Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - January 17, 2021 Head Coach Sean McVay

Los Angeles Rams Transcripts -
January 17, 2021
Head Coach Sean McVay


Head Coach Sean McVay
(Opening statement)
“First of all, the finality of everything is so sudden. I think for us right now, the first thing that we're going to do is kind of catch our breath, let the dust settle, get away and really evaluate everything. Whether it's free agents as we move forward, I think it's important that we continue to establish a high level of competition at all spots and continue to do a better job of looking inward. I always want to try to be self-reflective, but whether it's coaches or players, everything that we do, we want to continue to try to evaluate, reflect, do it at a higher level and try to find ways to continue to be relevant, competitive and also give ourselves a chance to continue our season past these positions, while not minimizing there was a lot of good things that our players and our coaches did to get ourselves in a position to be in the Divisional Round. But you start over. Every single year entails a bunch of change, whether it be good or bad. We’re in the evaluation mode right now. I do think the best way to make those sound decisions and then the competitive decisions that I think are necessary for you to really press the envelope from all angles, is to really take a step back, then give yourself a chance to really look at it with a good perspective, the right perspective, and then be able to make decisions whether it's free agents, starters and different things like that as we move forward. But the competition, the environment, the atmosphere – I talked with a couple of players about that. Everybody’s earning their spots. I think that's something that we want to continue to try to really create and make sure the competition is present and relevant in everything that we do. I'm looking forward to attacking that opportunity, but also catching our breath and taking a step back as well.”

(On evaluating the starting quarterback position)
“Just like I said, everything's being evaluated. I'm not ready to make any sort of statements with regards to anybody, starting position or not. We're going to have a level of competition at everything that we do. That's where we're at. I think being able to take a step back, catch our breath and evaluate everything as we move forward and try to be at our best – that's my answer to the question.”

(On clarifying what he previously said about Goff being the quarterback in postgame press conference)
“What I'm evaluating is everything that we do, that includes the quarterback position, but that includes everything. So that's where we're at. I think it's important, like I was kind of saying, to be able to take a step back, catch our breath, be able to look at everything that the season encompassed and figure out the best way to create the most competitive situations at all spots and what we can do to continue to take steps in the right direction. That’s not exclusive to the quarterback, but it's all encompassing to our entire roster.”

(On if he will be keeping his assistant coaches on staff)
“I think, like I said, all things are up for evaluation. Obviously, there's a lot of them. (Defensive Coordinator) Brandon (Staley) has a busy schedule today and tomorrow. So I think anytime that you have those situations arise that's one of the most gratifying things, to see somebody do such a great job like he's done, along with our defensive coaches and then ultimately our players making it come to life. That's outstanding and even sometimes. Obviously, if you were to lose him that's a tough loss for the Rams, but that's also really a unique thing to see him come in and do such a great job then immediately be a prime candidate for a lot of these openings and you realize how precious these opportunities are. So, I think it's a fluid situation. It's something that you have to monitor, and you have to be ready to adjust and adapt accordingly if we do end up losing a great coach like Brandon. That's something that kind of – you just look at the schedule and the way that the off season is set, first order of business is your staff, then what you do is you evaluate your players, your personnel. Then be able to kind of put a plan of attack accordingly based on free agency drafts or things of that nature.”

(On if he was happy with the performances by his assistant coaches)
“I'm very happy. I think the other thing too is when you look at what a unique year it's been, I mean, this has been so different than anything I've been a part of coaching wise, especially when you think about guys coming in the first year and some of the changes or the different things that you had to navigate through. But I do think it's important that when everything is so fresh, there's so many emotions and you're still so surprised. I had so much respect for the Packers, but we went in there with the expectation to say, ‘Let's watch this game coming up here in the afternoon and hopefully see are we traveling to Tampa or New Orleans to go try to play for a conference championship?’ The finality of it all, you kind of just try to stay fully present, locked in, and then once you realize the season's over – I mean, you're dealing with the exit physicals today, talking to some of these players, there's a lot of stuff that you're thinking you're hopefully putting off for a couple of weeks that needs to be dealt with in a timely manner with consideration to everybody that's involved. That's why I think it's important, in the few years, I think you just take a step back, catch your breath and then be able to make the right decisions while also being considered of everybody involved.”

(On what he is proud of this season)
“I think the further away you get from just the feeling that you have right now, the more appreciation that you'll gain. I'm very appreciative of our players, our coaches, all the work and really our staff. I mean, you look at the work that it took to just be able to pull the season off in spite of all the obstacles that we had overcome. I love the way that this team was resilient. It was part of what was a frustrating thing, because we weren't able to string together a handful of wins, but we were able to consistently respond and get a couple wins then you find a way to have to respond from a setback. There was a lot of positives. I thought we saw a lot of young players step up. I thought we saw the rise of a really special defense. I'm excited about the opportunity to evaluate and move forward, but I am very appreciative of this team. I'm proud of a lot of the things, but I think you'll get more appreciative and you can look back on it with a better feeling of it the further you get away. But because of the confidence I had in this group, I am disappointed that we're still not playing and that's a compliment to the confidence I had in the team and the group of men that we were working with.”

(On how he would evaluate himself as a play caller)
“I think you go back, you look at it. I think the first thing is you always have to look inward and you have to be critical. There's a handful of times, every single game, that you're not proud of it and then there was a lot of times when you did feel like you were getting some looks that you would hope for, sometimes it worked out and sometimes it didn't. I do feel very confident in our coaches and our ability to put together a game plan. I feel good about the way that we're seeing the game as it unfolds and there's a lot of times where I've had a bad play call that the players make right. If you look at it, there wasn't a real clean look on (R Cam Akers’ touchdown run, but he found a way to run through a couple of broken tackles and it seems like a good play call, but that's not really a good play call, it's just a great player making a great play. So, I think there's always a give-and-take there, but I'd like to think that I'm the first one to look inward. I have high expectations and standards for myself and for our offense. This year was not up to par for a lot of reasons and that's something that I'm excited about attacking, but I do still feel confident in my ability to do that at a high level.”

(On if he would like to create more competition at the quarterback position)
“Every position is. That's kind of what I was saying. So, I know that there's a lot made of and that's such a high-profile position, but I think the important thing is not making any blanket statements right now while it's all so fresh. But I do think the overall theme of competition, that atmosphere, that environment where you're earning it every single day and making it feel real, making it feel true and authentic is something that we want to try to create. I talked to a couple of our players about that today and I think that that's something that'll be helpful – increasing the level of competition, the urgency and everything that we want to do at a little bit higher level. Those are some of the things that the immediate reflection kind of gives some feedback and really give some insight to, if you will.”

(On what changed to include competition at the quarterback position this offseason)
“I'd say, I think as you grow, as you continue to learn, that's just where we're at. I'm not saying anything other than we're evaluating that right now. I think it's important that you do that at every single spot and no position is excluded from that conversation.”

(On what Goff needs to focus on in the offseason)
“I think the first thing is kind of, like I said, you to take a step back, catch your breath, evaluate, be able to really make some sound decisions, be able to give some clear insight in to what is the plan of attack moving forward for all spots. Kind of like I was saying, the quarterback is no different. For me to be able to fully answer that, I think those are conversations that you have between your players first. To be able to have the right plan of attack. I think you’ve got to be able to take a step back, evaluate the entirety of it. What I will say that you certainly can't take away, that I mentioned to you guys each the last couple of weeks, for him to come back from a thumb surgery, do what he did in Seattle, do what he did yesterday, it's a real credit to him, his competitiveness, his resilience. I think there's a lot of positives from that.”

(On if there is a scenario where Goff is not on the roster next season)
“Like I said, we're in a situation that we're in evaluation mode. All those things are things that we're moving forward, we’re looking forward. I can't answer any of those questions until, like I said, I take a step back and evaluate everything that is in the best interest of the Rams.”

(On any injury updates following the game at Green Bay)
“I'll have to get with (Vice President, Sports Medicine and Performance) Reggie (Scott) on the entirety of it. I know he was kind of finishing up the exit physicals and all that stuff. Fortunately, it didn't seem like there was any major setbacks from yesterday's game. There's always a handful of guys that go into the offseason and you say, ‘All right, we want to get this cleaned up’ and this looks like it's going to be another unpredictable offseason. What does that look like in terms of our ability to connect and have an offseason that's reflective of what we're all familiar with from years past, prior to this past season. So, I have to connect with him and don't have all that information right now still.”

(On if a deep-threat wide receiver has become an area of need)
I think (Texans WR) Brandin (Cooks) was a huge contributor, he did so many great things for us in those couple of years. I don't want to take away from the confidence I had in our players that are currently and that were a part of this team are. I definitely think that you did feel not having Brandin this year. What does that mean? I think that's something that is important to look at. That's a part of the things that you always want to make sure that you find ways to create explosives. The long explosives and some of the shots down the field wasn't as prevalent as years past. I think it made it a lot more difficult and your margin for error as much slimmer as an offense when you feel like you've got to go 10 and 13 plays to score touchdowns. You want to be efficient, but you want to be explosive as well. I think both of those things can go hand-in-hand, look no further than the offense we saw yesterday. I think they're a great example of why when we've been at the upper echelon of the league, there's a combination of efficiency and explosiveness. I think you do have to have both of those to be a really good offense. We weren't as explosive in some of those things specific to the pass game as we've been in years past. It's something that we definitely have to be mindful of addressing moving forward.”

(On what he learned about himself in this unique season)
“That's a really good question. I think that if you stay fully present, I think you can handle things in the right manner. I think you also learn that it's really important to have great people around you that you can lean on. There are so many people that I can name. I think what you also learned too is that a lot of the things that we thought were the norm, and this isn't necessarily about myself, but more just the functionality of how you can operate. Whoever would've thought that we'd be doing these Zoom meetings all year, it's not ideal, but there's ways of efficiently getting things done that you would've maybe never thought could have been done before. Having meetings installing on the Zooms, superimposing your video on the screen, where you're teaching through that. So, I think what you just learn is a lot of different ways to still be able to be efficient and navigate through the non-ideal circumstances. What I think I have more than anything, what you continue to learn is it's all about surrounding yourself with the right people and want to continue to get better as a leader and continuing to empower people around you and keep doing a good job of making sure that you're self-evaluating. But, also surrounding yourself with people that are better than you. I’ve got a lot of great people around me and I'm fortunate for that.”

(On if he looked back on the loss due to team injuries or depth on the roster)
“I wouldn't say any of those things, because we were banged up, but a lot of those injuries occurred as a result of playing in the Wild Card Round. You give Green Bay credit. They earned the bye and that's why they were the No. 1 seed, so, they didn't have to play in that game, and they got an automatic bid to the Divisional Round. The thing that I mentioned to you guys in the postgame is what really resonates to me, is when I was asked earlier about where I'm at as a play-caller. Things like that drive, when you get the ball back after the defense gets to stop, when it's 25-18, it's a seven-point game. Those are where the really good teams find a way to deliver. That's where me as a play caller, you got to make sure that you're activating the exact right plays that you want, that give your players the best situation, the best possible scenarios to try to execute and move the football down the field. That's what I think it takes to be able to get over the hump and to win those divisional games and get yourself an opportunity to compete for a conference championship. That's what sticks with me from that game because I did think our guys did a great job of kind of just hanging tough. They're a really explosive team, they did a good job of controlling the time of possession, but then got a stop, made enough plays to feel like you can kind of start to snatch and feel that momentum swinging in our direction after we convert the two-point and then we get the stop. For us not to get that, to get any points and especially a touchdown out of that possession that's the one that stings. But, they're a really good football team, you've got to play really well to go up there and give yourself a chance. That's why they're going to be tough to beat next week at home as well.”

(On missing out on having a bye in the playoffs and how to fix the consistency for next season)
"As you go back, you evaluate and you make sound decisions that are outside the framework of the immediate emotions that you still feel because it is so fresh. I think that's the first order of business, is to be able to do that and every decision that we make, and that I make, is what I truly believe is in the best interest of the Rams and sometimes that doesn't always accommodate everybody's happiness and that's part of what this job entails. I think our guys know that that's where I'm coming from. That's what I'll always try to do and continue to try to do it at a high level, because the expectations and the standards that I think we've set over the last handful of years. That is something that you don't take for granted, while also knowing you want to continue to press the envelope and find a way to be more relevant later on in the playoffs and just getting there is something that you don't minimize, but you also know, what we want to be able to do and what I'd love to be able to try to accomplish with these coaches and players you care so much about."

(On if adding new players could help the offense)
“I think what you saw glimpses of yesterday was two rookies that we have really high expectations for and I think have really bright futures and Cam Akers, who's really emerged as a big time guy the last handful of weeks. And then I thought (WR) Van (Jefferson) showed why the game's not too big for him. You always want to continue to push the envelope, find ways of adding and creating a competitive roster. I think that's really a good step in the right direction that you can build off of, specific from that game with two guys from the rookie class that have a chance to really contribute and be big-time playmakers, whether it's Cam from the backfield or Van on the perimeter. So, that's the first thing, that's really how I would answer that. Then I think once you evaluate your roster, your free agents, what does that look like? What are the available free agents, based on kind of how we want to put it together for our whole team and then what does the draft class look like with those kind of those spots that you identify to try to fill those gaps and be more in alignment with what I think we can be capable of in terms of the offensive efficiency and the execution and the scoring more points and all those things that I have full expectation that we'll get back to."

(On if he has thought about which players he will lose in free agency)
"It's something that you're aware of, but I think the first thing is, now let's take a step back. Let's look at, alright, who are the guys that we want to make the priority? What does it look like their market will be? I think there's so many things still to be determined, especially what exactly is that cap number that they're going to decide upon and based on all the parameters around that. And then how does that dictate and determine what is the fair market value for some of these guys that have played well enough to earn a lot of money and you want to see that. It's a matter of, you might want to bring them back, but can you afford to do that based on still having a structure in place that limits. It's easy to say you want them, but if another team wants them more, usually those guys, the money is usually what drives a lot of the decision-making processes and rightfully so, because this is how they support their families. So, I am aware of that. I know that there's going to be a lot of difficult decisions to be made in the near future and never fun, but it's also an exciting opportunity to evaluate and put a plan of attack together moving forward."

(On what some of the factors were in leaning towards building an offense focused on high probability route concepts)
"There's a lot of things I think that would probably be better reserved for another conversation, but that's not ideal. I think that's a part of your offense, but to say that that's the world you want to live in, that's not the world I want to live in. I think you have to create explosives, we have to create more. There's a lot of different reasons why we weren't able to. I think I'll be the first to say is, it starts with me doing a better job of having a vision, implying the right things, giving ourselves an opportunity to execute those things and then ultimately the players making it come to life. I do think it's important to have catch-and-run opportunities, but to say that that's the world that you want to live in, like I was saying, if you do that, the margin for error is so slim and when you're not efficient on first down, it seems like it's way too much to try to overcome some of the get-back-on-tracks, the second-and-longs and the third downs. And so, there's a lot of things that lead into that and that's why there's a lot of decisions that are going to be made as we move forward in terms of evaluating how we get better and how we minimize kind of the inability to create some of those explosives. That is a collective effort, but something that definitely is going to be addressed and I think I'm confident that we'll be able to find solutions."

(On clarifying that it isn't strictly personnel based in a lack of explosives)
"100 percent. Yeah. It certainly isn't exclusive to that and I'll kind of just leave it at that."

(On how S John Johnson III, OLB Leonard Floyd and CB Troy Hill have contributed and if they will be priorities in free agency)
"You look at what (S) John Johnson (III) has meant to our football team. He's a playmaker, the versatility, all the different things that he could do for our defense. I mean, he had the green dot, where he was the communicator, that's something that I value so much in terms of the different intricacies of what we were doing defensively from a schematic-perspective. He's a guy that was incredibly instrumental in a lot of the success we had defensively. He became a big-time team leader for us. I think you really saw him grow a lot this year and we put a lot on him and he showed why he was more than capable. (OL Leonard Floyd, we talk a lot about Leonard – the versatility, the relentless passion and really persistence that he played with, ability to affect the quarterback, ability to stop the run. I think he was one of the more complete edge players in this league. Brandon had an experience with him in Chicago that made him feel really comfortable and confident. I felt comfortable (from) going against him and I thought you saw his best this year. And then (C Troy Hill, what can you say about the ball production, scoring the touchdowns that he did, the versatility. I think a lot of the versatility that we were able to activate with (C Jalen (Ramsey) was a reflection of also Troy Hill's versatility. You feel comfortable, because in a lot of instances, you're saying you've got this elite corner in Jalen Ramsey and then you can bump him inside, but who's the guy that can play off of that and have the ability to play both positions as well and Troy certainly enabled us to do that. All three of those guys were really big-time parts of what was the No. 1 defense in the NFL and very important and they had great seasons and they're all going to be big-time topics of conversation and things that you want to try to figure out. And like I mentioned, how does it all fit together is something that we're going to navigate and work through. Those guys, they can be really proud of the body of work and the resume that they put on tape this year and what they meant to me and to our team and to our organization."


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