TRANSCRIPTS: Rams Head Coach Sean McVay, WR Robert Woods - Media Availability - August 27 2020 Head Coach Sean McVay

TRANSCRIPTS: Rams Head Coach Sean McVay, WR Robert Woods -
Media Availability - August 27 2020
Head Coach Sean McVay

(On why he gathered the team together during practice)
"That was really just with everybody on the field because we had special teams in the beginning. So, it’s the first time we could bring everybody up. I had a good meeting with a lot of our players this morning about all of of things that are going on in our country. Want to make sure that we're always opening up the lines of communication, not just transmitting information. We'll keep the specifics in house, but it's always about being able to connect with our guys, make sure we understand their perspectives and really be able to figure out a way to put some tangible things in place to try and move the needle in the right direction. There's been a lot of conversations and now we're trying to figure out solutions about how we can take actions in being able to do that. That's what we're working through as an organization collectively."

(On CB Jalen Ramsey not practicing today)
"Yup. That's what it was, vet rest day. He was here. So, we we're just being smart with him."

(On if any players expressed a desire to sit out from today's practice in wake of the loss of Jacob Blake)
"Yeah. Everybody was on board to practice. I think what guys are most interested in, is how can they use their platform to really do something to affect and influence that real change. We got a lot of really special men on this team that have a passion for making things right in this country. Trying to eliminate and avoid these tragedies that are occurring, that's what we're working through right now."

(On what he has learned from his players by talking to them and listening)
"Yeah, I wouldn't say I've changed. I think it's more just about learning. It's much easier to be connected to guys when you're in person. So, being more present, communicating a little bit more, being a better listener. All of those things help you increasingly improve in those areas that we talked about. But, most importantly it's creating an atmosphere and an environment where guys feel comfortable to share, if that's what's on their heart. Then what we can do to try and figure out how to help people heal and then help people try to use, I keep saying this platform, to try and really do some things that can really affect that change that we're looking for. I know that, that's what we're all working through and want to be able to start to put some actions in place as opposed to just continuing to talk about it. That's what I think you can expect to see moving forward from us."

(On if there's something unique about this team than the other teams who have decided to cancel practice)
"I can't speak for those other teams. I can just speak on what's on a lot of our guys hearts. It's about being connected to them and understanding, and that's what we try to do. I can always do a better job of that. Our guys, they know that our interest is what they're feeling. We want to have that shared ownership. Their ability to communicate to me, to their other coaches, we're always going to try to figure out. It doesn't matter who's right, it's what's right and what's best and that's what we'll always do. Our players know that they have a huge influence on how we handle things, with things of this magnitude."

(On if there has been any discussion with the league about coming together as one)
"I'm sure that it'll get to that point. Our discussions have been internally with just our organization, but I wouldn't be surprised if there is something that the league ends up doing to represent that unified approach like you said."

(On if OL Andrew Whitworth practiced today)
"Yeah he was here today too. Same thing with (C Jalen (Ramsey), just gave him a rest day. We had two good days in a row of full padded practices. Today we tailored it back a little bit and wanted to be smart he and Jalen."

(On what he hopes to see in the scrimmage practice this week)
"Yeah, just good, crisp execution on both sides. You want to limit the self-inflicted wounds, the pre-snapp penalties. Whether it's jumping off sides offensively or defensively. You want to see guys play with the right fundamentals and techniques, communicate at a high level. Just as important as anything is kind of getting comfortable with that rhythm and routine. Staying at a new team hotel the night before and just being comfortable getting to the stadium, where they park, and how they're getting to the locker room. As you guys saw, that's quite a stadium. So, I just want to get all those things that sometimes you take for granted in a year where you don't have those preseason opportunities to usually get that stuff figured out. That's as big apart of this as anything. And then continue the evaluation of our roster. It's going to be a really good opportunity for some of our younger players to get a significant amount of work in the second part of this scrimmage. Everything we do is important and evaluated, but this certainly represents a big 'Opp' for a lot of guys."

(On if this year is going to be more difficult than usual to set a roster)
"I wouldn’t necessarily say that. I just think you wish you could provide more opportunities that a natural and normal schedule allows. You know, preseason games. It won’t be an excuse. I think, like we said, we’re evaluating everything and that’s part of our job to make sure that we do a thorough job of getting these guys evaluated the right way, identifying our top players that are going to be on the active roster, who we deem as appropriate practice squad players and then hopefully help those guys that it doesn’t work out for them here, find some other opportunities based on the environment they’re in here.”

(On the workload for players in the scrimmage to be properly evaluated)
“You know, we’ve got a schedule that will be a little bit lighter in terms of the workload. I think that was a reflection of just getting guys up to speed and in game shape. I think you’ll see a lot of our top guys try to get in between anywhere from 45 and 50 snaps and the same our other players in that second half. I think you’re looking more at 90-100 plays, as opposed to 140 or something that we got.”

(On the lack of crowd noise dictate communication on the sidelines)
“Yeah, it really depends on what that decibel level is that they allow. Whatever it is, it’s going to be consistent across all the league. It’s just a matter of if it’s consistent whether you’re on offense, on defense. Do you have the ability to crank it down a little bit when you’re at home on offense and crank it up when you’re on defense. So, those are things that we’re closely, you know, monitoring if you will. I’ve had some good conversations with a lot of people at the league office and then obviously got some coaches on the competition committee. They’re working through that. Whatever it is, it’s going to be consistent. So, I could tell you once I know exactly what those parameters are.”

(On whether the opponent will be able to hear what is said across the field)
“I think part of the reason is why they want to have some of that noise, if you will, is to eliminate the ability to hear all that type of stuff. Obviously, kind of what we’ve seen in some of those NBA games, I would envision that they will filter in some noise so that it feels like when you’re watching it, what a normal game would feel (like). I think they’ve done a great job in those NBA broadcasts I’ve watched of doing that. I would imagine that’s in alignment with what the NFL’s thinking. As far as for the crowd noise, I know that hasn’t been finalized. But, we’ve got to do a great job of being ready for whatever that scenario is. I would imagine that it would be along the lines of controlled volume setting that won’t be too loud that you can’t communicate on offense at home, but it’ll be loud enough that it minimizes being able to hear some of those things that you talked about.”

(On his emotions when he sees the recent events and after talking to players)
“I think in a lot of ways, sadness. Like what I talked about a couple months ago, that really resonated with me, is that I’ve been so blessed to be raised to love people and I’ve been around sports my whole life which has given me exposure to so many unique men of different backgrounds and racial backgrounds and experiences that they’ve had. So, you love people and you’ve been fortunate to be around so many unique, special people that have had huge influences on me. What is so sad is that outside some of the arenas, whether it’s sports in this building, when you really ask those questions to people that you love and care about, what they’ve gone through and then you see how it hits home. Then you really start talking to guys when they’re talking about their daughters and their sons, and how that affects them. That’s when you feel that pit in your stomach. One of our coaches (Running Backs Coach) Thomas Brown, who has been an incredible influence on me and a help in terms learning, understanding, getting a better perspective on all this, he was talking about he’s got three young boys and he’s hopeful that 30 years from now, when they’re grown men, we’re not having these same things and he’ll be really upset. That’s why you want to be so adamant about trying to use what you can, use the platform to really affect and influence change so that we can get more along the lines of what usually the sports locker room atmosphere feels like where everybody loves one another, they’re on equal playing surfaces and that’s what we’ve got to figure out.”

WR Robert Woods

(On his reaction to what has been happening recently with the boycotts by other teams and sports)
“I think it’s very critical. Everybody has been aware; I’ve been saying that. Now, I feel like it’s just trying to actually affect people. I think NBA, WNBA, Major League Baseball, they’re affecting people’s pockets, where it hurts. Right now, we’re still in training. Right now, we’re just trying to use our voices, use our platform to actually affect change. Like I said, everybody is aware and now it’s time to action. You see what the NBA is doing, they’re stopping what they’re doing just to go out and get in the field. That was kind of like my take on it – if we cancel practice, we need to take action – take a bus and go somewhere and get some changes done. Not just to cancel practice and have a moment of silence or just sit at home. I think it’s time to actually get involved, that’s what we were discussing this morning. We had a leadership meeting. Getting in some of our players’ pockets, going out and trying to change stuff in our actual community. Try to challenge teams around the whole league to just – it’s time to get involved. The politics are all ran by money. It’s time to encourage these politicians to make the right changes, the right laws and make these right adjustments.”

(On why he feels it’s so important to vote and if he’s been able to rally teammates to also get behind the message)
“You’ve got to be able to vote. It’s so political now, this game, first you get into it, you want to stay away from race, politics and religion. But now, that’s all that we’re talking about. You’ve got to be involved. It’s not just speaking, it’s actually changing, changing laws, getting things implemented. You see what happened with Breonna Taylor – the cops, I feel like they’re murders and they’re still out on the street. Change needs to happen. It comes down to laws and policies that are allowing these people to still be free. I think if we actually vote and make these changes, get these things implemented, I think justice will be served; people will be held accountable. The punishment will be a lot more serious and a lot more people will be thinking about their actions and being able to do correct and do right.”

(On how he describes the general feeling of the team and his teammates surrounding these issues)
“I think it’s everybody. You kind of felt the vibe this morning. You see what’s going on with a lot of other teams, our team is rallying behind each other. We’re all asking questions to each other – what are we going to do? We had some players mad because they weren’t involved in that meeting. We were saying we were gathering information; we were going to have a team meeting later. Some players want to be involved right now. Everybody is feeling like it’s time for action, we need to get involved. We need to go down and sit with the mayor, sit with LAPD, sit with our school boards, all of these things. I feel like it’s time for action. Like I said, we have got to actually go down and speak to these people. We have leaders on this team, leaders in all communities around the United States. I think people were just fed up. You felt it today, people were hurt. You just felt that vibe that people are wanting to do something, wanting to do something else. This game is bigger than just football. This is life, we’re saying this is a human rights issue, not just Black lives, you see a lot of things going on, a lot of injustice going on between black races, Latino races, really everything. It’s a human rights issue.”

(On reaching out to other players on other teams to come together as a group in the NFL)
“Not as of yet. That’s exactly what we were talking on this morning. Right now, the LA-based teams – reaching out to the Chargers. We’re trying to create our own fund, we know the NFL will match it, but even if they do not, we want to decide where our money goes specifically, to what social injustice, what system we want to affect – whether it’s the school board, whether it’s the politician and his policy making. We want to be involved. Our goal right now is getting everybody that makes this team to commit to a certain amount then we are going to challenge other teams to match it. I think it will grow from there. There’s NFL teams all around the states, we definitely have a huge impact. Right now, we’ve just got to use our platform, use our voice. I saw (former NBA MVP) Bill Russell, he held out from a game, 59 or 60 years ago. We still see players doing that today. Slight changes, but we’re still protesting the same thing. Still asking for justice. Still asking for equality. The fight is never going to stop. We’ve got to keep pushing for equality and until we get it, we will still keep voicing our opinions.”

(On balancing emotions around social injustice and doing his job and preparing for the season)
"It’s tough. You want to compete. You want to get ready for the season. You definitely want to be playing football. I feel like even the basketball players, the Lakers, the Clippers, they definitely want to compete for a championship. It’s bigger issues and that’s kind of how it felt today. Coming to practice, our mind is kind of elsewhere. You want to be involved, but yet at the same time, you’ve still got to work. In between the lines, you’re definitely able to focus on football. Right now, outside of the lines, it’s definitely on our minds.

(On his feelings towards teams that did boycott practice and games)
"I feel like it’s good if you’re doing something. Like I said, I was for practicing. I was for cancelling practice if we were going to go out and do an action. If we cancelled practice, we needed buses here and we need to go down somewhere and implement change. The teams who did cancel practice, NBA players who did forgo the rest of their season, I would like to see action and not just go home and sit about it and say, ‘I raised awareness.’ It’s time for getting action. If you’re canceling something, where’s your time being dedicated to?”

(On his evolution to a role where he’s comfortable speaking on these issues and the personal journey to get to this point in his career)
"Yeah. I feel like honestly, (former 49ers Q Colin Kaepernick paved the way for a lot of players to speak up on their mind. Everybody has opinions, he was kind of punished for his. Now just being able to speak out and voice our opinions how we feel. We have a coach who backs us, supports us and who’s really willing to fight with us. It’s all about equality. He said he grew up being taught to love all people, to love people. That’s really how it goes. We love a coach who is family based and family oriented. We’re able to speak on that. We are one big Rams family. We hope to encourage that for the whole city of Los Angeles – be a family, love everybody. That’s what we’re voicing out here. Go out and vote. Voice your opinion. Speak up. If you want to protest, protest. We always speak about unity and being a united group. Just being here, just growing up, developing, being able to speak, knowing my opinions as a man – as a black man – being able to speak my points and be involved in my city, L.A., I think it’s huge to be able to speak up.”

(On his progress on efforts to encourage voting)
"We’ve been posting, getting them involved. I want to personally go out, like I said, get people registered to vote if they’re not. Making sure people are out voting. People’s voices are heard. I think this a big, big political year. You see this is bigger than sports, it’s bigger than football. This is all about being a human being and being respectful to everybody.”
--RAMS--



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/2020 06:47AM by Shaky.