Offensive Coordinator Byron Leftwich

(On the offense's improvement in avoiding turnovers in Week 2)

"Not just there – I think we made improvements really across the board. I think that's what good football teams have got to do. We've got to get better week in and week out. I like the way we practiced this week. We're getting there. We're getting there piece by piece, we're cleaning things up here and there, so a lot of good things are happening right now for us – a lot of work being done, though. [There's] still a lot of work being done, but we're just going to continue to try to keep getting better every week."

(On if he is still trying to figure out how each player fits into his scheme)

"I don't think that ever stops. I don't think that thought process ever stops because your whole thought process is always trying to get your guys in position to play well. I just think it's the process of a new system, guys are doing new things and it usually takes some time, but I really like where we're headed. I think I've got a good idea of what we can and can't do as a team. I think I've got a good idea of our personnel and we're just in a good spot right now. We're just in the process of trying to do whatever we can to try to win football games."

(On how much of a focus it needs to be to get TE O.J. Howard involved in the offense)

"I don't know if it needs to be a focus – I just think O.J. will win his matchup when the ball comes his way. The ball just didn't come his way [Thursday] night. It wasn't anything that he didn't really do or he has done – I just think sometimes the ball doesn't come your way. I believe it came his way Week 1. It just didn't come his way. He's not doing anything wrong. We all need to get better as a whole, and the ball just didn't get his way Thursday night."

(On if he thinks it has been a focus from opposing defenses to take Howard out of games)

"If I was a defensive coach, I would worry about him. Not to say that they're doubling him, especially when you've got guys like Mike [Evans] on your team – Mike has been seeing the double teams mostly. It's just the ball didn't get that way. Just throughout the game, the ball just didn't get that way Thursday night, but he'll be fine."

(On if the Week 2 game was a sign of QB Jameis Winston not trying to do too much)

"I don't know – all I could do is judge this year. That's any quarterback – any quarterback has got to understand, [if] you come in this league, try to be Superman and try to win it all on your own, most of the time you're going to lose it – that's throughout the league with the position. We're just going to go out and make a bunch of routine plays – that's all we're trying to do. We're not trying to do anything special. We're just trying to go out and put these guys in position – they're good enough that their routine plays will win against some defenders, if not most defenders, from a personnel standpoint. We're just trying to make sure we just keep toning up our system [and] keep screwing everything tight so we have a good idea where we're going to be at and Jameis [Winston] can have a good idea where everybody's going to be."

(On how Winston handled rebounding from a loss in Week 1)

"As good as you can handle it. It was a short week – a really short week – and he just had to get ready to go to the next game. I promise you, by that Monday, we came in, watched the film, but we knew we had a tough opponent Thursday night. The worst thing you can do is talk about what just happened the day before, so we moved on, we learned from it as a whole – as a team, really. A lot of things showed up Thursday night from an improvement standpoint from that Week 1 game. As a whole [and] as a team, I think we got better. Hopefully, we can continue to do that."

(On how much offensive balance is dictated by play calling versus letting the game flow)

"You want to do it organically because you can't anticipate everything. You just want to call good plays – good plays that can be executed versus a lot of different coverages. You can't always predict what the defense is going to be in – I wish we could, but you can't always predict that, so you just try to make sure that your execution is at a high level, and once you have that, it doesn't really matter what the defense is running from a coverage standpoint, what they're running from a front standpoint in the run game – you just want to get good plays called."

(On if he will begin giving more receivers an opportunity for the No. 3 wide receiver spot)

"No, we're fine. It's not like guys are missing the balls or dropping balls or anything – the balls just haven't come their way. I'm perfectly fine with where we are with our third options."

(On if he thinks WR Breshad Perriman should've caught the ball in the end zone at Carolina)

"I believe that and he believes that."

(On if RB Peyton Barber's carries were a result of RB Ronald Jones II's injury in Week 2)

"Initially, yes, because his series was supposed to come up and he couldn't make it back out there, so Peyton got to rolling a little bit. That's the good thing when you have two guys like this – we don't have to [say], 'Whoever's rolling, we're going to turn around and hand that guy the ball.' We're going to turn around and hand somebody the ball. Regardless of who's rolling, we don't really care. We're just trying to get the production out of that position and they did a great job of that Thursday night."

(On what has allowed WR Chris Godwin to get off to a good start)

"Chris is just winning his one-on-one matchups. Like I said, that group – from a receiver standpoint – had a really good summer, a really good training camp, and these guys are making plays when they're supposed to make the plays. He's winning his one-on-one matchups, he's getting in one-on-one situations and he's winning, so that's always a good thing. It's not really anything special. It's the work that he puts in, the way that he approaches the game is why he's been having this sort of success."

(On if Godwin's touchdown at Carolina was a play where the defense double-teamed O.J. Howard)

"Yes, and if they would've did it the other way, O.J. would've been the guy catching the touchdown, and that's just how it is. You just want to design good football plays. You can't determine who they decide to cover and who they don't cover. As long as we can execute good football plays and put our guys in position, we don't care – trust me, we don't care who catches it or whatever happens after. We feel as though we've got enough good football players that if we can get the football in their hands, they'll make enough plays for us."

(On if that drive felt like the offense got into a rhythm)

"It was really the first series that we didn't have a penalty, when you sit there and look at it. That's part of growth. That's part of understanding situational football and how you win football games. You try to not have as many pre-snap penalties as we had. We were in some tough situations there early, but that was our first series where we didn't get a penalty, and that just shows what we can do if we put ourselves in good situations. I think the guys learned from that, they see it, we're addressing it, so it's something that we as a team can all get better from just by being in these situations. [It was] great film for us to sit and talk and teach through that film."

Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles

(On the defensive stop on 4th-and-1 at the end of the game in Carolina)

"Vernon [Hargreaves III] made a great play. He made a great play on a great running back. That's really the size of it. Our backs were against the wall, as were theirs. You've got to make a great play to win the ball game [and] he made a great play."

(On the defense stopping the Panthers on three fourth-and-one situations)

"The guys did a good job. They studied hard and credit to the players – they came out and made plays."

(On how much of the defensive game plan is focused on imposing their will and how much is dictated by the scheme that they're facing)

"It changes by the week. Sometimes, you can do that and impose your will. I think once you get into a game and it starts working your way, you can do that, but you have to scheme some and then you have to do what you have to do some – you just have to pick your spots."

(On how the defensive game plan changes with Giants QB Daniel Jones starting)

"We're not sure what he brings. As far as in terms of Eli [Manning], he's replacing a great quarterback obviously – and they wouldn't replace him if he wasn't a great quarterback himself – so we just have to be ready to play the Giants, not ready to play Daniel Jones. Rookie or vet, it doesn't matter for us – we've got to play the Giants. Whether he's 22 or whether he's 40, we've got to play football and we've got to try to play our game."

(On preparing for Giants RB Saquon Barkley and what separates him from other running backs)

"His highlight tape is better. I don't know what separates him – I haven't seen them all – but he's got great vision, he's got great body lean and he's got strong legs. He makes plays. Everybody tries to defend him [and] he makes plays every week. You can sit there and watch the tape and every week he's doing something great."

(On what he sees out of Giants TE Evan Engram)

"[He is a] very good wide receiver/tight end. He can block, he can catch, he can run routes – he's a big mismatch problem."

(On what he saw in OLB Anthony Nelson during minicamp that convinced him he was ready for the NFL)

"He's smart. He came into the game smart. He rarely makes mental mistakes. He's just got to keep getting better at the little things. We like what we see in him thus far – it's early in the season, but he just has to keep grinding. We have a lot of confidence in him."

(On how he is able to diagnose plays before they happen)

"Probably dumb luck most of the time. You get a feel for certain things – it's not everything, it's just certain things that you kind of see and you kind of know, and you want to help your players out."

(On the players saying he called the final fourth-and-one in Carolina before it happened)

"They still have to execute. They have to go out and execute the plays, so I give more credit to them than I do myself."

(On ILB Kevin Minter's knowledge of his defense)

"His knowledge of the defense has been great. I think he is quicker than he was when I had him in New York last. He's dropped some pounds and gotten quicker. He's become a great study of the game, just having him as a rookie and seeing him develop now. He is a professional – he is a great pro; he understands the game and he plays it that way."

(On what OLB Shaquil Barrett is doing to win his one-on-one matchups)

"The big guys inside get doubled a lot, so that creates a lot of space for him, and Shaq has just taken advantage of it. He is playing hard, he has an array of moves that he tries to do and they worked out for him."

(On the defense switching from a 4-3 to a 3-4 and finding immediate success)

"Again, it's still early like you said, but the guys are playing hard, they are playing for each other and they are playing together. The big thing with us is communication. They are communicating more – we've still got a way to go, and it's still early in the season – but they communicate more and they love playing with each other."

(On trusting S Jordan Whitehead to cover elite tight ends)

"Jordan is hungry for knowledge. His thirst to learn and come in every day and try to be the best he can be is outstanding. He applies what you tell him and he works at it on the field. He just keeps grinding. He wants to be a great player. Having a young player that does that kind of work is outstanding, so he's just got to keep working, keep getting better and soaking up the knowledge of the game."

(On how important a home victory is vs. the Giants with the upcoming road trip following Week 3)

"It's important because it's the next game. We are trying to get to 2-1 and they are trying to get their first win. It's important for us just to go 2-1."

(On where he has seen the biggest growth in this team)

"Cutting down on the mental errors – that is big for us to have success. We cut down from Week 1 to Week 2, but we still have more to go."

-BUCCANEERS-