Transcripts - Head Coach Sean McVay - Friday, December 15, 2023

Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - Head Coach
Sean McVay - Friday, December 15, 2023

Head Coach Sean McVay

(Opening remarks)

“Okay the game status, so today we will still have (OL) Rob (Havenstein) out.
He'll be questionable for the game with his groin. (WR) Tutu (Atwell) we
anticipate him… he'll be questionable for the game, but he’s going to take part
in individual and then we'll see what that leaves for his game status. He has not
cleared the full protocol quite yet. There are still some steps that he needs to be
able to go through and then we’ll see where we are at if that’s taken care of.”

(On if he expects Havenstein to play)

“I'm not sure. It's one of those deals that you’re taking it a day at a time with
those soft tissues, with the groin. So because he is such a veteran, you are
definitely not going to run the risk of further exposing him to maybe any sort of
setback. We’re going to use all the time necessary to see if he's a go for us.”

(On if OL Warren McClendon would be elevated if Havenstein can't go)

“It's a possibility. I think it'll be probably an either Rob is going or he's not, but if
there is something that you’re in between on you could potentially look at
carrying nine linemen, but I think we would most likely go towards, hey, he's up
and he's going or he's not and then that would elevate somebody like you
mentioned.”

(On his reaction to the Los Angeles Chargers firing their head coach and
general manager today)

“No, other than you just want to be there for your friend and I also know what a
great coach he is and what he has meant to me, what I've learned from him.
These are things that are really challenging. I have grown up in this business
and there are a lot of tough things, but I know what a great coach he is. I know
what I've seen from my own eyes and I know that he is going to respond and
he has got a really bright future. I've really enjoyed getting to know (former
Chargers GM) Tom Telesco and have tremendous respect for the way he has
handled himself and what he is in this business. Other than that, nothing but
support for those guys and you never take anything for granted.”

(On if he has to mentally prepare to lose coaches when there are
coaching changes that take place around the league)

“It is a good thing. Here is the reality, I'm so grateful for a lot of the things that
we've learned being in the seventh year, the people that I've been around and
especially we have had a lot of dialogue about just the different perspectives or
things like that. I love this team. I love where we are at. I love the opportunity
that we have to still be able to play really meaningful football and let's see if we
can do that the right way. What I do know is, hey, when good things happen in
your building, good opportunities come, just like I was so fortunate and blessed
a handful of years ago to get this opportunity. Does it make you better
collectively as a staff if you lose people? No, but is that what is probably the
most gratifying when you take a step back and you see people get
opportunities that are earned and deserved because of the way that they have
positively poured into the players, myself, this building? Heck yeah. I do know
that those things kind of have a way of taking care of themselves and just like
anything else, you do a good job in the role that you are in and you want to be
able to have opportunities for growth, usually you have to be great in that role
and then that gives you an opportunity. That’s as much motivation to do right
for some of those people that I love and care about that might get opportunities,
even if it would crush me to lose them I would be so happy because of the love
that I have for them and some of their goals and what that means for a job well
done in their roles here.”

(On if he expects TE Tyler Higbee to play Sunday)

“I do, yep. He's trending up. He's done a good job and he should be good to
go.”

(On the level of communication between him, other coaches, and the front
office staff when he’s gauging the NFL landscape in the spring)

“It's ongoing, especially when you’re talking about a lot of these guys that have
been incredibly beneficial. When you’re really looking at, alright you get a
chance to go through an offseason program, you’re identifying and projecting,
alright where are some of these things that could really add based on their
experiences? Where are they at health wise, career wise? What did their most
recent exposure in terms of the tape look like? It's a true collaboration and what
is really helpful is those guys do a great job of diving deep, having a good feel
for the landscape. Then what’s also unique is so do we because we are
watching the film. Maybe it's through a different lens schematically game
planning, but I have a much better feel for pro personnel than I do college draft
just because that is all you do. That’s what you are doing throughout the year.
Then oh, by the way, when you get people that have exposure to another big
subset or different conferences or different divisions, it’s that much more
beneficial and I think when we are in constant communication and
collaboration, that's when the best things occur.”

(On the importance of having coaches that communicate player roles
effectively)

“Oh, it's huge. I think you have to have a vision for every player. And when you
have a vision for how they fit, you're more invested in trying to see that come to
fruition. You have to obviously have some flexibility and agility as it relates to if
it doesn't go down exactly the way that you want. But you know, that's part of
our job is to be able to paint that picture to make sure that you're identifying
where are those holes, if you will, or different things that we can fill to try to be
more complete in all three phases and those guys have done a great job.
(Director of Pro-Scout) John (McKay) and (Pro-Scout) Matt (Waugh) have done
a great job. And I think the communication, the humility and the ability to all just
want to do the same thing and that's try to help us be the best football team that
we can be in spite of some of the different parameters, especially as it relates
to last year, is a real credit to those people that you're talking about.”

(On what he liked during WR Puka Nacua’s pre-draft process)

“Everything that you're seeing. I think the toughness, the aggressive hands, just
the competitor and you could see with a lot of the different things that he was
asked to do. The football acumen and IQ you had to guess was really high
before you even talked to him based on the versatility of his game. If we were
to say that we knew he would be this good, then we would not have waited as
long as we did, all right. But he's a stud. There was a vision for him. I think that
starts with you look at (General Manager) Les (Snead), his group, (Director of
Scouting) James Gladstone and the guys that are really identifying those
receivers. And then you get (Wide Receivers Coach) Coach (Eric) Yarber
involved and (Pass Game Specialist) Jake Peetz and (Offensive Asst.) KJ
Black and (Offensive Coordinator) Mike LaFleur, and then there's a consistent
love for a certain person and a real vision for how they fit, man that creates a
buy-in. When it was getting down to it, I might've choked Les out if we had
missed out on Puka when we were waiting so long to be able to take him. But
he's a stud. We're really grateful to have him.”

(On Nacua’s injury history during the pre-draft evaluation)

“I think that was a reason why maybe he was available when he was because
there was consist… After the draft, what's fun is you get a chance to talk to
other staffs and where they like guys and different things like that. You guys, I
don't know if you heard what (Ravens Head Coach) Coach (John) Harbaugh
said about Puka Nacua going into the draft, like everybody loved him but
there's certain things that you have to be able to weigh and that certainly is a
part of it. And it worked out for us that we got him here and hopefully we'll do as
good a job as we can of keeping him on the field because we're a much better
team when he's there.”

(On if Nacua has added to his skillset since the pre-draft process)

“I just think the way that he's improved throughout. I think the curiosity, I think
the route nuance. You really see there's an element of timing and feel on a
handful of the routes and he understands where he is fitting in these
progressions and how that enables him to be able to speed up or be a little bit
more patient with specific routes, particularly as it relates to situational football
whether it's the third down or the red area. But his curiosity, his confidence
that's been earned as a competitor, and then just the overall swag, when you
apply it the right way with that humble approach, you're going to get better. And
I think he's gotten better in every single phase and he's playing through a lot of
different things where you're not feeling great because of the physical toll that
he's taken through these 13 games. He's going to continue to be a big part of
what we're doing this month.”

(On if learning from WR Cooper Kupp helps Nacua)

“I think so and you hear him. One of the best things is, what does he always
mention to you guys when he is interviewed is he's always bringing it back to
Cooper, to (Q Matthew (Stafford) and the influence. And he wants to play for
these guys and he looks up to them and he reveres them so much. But man, do
they do such a really great job of pouring into him. And when you can feel that
authentic investment in wanting to really see people succeed and really caring
about one another, that's when special things occur and I think that's exactly
what you're seeing from those leaders. And then obviously watching a really
fun story come to life as we're going to just continue to see this guy thrive and
only get better.”

--RAMS--

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#HelmetHornsMatter

“Well, the color is good, I like the metallic blue,” Youngblood recently said while laughing, via NFL Journal. “The horn is terrible. It looks like a ‘C.’ When I first saw it on the logo I honestly thought it was a Charger logo.

“Now when I see it on the helmet, it just isn’t a ram horn. There is no distinct curl like a mature ram horn. I don’t know how the Rams could get that wrong. That is your symbol and it has been for what? Seventy years or more? Longer than I have been alive? It’s just not us, it’s not the Rams.”---Mr. Ram Jack Youngblood