TRANSCRIPTS: Rams-Bears Postgame Quotes - November 17, 2019

TRANSCRIPTS: Rams-Bears Postgame Quotes - November 17, 2019

Rams Head Coach Sean McVay
(Opening Remarks)
“First and foremost, with (WR) Robert Woods not being there tonight – it was a personal matter. That’s all we are going to say about that. We love him, respect him, we are with him and his family all the way and that’s really where we will leave that at. As far as the game tonight, really pleased with our team. To be able to find a way to win as a team, that was the goal, that always is the goal. It was a little bit different than typically what we are accustomed to seeing, but a win is a win, we will take that. I love this group, love the way that they continue to battle. I thought our coaching staff did a great job. Hats off to the Bears. They are a tough, physical football team. We were pleased to come away with a win tonight.”

(On what point did he know Woods wasn’t going to play today)
“A couple hours before the game.”

(On if he made a conscientious effort to put the ball in RB Todd Gurley II hands)
“That was part of the gameplan tonight and I thought he did a great job. What I loved the most about what (R Todd (Gurley II) did, is after we put the first carry on the ground, he didn’t flinch, he came back and had some good, tough, physical runs and made some good catches out of the backfield and he was a big-time contributor tonight. I thought our offensive line as a whole – I can’t say enough about (TE) Johnny Mundt and (TE) Tyler Higbee battling through, where they were banged up, they were questionable coming in to the game. For Johnny Mundt to be able to play really his first extensive action like that and do a great job battling against a really physical front – with some of the personnel groupings that they were playing on defense – I thought was a real impressive night for those guys. Just kind of grinding it out had to be patient and a lot of that is a result of being able to play as good of defense as we did tonight as well.”

(On holding the Bears to seven points and how good the defense played tonight)
“Unbelievable. They continued to make stop after stop. I though (D Troy Hill’s interception was big. The thing that I thought was as big as anything is when offensively, when we turn it over the first two possessions – for the defense to be able to stand up and not let any points come off those turnovers was huge. Really, our defense was outstanding and that’s what we expect from them. I thought they did a great job.”

(On if he was committed to more of a conservative approach on offense)
“Yes, and really I thought at the most timely spots our guys rose up. To be able to see (WR) Josh Reynolds make some timely catches, I thought the third down, where he ended up having poor leverage on (Bears CB Kyle) Fuller, broke that leverage, (Q Jared (Goff) delivers him a good ball. What a play by Jared Goff in the empty formation to recognize kind of a trap-type coverage where Fuller comes off on the out-break from Josh and he opens up the hole shot from (Tight End) Gerald (Everett). I hate that the one big play to Josh came back, but really I loved the way that our guys overcame it. To see (R Malcolm (Brown) end up punching that one in was big and then to be able to close out the game in a four-minute situation and be able to take a knee, that’s always a good thing for us.”

(On if he expected this good of a performance from the offensive line)
“Yeah, it is. That’s what we expected. That was the type of game that we thought it would be and I thought those guys did a great job. Until you go back and look at the tape, it’s hard for us to say but I did think there was a lot of situations where you are a little bit more conservative. I thought they did a great job just continuing to battle. It was a physical football game and really pleased with those guys as a whole.”

(On which point in the week he decided he was going to use Gurley heavily in this game)
“I think you always have a plan as the week evolves, but you certainly never know exactly how a game’s going to unfold and sometimes it changes. I thought our ability to stay in some manageable situations, the efficiency we had specifically early on in the game was critical for that, and like we talked about, I didn’t think I did a good enough job against the Steelers of kind of recognizing the way that he was running and you don’t want to make the same mistake twice.”

(On if he recognizes the way that Gurley is running now, and if we will see him featured more during the remainder of the season)
“I think so. That’s an ideal situation, but we’ll continue to look at this film and we’ll see how we want to put together our next game plan. Anytime you get Todd involved like that, it’s usually always a good thing for our offense.”

(On what he liked about CB Troy Hill’s performance, which included six tackles, a sack, and an interception)
“All those things you just mentioned, and I thought he just continued to compete. He’s a complete corner and if he gets his opportunities, he’s got the ball skills to be able to deliver. That was a big play right there if he’s coming up in run support, but a lot of different coverage principles that we activated tonight and I thought (C Troy (Hill) did a great job in addition to really the 10 (players) around him and all the different personnel groupings we activated.”

(On if he expects to get some clarity on when WR Robert Woods will return in the next day or two)
“Yeah, it’s hard to say. I don’t want to give a finite answer on that. I most importantly want to be able to talk to him afterwards. I talked to him before the game, but want to be able to check with him and out of respect for his family, that’s why we’re just kind of leaving it at what it is.”


Rams QB Jared Goff
(On Rams Head Coach Sean McVay putting the ball in RB Todd Gurley II hands to control the offense)
“I think we kind of knew what type of game it was going to be. That was the type of game it was it was to run the ball and it was specifically (R Todd (Gurley II) the way he was moving the ball and the way he was moving, it worked. It worked really well. I just couldn’t be more proud of the guys who stepped up today. It doesn’t happen everywhere in the league where you have two O-linemen go down, you have (TE) Johnny Mundt, who’s banged up you have (TE) Tyler Higbee who’s banged up and we are going to play you guys the entire game almost. They stepped up and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

(On what was the challenge knowing WR Robert Woods wasn’t going to be available for the game)
“He’s a stud for us and we want him out there. We are thinking about him right now, but I thought (WR) Josh (Reynolds) and (WR) Cooper (Kupp), the same reason. We learned before the game what was going on and needed those guys to step up and they didn’t flinch. I can’t stress enough of how proud I am of my teammates – specifically the guys that had to step up today.”

(On Kupp not having a catch last week and how nice was it to have him contribute to the offense this game)
“Anytime I can connect with him is great. We were able to get a little bit more on the same page this week, we weren’t throwing the ball as much as we usually do. It was the way to win the game today. We had to handle it that way and I thought he did a great job.”

(On how he was able to turn it around and keep it together after back-to-back turnovers)
“It’s never ideal and never something you want. I was really kicking myself – just knowing that, like I spoke about, that was the type of game it’s just, ‘Don’t turn the ball over and take care of the football.’ Just a bad throw by me. Again, I can’t stress enough the ability to overcome and how you see these guys just consistently fight, and fight, and fight. And those young guys in the huddle the way that they are locked in, it’s so special. It was a big win for us.”

(On if he could sense a feeling of urgency around the team knowing they needed a win to stay in the playoff hunt)
“I don’t think we’re thinking that big-picture right now. We were really focused on beating the Bears today and I think that you could feel the urgency with that coming off last week’s disappointment, just knowing that we needed to get this done today a few plays go here, there, the other, you never know what happens. We were able to make somethings happen and those guys up front stepped up and did their thing. We were able to run the ball and you could see what happens when we get that going.”

(On McVay’s ability to adjust his gameplan based on what the team had going)
“It was tremendous. Again, I think he is only going to continue to grow as a coach and I think tonight was a perfect example of him knowing what type of game it was going to be. Really relying on Todd and really relying on me to make good decisions and I let him down on that one. Just consistently taking care of the ball. Again, knowing what type of game it was going to be we wanted to do that, and I thought he did a great job.”

(On the interception he threw in double coverage and how he puts plays like that behind him)
“That one was tough, that was just a blatant bad decision and bad throw. It’s going to happen, you don’t want them to happen, but it’s bound to. I think, for me personally, I’ve always had a good way about myself to get over that stuff pretty quickly, but that one ate at me for a little bit. Like I spoke about, I knew this game was just take care of the football and we would win the game. As soon as I did that, I’m like, ‘What are you doing? throw the ball away.’ Glad I learned from it, made some good plays the end of the game. I just been doing it my whole life and have to. You have no other choice.”

(On if the defense playing well gives him confidence that he is going to have a chance)
“I think the way that they’ve been playing – specifically the last few games – like you’ve mentioned, it’s given us so much confidence and given us so much ability to go down the field and try to make plays and do different things. We need to be better for them, there is no doubt about that. I think tonight was a unique game and I think we’ve could have been a lot better, especially early on. I think the way that we kept responding, kept responding, we would go three-and-out, we’d punt it away, het the ball back and maybe again, and eventually, kept chipping away, kept chipping away, kept chipping away, and I think that last drive we got our mojo back, we were rolling. It felt like how we usually are on offense and it’s a good feeling right now.”

(On if him saying how he usually is involved Gurley II)
“I’m speaking more specifically in the pass game, of course the way he’s playing was tremendous. I think on that last drive, we don’t have the best look and we’re just getting open and I’m able to make some throws to the guys and they are making great catches and we are making stuff a little bit off-schedule. That’s how we should play, that’s the rhythm we need to play in and I think that Todd, like you mentioned, being able to run like he did, was able to get us into that rhythm.”

(On him being emotion with Gurley II coming off the field)
“I told him he fights, he fights, man. He’s been through the ringer and that dude fights and I couldn’t be more proud to be his teammate.”

(On Gurley II getting a season-high number of touches and how that affects the passing game)
“Yeah, anytime we can run the ball like that it’s going to open things up, especially in the play-action game, and I think that’s kind of what you’ve seen from us the last few years – when we’re at our best is when we’re running the ball really well, and there have been games where we haven’t and we’ve overcome it throwing for a million yards, but that’s not usually how we want to do it. Today was a game where we leaned heavily on him, leaned heavily on him and (R Malcolm (Brown) and I thought they both stepped up. You see the type of players they are and the type of people they are. It’s special and again, couldn’t be prouder.”

(On how good the offensive line was given the changes made in the lineup)
“Huge. Huge. Can’t stress it enough. You think about (T) Bobby Evans making his first start against (Bears OL Khalil Mack, who’s arguably the best rush-end in the league and it was a non-factor. He did his thing. He stepped up, he did his thing. We were doing different things to help them out, but not that much, to the point where he was just playing well. And then (OL) David Edwards continues to get better, continues to do his thing. I thought (OL) Austin Blythe directed the offense, directed the O-Line like a champ up front, and then (OL) Austin Corbett stepped in as well. Last week was his first time playing, and this week to just come in there, the way that all of them are just so non-reactive, every single play is just so dialed, so focused, so steely-eyed, and just ready to go. And obviously (T Andrew) Whitworth is who he is and we know that, but I just thought those guys just stepped up so well and I couldn’t be prouder. Couldn’t be prouder.”

(On if winning with only 11 completions was the way he wanted to win the game)
“It’s one of my favorite wins as a Ram, no doubt. I think with all the circumstances, being at home in front of our home fans and the way that the game was going, I don’t care how many times I throw the ball, how many times we run the ball, how many completions, attempts, yards, touchdowns, interceptions. The way that game went, and the way that we fought, and the way that we continued to fight all the way until the end in that last drive, the way that that exemplifies that, I think it’s up there in the top of my head as one of my favorite wins as a Ram, and again I couldn’t be prouder with the guys on this team.”



Rams WR Cooper Kupp
(On what they need to do to see more of an explosive offense)
“We just got to seize the opportunities. They’re there we just have to do a better job executing, starts with us at receiver. There’s some stuff that we did today, I mean even me specifically. There’s some stuff that I did that cost teams games and at the end of the day that’s what it is. You talk about being process driven over results driven. It’s really easy for us to walk out of here feeling good because we got a W. Obviously, you love getting a W. If we’d be process driven and understand the things that we did today, some of the things that I did today really cost teams games and the things that I can not do are inexcusable.”

(On if he feels extra pressure to help out the defense that’s been play so well)
“No, no pressure. We don’t have to make a push or anything like that. They’re playing lights out. I love seeing those guys compete. We just have to go out there and execute. That’s the bottom line. We keep saying, ‘We got to be better, we got to be better.’ We will be better, well it’s time for us to be better. We just have to execute. We have to execute, the stuff’s there. We just have to be better.”

(On how great it was to see RB Todd Gurley back playing)
“Man, that was great. You see the O-line, some of those guys stepped up huge, especially early on the run game was popping. Getting some good chunks. you see that kind of stuff should open up things in the pass game as well with play actions. It was great to be able to move the ball like that. We love being able to run down hill and see Todd lowering his shoulder again. It’s fun stuff.”


Rams CB Jalen Ramsey
(On his perception on how the Rams got the win against the Bears)
“I think the team played well -- enough to get the win, basically. The defense played extremely well. We’ve been stacking up some good performances lately – tonight was another good performance. We let them get one ‘tud’ (touchdown), but that was OK. We never doubted, we had confidence throughout the whole game, through all the adversity. We had the offenses is back and then the offense came up big towards the end of the game to, you know, finish out the win, basically. It was a good team win.”

(On how much the Rams needed to win tonight’s game to stay in playoff contention)
“We weren’t really thinking about it. It was just the next game on the schedule and the most important because it was the game that was right in front of us. That’s about it.”

(On how much of an accomplishment for the defense it was to hold the Browns to seven points)
“Yeah, I would think so. In the past however many weeks, we’ve played well defensively. I feel like since I’ve been here — not saying it’s because of me – but I’m saying since I’ve been here, I’ve noticed the defense is really good. The defense performs well and we are just going to keep on trying to build off of that.”



Rams DT Aaron Donald
(On holding the Bears to seven points)
“We just played good as a defense, everybody flying around and, you know, played solid football. We gave up two plays, but at the end, I feel like we played strong.”

(On if they had a different mentality going into the game as a defense considering all of the personnel changes on the offense)
“Well our mindset every week as a defense is to try to dominate and do everything we can. I feel like we’ve been doing that week to week. We’ve got to continue to do it, clean up the little things we’ve been having mistakes with. But overall, I feel like we’ve been playing good football.”

(On what he liked from the defensive effort against the Bears)
“I feel like we made good plays. We got the ball back to the offense, we had turnovers, we made big plays when we needed to do it, and we came away with a win.”



Bears Head Coach Matt Nagy
(Opening Remarks)
“All right, as far as getting started here, obviously a disappointing loss for us. It’s a game that had nothing to do with effort – our guys played hard, but just in the end – seven points isn’t enough. You’ve got to score more points than that to win, and we didn’t do that tonight.”

(On his decision at the end to regarding Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky)
“Yeah, it was all based off of, he just wasn’t feeling right. His hip was hurting him. We knew it a few series earlier that something wasn’t right. We watched him kind of just to keep an eye on him and see how it was. I had to pull him aside and talk to him, and just ask him, and say exactly that we needed him to be honest with us. Trying to play through that is was what he was doing, and at the same time it was affecting a little bit of how he was able to throw. I don’t want to put him in more risk, and I also don’t want to affect how the play is for the team.”

(On if they ever saw Trubisky go in the tent to be tended to by athletic trainers)
“No, he didn’t. He just had an earlier deal where he landed on it and he was playing through it. (Quarterbacks) Coach (Dave) ‘Rags’ (Ragone), our quarterback coach – he mentioned telling me that we had to keep an eye on him, and so that’s what I started doing. Then we kept an eye on him. I think it was probably one or two series that he went through with it, and then I finally pulled him aside. I said, ‘Listen, here’s the deal – we’ve got to know and you’ve got to be honest with us as to where you’re at.’ It was hard for him to say that. It was really hard. But he told me exactly how he felt, and then I made the decision to put (Bears Q Chase (Daniel) in there at that time.”

(On if he would have made the same decision to take Trubisky out of the game had the game been a closer)
“Yeah, same decision.”

(On if Trubisky felt his injury in the third quarter)
“I’ve got to find out more because I didn’t find out the details yet from him – exactly the play that it happened. But, I just know that it was affecting him and he wasn’t saying anything to me, he was playing through it. I’ll find out more later.”

(On if he has any positive takeaways from his team’s offensive play today)
“Well, we had the drive there to start the third quarter, which I thought we were effective. We made plays and we got first downs. We had good first-down execution. Early on in the first half, we were trying to get the run game going just a little bit – and it takes time – but we just weren’t churning out the yards on first and second down in the run game. That’s a credit to them, they’re a good defense. That was probably the one good drive that we had, but we need more of those.”

(On if he felt the need to tell his team that Trubisky was taken out of the game due to an injury rather than his play of the field)
“No, I didn’t get into it. It just all happened. We’re trying to prep for two-minute at the end to try to go down, so I didn’t even say one word. The guys know when they see Chase (Daniel) warming up, they just figure that something’s up.”

(On his concern level moving forward with Trubisky long-term considering an ongoing shoulder injury and today’s injury)
“I don’t know. We’ll have to find out more here…We have to see how serious it is – number one. And so, we’ll do that here when we get back and find out exactly where he’s at. But I just appreciate Mitch’s – his toughness. You appreciate that. The kid did not want to come out, but at the same time we had to know exactly what was going on.”

(On what he noticed about his throwing that indicated that he may be injured)
“I think I noticed a little bit throwing to the left – like with his hip when he was trying to open his hip to throw. That’s when you could feel it, and he ended up with what we felt – and I think what you’re going to see – is he started throwing with all arms and not a lot of legs. And, you torque with your hips, and that’s what we felt.”

(On his hopes to climb out of a 4-6 record)
“We’re so focused right now on just trying to win and get better this next week. We understand that the only thing we can control is us. So, we’ve just got to focus on next week – and that’s number one. I thought the defense played really well tonight, and then you know – again towards the end – they’re out there on the field awhile – and we’ve just got to score more than seven points.”

(On his decision to not kick a field goal in the first quarter)
“Yeah, there are sometimes in there when – we missed two tonight – so, some of that is exactly where you’re at. It’s kind of a feel of where you think you are field position wise, and then the play that you have. So, that was just the route we went, and we want to be able to make those field goals.”

(On having confidence in long field goal attempts)
“You want to see field goals made. We all want to see that, he knows that. We’ve got to, again, we’re in a game like this and it’s a defensive battle. Points are at a premium, you want to be able to make those kicks. I kind of look at it too, to start the game, we’ve been struggling with drives getting going. We finally got a couple first downs and now, it might now sound great, but we were in a position to kick a field goal to start the game and we missed it. Those are the ones that I really wish we could have.”

(On if they explore other options for kickers)
“No, no. I mean, no. For us, we look at us and I think with Eddy (Piñero), he knows you’ve got to make those.”

(On what was supposed to happen in the play that went third-and-short and he had the option to go left)
“What was supposed to happen was we were supposed to get to first, we didn’t. It was a good play by them. We had a kill on the play. Mitch(ell) (Trubisky) made the right decision and sometimes you have those plays. That’s certainly one that I look back at it and wish that we could have back. There’s a couple of those per game but those guys did everything we asked them to.”

(On if there was example in Miami where they the hip was bothering him (Eddy Piñero)
“I don’t think so. I’ve got to find out more details as to the ‘when’ part. But for the most part, I don’t think that effected it.”

(On what happened with the other third-and-1 in the second half where he spread the offense out and it looked like he wanted the ball to go to Bears RB Tarik Cohen, but the ball was thrown to the ground)
“I was blocked. I couldn’t see from up top, I think they jumped the flat. That was one too that I was keeping an eye on with him rolling to the left with his hip and dirted it. I don’t know, I’ve got to see it.”

(On if he wanted the flat on that play)
“Yeah, we were trying to throw to the flat.”

(On how he absorbs the reality of where the team is at in the season now)
“It’s been challenging. These type of games, these close games, we want to come out on top and we haven’t done that. I really look just, in general, just offensively, I know that we have the pieces and everything. We just haven’t had that one game where it’s just been four quarters of just fireworks. It just hasn’t happened. We as a team, this is where we’ll get truly tested when we get back into the facility and see where guys are at.”

(On if he’s questioning some of the things that he thought coming into the season about his team)
“No, I’m not. No, I have all the trust in our guys and they’re fighters and they care. We’re all in this for the right reasons. They work so hard and it’s tough. We’re going through one of those tough deals so we want to try to be better.”

(On clarifying when he started to watch Mitch’s hip)
“It was probably two series before we actually did it. Right in that area, just to keep an eye on him. We’re rolling with personnel’s and moving in and out. I’m asking too for guys (coaches) to keep an eye on him.”

(On if it’s his left hip)
“I think so. I haven’t even talked to him yet. I said a quick note to the team and I’m in here with y’all. So I haven’t talked, I haven’t done any of that.”

(On the receivers and how everything was synced up in the passing game)
“I thought that at times, we could have been a little bit better there at that position. There’s a lot that goes into it and there’s sometimes too that they make good plays. (CB Jalen) Ramsey made a good play on that third-down to Taylor Gabriel where Taylor brought it in. As he was coming down to bring it in they knocked it out. Sometimes there’s good players that make better plays. Again, I don’t ever want to question their effort. I love our guys, I love how they fight and how they battle. It’s just one of those games for us.”

(On if he saw drops from receivers and WR Allen Robinson II on a slant)
“Yeah, he had the one. But, again, I feel like in those situations, we haven’t had many of those so it’s hard to criticize guys, especially a guy like ‘A. Rob’ (Allen Robinson). He normally comes down with those.”

(On what he thought of the two turnovers they gave in the first half and if they could have been sparks)
“That’s the sudden change. That’s where you get the sudden change and you get the interception, you get the fumble early on. You got to turn that into touchdowns, right? You have to. Then, you go ahead and you jump up 14-0 and now you’re playing. We just haven’t done that. That’s where I think we just all have to try to figure out what’s the ‘why’ behind it. Well, here we are into whatever week. That’s the challenge as a leader is making sure that we dig into that.”


Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky
(On what happened with his injury)
“Just something in the second half, my hip tightened up. I got evaluated at half time. Something in the hip region where I was just trying to keep it loose in the second half and be able to make plays for my team, but it just kept getting tighter and tighter in the hip region. I just couldn’t move around like I wanted to. I was just throwing with a lot of arm and I was trying to make plays and stay on the field and fight through. It’s just disappointing I couldn’t finish the game out.”

(On if his hip was hurting in the first half)
“It was one of the last drives of the second quarter. So, I was just trying to keep it loose and it just kept getting tighter and tighter, and it was really preventing me to play my game and it’s just frustrating.”

(On how difficult it was to have a conversation with Head Coach Matt Nagy about coming out of the game)
“Yeah, it was very difficult. I really wasn’t saying much. They just decided, the shape I was in, I just couldn’t help the team the way I wanted to and it’s super disappointing. I just got to see what it is, monitor it the next couple days and hopefully it doesn’t prevent me from being out there next week. It just sucks. I wish I could’ve finished it out with my guys, but they made a call they felt was best for the team. You got to support that and you just got to be 100 percent to be out there with the team. I just couldn’t do that.”

(On which hip he hurt)
“The right.”

(On how the injury impacted his mechanics)
“Yeah, it was just all arm the second half pretty much. So just trying to fight through the pain, try to make throws. I felt like I was still putting the ball in some pretty good spots, but just couldn’t move around or couldn’t buy time, just throwing with a lot of arm, so it affected the accuracy a little bit.”

(On when he realized he couldn’t play with the injury)
“It just kept getting tighter and tighter, so I felt like I could keep fighting through it and they just didn’t let me finish it out.”

(On what Coach Nagy said to him on the sideline)
“I don’t remember much, honestly. I just was super frustrated and disappointed. I just wanted to finish the game and try to do what I could for my team, but just couldn’t remember much honestly.”

(On how tough of a hole the team is in at 4-6 on the season)
“Yeah, it’s tough. Tonight didn’t go the way we wanted to. Just got to keep fighting, battling and try to bounce back this next week.”

(On what he took out of the first drive of the second half)
“Yeah, that definitely gave me some confidence and the O-line did a great job just allowing me to sit back there. I really didn’t have to move around on the drive and just dink and dunk down the field. The receivers got open and (WR) Tarik (Cohen) made a great play on that back-shoulder route to score. Just felt like I could keep doing that and that’s why I kept going, so the O-line was just allowing me to stay back there and I didn’t have to move much.”

(On if he remembered which play he got injured on)
“I know it was on the last drive before the second half. That’s all I remember.”

(On if it is concerning that he might not be able to play through this)
“Yeah, it’s definitely tough. You just want to be out there with your team, but if you’re not 100 percent, you can’t help the team. I’m not doing the team any favors if I’m not able to run around or throw the ball with accuracy because I’m throwing with all arm. You just got to be smart from that factor, but I’m going to fight as long as I can to be out there with my guys and hopefully it’s something that doesn’t prevent me from being out. We got to evaluate the next couple days and hopefully it bounces back quick.”

(On if he was affected by the injury on the two third-and-1 plays in the second half)
“On the option, I should’ve attacked the D-end a little more and pitched the ball. I pitched it too early, which is why they (Rams defense) made the play. I don’t really remember the second one, sorry.”

(On whom he was communicating with about his injury)
“I really wasn’t telling anyone. I was just trying to keep playing through it and try to stay on the field.”


Bears RB Tarik Cohen
(On the temperament of the team in the locker room)
“We know – offensively, on our side of the ball, a lot of the wins and losses that we’ve had this season come down on us. We feel very bad on that. We just have to get it together, we have to get consistent and go out there with confidence.”

(On what the issue is with the offense)
“It’s literally like those two words I just said, consistency is the main thing though. We have drives where it seems like we’re hitting on all angles, all levels and then we just fizzle out with some drives. We have to balance that out and always pick up a first down.”

(On how difficult it is to climb out of a 4-6 record and make a run at the playoffs)
“It’s very difficult. We dug this hole ourselves though. So, when you think about it, whenever you dig yourself a hole, you have to find your way out of it. So, we’re going to put our backs against the fall and just fight out of it.”


Bears WR Anthony Miller
(On how he would describe his level of frustration)
“I mean, we should have won the game. We made a lot of mistakes, a lot of execution mistakes. They (Rams) didn’t do anything special. I think we are better than them, we are a better team, we just didn’t execute.”

(On what he thinks the reason is behind the missed opportunities for the offense)
“I don’t know. We had pretty good practices throughout the week. We (felt) good coming into the game with our gameplan and stuff like that. It’s just when we get here – that’s all we’ve got to do is finish. We are trying to find ourselves right now.”

(On what was going right on their third-quarter scoring drive)
“I think we just had a good mix of plays for them. They didn’t know what to do. We were playing a little bit of hurry up. I think when we play tempo, we’re a hard team to stop – when we were able to play fast. I believe that’s what happened, we just had them on their heels that drive.”


Bears WR Taylor Gabriel
(On how he felt it was going offensively)
“I just felt like we never could get into a flow. We never could get into a rhythm. That was all night. We had a lot of explosive plays, but at the same time we’d have the explosive play and then the defense would give us the ball and we would stall. It was just tough to get rhythm.”

(On if he knew that QB Mitch Trubisky was playing through a hip injury in the fourth quarter)
“No, I didn’t know that. So, that was surprising.”

(On what was going through his mind when QB Chase Daniels came in)
“I guess (Q Mitch (Trubisky) couldn’t go. I guess his hip was messed up.”

(On what was disappointing after scoring a touchdown at the beginning of the second half and not capitalizing on other opportunities)
“I just felt like we couldn’t get our rhythm. After the touchdown, I thought the momentum was going to swing. We got the ball back. The defense gave us the ball back and we just couldn’t get our momentum. We couldn’t get a rhythm. It’s just hard to kind of explain and tell you what happened without seeing the film. So, I can give you a better answer once I watch the film.”


Bears LB Roquan Smith
(On how you felt playing throughout the whole game)
“I felt good throughout the game, but it’s not the standard. We did not get the ‘dub’ (win), so that’s the main focus going into each and every game, and we failed to do so. So, it’s back in the lab and finding ways to get better. I still don’t think I did good enough because I didn’t do good enough to get a ‘W’ (win). We are supposed to get a ‘W’ (win). At the end of the day, that’s how I’m thinking of it and we just have to get better.”

(On what was working for him to make big plays)
“I felt like they (Rams) were a bit predictable on some of the things they were doing. It just goes back to film study, but I didn’t make enough plays. So, I’m just thinking about it from that standpoint, didn’t make enough plays because we didn’t get a ‘dub’ (win). That’s my main thing, got to get back to the drawing (board).”

(On the defense playing well the entire game but it not being enough)
“It was not good enough because we didn’t get a ‘dub’ (win). It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We didn’t do good enough because it was not the standard. We did not get the ‘dub’ (win), that’s the main thing. I don’t really know how else to put that.”


Bears CB Prince Amukamara
(On what type of emotional impact a loss like this can have)
“I think the whole team is frustrated, but it’s not an effort problem. The effort is there and it’s just about executing. Yeah, we did do a great job giving the offense the ball back.”

(On if he knew that QB Mitchell Trubisky had a hip injury in the fourth quarter)
“No, our job is always to pay attention to the game. The only thing we saw was (Q Chase (Daniel) going in with three minutes left.”

(On if Todd Gurley II’s running ability surprised him tonight)
“Not at all. (R Todd (Gurley II) is one of the best backs in this league. He ran the ball well, he scored. But for the most part, I think we did contain him a little bit in the second half. He did a great job today.”



--RAMS--