. We have to regroup.

"I was pleased with the return game. Domenik (Hixon) is back healthy and did a nice job on the kickoff returns, a nice job on punt returns. I'm concerned about some of the penalties that (occurred) on special teams. We gave them two good field positions in the first half after penalties with our kickoff coverage team. They amassed a lot of yards and we didn't. We weren't able to keep the ball.

"I expected more out of us in the second half. We expected with a kickoff return that we would be able to take the ball and move it, and it didn't materialize for us.

"We have every aspect of our game to look at to evaluate and analyze to see what some of the problems were and make some corrections and try to get people in better position to make plays. I thought we were in position with the ball in the air today and we never made a play. It's something that is of concern."

On not making any big catches on deep passes: "We had two people in spots a couple of times on the deep ball and didn't make a play. They would go up and get the ball and we're standing on the ground. I don't think there was a lot of confusion. Some of the stuff, quite frankly, there were some easy play action crossing patterns that nobody was around. Give credit to them (the Saints). They played extremely well and we didn't. We've got to locate the ball and get up as if the ball is ours. They're going up and catching the ball."

On his concern with allowing too many long passing plays against the Saints: "I'm more concerned about the deep ball, the big play aspect of it. Who is at fault? Who were the problems? I have to look at the tape. From a mismatch standpoint, I don't know if I would categorize it that way. In their mind, they were obviously trying to go after some people."

On if the Saints are difficult to defend: "I think they are difficult to defend. Look at what they did at Philadelphia and scored 48. They are a good football team. Their quarterback plays extremely well. Your hat has to go off to that player."

On not pressuring Drew Brees today: "Some of their play action, they didn't match it up. They had two receivers on one side, and they were effective even with that. From my standpoint, there wasn't much pressure. I don't know if we ever hit him. If you're going to be able to defend the pass, let's face it, at this level in this game, you've got to force the quarterback not to throw it on his time."

On Kareem McKenzie's injury: "I don't know much about it. I haven't had any information yet. It appeared to be in the groin area. I have to wait until I get the information."

NEW YORK GIANTS PLAYER QUOTES

QB ELI MANNING
"It's not the way I imagined it. If you play football long enough you encounter all sorts of games and situations. But it's a loss and we have work to do all this week as we prepare for another game.

"I know the final score was a wide margin, but there was a time there in the second quarter where I felt we were right there in the game. We drove the ball down the field and were in a position to get some points to get back into the ball game and then we make a turnover. It's disappointing.

"They (Saints) hit a lot of the big plays down the field and we didn't. It's just little things. We had a lot of opportunities for big plays that we did not hit and their (Saints) offense seemed to hit them all of the big plays. I don't know if that was the difference in the game or not but we have to find a way to hit the big plays the next time.

On playing in Superdome for the first time: "We did move the ball and did make some plays. In the first half scored 17 points and I felt we moved the ball okay. It was a special moment for me to play here in New Orleans and come back to my hometown and play in the Superdome. But once the game started and the kickoff got going it was a matter of trying to play well. All I was trying to do was to get a win."

On crowd noise: "It was loud out there. I had to go up and down the line and make calls in trying to get everyone on the same page.

"I think the Saints are real good. They are playing well; their offense has a lot of firepower and they make a lot of plays in the running game and passing game. They make plays defensively and they cause turnovers and they are doing good stuff. You have to give them a lot of credit. They played extremely well both offensively and defensively and we did not answer them."

LB ANTONIO PIERCE
"They (Saints) played real well today – you have to give them credit. I thought we came down here and were ready to play. We had a great week of preparation but obviously we just didn't get it done."

"It's not disappointing. It's week six and obviously it's a loss. But we get another chance next week. We have the Cardinals to prepare for. Obviously everyone looked at this game as the Super Bowl but its only week six. There's another ten games to get ready for."