McVay … 9/10 … vid & transcript

Rams Head Coach Sean McVay – September 10, 2017

(Opening Remarks)
“Injuries – (CB Dominique) Hatfield came out, he got checked for a concussion, came back good and then (CB) Kayvon Webster we’re continuing to evaluate for his shoulder. Everybody else came out clean.”

(On what he can say about the coaching staff and how they prepared the team for this game)
“Can’t say enough. They had our guys ready to go and that’s where you feel so fortunate to have such a great coaching staff. When you look at (Defensive Coordinator) Wade Phillips leading the defense, Assistant Head Coach Joe Barry – we’ve got a handful of other great coaches on that staff. Special teams, (Special Teams Coordinator) John Fassel had those guys ready to go, (Assistant Special Teams Coordinator) Tyrone McKenzie. And the offensively, (Offensive Coordinator) Matt LaFleur, (Offensive Line) Coach (Aaron) Kromer, (Quarterbacks Coach Greg) Olson – really, I could go on and on. Every single one of our coaches, I feel very fortunate to have these guys. They’ve done an excellent job and then the players responded. We know it’s not a perfect game, but there’s a lot of things that the players did a great job with and, ultimately, it’s about coming away with a win and we were able to do that.”

(On the offensive line praising QB Jared Goff on managing the game, and what he saw from Goff)
“I think I saw the same. I thought he did a great job making good decisions, getting the ball out in the timing and rhythm of the play. We were able to avoid sacks for the most part. We took the one of third down where they ended up bringing a zone pressure on us and did a good job getting home. I thought he took good care of the football, made good decisions and he did seem to have good command of it. Offensively as a whole though, we have to avoid those penalties. We can’t beat ourselves with the pre-snap false starts, different things like that. That will get you beat and we’ve got to get that cleaned up. But, just from Jared as a whole, I’m very proud of him, thought he did a great job and it was awesome for him to get his first win.”

(On how he thought the offense flowed)
“I thought it was okay. I thought, really, we started out where the first drive, went down the field and then missed the third down and short. It led to a great field goal by (K) Greg (Zuerlein) and then after those penalties I thought we finished the first half the right way and then you’re kind of trying to play smart. We’ve got to be able to run the football better, more consistently get a hat on a hat, be targeted the right way and some of the things in the run game and then we’ve got to do a good job avoiding the penalties. But, I think it’s a step in the right direction, definitely some positives in the pass game. I know our guys will be motivated the right way to respond, so that’s kind of where we’re at offensively.”

(On if he thought that the success throwing the ball today will help to open up the run game later in the season)
“You hope so. I think we talk about it all the time, we want to be able to maintain a level of balance where you’re running it, throwing it and making people defend both. If you do that, then you kind of mix up what you’re seeing defensively because they’re trying to take one thing away and then you can kind of try to make them pay, hopefully, with the counter to it. But, we’ve got to a better job in the run game overall whether they’re giving us eight-man fronts or playing some split-safety coverages and that’s something that we’ll look at hard as a coaching staff moving into this week.”

(On him being anxious in seeing Goff play today and if he had a gut feeling of how he would perform)
“I’m not surprised that he played that way. When I was excited to be able to see him play, by no means was I not confident that he would come out and have a great performance. I thought he’s done a great job with his preparation throughout the course of the week. Put himself in a position to make good decisions, anticipate some throws and credit to him, he did an excellent job executing. Now we’ve got to see if we can do it again next week.”

(On how it feels to get his first win as an NFL head coach)
“It feels good. It’s a little surreal, but it’s one game. I think the thing about the NFL is it’s an extremely humbling business and while this was the goal and we came away with that, I know we’ve got a great Washington team that I’m very familiar with and we’re playing next week. (Redskins Head) Coach (Jay) Gruden will have those guys ready to go. Just seeing a couple plays, I thought their defense flew around excellent – just watching the Philly game just kind of when it’s up on the TV. I know what they have offensively and special teams, so it’s going to be a very tough challenge and Coach Gruden will have those guys ready to go next week.”

(On if he could sense the game being fun and entertaining for the fans)
“It’s hard to say. You’re kind of so locked in during the game. It’s nice to be able to kind of enjoy it towards the end when you feel like you’ve got the game secured. But, you’re kind of so locked in during the course of the game, that you want to stay focused on what’s important now. But, I thought the players did an excellent job of executing and credit to them for coming away with a win.”

(On if he’s figured out how to manage the in-game head coaching responsibilities yet)
“I think the biggest thing is, like I’ve mentioned over and over, being so confident and comfortable with John Fassel and Wade Phillips where you can be fully engaged making sure that you’re not feeling like I’ve got to flip over on the defensive headset. I want to make sure that we know – look at the pictures, what did we get defensively from the opponent – so that going into the next drive, you can kind of preview some things with the quarterback and with our other coaches so that they can prep their players. And that’s the luxury that you do have where you certainly what to be involved and know what’s going on, but you can empower those guys and make sure that it doesn’t take away from your ability to call plays. That’s why it feels so great about having those guys.”

(On how the defense took pressure off Goff today)
“Unbelievable. When we come away with the field goal to start the game and then for (CB) Trumaine Johnson to have the pick-six. Then when they end up getting a little something going offensively, here comes (S) Lamarcus Joyner, so can’t say enough about the defensive effort as a whole. I thought they were consistently putting pressure on (Colts QB Scott) Tolzien all day and really loved the way those guys fly around. It was fun to watch.”

(On if seeing the defensive performance today makes him excited that he can plug DT Aaron Donald in next week)
“I think what it makes you feel like is that these guys that played today did a great job. Certainly Aaron is an excellent player – we’ll figure that situation out as we move forward. But, don’t want to take away from what a great defensive effort it was for those guys that did play today.”

(On if he’s still figuring out the in-game timeline as a head coach with respect to having to run into the locker room at halftime following an interview)
“It comes quick. When you want to try to get some openers for the second half that’s where – I didn’t realize that was the fastest anyone has ever run. I like to think I’m in decent shape running around with these guys. But yeah, that 12 minutes goes quick, so you’ve got to be able to get up there, get in there and I’m not used to having to do those interviews at halftime.”

(On his confidence in the rookies and that they’ll be able to step up and perform this season)
“Absolutely. I think you look at (WR) Cooper Kupp, he’s a great player, made some big-time catches for us – the one handed catch on the crossing route. The type of player he is, all he’s going to remember is the one in breaking route that he could have made. But, I thought he responded excellent on the third- down-and-five, where he catches the wheel-route down the sideline. That’s the type of player he is and I think you’ll continue to see more of all those rookies. (TE) Gerald Everett makes a huge play on a second- and-10 down the left sideline, getting matched up one-on-one against a linebacker. I thought that was a big time turning point leading to that touchdown drive that he made on the second-and-10 to have that, I think it was a 35-yard plus catch.”

(On his reaction to having Donald back in the fold)
“You know I’m optimistic. I’m optimistic that he’s here. Here’s the thing that you like about Aaron though, you sit down with Aaron, you talk to him – Aaron loves football. He wants to get this thing figured out. When you talk to him about, ‘What do you think the best way to handle this is?’ The first thing he says is, ‘I don’t at all want to be a distraction to my teammates, so I’ll reconvene with the team on Monday and we’ll figure this thing out moving forward.’ So that’s why you appreciate Aaron because he is all about the right things. We’re trying to work to come to a solution. He’s a special player. In my interaction with Aaron, I have nothing but the utmost respect and hopefully come to a conclusion where we can get him on the field with his teammates and we know that he’ll certainly help our defense.”

(On what he is going to take away from this game going forward)
“I think you take away how fortunate you feel to be a part of it more than anything else. You look at the defensive effort today, you look at the special teams, offensively we were able to do some good things. I think it’s a step in the right direction, but it’s all about those players and I can’t say enough about the way that these guys have bought into what we’re trying to do. We know it’s one win and now, the true measure of performance, is consistency. Let’s see if we can have a great week of preparation and see if we can give ourselves a chance to have a good performance against a tough Washington team next week.”

(On if that was his first Gatorade bath)
“It was and I could have avoided it if I wanted to, but I felt like I kind of had to take it a little bit.”

(On how impressed he was with how Goff managed the game)
“Very impressed. I think that’s the goal – make good decisions, throw the ball with anticipation and accuracy in the timing and rhythm of the play and I thought he consistently did that today. Taking care of the football is a huge part of it and I thought he was able to get a handful of different guys involved in the pass game and that’s what you want to be able to do when we do have a handful of playmakers at the skill guys with our receivers, tight ends and backs. So, credit to Jared. I am very pleased with him today.”