Rams Head Coach Sean McVay – Rams-Ravens Postgame Quotes – Nov. 25, 2019

(Opening Remarks)

“First of all, congratulations to (Ravens Head) Coach (John) Harbaugh and the Ravens – excellent football team. We didn’t do nearly enough tonight to be competitive. They did a lot of good stuff. There is a lot of things that we can clean up. I didn’t do nearly a good enough job. I think what we will all look at ourselves, critically, figure out what we can do to improve, flush this out of our system and then we move forward, preparing for our next opponent. That’s where we are at, that’s all we know how to do and that’s what we are going to do.”

(On if it was shocking how well Ravens QB Lamar Jackson controlled the game and the Ravens having the ability to play how they did)

“It was impressive. When you sit there and you watch and you feel the operation up close and personal, and you just see just how sharp they are with their execution – what a dynamic playmaker he is – what a good job they do of creating conflict right before the snap, changing your fits. And then, on third down, they were really impressive – just his (Ravens QB Lamar Jackson) operation, his ability to be able to find some completions, make plays with his legs. There is a reason why people are talking about him as an MVP, it felt like it tonight. Again, give them credit, they did a good job, but we’re not going to let this bleed in to next week. This is humbling. Nobody is going to shy away from – we’ve got to do a lot better collectively as a team. You give the Ravens their credit. What you can’t do, is you can’t allow the Ravens to beat us twice, as we move forward into our preparation in the upcoming week.”

(On how he moves forward in his preparation after not facing a situation like this in the past)

“I trust that we have the right guys in that locker room. Guys that are mentally tough, that understand that, ‘Hey, whatever we did tonight, has nothing to do with what we are going to do moving forward, unless we allow it to.’ That’s the mindset we’ve got to have as coaches, as players. To a man, we owe it to each other to do better. I feel as responsible as anybody and I certainly have to do a better job, but the only way I know how to do that, is by the way that you work throughout the week, the way that you consistently bring a consistent demeanor of urgency, but also, ‘Hey, let’s be solution oriented in the way that we move forward.’ Can’t wait to look at this tape, fix it, and then we get ready for the Arizona Cardinals next week.”

(On what happened on the offensive side of the ball tonight)

“I thought the things that really represented what the night entailed – almost as a team but offensively –  you don’t get anything going those first couple of drives, then when you do get down in to the redzone and you have penalties that set yourself back, you have no margin for error against a team like this. I thought those things were critical, they were crucial. Instead of potentially having 14 points, you end up with six. Then, kind of the last play that we had offensively, I think it was kind of representative of what the night was – one our best, most reliable players, tip ball ends up going in their hands and they make a pick. Credit them, they made a lot of plays, they did some things. Certainly, I know I’ve got to do a much better job of coaching this football team and putting us in a position to make plays.”

(On if Jackson’s performance is the best performance an opposing player has had against him as a head coach)

“I think so, yeah. I think it’s hard to say. There has been some really impressive ones that you’ve seen over the last three years, but that’s as an impressive team as we’ve seen. They won the game tonight in, obviously, decisive fashion.”

(On whether the team’s effort level or gameplan contributed to the loss)

“I don’t think it was anything to do with the effort. I think, certainly, I feel responsible for not putting our players in better positions, really in all three phases. We’ll go back, we’ll look at it, we’ll see what we can do. There’s going to be an element of execution that that entails as well. We’re all in this thing together, but I feel as responsible as anybody and you just put your head down and go grind, and find a way to just get ready for next week, because just dwelling on this doesn’t do you any good. You can’t run away from the problems that we did have tonight, but allowing it to set ourselves back is what this team will not do, I can promise you guys that.”

(On how much of the challenge is trying to simulate the competition in the week of preparation)

“That’s it. I think you said it right there. You can’t truly simulate that, especially when you look at just what a great job they do of creating the conflict. When you look at when it is some of those gives downhill, those things hit faster on the second and third levels. Then when (Ravens Quarterback) Lamar (Jackson) does pull it on some of those zone-read plays, he’s got the ability to get around you and then what he can do as a runner, just feeling space, because you’re not tackling during the week, those do make it very, very difficult to simulate those types of things. They do a great job of creating conflict for a defense.”

(On if the game looked as dominating for him on the sideline as it did in the press box and for the fans)
“Yeah, it was a tough game all around, we’re not going to shy away from that. There’s not anything good to take away from this, other than the fact that I did feel that our team continued to battle. I love this group, I love this locker room. I trust that we’re going to respond the right way because that’s the only thing we know how to do.”

(On if what this loss does to the playoff standings is devastating or upsetting)

“Not winning the game tonight was what is upsetting. That’s all we could try to do tonight is try to find a way to get a win. All we can do next week is try to find a way to get our 7th win. That’s where our sole focus and concentration remains. Those things have a way of working themselves out if you deserve to be able to get an opportunity to compete afterwards, but what we’re going to be focused on is looking at this, moving forward, and then getting ready for the Cardinals next week.”

(On what he means by not letting the Ravens beat them twice)

“I think what you do is you look at the things that we didn’t do good enough that are going to be carried over into the following week – what are some of the fundamentals, the techniques, what are decisions that I know I can certainly do a much better job of? Then you say, ‘All right, let’s make sure from just a self-evaluation standpoint, everybody is accountable for the things that they have to do moving forward in a higher level of efficiency for us to be a better football team. So, you face that, you try to fix those things, and then you continue to address them as the week progresses, getting ready for the upcoming opponent.”