Q. CJ's first interception, was he a robber or just passing it off?
VIC FANGIO: Yeah, he was passing off.
Q. And then the second interception, I don't know if that was exactly how you drew up, but seems like a lot of what he does, you give him the freedom to if you see something, was that the case? And how comfortable are you in giving your safety some...
VIC FANGIO: No, he was where he was supposed to be. Wasn't like he was ad libbing or anything.
Q. Okay. Does he play that way typically as you want to draw it up? Give him more freedom perhaps?
VIC FANGIO: No. We want him to play the way it's drawn up.
Q. You interchanged Trotter and Burks early on in this game. What went into that?
VIC FANGIO: Well, both of those guys haven't played a lot and both still on their special teams duties, so we wanted to give them a little blow there early in the game so snap count didn't get heavy.
Q. You guys are No. 1 in defense going into the last week. Is that something that means anything to you, to try to finish No. 1 in yards allowed?
VIC FANGIO: It's not the ultimate, no, but for the players it would be a nice thing. But we all know what the ultimate is: To get into the playoffs and win some games.
Q. What's your philosophy been over the years when it comes to if there is nothing to play for what you want to do with your guys in terms of playing them or not?
VIC FANGIO: Yeah, it's always a hard question because this isn't college where we got 100 guys to suit up. You can only have two elevations. I'm sure Nick and Howie will come up with a plan and we'll follow it.
Q. Jalen this year has been able to bat down a bunch of passes. Has that been an emphasis from the coaching staff?
VIC FANGIO: Yeah, he's got a knack for it. That's usually what it is. Some guys have a knack for it. He seems to have a knack for it. It's been good.
Q. Any reason why you think he does?
VIC FANGIO: No. Sometimes it's innate in some players.
Q. How is CJ different now or improved now compared to the beginning of the season?
VIC FANGIO: Well, he improved from the previous game to this game by being focused on what matters. As long as he can do that we'll be in good shape.
Q. He's forcing more turnovers in recent weeks. Is that just the nature of take the ball away or has there been a noticeable difference?
VIC FANGIO: No. I just think sometimes those opportunities present themselves in some games and other games they don't. This past game he had the opportunity for two of them and made them.
Q. We saw a Avonte be the next safety up. What made the change there?
VIC FANGIO: He's just been doing good in practice, you know, throughout the year. Felt it was warranted.
Q. How has he handled -- obviously he was the slot the first month of the season. How has he handled having that role taken from him and focusing on safety and special teams?
VIC FANGIO: Great. He's the ultimate teammate. He's helped the guys that have replaced him, tutoring them along. He's been fantastic.
Q. What's the reason schematically why you...
VIC FANGIO: It's always different. I've done it. I've done it where we've traveled. There is a lot that goes into it, and I'm not against it.
But right now, doesn't seem to be the fit for us.
Q. You talked about sometimes you're in the right spot at the right time. All your interceptions besides linebackers are safeties when you look at the secondary. Do you have any theories?
VIC FANGIO: I think traditionally, safeties do get more than corners I think if you did analytical study. But no, I don't have a great answer for you there.
Q. If I can ask you, Giants, what are you seeing from Malik Nabers since the first time you guys played them? And then Quinyon, if he would be covering Malik, what kind of matchup that is as far as something going on for like probably the next five, six, seven...
VIC FANGIO: Yeah, Nabers is fantastic. You know, he's fast, he's quick, good route runner. Once he catches the ball he's a really good runner after the catch. Very competitive.
You know, really can't say enough good things about him. He's a touch matchup for anybody.
Q. Big picture question, which I am sure you love. At 2-2 obviously, your defense was still trying to figure itself out. When you look back to that bye week, what do you think are the significant changes that led to what we've seen since then?
VIC FANGIO: You know, there really weren't significant, significant changes. We didn't practice that week so it's not like we accomplished something during that week, other than we did study ourselves.
You know, that's when Coop came in, and he's done well each and every week and gotten better week to week.
But nothing major otherwise.
Q. Nakobe coming along? Any concern about a longer term injury?
VIC FANGIO: I think he's doing okay, but haven't heard from the trainer yesterday or today yet.
Q. Is there a reassessing point going into the playoffs in a certain way, or is it a continuation of week to week process?
VIC FANGIO: Well, you're always reassessing every week in the league. Besides game planning for the opponent you're always studying yourself and making sure if there is a weak area, something you're not doing good, if you have a tendency here or there, always be aware of that.
So that goes on weekly.
Q. What do you miss most when Nakobe isn't in there and how would you describe the season he's had?
VIC FANGIO: Well, you know, Nakobe has had a really good year. Zac has gotten a lot of attention for his great play, but Nakobe has played great, too.
We miss him when he's not in there. He is the green dot guy when he's in there, and he has been playing his position really well and improving on a weekly basis, too.
Q. What did you make the Trotter's performance?
VIC FANGIO: It was fine. Obviously a couple plays that he would like to have back, but I thought it was good for his first time extended action in a real game.
Q. How much do you think he can help in the playoffs?
VIC FANGIO: He played, I don't know, I'm going to say 14, 15 plays. You guys count them. He was rusty, but think there is something there that hopefully he can build and improve on. Hopefully continue that this week and see where it goes.
Q. Having spent a full season with Nick Sirianni now, what observations do you have about how he navigated this year?
VIC FANGIO: I think he's done a great job coaching the team and having these guys prepared mentally and emotionally. Done a great job leading the staff. He's got good messages every week, you know, tailored to the team we're playing and tailored to us as a team. I think he's done a fantastic job.
Q. Missing the green dot. They mentioned the calls relayed from you. What is the advantage of that for you? Is that for another coach to have experience calling that, or give you time in the booth for other things?
VIC FANGIO: Yeah, it's just the way I've always done it. I guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks.
Q. Is there anything about Nick that's different about any other coach you've ever been around, head coach?
VIC FANGIO: Nothing comes to mind immediately.
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