Bettcher hopes defense builds off late-game positives from last week

Changing the quarterback is one step, but the Giants defense also needs to play a lot better than it has of late.

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Giants' defense needs to play better. Whatever other problems there are with the team, that much has been apparent through the first two weeks of the season. 

It is hard to win football games when the defense is giving up as many yards and points as the Giants have through the first two games of the season.

There were some good signs for the defense in the second half of their week two game against the Buffalo Bills. After barely getting any pressure at all through the first six quarters of the season, the Giants' pass rush finally began to show up after half-time. 

Giants' defensive coordinator James Bettcher is concentrating on that bright point and hoping to carry it forward into this week's match-up against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“I loved the energy, I loved the way we challenged,” Bettcher said. “Coming out of the second quarter, the two-minute drive, I think that kind of carried a little bit into the locker room. That kind of got us going. 

"We had a couple of good conversations in there and our players played better. We just need to be able to take the first three plays of the game where we played really well, we had a three and out and we need to get that to carry over into the next drive. Then we need to get the first quarter to carry into the second.”

While the play of their pass rushers in the second half was a bright spot, the play of rookie cornerback DeAndre Baker is a definite concern. So far opposing passers have a perfect quarterback rating when targeting Baker in coverage, and that's something the Giants' can't allow to continue. Fixing the problem will be a group effort.

It starts, Bettcher said, with Baker being put in a better position to succeed. 

“As a coordinator, you change up the windows when you have the opportunity to. In some situations, call for tighter coverage than other situations. We need to help ourselves be in better on third downs. We need to help ourselves be in better second downs by playing better on first down.”

There is also the question of how Baker is playing, the techniques he is using, and whether they fit his game the best. 

Baker was highly regarded as a press-man corner coming out of the University of Georgia, but so far, he has played in predominantly off or zone coverages.

Bettcher acknowledged that Baker improving his confidence in himself and his technique will help his play. But he also added that getting experience and seeing more of NFL offenses will hep Baker as well.

“It’s knowing when to do what,” Bettcher said. “Third and three is different than third and eight. Cut split is different than a wide split. You have to be able to do that in the National Football League. You have to have some of that recognition. 

"Some of it is experience and using the techniques and tools that you have at your disposal to go be able to play on whatever those situational downs are.”

Baker wasn't the only Giants' corner making headlines this week, as a fiery Janoris Jenkins criticized the play of the defense against the Bills. For his part, Bettcher understands where Jenkins is coming from.

“I don’t think for one minute he was pointing the finger at anyone else,” Bettcher said. 

“He wants to win and he wants to play better. Again, that’s not a comment that’s indicative of anything about that man and his preparation. We need to coach better, we need to cover better and we have to rush better.”

Bettcher is right that if the defense is going to improve, everyone has to do their jobs better. Defensive line coach Gary Emanuel is in lock-step with his boss that the Giants' pass needs to get better.

“We are never content with the pressure we’ve received,or the pressure the group has done in the previous two weeks," he said. 

"The object is winning the game, and we want to get more pressure on the quarterback, so we all work together. All 11 of us like it is to stop the run, it’s all 11 to stop the pass. 

"The coverage and the pressure all works together. Stopping the run, playing gap control is important, it all works together. We’re a team and we’re all together right now.

Beyond the play of the secondary and the defensive line, and even the defense as a whole, is the familiarity between the coaches in this game. Bettcher and Buccaneers' head coach Bruce Arians were together for five years between their time with the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals. 

Bettcher coached linebackers under then-defensive coordinator Todd Bowles for two years before Bowles became the head coach for the New York Jets.

Bettcher knows that he will be coaching against an offense which already knows how his scheme works and has been practicing against something similar since training camp.

“Sure,” Bettcher said, when asked if that familiarity made him think of doing things differently. “They practiced against a similar scheme during training camp and OTAs with Todd (Bowles) being the coordinator there.”

Arians was upfront about the familiarity with the scheme as well when speaking with the New York, but also took the time to praise Bettcher, saying “Very similar, scheme-wise. I think they are still putting pieces to that puzzle together. I know how well-coached they are.

I think it takes time, especially for rookies. We played a couple of rookies and we had some issues in Arizona. It’s an extremely sound system, but it does take some learning curve.”

But even so, Bettcher is clear that it isn't James Bettcher against Bruce Arians; it's the Giants against the Buccaneers.

“It’s certainly not me versus him,” Bettcher said. “He’s someone I respect more than I can probably put into words. Personally, I’m very close with him and his wife, and their family (is close) with my family.

"But this isn’t about him or me and all that stuff. It’s about us lining up, having our eyes right, playing with good fundamentals and techniques, communicating on downs and playing fast.”

All those things are still coming for the Giants' defense, and the team still needs to play with consistency. “I see spurts of the game where we’re playing good football,” Bettcher said, “and I see spurts of the game that’s costing us as a team to be in some bad situations.”

The trick for the defense going forward will be to even out those lows and make sure they stay away from bad football at worse times.