McVay, Phillips, Gurley … 10/10 … + McVay 10/11 … transcripts

Rams Head Coach Sean McVay, Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips, RB Todd Gurley II – – October 10, 2019

***

Rams Head Coach Sean McVay

(Opening Remarks)
“Obviously had to make some adjustments to the schedule. This was something that (Assistant to the Head Coach) Billy Nayes and that group – they do a great job of kind of educating me. I think they’re probably glad that it’s like a real big gust (of wind), because it better be something for us to adjust this practice schedule. It’ll be good. The only thing we can really do is look at it as a chance to continue to stay fresh, get a good above the neck day where you kind of get an accumulation of the majority of your gameplan – with the exception of red zone, which we’ll hit tomorrow. That’s where we’re at. From an injury standpoint, there’s really no updates on any of the guys. They’re hopefully feeling a day better, but to be able to give you a legitimate update when we’re not really doing anything physically, it wouldn’t be accurate.”

(On if having to be flexible in the past with their practice schedule helps during the last couple of weeks)
“I think so. Really, all we can do is control what we can control. To go out there, I don’t think it would really benefit us. Especially when you’re talking about the timing and rhythm with some of the things with guys that are controlling the football and handling the football, just with the elements out there. But, it does give us a chance to really lock in, have a great above the neck day. I think the teams that do a nice job – especially just the physical toll that these games take on the players as the season accumulates – you’ve got to be able to get stuff out of those mental days. In the limited times that you do ramp it up, it’s very, very important, because those opportunities are so limited to really practice at a full-speed level to try to get better. Other than the game reps, you just don’t get enough to truly improve and that’s something that is important. We’re not going to worry about it because we can’t really control it and it’s just wasted energy on my part.”

(On if there is any concern that RB Malcolm Brown and RB Darrell Henderson Jr. are not getting full-speed reps this week with RB Todd Gurley II’s status in question)
“I think ideally, especially for (RB) Darrell (Henderson Jr.), you would love to be able to get him some full-speed work. But, I think you can still create, especially with the ball handling and things like that – we’ll go over to the (Cal Lutheran University) gym – you can do some different things that could suffice for that. Ideally, you’d say yes. But again, it’s kind of that, ‘Am I really going to waste my energy worrying about things that I can’t really have control over?’ But, in an ideal scenario you’d say, ‘Yeah, you’d love to be able to get him that full-speed work if he is going into a game where he’s going to be asked to play.’”

(On if Gurley II and CB Aqib Talib will participate in Thursday’s walk-thru)
“That’s a good question. I would think that Todd could be capable of it. I really don’t know the answer to that because we’re getting ready to go do it. I would say that they’ll probably just be there visually watching. Being on it is not going to do anything other than just prevent us from being able to accelerate the healing process. If I had to guess, I would say it would be more in a spectator setting, kind of watching and just taking in those reps.”

(On why the 49ers defense has improved so much this season)
“It’s a great system. They’ve got great players and I think you can see there’s a clear-cut identity, but really on all three levels of their defense, they’ve got great speed, they play really well together, I think they’re opportunistic, but they create their opportunities in terms of taking the ball away. There’s an intentional approach that they take to attacking it. They’ve got guys stood up, guys are jabbing at the football, ripping at it. They’ve got guys with ball skills, you look at (49ers CB) Richard Sherman, his ball production is second to none over the last few years and there’s a very clear-cut philosophy. Anytime that you consistently can apply as much pressure as they’ve done with four-man rushes, now you’re able to play seven guys in coverage behind it. They do an excellent job playing vision zones, they’ve started to make senses of matches, they can play man coverage and then they can activate some different pressures. When you flip the tape on, it looks like one of the best defenses in the league. You’re seeing it show up and (49ers Defensive Coordinator) Robert Saleh is a guy that I’ve always had a huge amount of respect for, just knowing him and the coaches that they have on their staff, really as a whole. I think you’re seeing why they’re good and they’ve got the players to match it and there’s a clarity. It’s a great matchup.”

(On how WR Brandin Cooks is coming along)
“He’s good, he’s feeling good. He was asymptomatic. Feeling good, he’s feeling good enough to put a Joker mask on I just saw, so that was a little weird (laughs). But no, I think he’s doing good.”

(On if having the 25 plays and 12 personnel against the Seahawks is evolution of the offense or something that was predicated)
“A lot of it is specific to, ‘Okay, what’s the specific gameplan based on the opponent and what do we feel like the different things are.’ I saw a couple of those different things too. We know some of our tendencies that we end up having in those personnel groupings, but that’s really the first time of the season that you’ve done it, you don’t have any tendencies until after that game. It is something that we look at, but I would say that being able to get (TE) Gerald (Everett) and (TE) Tyler (Higbee) on the field a little bit more with some of the different things that we can do. It’s definitely something that you can expect to see us expand on.”

***

Rams Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips

(Opening Remarks)
“I feel bad for the Dodgers, they did have a great year. They’ve got great fans here, like we do. I know it was tough for them, especially winning 106 games. Anyway, we are playing San Francisco. I don’t feel sorry for them (laughs). They’ve obviously got a good offense, their running game is outstanding and (49ers QB Jimmy) Garoppolo I think, probably has one of the highest winning percentages of any quarterback that’s played. We are facing a big challenge this week and we have to play better than we did the last couple of weeks especially, pass defense wise. Like I said, their running game is going to really test you too. We’ve got to play better defense.”

(On if it’s concerning not having as many practice reps given short week last week and not being able to practice today due to the weather)
“It’s a different team every year, but went through a lot of things last year. (Head Coach) Sean (McVay) does a great job with the team as far as being adjustable with the team. Certainly not an excuse, but I think we will handle it all right.”

(On if he threw last weeks game away due to the difficulty that Seahawk’s QB Russel Wilson Presents)
“I don’t like to go back to last week, but we had a chance to win the game on defense, like we did against Cleveland. A fourth-down play. which would have been the difference in the ball game, but we did fight unitl the end of the game. I thought we gave ourselves a chance to win. We had a chance to win on defense, then we had a chance to stop them at the end with two minutes left, then you’ve got to get the ball back and we did that, but we didn’t end up winning the ball game. We are looking forward to this game. I think we will improve as the year goes along. I’m looking forward to this one because this is the kind of challenge that tells you whether you’re improving or not.”

(On how big of a loss LB Clay Matthews is and what he is expecting from LB Samson Ebukam)
“I think he (LB Clay Matthews) had six sacks already in five games, so it tells you what he can do. Plus, the run game I thought he played tremendously well against everybody’s tight ends. But, (LB) Samson’s (Ebukam) played and he’s started for us and he’s done some good things. We feel comfortable with him playing there.”

(On LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and LB Natrez Patrick)
“(LB) ‘Obo’ (Okoronkwo) and (LB) Natrez Patrick both showed some things in the preseason. They are good young players that we feel like can come in and maybe spell our guys some if needed.”

(On why the 49ers look so different offensively this year)
“I think it’s their whole team. Obviously, they didn’t have any turnovers last year to help their offense. Having Garoppolo certainly gives them stability as far as being able to throw the ball well and accurately, and their running game has just gotten better and better.”

(On what he’s seen from the Rams pass defense and what he thinks they can improve)
“It starts with fundamentals first, techniques and then certainly, what we have them doing. That’s a constant thing that you have to evaluate is your personnel, what they can do, what they can do best, and get them in those situations.”

(On who would step in if CB Aqib Tallib could not play on Sunday)
“Troy Hill. I think he’s a really good young player. It would be tough, but we have good people that can come in and play and he’s certainly one of them.”

(On if he has a feel for the LA Rams and the 49ers rivalry from 30 years ago)
“How long has it been (laughs)?”

(On it being 30 years and 49 seasons since both the LA Rams and 49ers had a winning record in the same season)
“Oh, is that right? Did you say ‘89? Yeah, that’s when we lost to San Francisco in the Super Bowl. I remember that one (laughs)…Both franchises certainly have come in with great young head coaches and good leadership as far as the general managers are concerned. Their organizations have always been good. It’s not a surprise, I don’t think.”

(On what kind of challenges the 49ers run game presents)
“They run the football. They’ve run the football well since (49ers Head Coach) Kyle’s (Shanahan) gotten there, but they’ve had a couple running backs that have been hurt. I think we played (RB Matt) Breida once, (RB Jerick) Mckinnon never got well, and then know they got (RB Tevin) Coleman, which is a really good back. They’ve always wanted to run the ball and they’ve had success running it, but they’ve had some people banged up that’s hurt them some. But now they’re at full strength.

(On what makes Kyle Shanahan’s offensive scheme hard to defend)
“Similar to Sean in that they really take advantage of what the other team is trying to do and personnel wise, they attack certain personnel really well.”

(On if he had a sense of what to expect from LB Troy Reeder)
“Troy came in and I thought he played well. We had him for 19 tackles so I think that says a lot for a rookie coming in. I thought he did some good things, he’s strong. I think just the feel of the coverage and stuff in the game, it takes a while, but I thought he was just instinctively, and in his power and speed helped him play pretty well.”

(On the 49ers losing their starting tackles and how he will prepare)
“Pro football is personnel oriented. I think you try to get the best matchups as you can. You always take that into consideration.”

***

Rams RB Todd Gurley II

(On how he feels following his quad injury)
“It’s cool. It’s getting better. Just focusing on trying to get better each day for the most part.”

(On if he noticed the injury right after the game or during the team’s days off)
“You feel something during the game and then I guess the adrenaline… Most definitely, though, it’s those days off for sure – then it just kind of kept lingering on. It’s been getting a lot better since the day after the game – always a positive way to look at things.”

(On if he thinks he’ll be able to play on Sunday)
“What’s today – Thursday? I got Friday, Saturday, but just worrying about trying to just get back right and make that decision when the time comes.”

(On if he’s going through intensive rehab sessions)
“Yeah. It’s more and more one of those things like you have to put it through pain – like pain is pleasue. You don’t want to do it, but you have to do it because that’s the only way it’s going to make it feel better. It’s kind of one of those things. Been with (Director, Rehabilitation/Assistant Athletic Trainer) Bryon (Cunningham) and he’s been doing a great job.”

(On what CB Aqib Talib and CB Marcus Peters have brought to the defense)
“Just cool guys – like my brothers. Just some guys you click with, you just get good relationships with. They just kind of remind you of yourself in different ways. Just having ‘Leeb’ (CB Aqib Talib), he’s just like an OG. He’s been in the league for forever and can give you so much advice, can tell you so much stuff because he’s been there, he’s done that. He’s been an All-Pro player, he’s been a Pro Bowl Player, he’s been a Super Bowl champion. Then, he’s also seen the other side of everything not going well. With ‘MP’ (CB Marcus Peters) as well, just having those guys, they just help me out a lot. Not even just football, just more life.”

(On why the 49ers defense is hard to play against)
“They’re just got everything clicking for them right now. They’ve got some good linebackers. Obviously, the new addition of (LB) Kwon Alexander, he’s been playing great ball right now. (CB Richard) Sherman is Sherman, he’s going to keep doing his thing. They have (S Jaquiski) Tartt, they have a solid defensive front, too. Just a good defense right now and everything is going pretty well for them.”

(On if 49ers CB Richard Sherman looks healthier this year)
“Sherman is Sherman. People are not going to really throw to his side too much. He had a pick-six the first game and got him a pick last game. Good to see him back doing his thing.”

(On if there is a sense of urgency to not lose a third consecutive game this week)
“Oh yeah, for sure. It’s never really a sense of urgency, but you know what you need to get done and you know what needs to happen. Especially two NFC opponents – don’t want to make it a third. Really didn’t think of it until just then, but you don’t want to let three slip by because you don’t want to have to catch up in the end.

(On his shirt and his opinion on the new laws passed by the NCAA)
“I just let my shirt speak for itself. Just being a college athlete and you know obviously going through suspension and all that stuff. So, I got to see both sides of it. Obviously, everyone has their own opinion, but I’m always for the athletes to be able to make some money off of their name for sure and their likeness because they deserve it.”

(On what difference it would have made in his college experience if he were able to make money off his likeness)
“I was fined. That’s why I got suspended in the first place (laughs). I was okay. It’s cool. You know it is what it is. Most of us are kids that didn’t come from much and most of us it’s our first time having our own bedroom or room. It’s just one of those things… it’s just college. We’re having a good time just like everybody else.”

(On his experience facing the 49ers and if their defense seems faster this year)
“They’re doing good. They have something to play for. They’re undefeated right now. In the past couple of years things haven’t been going pretty well for them. Their sense of urgency is definitely up and it’s a whole new team. It’s not whatever happens last year or the year before that. It’s a whole new team and they’ve been able to get on the right track.”

(On the run-game balance playing a big role in winning games and Jared Goff saying throwing the ball too much isn’t a recipe for success)
“You can put it both ways. I don’t really see it really mattering. Obviously, you want to have a balance just on offense period. As long as you’re winning games, that’s all that really matters. He’s been doing a great job. I saw something today about (WR Cooper) Kupp and (WR Robert) Woods, and (WR Brandin) ‘B’ Cooks being like… people are always coming up with some stats. But it’s good to see that happening with three guys on our team I don’t know, being able to disperse the ball. Then a guy like (TE) Gerald (Everett) to have a game that he had last game. That’s just the thing about this offense it’s just like you never know who’s going to have a day.”

(On Head Coach Sean McVay saying RBs Malcom Brown and Darrell Henderson Jr. stepping in for him and if he thinks Henderson is ready to carry a bigger load if he has to)
“It’s just one of those things like you don’t really have a choice but to be ready. It goes along with what I was saying a couple weeks ago – it’s like you don’t really get many of reps because the starters kind of get the reps. It’s football. He’s been playing his whole life. If I’m not able to go, this is his time to be able showcase why he’s been drafted and why he’s the player he is. Definitely have the confidence in (RB) Malcom (Brown), (RB) Darrell (Henderson Jr.) or (RB John Kelly) ‘JK’. Whoever it is I know they’ll do a great job.”