Steelers 26, Giants 18
Q. Walk us through T.J.'s first sack. Looked like you spun and chased Daniel Jones out. What does it take to get that kind of chemistry that you continue to show?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: First and foremost, I want to give all the glory and praise to my Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. All the praise goes to Him.
That play was a crazy play. Spin on that play, tried to flush him out. That's how I love that we work in tandem. A lot of times, like that play for instance, we're working together, making those plays. That was cool. Getting back-to-back sacks on that drive was awesome, too.
We just got to keep building. I think it was a solid team effort. Like I said, we got to keep building, keep getting better. It's the right direction going into the bye week.
Q. What does it say about your defense, two fourth quarter turnovers to close out the game, still finding answers?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, I mean, it just shows that we're resilient. I think we just got to start better 'cause we've had a trend this year of starting slow, then really picking it up in the second half. We just got to play more consistent throughout the game and just be more detailed.
I think a lot of stuff we're hurting ourselves, when we go back and watch the film, analyze it before we head out. Yeah, we just got to be really more detailed, have a certain level of detail to be a winning team. Just got to lock in on the little things. Just getting the win was huge.
Q. From your viewpoint, what allows T.J. to step up in moments like that?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, I mean, he's what Coach Tomlin calls an A player. A players are built for those moments. I knew that play, I saw the tight end over with me, I saw him one on one with that guy. He's about to make a play. And he did. He got the ball.
That's just what he does. That's why he's the best in the world. Just an honor every single week to go to war with him and the rest of this team.
Q. Did you sense you were starting to put some heat, they had to worry both sides?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, we knew going into the game that's what we had to do. We had to provide pressure just throughout the whole game. I feel like we did a good job of that tonight.
Like I said, there were a lot of things we could have been better at. 390-some yards of offense is unacceptable. We got to clean those things up.
Like I said, getting the win is huge. We got it tonight.
Q. They got some screen passes and runs that caught you off guard.
ALEX HIGHSMITH: We kind of knew going into the game that they were probably going to do a lot of screens to quell our rush and pressure. They did that. They were effective doing that. Like I said, it was only nine points in the first half, but it felt worse because it was long drives and stuff.
We just got to, like I said, lock in on the details and just get better in that way. But I think we did a good job making adjustments. There are just little things we got to get better at. Definitely lock down on the run game as well. It wasn't our best defense in that way tonight.
Like I said, just go into this bye week, just got to get better. When we come back, really go into the homestretch of the season. We got to get better, set ourselves up to go to a Super Bowl, have a game here.
It was just awesome getting this win before the bye week.
Q. What does it say about this group the different ways you have found victory this year, different guys contributing?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, I think we're built for those moments. Coach Tomlin does a great job during camp of providing a lot of competition, whether it's in drills or team periods. Through those we're built for these big moments.
It seems like a lot of times when we have the lead, on too many drives we're either ending the game with a sack or we're getting a pick. That's what happened tonight. Shout-out to Beanie for getting his third in two games.
Yeah, just finishing well. Like I said earlier, we just got to start faster.
Q. Zero sacks in the first half, second half... Was there anything that changed or you were able to execute better?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, I mean, I think, like I said, we were still doing a good job in the first half of getting pressure, getting after them. Their rushing coverage works together. I think we just did a good job continuing to rush, continuing to rush, not letting him get it out fast.
I think we just did a good job of continuing to stay after it. That's what you got to do as a rusher, continue to stay after it.
Q. You were flipping you and T.J. a little bit more this game. Is that something new that you're trying out because of the attention that T.J. is getting?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, we're trying it out to get some off of T.J. We just both got to work on our rushes from the other side, doing that. I think it was effective because it threw them off a little bit. It's something we just got to keep working on.
Q. You see Calvin in practice. Did you have a sense it was a matter of time before this happened?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: That's exactly what I said, a matter of time. I went up to him after he scored the touchdown, I said it's a matter of time. I knew he was going to get it soon. He's a guy who comes in every day, he works his butt off. He's humble. He's levelheaded. He's a great dude.
Seeing him get those two touchdowns today, especially that punt return, was awesome. That's just huge for him. I'm happy for him. He's a heck of a player.
Q. Is it strange a year without seeing a divisional opponent yet? Does the bye week allow you to come to grips you have six of them after the bye?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Definitely, I think this is the fires time that I've been here that we haven't played a divisional team throughout the first eight games of the season. Definitely can't wait for those on the back end. We know we got a lot of them.
This is the AFC North. We know every game from here on out is going to be a tough game. It starts in Washington in a couple weeks. We're definitely ready for some AFC North ball, for sure.
Q. You have to be feeling good about yourselves going into the bye. What improvements can you make to take yourselves to the next level?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, just like I was saying earlier, being more detailed, not being comfortable, not being content. It is good to have a fast start to the season. We know the schedule we got the back half of the season, so we just got to continue to get better every single day, not get content, not get complacent. The AFC North is waiting on us, some other tough games as well.
Just got to continue to get better and fine-tune details every day.
Q. You have a lot of older vets on this team. You also have a lot of younger guys. How have they fit in with the culture you have set?
ALEX HIGHSMITH: Yeah, I think they've all done a great job. They're all putting their hand in the pile. I think all of them just have a unique skill set at what they do. They all work hard.
It's just awesome having young guys that can come in and contribute, make plays. Those guys have been doing it for us. They're just going to continue to get better as time passes.
Thanks, guys.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports