Rams QB Jared Goff – Rams-Cardinals Postgame Quotes – Dec. 29, 2019
(On if he’s happy the team ended the season with a win)
“Yeah. It’s definitely better than losing. It’s a good feeling and it means we had a winning season. But, at the end of the day – I said this earlier – it’s still a disappointing season. We want to win the division, we want to make the playoffs and we did neither of those this year. It still hurts that it’s over at this point, but finishing the way we did in the Coliseum, there are some good things to take away.”
(On what needs to be different next season)
“Consistency. The same thing we talk about all the time, just being consistent. I can truly, really, just speak for the offense, but just consistency. Each game, executing how we know we can. We executed really well at times this year – really well – at the top of the league. At times we were towards the bottom of the league on offense. You need to find how to stick at the top and be consistent.”
(On Sunday’s performance offensively)
“I thought we played well today. I thought we came out and showed up. I think it speaks to the level of character of the guys on this team and our coaches. We showed up in a game that doesn’t matter, played really well on offense and were able to move the ball. I thought we played really well as a team. We really jelled today and did a good job.”
(On how he feels after three seasons under Head Coach Sean McVay)
“I feel good. I feel like – again – this is a disappointing year for me, personally, and for our whole team and a feeling you never want to feel again. You need to look introspectively and just figure out the issues, figure out how to get better and work hard. Usually, my whole life, I’ve just stuck to that and it’s worked out. I’ll just look at myself, get better and come back next year and be the best I can be.”
(On a few individual plays not going their way this season and how they get those breaks next season)
“That’s the league, though. That’s the way it goes. It either goes your way or it doesn’t. Like you mentioned, a few times this year it didn’t. I think, ultimately, first of all, putting yourself in situations where you have a chance to make it go one way or the other. A handful of times this year, we didn’t even do that. That’s the first thing – to make sure we are in games and finishing games the right way. Then, just over time, it’ll take care of itself by the way you practice, the way you execute and the way you learn how to win games and finish games. We do know how, it’s just putting ourselves in that position. Like you said, sometimes it doesn’t go our way, but that’s the league. We need to do what we can do to make it go our way.”
(On if he has an idea in his head of what their offense is supposed to look like)
“Of course. It’s supposed to look like how it looked today. How it looked today, how it a handful of the last weeks, if you take out Dallas. I think since we played Arizona, we kind of did find a new identity. I think ultimately, we found different ways to win games. I think that’s the biggest thing we can take away, is that we were so specific the last two seasons and then this year, we had to find different ways to win. Teams figured some stuff out where we had to adjust. We did adjust and we adjusted well, just unfortunately, we were one game short, two games short, whatever you want to call it. That’s the way it goes. I think it’s a good learning experience for all of us, coaches included. I know myself, personally, like I mentioned, we’ll use this as motivation and come back next year stronger. It’s something that eats at you and you never want to…especially if you think about the fans. I know I’m not really answering your question at this point, but thinking about the fans, it just eats at you. You want to put a good product out there and make the playoffs and make them proud. That’s something that we plan on doing next year and are going to work towards that and do everything we can this offseason.”
(On what are some of the things that the offense figured out)
“It’s a million. It’s so specific schematically, it’s hard to explain. It’s a better question for (Head Coach) Sean (McVay), honestly.”
(On if there were specific things that got taken away on offense, schematically, or if it is broader concepts)
“Broader, broader. Just kind of finding different ways to win games, I think that’s the best way to explain it. It doesn’t always have to go through a certain way, or it doesn’t always have to be the same way. I think that’s something that we learned and I think it’s perfect for us moving forward and something that we’ll use moving forward.”
(On how much of the offense figuring themselves out was on himself)
“It’s on all of us, it’s on all of us, everyone. I’m just as much part of it as anyone. If not, the biggest part because I am the quarterback, but figuring it out, figuring out other ways to win games. Again, ultimately, it wasn’t enough.
(On if he will miss playing in the Coliseum and what he will miss about it)
“I will miss playing in the Coliseum. I’m excited for SoFi (Stadium), I’m really excited for SoFi. What (Owner/Chairman) Mr. (E. Stanley) Kroenke has done there and created there is going to be something that I don’t think the world has ever seen, really, honestly. It’ll be a lot of fun, but I will miss the Coliseum and will miss the history of it, the lighting of the torch, the fireworks, the whole thing. The fans, the fanbase we’ve built here, how much louder it was this year compared to my first year and just seeing it grow is really cool. That’s the biggest part I’ll miss.
(On if this season has reinforced the notion that it is really hard to make the playoffs in this league and to get back to the Super Bowl)
“Yeah, I think it’s always hard, but it’s not something that we can’t do and don’t know how to do. The answers are there, we just need to execute consistently, like I spoke about earlier. It’s something that we’ve done and something that’s always our goal. First of all, winning the division and that takes playoffs by winning your division games and one game at a time. If that doesn’t work out, making the playoffs and neither of those worked for us this year.”