Vic Fangio

Q. When you look at that fourth quarter on tape, what bothered you the most? Where were the breakdowns? (Reuben Frank)

VIC FANGIO: You know, number one, my calls could have been better. I think if my calls were better, we would have had a better result.

But give them credit. They executed and they played well.

Q. Why did you feel the need to blitz more than you have typically? (Jeff McLane)

VIC FANGIO: The quarterback was scrambling. We weren’t quite getting the necessary four-man rush pressure that we needed, so that was why.

Q. Was the lack of a four-man rush pressure because of the fore or more at the back end of the coverage? (Jeff McLane)

VIC FANGIO: Well, it all works together. Pass defense is the guys in coverage —

Q. Did you think it was more one than the other? (Jeff McLane)

VIC FANGIO: No.

Q. On the touchdown with six seconds left, it looked like zone— LB Zack Baun was sinking a little bit. From your perspective, what do you think went wrong there, or did the guys play correctly? (John McMullen)

VIC FANGIO: We could have played it a little better, but it was a good play that they ran against the coverage that we were in. Again, I could have been in a better call.

Q. Do you think LB Zack Baun should have stuck on him throughout the entirety of that play? (Tim McManus)

VIC FANGIO: A little longer.

Q. We talked about how young this group is the youngest defense in the league. How do you anticipate them bouncing back after what happened Sunday? (Reuben Frank)

VIC FANGIO: I think they will. It’s a resilient group. After winning so many in a row, you’ve got to be able to bounce back. I believe our group will.

Q. What’s your take on the personal fouls that were called, specifically the taunting ones on S C.J. Gardner-Johnson? (Jeff McLane)

VIC FANGIO: Yeah, we’ve got to be better than that. We don’t want that as part of our team. We don’t want to be known for that. Our guys have to do a better job of not getting those fouls.

Q. As a defensive coach when you get five takeaways, that’s tremendous, but obviously it didn’t correlate to overall success. How do you view that? (John McMullen)

VIC FANGIO: Well, we gave up too many explosive plays. The one drive, they hit two big ones on us. That’s one part of the equation. Didn’t have a good day on 3rd down. That’s another part of the equation.

The field position, they had shorter distance to go occasionally. We just didn’t play as good as we had been playing overall.

Q. What did you see on those two explosives on that drive? (EJ Smith)

VIC FANGIO: We just got beat. We could have played with better technique, but they ran go balls on our guys, and we got beat.

Q. With CB Quinyon Mitchell, is it fair to say that he was maybe sitting on an in-breaking route on the one that he gave up? (EJ Smith)

VIC FANGIO: Yeah, I think he was kind of guessing and probably shouldn’t have.

Q. Have you ever seen a player get ejected for taunting before, not physical related? (Tim McManus)

VIC FANGIO: I don’t think so.

Q. Were you okay with the call? (Tim McManus)

VIC FANGIO: The one happened in between a series, I think on a quarter break, I really didn’t see what happened. But regardless, if the officials call it, it was warranted and we can’t let that happen.

Q. Do you emphasize when the first unsportsmanlike comes, whether it’s Passing Game Coordinator/Defensive Backs Coach Christian Parker or somebody, to say, ‘You’ve got one, you have to be a little bit more careful?’ (John McMullen)

VIC FANGIO: Yes.

Q. What have you seen from Cowboys QB Cooper Rush since the first time you guys played them? (Reuben Frank)

VIC FANGIO: Yeah, they’re playing extremely well here the last five games. They’re moving the ball. I think they have found their niche with Rush at quarterback, and they’re doing a good job.

They’re running it well. They’re mixing in the play pass and the boots very well. Obviously [Cowboys WR] CeeDee Lamb is having a banner year. They have a good tight end in [Cowboys TE Jake] Ferguson. The back has really come alive lately.

They’re not the same offense that we saw, however many weeks ago that was.

Q. What did you notice about Commanders QB Jayden Daniels from this matchup compared to the first one? (Tim McManus)

VIC FANGIO: He’s good. He’s very athletic. He adds the gun-run game to their element of their offense, throws the ball extremely well, very catchable ball. He’s a good player.

Q. What happened on the two 12-men-on-the-field penalties? (EJ Smith)

VIC FANGIO: The second one, which really hurt us, it was an overreaction and miscommunication. We thought one of the DBs was hurt. [CB Darius] Slay was out, he thought he should go in, then we’d already sent a guy in, and it was not good.

Q. When you’ve played so well for so long and then you have a game like this, how do you approach it with the players? Do you hammer it more or do you just say, this is just a blip? (Jeff McLane)

VIC FANGIO: No, you don’t say it’s just a blip. You’ve got to learn from all your experiences, both good and bad, and improve. We’ve got to get back to playing. Not have three unsportsmanlike or whatever they’re called, two times 12 on the field. We’ve got to get back to playing better football.

Q. On the positive side, OLB Nolan Smith seems to be playing — you talked about young players, it’s a process, they’ve got to get better and better. He seems to be hitting more of a standard from the outside. Is that what you see? (John McMullen)

VIC FANGIO: Yeah, like I’ve said all along, the guy has just kept improving from week to week, going all the way back to OTAs and training camp. Credit to him, credit to [Defensive Ends/ Outside Linebackers Coach Jeremiah Washburn] Wash. You’re right in your assessment.

Q. Curious what you saw from DE Bryce Huff in practice last week? (Bo Wulf)

VIC FANGIO: Last week in practice, he could only do individual drills. They didn’t let him partake in any of the real parts of practice. So, we’ll see.