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Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher – News Conference – November 4, 2013
(Opening remarks)
“Let me discuss some injury issues from yesterday’s ball game. Other than just some bumps and bruises, we came out OK with the exception of (TE) Lance (Kendricks). Lance has a fractured finger, so we’re just kind of doing some tests right now to see what the best way to go about, to whether we cast it or repair it. So there’s a chance that he may miss some time – how much, I don’t know. Other than that we came through pretty good.”
(On if Kendricks will have to wear a cast)
“Yes. Regardless of which direction we go, there will be a cast involved, so that’s going to make it, at least early on, that’s going to make it a little tough to catch a football. Wouldn’t prevent him from blocking, but we have to let things settle down for at least a week. So, we’ll see.”
(On when Kendricks injured his finger)
“When he landed in the end zone.”
(On TE Mike McNeill’s state of readiness)
“He’s ready to go. He’s been ready to go. He’s practicing. (Tight Ends Coach) Rob (Boras) does a good job with him moving him around and things like that, so he’s prepared. He didn’t play in the offense yesterday. He was primarily on special teams, but he’s ready to go so that’s good.”
(On getting WR Stedman Bailey involved in yesterday’s game)
“And we’re going to get him more involved. His time’s coming. He’s improving on the practice field. It was a great play, keeping his balance and picking up extra yards and so we’ll get him more involved.”
(On Bailey’s special teams production)
“He’s doing really well on special teams, yeah. Covered on both punt, punt return and kickoff coverage, and then he’s the up-back on kickoff return, so he’s on four core (special teams units). So, depending on the number of reps he gets offensively, we may have to back down a little bit, but we’ll see.”
(On what he sees on tape on the run defense)
“It appeared that we took turns. At times, it was inside, got cut out of a gap. Other times, we lost the edge, we didn’t set the edge. We had a lot of good stops. We got a lot of good run stops against a good run football team, but obviously, we have to do better. We told them all week that that was going to be their emphasis, it was going to be their attack. They had two weeks to prepare and he (Titans RB Chris Johnson) can run – he can really go. They cut our defense a couple times, but the positive is we had a lot of good run stops as well. I don’t believe that was really the difference in the ball game. It was a contributing factor, but I don’t think it was the difference.”
(On what he thinks the difference was in the game)
“Big picture, they had two weeks to prepare through a bye week. We had six days. The game was very, very important to them, as it was to us because it was our next one. We missed a field goal and fumbled the ball in plus territory, to pretty much sum it up. There’s all kinds of things that happened in the game. Their run defense struggled with our run game. ‘Kell’ (QB Kellen Clemens) played better, but to me, the big difference was the missed field goal and the fumble in that game. We split, both teams had two takeaways so we were even there. With that being said, we had a close game.”
(On not scoring off their turnover in plus territory, but Tennessee capitalizing on their turnover)
“Yes.”
(On if the snap and hold was fine on K Greg Zuerlein’s field goal attempt)
“Everything was fine. Just faded out, just there right at the end.”
(On if Zuerlein is doing anything to fix his mistake)
“We’ll keep working on it in practice, yeah. Up until the last two weeks, he’s been very consistent. The 50-yarder was not rushed or contested and that sailed, so we’ll look at it and maybe put a little more pressure on him on the practice field.”
(On Clemens’ play)
“He improved. Like I said last night, he got better in Week 2. He ran around and made plays. It was a great throw to (TE) Jared (Cook) for the touchdown, made some other good throws. We had a couple drops, but he got us in the right thing most of the time in the run game. I expect him to improve again this week. He came away pretty good. He didn’t really get banged up much. He got hit late once on the slide, but other than that he came through it OK.”
(On if Clemens can do anything to protect the ball better)
“It happens to quarterbacks when they’re trying to escape, you’ve got to protect the football. He was trying to duck and he got it punched out from behind.”
(On if he though a late hit penalty should have gotten called on Clemens’ slide)
“Yeah, you’d like to see a call. He slid and he got hit in the head. (Titans S Bernard) Pollard apologized to Kellen after the game, which we respect, but regardless of that it should be a foul.”
(On what he thought of G Chris Williams’ tripping penalty)
“Chris, he went to the second level and went to cut (block) and the backer kind of back-doored him back towards the line of scrimmage and he lifted his foot. It looked like he was going down, but I can see that. It’s not necessary, that was the problem.”
(On if he thought WR Austin Pettis was interfered with on the second to last offensive play of the game)
“I didn’t think it was pass interference. I thought everybody was playing the ball and the feet got tangled and that happens. I looked at it real close. I was on the other side. We’d love to have the call, but by rule I don’t think it was necessarily pass interference.”
(On setting parameters for respect amongst players on the team, in light of what’s currently happening with the Miami Dolphins)
“First, off I can’t comment on their locker room, obviously. But, I can say that we’ve established that here. Yeah, guys will ask rookies to carry their helmets in from practice, but we make it clear to the rookies and the veterans that this is a business environment and the rookies are here to help us win and everyone here is treated with respect. At the same time, it’s OK to have fun. You guys witnessed firsthand the pie thing with ‘Cort’ (CB Cortland Finnegan) and (DE) Chris (Long) and stuff like that. It’s OK to have fun, but it’s my job to make sure that you keep a lid on things. The pie thing got to the point where it’s probably enough now because someone’s going to scheme something else up. I think it’s important to come in here and look forward to coming to work and have fun. But, respect factors are the things we preach here.”
(On keeping tabs on the locker room throughout the season)
“I go through the locker room. I talk to the players individually and walk through stretch and have got coaches and equipment guys. There’s nothing that’s going on that we don’t know about.”
(On how he handles the stress of being a head coach, based on the recent medical episodes with Broncos Head Coach John Fox and Texans Head Coach Gary Kubiak)
“I personally differentiate between stress and pressure. I think that there’s pressure on the job not stress. I think we do our best work under pressure as individuals. We have a responsibility to take care of ourselves. We exercise when given the opportunity. Sometimes it’s hard during the year. We also have physicals we take care of, make sure everybody gets their physicals during the offseason. I texted John and got a quick text back from him. He said he’s doing good. He’s going to get out in a couple days. We’re just kind of keeping our fingers and see what’s going on with Gary.”
(On if he works out every day)
“There’s not time to work out every day. I’ve told you guys, I pass myself going home on the way coming into work.”
(On if he could exercise during this time)
“Yeah. This would be good. Sometimes you guys get my heart rate up.”
(On what happened with DE William Hayes in the locker room after the game and if he was there)
“I got there. We talked and settled him down. He was OK. Basically, he expressed how everybody felt and it hit him hard. This game was big for him. He played very well in the game and he was just disappointed. Use better judgment, you know, you don’t need to punch a mirror and risk cutting yourself, and he did. He got a little cut of his arm, but he’s fine. We addressed it today. To the extent of which he felt, the emotion that he felt – not that everybody else didn’t – I think that’s the good thing. But, you’ve got to draw the line and make sure you talk care of yourself.”
(On Hayes caring a lot)
“Yes, he does. This game’s important to him as are his teammates.”
(On RB Zac Stacy, specifically his 32-yard run)
“It was a great run, really did a great job with it. It started with (WR) Tavon (Austin) blocking a linebacker or he doesn’t get out. That’s just how he’s been playing. I’ve been told that since he’s started he’s leading the league in rushing over that span. That’s a credit to everybody up front. He takes care of himself. He’s a very instinctive runner. He’s a smart runner. He understands running the football and he’s powerful.”
(On if he thought he would get this production out of Stacy this fast)
“Yeah. We drafted him. We thought that he had really good skills inside and again, it’s not easy against the defensive fronts. We’re running against eight-man fronts for the last five weeks, and he’s still making yards.”
(On if the blocking from the offensive line and the tight ends is improving)
“The tight ends are blocking well. The receivers are involved and the line’s working well together. We just have to keep it going.”
(On keeping the hope up with the team with a 3-6 record)
“This is a whole new challenge – a really good opponent, outstanding young quarterback, good football team. Today was more about OK here’s what happened, why it happened. We’ve got one opportunity right now before we go on and take a little break. So, encouraged them to take the day off tomorrow. For the guys who need treatment, come on in. Wednesday come back to work. Eleven other teams lost, as well yesterday. We weren’t the only one.”
(Opening remarks)
“Let me discuss some injury issues from yesterday’s ball game. Other than just some bumps and bruises, we came out OK with the exception of (TE) Lance (Kendricks). Lance has a fractured finger, so we’re just kind of doing some tests right now to see what the best way to go about, to whether we cast it or repair it. So there’s a chance that he may miss some time – how much, I don’t know. Other than that we came through pretty good.”
(On if Kendricks will have to wear a cast)
“Yes. Regardless of which direction we go, there will be a cast involved, so that’s going to make it, at least early on, that’s going to make it a little tough to catch a football. Wouldn’t prevent him from blocking, but we have to let things settle down for at least a week. So, we’ll see.”
(On when Kendricks injured his finger)
“When he landed in the end zone.”
(On TE Mike McNeill’s state of readiness)
“He’s ready to go. He’s been ready to go. He’s practicing. (Tight Ends Coach) Rob (Boras) does a good job with him moving him around and things like that, so he’s prepared. He didn’t play in the offense yesterday. He was primarily on special teams, but he’s ready to go so that’s good.”
(On getting WR Stedman Bailey involved in yesterday’s game)
“And we’re going to get him more involved. His time’s coming. He’s improving on the practice field. It was a great play, keeping his balance and picking up extra yards and so we’ll get him more involved.”
(On Bailey’s special teams production)
“He’s doing really well on special teams, yeah. Covered on both punt, punt return and kickoff coverage, and then he’s the up-back on kickoff return, so he’s on four core (special teams units). So, depending on the number of reps he gets offensively, we may have to back down a little bit, but we’ll see.”
(On what he sees on tape on the run defense)
“It appeared that we took turns. At times, it was inside, got cut out of a gap. Other times, we lost the edge, we didn’t set the edge. We had a lot of good stops. We got a lot of good run stops against a good run football team, but obviously, we have to do better. We told them all week that that was going to be their emphasis, it was going to be their attack. They had two weeks to prepare and he (Titans RB Chris Johnson) can run – he can really go. They cut our defense a couple times, but the positive is we had a lot of good run stops as well. I don’t believe that was really the difference in the ball game. It was a contributing factor, but I don’t think it was the difference.”
(On what he thinks the difference was in the game)
“Big picture, they had two weeks to prepare through a bye week. We had six days. The game was very, very important to them, as it was to us because it was our next one. We missed a field goal and fumbled the ball in plus territory, to pretty much sum it up. There’s all kinds of things that happened in the game. Their run defense struggled with our run game. ‘Kell’ (QB Kellen Clemens) played better, but to me, the big difference was the missed field goal and the fumble in that game. We split, both teams had two takeaways so we were even there. With that being said, we had a close game.”
(On not scoring off their turnover in plus territory, but Tennessee capitalizing on their turnover)
“Yes.”
(On if the snap and hold was fine on K Greg Zuerlein’s field goal attempt)
“Everything was fine. Just faded out, just there right at the end.”
(On if Zuerlein is doing anything to fix his mistake)
“We’ll keep working on it in practice, yeah. Up until the last two weeks, he’s been very consistent. The 50-yarder was not rushed or contested and that sailed, so we’ll look at it and maybe put a little more pressure on him on the practice field.”
(On Clemens’ play)
“He improved. Like I said last night, he got better in Week 2. He ran around and made plays. It was a great throw to (TE) Jared (Cook) for the touchdown, made some other good throws. We had a couple drops, but he got us in the right thing most of the time in the run game. I expect him to improve again this week. He came away pretty good. He didn’t really get banged up much. He got hit late once on the slide, but other than that he came through it OK.”
(On if Clemens can do anything to protect the ball better)
“It happens to quarterbacks when they’re trying to escape, you’ve got to protect the football. He was trying to duck and he got it punched out from behind.”
(On if he though a late hit penalty should have gotten called on Clemens’ slide)
“Yeah, you’d like to see a call. He slid and he got hit in the head. (Titans S Bernard) Pollard apologized to Kellen after the game, which we respect, but regardless of that it should be a foul.”
(On what he thought of G Chris Williams’ tripping penalty)
“Chris, he went to the second level and went to cut (block) and the backer kind of back-doored him back towards the line of scrimmage and he lifted his foot. It looked like he was going down, but I can see that. It’s not necessary, that was the problem.”
(On if he thought WR Austin Pettis was interfered with on the second to last offensive play of the game)
“I didn’t think it was pass interference. I thought everybody was playing the ball and the feet got tangled and that happens. I looked at it real close. I was on the other side. We’d love to have the call, but by rule I don’t think it was necessarily pass interference.”
(On setting parameters for respect amongst players on the team, in light of what’s currently happening with the Miami Dolphins)
“First, off I can’t comment on their locker room, obviously. But, I can say that we’ve established that here. Yeah, guys will ask rookies to carry their helmets in from practice, but we make it clear to the rookies and the veterans that this is a business environment and the rookies are here to help us win and everyone here is treated with respect. At the same time, it’s OK to have fun. You guys witnessed firsthand the pie thing with ‘Cort’ (CB Cortland Finnegan) and (DE) Chris (Long) and stuff like that. It’s OK to have fun, but it’s my job to make sure that you keep a lid on things. The pie thing got to the point where it’s probably enough now because someone’s going to scheme something else up. I think it’s important to come in here and look forward to coming to work and have fun. But, respect factors are the things we preach here.”
(On keeping tabs on the locker room throughout the season)
“I go through the locker room. I talk to the players individually and walk through stretch and have got coaches and equipment guys. There’s nothing that’s going on that we don’t know about.”
(On how he handles the stress of being a head coach, based on the recent medical episodes with Broncos Head Coach John Fox and Texans Head Coach Gary Kubiak)
“I personally differentiate between stress and pressure. I think that there’s pressure on the job not stress. I think we do our best work under pressure as individuals. We have a responsibility to take care of ourselves. We exercise when given the opportunity. Sometimes it’s hard during the year. We also have physicals we take care of, make sure everybody gets their physicals during the offseason. I texted John and got a quick text back from him. He said he’s doing good. He’s going to get out in a couple days. We’re just kind of keeping our fingers and see what’s going on with Gary.”
(On if he works out every day)
“There’s not time to work out every day. I’ve told you guys, I pass myself going home on the way coming into work.”
(On if he could exercise during this time)
“Yeah. This would be good. Sometimes you guys get my heart rate up.”
(On what happened with DE William Hayes in the locker room after the game and if he was there)
“I got there. We talked and settled him down. He was OK. Basically, he expressed how everybody felt and it hit him hard. This game was big for him. He played very well in the game and he was just disappointed. Use better judgment, you know, you don’t need to punch a mirror and risk cutting yourself, and he did. He got a little cut of his arm, but he’s fine. We addressed it today. To the extent of which he felt, the emotion that he felt – not that everybody else didn’t – I think that’s the good thing. But, you’ve got to draw the line and make sure you talk care of yourself.”
(On Hayes caring a lot)
“Yes, he does. This game’s important to him as are his teammates.”
(On RB Zac Stacy, specifically his 32-yard run)
“It was a great run, really did a great job with it. It started with (WR) Tavon (Austin) blocking a linebacker or he doesn’t get out. That’s just how he’s been playing. I’ve been told that since he’s started he’s leading the league in rushing over that span. That’s a credit to everybody up front. He takes care of himself. He’s a very instinctive runner. He’s a smart runner. He understands running the football and he’s powerful.”
(On if he thought he would get this production out of Stacy this fast)
“Yeah. We drafted him. We thought that he had really good skills inside and again, it’s not easy against the defensive fronts. We’re running against eight-man fronts for the last five weeks, and he’s still making yards.”
(On if the blocking from the offensive line and the tight ends is improving)
“The tight ends are blocking well. The receivers are involved and the line’s working well together. We just have to keep it going.”
(On keeping the hope up with the team with a 3-6 record)
“This is a whole new challenge – a really good opponent, outstanding young quarterback, good football team. Today was more about OK here’s what happened, why it happened. We’ve got one opportunity right now before we go on and take a little break. So, encouraged them to take the day off tomorrow. For the guys who need treatment, come on in. Wednesday come back to work. Eleven other teams lost, as well yesterday. We weren’t the only one.”
