Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - Head Coach Sean McVay - October 6, 2021

Los Angeles Rams Transcripts - Head Coach Sean McVay - October 6, 2021


Head Coach Sean McVay
Head Coach Sean McVay
(On the status of everyone on the injury report)
“Yeah. Everybody's going to be good to go there. I don't anticipate anybody being held out. So, we expect to be all hands on deck.”

(On how nonverbal communication develops between a quarterback and receiver and what he has noticed)
“I think the best part about some of those things is that there's certain guys that just have an innate feel for when things go off schedule or there's a good rapport that exists. I mean the touchdown that (WR) Van (Jefferson) and (Q Matthew (Stafford) connected on last week's a great example. We're running a little bootleg, Van should be in the back corner. Matthew ended up extending the play and (WR) Robert (Woods) did a great job of getting us out on the edge and he just kind visually communicated and like, ‘Hey, you know, there's a void inside.’ He ends up changing his arm slot. So, I think those are things that kind of organically occur. I mean, you have certain rules when things go outside the parameters of what the design is or off rhythm, if you will, in terms of how you want to distribute the field. But in a lot of instances, it's kind of like, you don't ever really have to coach a runner how to work edges on people. They've kind of just known since little league how to be able to just kind of naturally work a half of a man and be able to make people miss seamlessly. And I think that's probably one of those things with Matthew. He's always had a good feel when things do break down - eyes up. Being able to kind of direct traffic in the vantage point that the quarterback has is so different. And I think his ability to be able to direct it from the perspective he has, it was instrumental in that play. And then, a lot of plays that he's made throughout the course of his career. So those guys it's something that's ongoing, but it always goes back to rapport, repetition, but also there's a feel element that a lot of guys just have a good innate feel for.”

(On his overall assessment of the defense)
“(Defensive Coordinator) Raheem (Morris) and I are exactly on the same page. I mean, in a lot of instances that the execution wasn't up to standards in all three phases and that was a big riff and that's going to be the case every single week if you execute well, you do the little things the right way, you handle situations, you take care of the football. There's a lot of things that goes into this, but there's a very small amount of things that are instrumental in winning and losing games. And when you talk about defensively - the execution, the tackling plan - especially against an explosive offense like what we saw last week, what we're going to see Thursday, which is a crazy as turnaround, I'm telling you - those are going to be things that are going to be vital for our success. And so that's going to be consistent week in and week out.”

(On if he saw the Seahawks take a step forward in the victory against the San Francisco 49ers)
“I thought that the Niners are a great team. They did a great job. It was a back and forth battle. And I mean, when you really look at it, sometimes the results aren't reflective of what kind of ball the team's plan. I'm seeing a good football team through four games. If you told me that it was two and two or four and zero, I'm seeing good football. And so that's what's been consistent under (Seahawks Head) Coach (Pete) Carroll. They're really good in all three phases. They’ve got great players. They're well coached and it's reflective of a team that won as many games as a lot of teams in this league over the last handful of years. And that's a credit to these guys.”

(On if his message to the team in consistent or different and what it will be for Thursday night’s game)
“There's always an element of what's appropriate to try to win that football game, but I think you want to be consistent and steady with the things that you emphasize. I try to be consistent in that approach with our weekly rhythm, with our daily rhythm. Obviously, a Thursday game entails a little bit different accelerated rhythm than what we're all accustomed to, but I think you want to be consistent in your approach. But, you also need to be flexible enough to adjust or adapt according to whatever we feel like our team needs to perform at our best. You focus on the things that we need to improve on moving forward that will help us obtain and achieve the result that we're looking for. We know it's going to be a great challenge, but the message stays fairly consistent. But, you're always correcting, addressing, and then being able to move forward the right way.”

(On what he means when he says, “This is a crazy ass turnaround.”)
“This is typically for us on a Wednesday, you're really just getting the players and installing the first part of your game plan. We're getting ready to travel here in a few hours. So that's what I mean by a ‘crazy turnaround.’”

(On how his players are feeling coming off the Cardinals game and getting ready for the Seahawks tomorrow)
“I think they feel good. They've got a good look in their eyes. This is a great group. I love working with this team. I think the most important thing is, is making sure that we provide a good plan that gives them clarity and ultimately allows them to go play fast and decisive and get their bodies back and recovered and refresh as quickly as possible. The turnaround, the crazy turnaround, is for these guys. It’s one thing for us to have to do a little bit more, kind of accelerate our game planning, but it's for the players. The physical toll, you just look at how physical this game is and how quickly they turn around, that's where it's very, very important for a mental, but as much as for the physical. Just seeing their bodies turnover and making sure that we're hitting on all cylinders is as much as possible on Thursday at 5:20 (PT), or whenever we kick off.”

(On if they had a chance to practice any wet ball drills just in case it rains during the game)
“We mixed that in a little bit here and there. I think a lot of it is predicated too on you defer to, ‘Alright. Hey Matthew, how do you feel about this? What’s been your experiences playing in those bad weather games?’ You have certain things, certain plays that maybe you'd stay away from depending upon the severity of it or how seamlessly our equipment guys are able to keep that ball dry. There are so many layers that go into it. You certainly practice those things every now and then, but just based on the elements that we have, it's not something that comes up too frequently. We got to be ready either way though. That's something that always is a part of the conversation when you go to Seattle, especially just given the nature of how frequently it rains.”

(On if he anticipates defenses to start seeing WR Cooper Kupp as a threat or will he make changes once defenses force his hand)
“Oh no, you definitely want to be proactive not reactive to that. You want to be mindful of it. Understanding that's why we've got five eligibles on every play. And there's been a lot of instances where (WR) Cooper (Kupp) has caught the ball where he might be second, third, fourth, or even fifth in the progression based on what (Q Matthew (Stafford) is looking at, and (I) think he's done a great job at the coverage is dictated where he's gone with the ball. Then there's been a lot of instances where we are trying to get him the ball and those guys have done an excellent job connecting, so definitely have to be mindful of it. The good thing is, is you feel really good about the other eligibles and there's some other guys that you want to make sure that you're trying to get them involved. I think that's when we're at our best, is when the ball is getting spread around, but a player of Cooper's caliber, you'd definitely want to make sure that you're mindful of getting him his touches because of how explosive and how much of an impact he can make on the game.”

(On his conversations with Seahawks Offensive Coordinator Shane Waldron now)
“It’s both (football and life). He’s a great friend. I love (Seahawks Offensive Coordinator) Shane (Waldron). The tape is out there, so we'll talk a little bit of football. You're still a little bit more guarded just knowing that we're in the same division, but we spent so many years together. We share very similar philosophies overall and he's had a huge influence on me. I'm so grateful for the contributions, the relationship, the friendship that continues to be ongoing. He’s done a nice job with these guys for these first four games, which doesn't surprise me in the least bit. (It) will be good to see him. But like anything else, I think what's unique about this league, and why you cherish it, is there's a lot of friends that I have that are in other places now. We get a chance to enjoy competing against one another, but once the ball is kicked off, you're trying to win the football game and focusing on making good decisions and trying to put your guys in the best places to be successful.”

--RAMS--