Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - Head Coach Sean McVay - September 20, 2021

Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - Head Coach Sean McVay - September 20, 2021



Head Coach Sean McVay
Head Coach Sean McVay
(On if there’s an update about RB Darrell Henderson Jr.)
“He has a little rib cartilage injury. We’re going to be smart with him in the early parts of the week, but the hope and optimism is that we'll see how he feels on Friday being ready to go.”

(On how he feels to play the defending Super Bowl champions during Week 3)
“I feel like we know it's a great challenge just from playing them last year. But it's our third game and it's an important game because it's our next game. Obviously, they've been playing incredible football for their first two games this year. They finished on an amazing streak. Really, we're going to be worried about doing a great job with our process and getting ready to try and do everything we can to come away with the result that we want.”

(On some of the symptoms of the big plays the Colts were able to have)
“The one that we talked about, we just kind of did not play one of our zone principles the way that we want that ended up leading to one of the explosives with (TE Jack) Doyle. And then the other one, when they ended up hitting a kind of a similar concept of what we hit (WR Cooper) Kupp on the previous week, it was a great play by (Colts QB Carson) Wentz being able to make that throw. I thought (S) Nick Scott did a nice job squeezing and (S Jordan) Fuller just kind of got a little bit, not in the standard position, but I thought they made a good play. Those were the ones and then some of those were just run after catches. But those two plays, in particular, about the one third-and-long conversion was a nice job by them executing and we can really play it better, but was kind of a contested. We were in position. They just ended up making a nice catch. And then the other one, we got a similar concept that we played very well and it led to a turnover later on in the game.”

(On the balance between the amount of yardage allowed to use as a cushion versus that being too much)
“It's continuing to just monitor it. It is a clear, cut philosophy, but then there's also some change ups. You look at some of the times that we send some more guys forward on some first downs that led to a sack. So, I think it's a balance. Then, figuring out, ‘Alright, how much do we want to be reactionary as a result of. alright, this is the approach that they're going to take.’ I think what's definitely been illustrated, particularly in the red area the last two weeks, is having four drives that come away with no points where we got two turnovers to fourth-down stops. That's a real credit to our guys. It’s definitely something that you're spending a lot of time really talking through the philosophical approaches, but also making sure that we're doing what's best to be able to win the football games. And it is a balance. I think (Defensive Coordinator) Raheem (Morris) has done a really nice job these first two weeks. Then those plays that you alluded to are ones where you say, ‘Alright, that's a good play,’ but we do have some ways that we can execute that at a higher level and be kind of process driven as opposed to being too worried about, ‘Alright. Well why did this actually occur? Is there a solution to be had? Can we play it better? And then are we going to be more consistently getting the results that we desire?’ I think that's how we feel, but you got to give them credit too. They had a couple of nice designs.”

(On if RB Sony Michel will start instead of Henderson Jr. due to injury)
“The answer is yes. We want to give him as much time as possible to get as healthy as possible. This is something that if the pain subsides, then we will be confident to be able to utilize him. Does that mean he starts and plays the amount of reps? What yesterday (showed) was a good, positive reflection that (R Sony (Michel) got into the rhythm of a game. (He) got a handful of caries. That was good for me to see. That was good for our players to see. I thought he did a nice job closing it out. So you can definitely expect to see Sony, and (R Jake (Funk) possibly, utilized more this week. We're hopeful and optimistic that we'll get (R Darrell (Henderson Jr.) back, but that'll be something that we'll monitor throughout the course of the week. We’ve got to take the approach that those guys have to get ready to carry the load. And if Darrell can go, then that's a positive for us.”

(On how concerned he is about the special team’s situation)
“I think there have been some situations that we want back – a couple of coverage opportunities in the kickoff game that I think are correctable issues. And then we had the one punt – a mistake yesterday – but the thing that gives me peace is I have total trust in (Special Teams Coordinator) Joe DeCamillis and (Assistant Special Teams Coach) Dwayne Stukes, like I mentioned yesterday, and they're correctable issues. I don't think it's a personnel thing. I don't think it's a scheme thing. I think it's an execution. Sometimes those snaps are so limited, especially on special teams where you talk about it's one down and it's all everything right here. They do a nice job with Indianapolis. But those are things yesterday that occurred where you have to tackle better on the kickoff coverage. We had them kind of pinned where we wanted to, and he did a nice shot making a return. And then it's as simple, just a little elementary area that, hey, we make a mistake where we can slide over a little bit more when we shifted for protection purposes. The snap hits them and it results in a touchdown, which feels like a terrible thing, but I think it is something that we can correct. So, in a long-winded way, I'm not concerned, but there has got to be a sense of urgency that has consistently existed. It's not like anything's going to change, but we want to be intentional about addressing those things, correcting them, being solution-oriented, and then moving forward accordingly. But we need to be better. There's no doubt about it.”

(On why WR DeSean Jackson only played 3 snaps against the Colts and his evaluation of WR Robert Woods)
“First of all, (WR) Robert (Woods) is a great competitor. He's going to continue to maximize those things. (I) want to make sure that I'm doing a good job of trying to get him more opportunities, but you know, however I say it, it’s going to be an excuse. Robert's a great competitor. He has done a good job. I need to be able to get him more involved. He's a good playmaker and the same goes for (WR) DeSean (Jackson). I have to figure out a better way to get him involved. He's too good of a player. We brought him here to impact and influence the game and that's something that's going to be reflected moving forward. Really, there's nothing that DeSean didn't do. I’ve got to figure out a better way of getting him involved in a rotation, so that he can affect and influence the outcome of the game and that's what you'll see moving forward.”

(On if he sees other receivers getting more catches and yards like WR Cooper Kupp)
“Yeah. I think Cooper has done a great job maximizing his opportunities. What (Q Matthew (Stafford) has done a really good job of is getting the ball where the coverage dictates. There are certain times where it might be calling some plays with Robert or (WR) Van (Jefferson) or (TE Tyler) Higbee, or our backs being a primary and it hasn't always gone there. Cooper has maximized his opportunities, but I think one of the benefits of our offense is the ball gets spread around. We've got a lot of guys that can make plays and so that's definitely something that we're going to look to do is making sure that we get everybody involved, we utilize their skill sets accordingly. But certainly Cooper has demonstrated why he's a special player in this league the last couple of weeks. I've been pleased with that.”

(On if he has started to map out which running back will start should Henderson Jr. be out against the Buccaneerss)
“As soon as this call ends is usually when I kind of dive into the early parts of the preparation for the (Tampa Bay) Bucs. So, I haven't gotten that far yet, but that is something that we have to be mindful of. I know that this is a great defense. They've been especially stout against the run the last few years under (Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Todd) Bowles’ leadership and guidance, and so those are the things that we'll look at but haven't gotten that far yet.”

(On how impressed he was with Michel on Sunday)
“He did a nice job. When we had to run the football in some of those key drives, especially on the full play response to retake the lead, he had a really good run versus a fire zone pressure. Then when we got the ball back, when it's a 24-24 game and how much we leaned on him. He was able to turn out a bunch of good yards. Even in some of the four-minute situations where you know you're running into heavy box counts. (I) thought he was strong. He got better as he got more carries, where you're kind of getting into the flow of a game. Which is always a challenging thing for those skill players as they're rotating, but you can see this as a guy that's been in a lot of big-time games. Sony really ingratiated himself. He did a nice job with that yesterday and I was pleased with Sony for sure.”

(On the health of OLB Justin Lawler and OLB Chris Garrett)
“With (OLB Justin) Lawler, he's having hand surgery today, but he might be able to play this week. He is a guy that we've flexed him up from our practice squad each of the last two weeks, but he's going to have surgery today on that hand. He'll be able to play if pain subsides with the cast moving forward, if that's the direction that we go with our 48 (players) on gameday. (OL Chris Garrett will be potentially cleared to return from COVID IR this week. Then (OL Obo (Ogbonnia Okoronkwo) and (OL) Tremayne Anchrum (Jr.) will be able to return after the third game, which obviously is this next one.”

(On if he knows of any ramifications resulting from ILB Kenny Young’s ejection on Sunday)
“I'm waiting to hear the final word on that. I'm optimistic that he won't have to miss this game. That's the hope, that's the direction that I get the sense it's going, but I have not gotten a hundred percent clarity on that quite yet. And I might if I look at my email or if I go talk to – maybe (General Manager) Les (Snead) has talked to the league since. But I haven't had a chance to find out for sure, but I think it's trending in a positive direction for us.”

(On what makes Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles defense so challenging to go against)
“He’s always applying pressure to you. He doesn't let the offense dictate the terms. Their physical outfit, they will challenge you. He's got a variety of blitzes. I also thought, especially in their Super Bowl run, being able to shift their identity and be able to play a little bit more coverage oriented. Keep the ball in front of them. He's got great agility, which is what all great coaches have. I was really impressed with him, but it's always been a problem. I have a ton of respect for the multiplicity of looks that he can present, the aggressiveness at which he calls a game, but also (how he) is able to adjust and adapt within the course of a game or based on that game plan, to put his guys in the right spots. But his defense has always played tough. They're physical, they're sound. And I think that's a great compliment to him.

(On how much more comfortable Buccaneers QB Tom Brady seems to be within his system since Week 12 against the Rams in 2020)
“I've seen it. To say I have really dove into the tape to give you a true educated answer, I mean, you can see the way he's playing. There's a great understanding. He's playing fast, he's decisive, he's throwing the ball as well as he's ever thrown it. He's obviously one of the best of all-time, if not the best of all-time. He's got great skill players. He knows how to distribute the ball. You can see they're really firing on all cylinders in all three phases. And that's why they played so well. Really when you look at it, after we played them, then they lost to Kansas City (Chiefs) and then they have not lost since that game. It's been a long time and that's why it's going to be such a great challenge. (Buccaneers Q Tom (Brady) is playing as good a ball as he's ever played.”

(On how he balances the things he wants to work on right now versus things he wants to work on in the long run)
“I don't know if I have the exact right answer. I think the biggest thing is allocating the appropriate time and then also understanding right, ‘How do we make sure that our identity comes to life while also taking into consideration how we match up with the opponent week-in and week-out.’ It's making sure that there's ongoing communication with your coaches. What do we really want it to look like identity wise? What are the things from the first two weeks that we want to continue to embody and see illustrated and improved upon? And then what are the things that maybe we want to shift that narrative a little bit, or that we haven't done. And are there answers within the solution, within the scheme to have those solutions like we talked about? I think it's being committed to the rhythm that we already have, while also understanding that ‘Hey, it's a long season. You’ve got to be intentional about breaking up the way that you implement a game plan.’ And then you're clearly communicating to the players what you want it to look like and that's by showing them on film. That's by creating those visions and having that clarity, because they're the ones that make it come to life. I think there were a couple of plays yesterday, both offensively and defensively, that stand out where we had an intent behind them, and when the players own the intent, they can make it that much better. Because ‘Oh, hey. This is the look that we had talked about. Here's the intent. So, here's how I can make this play look even better than what the design of it was or here's how I can execute this pressure based on what the design of it was and who we're trying to get isolated or what we're trying to take away.’ I think it's just continuing to have more situations present itself like that. And then part of it too is saying, ‘Okay, if we're trying to stop this opponent, what are the keys to victory?’ This is what it takes in the rundowns or in the past downs, in the redzone, on third downs and vice versa for the offense. It is ongoing, but it's always much easier to be able to correct when you find a way to get the results you want. But like you said, there's numerous amounts of things that we have to improve upon. You can't go from A to Z, but I do think you want to take those incremental steps that are reflective of ‘Alright, this is what's going to get us speed and if we don't fix it, we're going to have problems. And then here's a reason why we're winning and being able to find that delicate balance between both of those.’ I don't know if that really answers your question, but it's a good one that takes a lot of thought for sure.”

(On as a coach how he knows when it’s time to start pressing down on things like the offense in particular)
“I think it's getting a feel for your team. Every single year is a new year, and it's like, okay, ultimately my job is to figure out how do we put all three phases together? And what is the identity of each of those phases look like to collectively establish the approach that we want to win games? And that narrative might be different based on the opponent. How we put together a plan in all three phases to beat the Colts and to try to beat the Bears is going to be different than what we've put together against the Bucs based on their strengths, the things that we feel like we can take advantage of that's not exclusive to this scheme, but there's a lot of personnel that's involved in that as well. I think there's other things offensively. Alright, what are the best ways to maximize Matthew Stafford’s skillset? I'm still learning that. What's the best advantage and best ways to take advantage of when we give Sony Michel the ball? I just for the first time saw him carry the football in meaningful games. How can I do a better job of getting DeSean Jackson more involved? Those are the things that you think through, and it always starts with the players. Then it's the scheme and that approach. Finding that balance is a great challenge, but it is something that I think is a progressive building. And you hit on it. You hit it right on the head. I thought the Bill's game represented a great opportunity for our guys to kind of rally together. There were still a lot of good things that happened defensively, but then we really responded the right way, went on a run, and I thought that momentum carried us, and that was definitely the strength of our team last year, without a doubt.”


--RAMS--