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Rams Coach Jeff Fisher
(Opening Remarks)
“Well, six points isn’t going to win you a whole lot of games and we’re averaging eight points a game the last two weeks and that’s not going to get it done for you. That’s my biggest area of concern. We played good defense today, but nonetheless, with all due respect to (K) Greg Zuerlein, I don’t want to see him on the field as much. We need to put the ball in the end zone. We’ve got to keep working on that because that doesn’t win you a lot of games that way. I thought they fought hard, I thought our defense could have played better early. Time of possession was really skewed in the first quarter because of (Steelers QB) Ben (Roethlisberger). He’s really good. We fortunately held them to three, which was a big deal for us, the one three. Then we gave up the touchdown. The two-point conversion, our ability to defend the two-point conversion gave us a shot. But nonetheless you’ve got to score points. Penalties were at the wrong time. There weren’t a lot of them, but wrong time. I have to look at them, I haven’t seen them. The holding penalty on the punt return, get the ball at the 30 (-yard line) and takes us down at the 10 (-yard line) in a field position game, that’s not good. I’ve seen it, but I’ll look at it. We won’t tolerate those things anymore.”
(On his view on the reversed fourth-down catch and explanation from officials)
“He told me that the ball definitely came loose. When the receiver goes to the ground you have to maintain possession of the ball. He said all the pictures led up to that, the ball was loose. From what I saw, which I thought was what he saw, on the jumbotron, you could make the case it was maybe inconclusive and then the call on the field stands. But he felt the ball was loose and that’s enough.”
(On TE Lance Kendricks’ dropped pass and drops throughout the game and how difficult they were to overcome when points came at a premium in this game)
“It’s hard. That’s hard. We had three drops today and you’re in a field position game like that where there’s potential swings, or potential additional first downs, those are hard to overcome. We didn’t drop them on purpose, but we need to make that play.”
(On if the Rams had to go to a silent count due to opposing team crowd noise)
“We did a little bit, down at the goal line. They travel great, they really travel great. So we welcome them. Hey, when the game started to swing in our favor, our fans got loud. So it’s good.”
(On QB Nick Foles’ interception and if he didn’t look the safety off)
“He’s not supposed to look the safety off, it just sailed. The ball sailed on him.”
(On the game delay)
“I thought it was handled properly. (The officials) and I got together right away. That’s not in the rulebook for the officials, but we talked about it. The most important thing that we did was we had our doctor, our team physician, come over and identify the ingredients on the fire extinguisher and there were toxins in there. It was toxic and it was powder and so we had to get that up because it could cause irritations for the eye. Then when we realized it was going to take a little bit of time, it made sense for us to come in and relax and then come back out and re-stretch. So, I thought the league handled everything very well from an officiating standpoint.”
QB Nick Foles
(On how he feels the offense performed overall)
“We didn’t put enough points on the board. We have to…I know our third down conversions weren’t good. There was a lot of good things out there throughout the game, but we just have to get the ball into the end zone. We have to convert third downs. We have to sustain drives. That’s something we were trying, working towards last week from the previous game. It’s something that we have to stay positive about, keep working day-to-day. It’s not an easy process, but it’s a process that we go through. That’s where you stick together as a team. There’s no one in the locker room hanging their head. It’s definitely emotional. It’s definitely tough. We all want to go out there and win. We gave ourselves an opportunity today, but we have to hit those plays. We had opportunities. Hats off to the Steelers. They went out there and they played well. We’ll be saying our prayers for (QB) ‘Big Ben’ (Roethlisberger). You never want to see a competitor and a guy like that go down, so I’ll be saying my prayers for him.”
(On what he saw on the throw to WR Kenny Britt that was ruled incomplete)
“I thought he had the ball. When I led it…Kenny’s one of those guys, big receiver and thought it was a first down and we were going to keep rolling.”
(On Britt receiving the ball a lot today)
“Like I’ve said before, I count on my receivers no matter what. So I know based on the play, based on the defensive look…you do look at matchups, but they were playing a zone coverage, so they were trying to find some weaknesses in the zone.”
(On the pass intended for TE Lance Kendricks that ended in an interception)
“It was something that I’d seen throughout the day, and I was just trying to take advantage of a middle of the field shot. That ball had gone back…it was a forced throw. It was a bad decision by me, but it’s one of those things where our defense gives us another opportunity to go out there and score and we have to make sure in that situation, we drive. We were driving down. We just have to convert and make plays, but that’s on me. That’s something I never want to happen, but it’s not going to…game goes on. We have to keep playing.”
(On if the pass he threw to Kendricks sailed on him)
“Yeah, it was a just bad decision. The safety sometimes…I see now that blitz and down the middle, the safety was getting wide and on that one, he just made a play. It was a poor decision. It really was just a poor decision.”
(On if the false starts in the fourth quarter by the offensive line were possibly caused by the noise of the Steeler fans)
“Yeah, I mean when we were in a red zone situation, it was getting pretty loud. They travel well. It’s a historic franchise. Everybody knows about their fans. You could probably go all around the world and there’s Steeler fans. They traveled well, but our fans were loud too throughout the day, so it was evenly matched. (I’m) thankful for our fans coming out as well.”
(On if he felt like he was playing in a bowl game with the noise from both sets of fans)
“Yeah, it is. It’s definitely a weird dynamic. It’s just something you deal with through the course of the game and just part of it.”
(On if it’s unfair to say that the offense has taken a step back since the Seattle victory)
“I wouldn’t say a step back. We definitely haven’t shown…we have to put points on the board. That’s the big thing. That’s on us. Our defense did a tremendous job today. They gave us an opportunity. We have to score more points than them in those situations. So our defense did a great job…our special teams. As an offense, that’s something that we’re learning. Sometimes it’s tough. This is a tough situation. This is just part of it, and it’s just how do you learn from this and you’re positive about it. Don’t let it get you down. I mean, it’s early in the season. We’re 1-2. The world’s not ending. We will figure it out. We have a bunch of young guys that go to work every day and they want to get better and that’s what I see. That’s why I’m optimistic, because of the guys we have. My goal is just to keep grinding forward, and by the end of the year, we’ll be where we want to be. It’s just this part, we have to keep figuring out. We have to put more points on the board for our defense. Defense did an outstanding job today. We will figure it out for them because it’s a team game and we have to hold up our end of the bargain.”
(On getting RB Todd Gurley back today)
“It’s great to have him out there. It’s great to have him healthy. Your first rookie game, it’s always a lot of emotions. Just having him out there is going to be a huge threat. We have talented running backs and so he’s going to add to it. Once he really gets going, it’s going to be something to see.”
(On having to run the ball better)
“Yeah, it’s one of those things where have to be able to…we have talented running backs. Our O-line’s doing a great job week-to-week of just working hard together and grinding. Once we get the run game going better, it’s going to really open up a lot of things. That’s part of it. We’ll come in to work tomorrow. We’ll be ready to go. I know our O-line will be there bright and early lifting and grinding like they always are, win or lose. You have to look at yourself on film and work to get better. That’s part of the deal. We’re fortunate to play in the NFL. You have to take each day as a professional and our O-linemen do that. I know they’re going to be in tomorrow working hard.”
(On how much he had to use the silent count)
“We had to use it a little bit at the end in the red zone, but other than that, we were able to go on cadence.”
(On if he feels like guys are still trying to find their roles)
“I think it’s just really…sometimes there’s growing pains. You’ll learn…I’ve gone through this before. You don’t start out…you’re trying to figure out week-to-week and you’re working. Every week you go into it optimistic and you’re working hard. We had a great week of practice and it’s a few plays here or there, that really opened up the game for us. So like I said, we can’t get down on it. We make plays, we’re going to be alright. We’re going to put ourselves in a situation where we’re in the red zone more, we convert on third downs more and we’ll be alright. I say it’s early in the season just because it’s not like the season stops today. We’ll play next week and we’re going to work hard this week to be better because that’s the guys we have in the locker room.”
(On if he’s experienced a delayed start to a game like the one today)
“Yeah, I guess you had a fire hazard on the field with the opening ceremony. I haven’t experienced anything like that, but our strength coaches and Coach Fisher did a great job of getting us in the locker room, getting us ready. Guys did their things before we go out and just sort of activating everything again.”
Rams RB Todd Gurley
(On if he felt rusty)
“No, it’s the first game. I’ve got to get in the groove of things. I’m just looking forward to tomorrow, looking at film, seeing what we’ve done wrong and just trying to get better next week.”
(On when they told him he would play today)
“It was like yesterday.”
(On if he needed to work out in front of the coaches this morning)
“No, it was fine. I had a good couple of weeks of practice in. They asked me how I felt and it went on from there.”
(On if he expects to be sore tomorrow)
“I think I should be fine. Nothing a cold tub won’t help, so that’s about it.”
(On if they had a cap on the number of touches he would get)
“No.”
(On how it felt to finally be playing in a real game)
“It’s definitely been a long time. It definitely felt good. Didn’t get the win, but just come back next week and get better.”
(On how he felt when he woke up this morning of if he slept at all knowing he would be playing today)
“I definitely slept. I went to sleep at like 9:30 last night. I knew it was going to be a long day, so I had to get ready.”
(On if he felt like his explosiveness was there from prior to the injury)
“I felt like I still have the explosiveness. Definitely didn’t get to show it today, but like I said, we’ll pick back up on things and try to get things rolling next week.”
Rams S Mark Barron
(On what happened on the play Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger got hurt )
“I stumbled on the way in and just caught his leg. Some kind of way, he ended up hurt. I caught him down around his lower leg. He was grabbing his knee. I didn’t have anything to do with his knee.”
(On if he saw Roethlisberger fall)
“Yeah, I saw him fall. I didn’t see how he fell, I just saw him fall. I don’t know exactly what happened to him. Like I said, I just caught him down around his ankle and he fell and grabbed his knee.”
(On Roethlisberger being a big person to bring down)
“Oh yeah, most definitely.”
(On how the defense played)
“We played a decent game, most definitely. It wasn’t perfect, but we played a decent game.”
(On trying to keep WR Antonio Brown under control)
“He’s one of the best in the game. I feel like we did okay with him overall. He started out kind of hot, but we got a grip on him and I think we finished well with him.”
Rams LB James Laurinaitis
(On the play of the defense)
“Quite frankly, we’ve got to find a way to get another turnover. They fumbled on a sack. We dropped a couple of other picks. You’ve got to make those plays, especially against a really good (offense). I thought we played really well, minus really early in the game, the first quarter. That’s a very talented team. Antonio Brown is the real deal and Le’Veon Bell is the real deal. Ben (Roethlisberger) is obviously the real deal. We fought back, we fought hard in the second half…really the second quarter on. We’ve got to find a way to get a couple more turnovers, flip the field position and do our part.”
(On becoming the Rams’ all-time leading tackler)
“I’ve just been really blessed by the Lord to stay healthy for seven years. I really wish we could have won. I’ve been saying it all week, I just want to be on one of those pictures in the hallway like the ’99 team. You can look at everything that’s nice and pretty at Rams Park, but you know the ’99 team got it done. That’s what I really care about. I’ve been blessed to stay healthy and just humbled that the Rams have believed in me for seven years. Just glad to be able to stick here.”
Rams DE Robert Quinn
(On if he feels good about holding Pittsburgh to 12 points)
“I think we did a great job constantly giving ourselves a chance of staying in the game. We missed a few big plays. They made a few good plays. We just have to figure out how, when the opportunity presents itself, we get our hands on balls that we’ve got to come away with. They made some incredible plays on the other side, so we’ve just got to knock those few little plays out and I think we’ll be alright. But, back to work we go.”
(On if he feels like they let one slip away today)
“Yeah, like I said, we we’re there. Tough ball game. Great opponent. Of course, we thought we had a play here, a play there. The big plays are what hurt us. We’ve just got to capitalize. They made some huge plays when they needed it and gave themselves a chance to win the ball game. When it’s our turn or opportunity to make a play, we’ve got to make the play or do something to put momentum on our side. I trust the guys in the locker room. Nothing to worry about.”
(On holding the Steelers to 12 points and thinking that would be enough for a victory at home)
“Yeah, you would think that, but it was a defensive ball game. Unfortunately, the accident on Ben Roethlisberger, he was out of the game. (No.) 26 was running his tail off. We gave ourselves a chance. 12 points – you expect to win those. But, they held us to six. We’ve just got to do a little bit better. When the time on the clock says zero, we’ve got one more point than our opponent. Like I said, we’ve got some work to do.”
Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin
(Opening Statement)
“This was a good, tough ball game. It is good to come out on top of those. You grow infinitely when you find ways to pull those out. Obviously, it was not the type of game, in terms of how it unfolded, that we are searching for, but a win nonetheless. We are excited about it. I can’t say enough about the efforts of the people in there. Hopefully we will learn and grow from this.”
(On team injuries)
“Obviously, (Steelers QB) Ben Roethlisberger has a knee and he is being evaluated. We will get him an MRI and I will have some information for you the next time we come together. (Steelers TE) Matt Spaeth, hurt his hand and that is being evaluated as well. The rest of it is normal bumps and bruises associated with playing.”
(On the team’s effort)
“I can’t say enough about the effort of all of the men in that locker room. It takes a collective effort to win a grimy game like that. It feels good to play good defense.”
(On if he had a problem with the hit on Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger)
“I didn’t.”
(On the defense’s play)
“Hopefully, it something that we can build on as a unit. It is good to put winning performances back to back. I told the group last night, if we are going to be the type of team we desire to be, we have to stack winning performance on top of winning performance. We have to be able to go on the road in a hostile environment and be able to win. We can check those two things off today and hopefully we can grow from it.”
(On if he considered going for it on fourth and inches)
“We were playing good enough defense where I felt comfortable to let those guys go play.”
(On the comment that this was a hostile environment even with all of the Steelers fans in attendance)
“The Rams’ front had something to do with it being hostile. It might not necessarily mean the fans, it might just mean how they were playing. I have a lot of respect for those guys and knew it going in. That is why we talked about it the way we talked about it. They showed up and were themselves, give them credit for that.”
(On Steelers QB Michael Vick)
“He got us out of the stadium. That is what the backup quarterback’s job is. If he has to play next week then he gets a full week of preparation. My standards and expectations will be different under those circumstances. It is above the line today, he got us out of the stadium.”
(Roethlisberger’s injury)
“I don’t even know the status of his health yet, so I would just be speculating a comment on that.”
(On if Roethlisberger is being x-rayed an if they speculate a break)
“Again, like I said, he is being evaluated. I gave you all of the information that I have. I promise that I will give you some more when I get it, just to get you off of my back.”
(On the Rams’ offensive line and handling changes)
“I think they just played well. I don’t want to take anything away from those guys. We knew what they were capable of, they played really well. Thankfully we also played really well.
We did enough to win the football game. That is ultimately what matters. Six months from now we won’t even remember all of this stuff; we will just remember that we got the job done. That is why we have the mentality that we have.
(On how he evaluates Vick)
“This guy has been in the National Football League a long time. Nothing is really new to him. It is language, interpretation of language and getting up to speed. He is the type of guy that is in shape over a twelve-month calendar, so getting a level of football condition is not an issue.
He just brought a lot of things to the table that were helpful in the process. With that being said, if he has to play then we have some work to do and we respect that as well.”
(On Steelers RB Le’Veon Bell)
“I like the way he plays the game. I like the energy in which he plays. He wants to be a reason why we win. He is never fazed by the elements, meaning we were playing good defense and yards were tough to come by, but he had a good look in his eye and he is always positive. Those are just some of the reasons that we like his play.”
(On Steelers WR Antonio Brown)
“I am glad he is on our team. I don’t get into all of that global stuff. I wouldn’t trade him for anybody.”
Steelers Quarterback Michael Vick
(On his reaction to Roethlisberger’s injury)
“You know, I was kind of stunned. You never want see a guy like that go down. We were so in the game on the sidelines that I was looking at the defense, and I didn’t see Ben go down. When you see him down, I just grabbed my helmet and got ready to go.”
(On what he knows about the injury to Roethlisberger)
“I think as of right now, he’s going to have an MRI later on today. Hopefully things will work out for him. We all want it to work out for him. We just gotta keep our fingers crossed.”
(On how he felt the first couple of snaps out there)
“It was weird. It was a tough situation. I think it was only 9-3 at the time. You know, you have to go out there and prove that you belong every day in this league. It’s a constant battle to be consistent and stack up performances and I understand that. I just wanted to go out there and help this football team today and just get out of this stadium. You know that’s a really good St. Louis football team.”
(On if he’s caught up with the playbook as of yet)
“Yeah, you know I’ve crammed it all in the best that I can. I know how to compartmentalize and put it together the way I know how. This is my fourth offense that I’ve had to learn, so I’m just taking it one day at a time. I feel good and I’ve worked extremely hard to get here and prepare myself to go out there and be able to play like I did today. I wish it could have been better. I wish I could have done some things differently, but that will come with weeks of work.”
(On the difficulty of a short week)
“Yeah, it’s a short week, but we’re all professionals. We know what a short week entails. We know what we have to do. You just have to get in tomorrow and grind. I certainly look forward to that, you know, staying in my normal routine and get with the quarterback coach and offensive coordinator and even talk with Ben and other guys and try and figure out how we’re going to get this done.”
(On if he spoke with Roethlisberger and if he’s preparing to be the starter this week)
“I spoke to him at the locker when we got into the locker room and we talked, and he congratulated me. My concern is his health and how he’s doing. Ben’s a great guy. He’s the guy that we all look up to in this locker room. He’s the centerpiece. I was brought here for a reason, so I have to hold it down until No. 7 gets back.”
(On his confidence in himself with this offense)
“I got plenty of confidence in myself. This is what I was born to do. I’m not a young guy anymore. I’m a seasoned veteran. It’s not about me. There are a lot of great players in this locker room that are confident in the outcome of a football game. I won’t put it all on my shoulders. I’ll take sole responsibility of everything that happens, but I’m just going to prepare myself and get myself in the position to help this football team.”
RB Le’Veon Bell
(On how tough it was to see Rothleisberger get hurt)
“It sucks, you know. Obviously my prayers and thoughts are with him. I hope the best for him. But it obviously sucks. I know how it feels to be hurt and not out there with your team.”
(On how much confidence he has in QB Michael Vick)
“Yeah, I’m very confident. He’s a guy who’s been in this league for a long time and won a lot of games. He played in championships, so I’m very confident. Once we plug him in we just need to keep it going.”
(On why it was so hard to run today)
“Well, those guys are good up front. Obviously, we knew that coming in. It was going to be challenging running the ball on those guys and even passing the ball on those guys because those guys are so good up front. They got all first rounders up front. No. 99 (Aaron Donald) is the real deal. I know why he was a Pro Bowler last year. You know he really gets the rest of those guys going up front and they’re really talented.”
(On if he felt any rust today)
“No, I wouldn’t say I felt rust. I felt fine. It just felt good to back out there again. My adrenaline was kind of going crazy at first but I just had to calm down and realize it’s just football. I’ve been doing it for a long time already, and just start playing the game. I didn’t want to get too excited or over my head and try to do too much.”
(On how the offense changes with (Michael) Vick at quarterback)
“I’m not sure. I’m sure that they’ll supplement in for Vick to do the things that he does well. Obviously, I don’t think we’ll change too much. We have playmakers all over that field and we’ll have to use them.”
Pittsburgh Steelers WR Antonio Brown
(On rushing over to check on QB Ben Roethlisberger after he was injured)
“It’s always disheartening when your leader takes a fall and goes down. I’ve never seen him down so it was a little shocking, so I just asked him how he was doing. He said he was alright and he’ll be back.”
(On the physical play of today’s game)
“It was a real physical game. We’ve still got to find ways to score in the red zone. We did a good job protecting the ball. I didn’t think we had a turnover this game, but we found a way to win.”
(On what QB Mike Vick brings to the team at this point in his career)
“He’s a leader and he’s been doing it for a long time. It’s not only about him. We’ve got to be able to help him, catching passes, got to be able to run the ball, protect the ball and help him out.”
(On what he and RB LeVeon Bell can do to offset the potential loss of Roethlisberger)
“We’ve got to find ways to be able to win, like I continuously say. We’ve got to continue to grow. We’ve got to continue to make plays and will the team to win.”
(On the Steelers defense stepping up today)
“Football is the ultimate team game. We like to say the offense is the identity of the team, but there’s three phases of the game – offense, special teams and the defense. All three phases could be the reason why we win. The big turnover by the defense allowed us to get position to secure a victory.”
(On if they enjoy this win until they land in Pittsburgh and start preparing for Baltimore on a short week)
“Absolutely. We’ve got a hostile opponent. We know what the Baltimore Ravens bring. It’s going to be at Heinz Field Thursday night. Short week, so we’ve got to get our minds focused on that.”
DE Cameron Heyward
(On if QB Ben Roethlisberger’s injury means the defense has to step up their play)
“I don’t think it really puts anything on us. Ben’s injury is a tough one because he’s are starting quarterback of this team, but it’s time for
(Opening Remarks)
“Well, six points isn’t going to win you a whole lot of games and we’re averaging eight points a game the last two weeks and that’s not going to get it done for you. That’s my biggest area of concern. We played good defense today, but nonetheless, with all due respect to (K) Greg Zuerlein, I don’t want to see him on the field as much. We need to put the ball in the end zone. We’ve got to keep working on that because that doesn’t win you a lot of games that way. I thought they fought hard, I thought our defense could have played better early. Time of possession was really skewed in the first quarter because of (Steelers QB) Ben (Roethlisberger). He’s really good. We fortunately held them to three, which was a big deal for us, the one three. Then we gave up the touchdown. The two-point conversion, our ability to defend the two-point conversion gave us a shot. But nonetheless you’ve got to score points. Penalties were at the wrong time. There weren’t a lot of them, but wrong time. I have to look at them, I haven’t seen them. The holding penalty on the punt return, get the ball at the 30 (-yard line) and takes us down at the 10 (-yard line) in a field position game, that’s not good. I’ve seen it, but I’ll look at it. We won’t tolerate those things anymore.”
(On his view on the reversed fourth-down catch and explanation from officials)
“He told me that the ball definitely came loose. When the receiver goes to the ground you have to maintain possession of the ball. He said all the pictures led up to that, the ball was loose. From what I saw, which I thought was what he saw, on the jumbotron, you could make the case it was maybe inconclusive and then the call on the field stands. But he felt the ball was loose and that’s enough.”
(On TE Lance Kendricks’ dropped pass and drops throughout the game and how difficult they were to overcome when points came at a premium in this game)
“It’s hard. That’s hard. We had three drops today and you’re in a field position game like that where there’s potential swings, or potential additional first downs, those are hard to overcome. We didn’t drop them on purpose, but we need to make that play.”
(On if the Rams had to go to a silent count due to opposing team crowd noise)
“We did a little bit, down at the goal line. They travel great, they really travel great. So we welcome them. Hey, when the game started to swing in our favor, our fans got loud. So it’s good.”
(On QB Nick Foles’ interception and if he didn’t look the safety off)
“He’s not supposed to look the safety off, it just sailed. The ball sailed on him.”
(On the game delay)
“I thought it was handled properly. (The officials) and I got together right away. That’s not in the rulebook for the officials, but we talked about it. The most important thing that we did was we had our doctor, our team physician, come over and identify the ingredients on the fire extinguisher and there were toxins in there. It was toxic and it was powder and so we had to get that up because it could cause irritations for the eye. Then when we realized it was going to take a little bit of time, it made sense for us to come in and relax and then come back out and re-stretch. So, I thought the league handled everything very well from an officiating standpoint.”
QB Nick Foles
(On how he feels the offense performed overall)
“We didn’t put enough points on the board. We have to…I know our third down conversions weren’t good. There was a lot of good things out there throughout the game, but we just have to get the ball into the end zone. We have to convert third downs. We have to sustain drives. That’s something we were trying, working towards last week from the previous game. It’s something that we have to stay positive about, keep working day-to-day. It’s not an easy process, but it’s a process that we go through. That’s where you stick together as a team. There’s no one in the locker room hanging their head. It’s definitely emotional. It’s definitely tough. We all want to go out there and win. We gave ourselves an opportunity today, but we have to hit those plays. We had opportunities. Hats off to the Steelers. They went out there and they played well. We’ll be saying our prayers for (QB) ‘Big Ben’ (Roethlisberger). You never want to see a competitor and a guy like that go down, so I’ll be saying my prayers for him.”
(On what he saw on the throw to WR Kenny Britt that was ruled incomplete)
“I thought he had the ball. When I led it…Kenny’s one of those guys, big receiver and thought it was a first down and we were going to keep rolling.”
(On Britt receiving the ball a lot today)
“Like I’ve said before, I count on my receivers no matter what. So I know based on the play, based on the defensive look…you do look at matchups, but they were playing a zone coverage, so they were trying to find some weaknesses in the zone.”
(On the pass intended for TE Lance Kendricks that ended in an interception)
“It was something that I’d seen throughout the day, and I was just trying to take advantage of a middle of the field shot. That ball had gone back…it was a forced throw. It was a bad decision by me, but it’s one of those things where our defense gives us another opportunity to go out there and score and we have to make sure in that situation, we drive. We were driving down. We just have to convert and make plays, but that’s on me. That’s something I never want to happen, but it’s not going to…game goes on. We have to keep playing.”
(On if the pass he threw to Kendricks sailed on him)
“Yeah, it was a just bad decision. The safety sometimes…I see now that blitz and down the middle, the safety was getting wide and on that one, he just made a play. It was a poor decision. It really was just a poor decision.”
(On if the false starts in the fourth quarter by the offensive line were possibly caused by the noise of the Steeler fans)
“Yeah, I mean when we were in a red zone situation, it was getting pretty loud. They travel well. It’s a historic franchise. Everybody knows about their fans. You could probably go all around the world and there’s Steeler fans. They traveled well, but our fans were loud too throughout the day, so it was evenly matched. (I’m) thankful for our fans coming out as well.”
(On if he felt like he was playing in a bowl game with the noise from both sets of fans)
“Yeah, it is. It’s definitely a weird dynamic. It’s just something you deal with through the course of the game and just part of it.”
(On if it’s unfair to say that the offense has taken a step back since the Seattle victory)
“I wouldn’t say a step back. We definitely haven’t shown…we have to put points on the board. That’s the big thing. That’s on us. Our defense did a tremendous job today. They gave us an opportunity. We have to score more points than them in those situations. So our defense did a great job…our special teams. As an offense, that’s something that we’re learning. Sometimes it’s tough. This is a tough situation. This is just part of it, and it’s just how do you learn from this and you’re positive about it. Don’t let it get you down. I mean, it’s early in the season. We’re 1-2. The world’s not ending. We will figure it out. We have a bunch of young guys that go to work every day and they want to get better and that’s what I see. That’s why I’m optimistic, because of the guys we have. My goal is just to keep grinding forward, and by the end of the year, we’ll be where we want to be. It’s just this part, we have to keep figuring out. We have to put more points on the board for our defense. Defense did an outstanding job today. We will figure it out for them because it’s a team game and we have to hold up our end of the bargain.”
(On getting RB Todd Gurley back today)
“It’s great to have him out there. It’s great to have him healthy. Your first rookie game, it’s always a lot of emotions. Just having him out there is going to be a huge threat. We have talented running backs and so he’s going to add to it. Once he really gets going, it’s going to be something to see.”
(On having to run the ball better)
“Yeah, it’s one of those things where have to be able to…we have talented running backs. Our O-line’s doing a great job week-to-week of just working hard together and grinding. Once we get the run game going better, it’s going to really open up a lot of things. That’s part of it. We’ll come in to work tomorrow. We’ll be ready to go. I know our O-line will be there bright and early lifting and grinding like they always are, win or lose. You have to look at yourself on film and work to get better. That’s part of the deal. We’re fortunate to play in the NFL. You have to take each day as a professional and our O-linemen do that. I know they’re going to be in tomorrow working hard.”
(On how much he had to use the silent count)
“We had to use it a little bit at the end in the red zone, but other than that, we were able to go on cadence.”
(On if he feels like guys are still trying to find their roles)
“I think it’s just really…sometimes there’s growing pains. You’ll learn…I’ve gone through this before. You don’t start out…you’re trying to figure out week-to-week and you’re working. Every week you go into it optimistic and you’re working hard. We had a great week of practice and it’s a few plays here or there, that really opened up the game for us. So like I said, we can’t get down on it. We make plays, we’re going to be alright. We’re going to put ourselves in a situation where we’re in the red zone more, we convert on third downs more and we’ll be alright. I say it’s early in the season just because it’s not like the season stops today. We’ll play next week and we’re going to work hard this week to be better because that’s the guys we have in the locker room.”
(On if he’s experienced a delayed start to a game like the one today)
“Yeah, I guess you had a fire hazard on the field with the opening ceremony. I haven’t experienced anything like that, but our strength coaches and Coach Fisher did a great job of getting us in the locker room, getting us ready. Guys did their things before we go out and just sort of activating everything again.”
Rams RB Todd Gurley
(On if he felt rusty)
“No, it’s the first game. I’ve got to get in the groove of things. I’m just looking forward to tomorrow, looking at film, seeing what we’ve done wrong and just trying to get better next week.”
(On when they told him he would play today)
“It was like yesterday.”
(On if he needed to work out in front of the coaches this morning)
“No, it was fine. I had a good couple of weeks of practice in. They asked me how I felt and it went on from there.”
(On if he expects to be sore tomorrow)
“I think I should be fine. Nothing a cold tub won’t help, so that’s about it.”
(On if they had a cap on the number of touches he would get)
“No.”
(On how it felt to finally be playing in a real game)
“It’s definitely been a long time. It definitely felt good. Didn’t get the win, but just come back next week and get better.”
(On how he felt when he woke up this morning of if he slept at all knowing he would be playing today)
“I definitely slept. I went to sleep at like 9:30 last night. I knew it was going to be a long day, so I had to get ready.”
(On if he felt like his explosiveness was there from prior to the injury)
“I felt like I still have the explosiveness. Definitely didn’t get to show it today, but like I said, we’ll pick back up on things and try to get things rolling next week.”
Rams S Mark Barron
(On what happened on the play Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger got hurt )
“I stumbled on the way in and just caught his leg. Some kind of way, he ended up hurt. I caught him down around his lower leg. He was grabbing his knee. I didn’t have anything to do with his knee.”
(On if he saw Roethlisberger fall)
“Yeah, I saw him fall. I didn’t see how he fell, I just saw him fall. I don’t know exactly what happened to him. Like I said, I just caught him down around his ankle and he fell and grabbed his knee.”
(On Roethlisberger being a big person to bring down)
“Oh yeah, most definitely.”
(On how the defense played)
“We played a decent game, most definitely. It wasn’t perfect, but we played a decent game.”
(On trying to keep WR Antonio Brown under control)
“He’s one of the best in the game. I feel like we did okay with him overall. He started out kind of hot, but we got a grip on him and I think we finished well with him.”
Rams LB James Laurinaitis
(On the play of the defense)
“Quite frankly, we’ve got to find a way to get another turnover. They fumbled on a sack. We dropped a couple of other picks. You’ve got to make those plays, especially against a really good (offense). I thought we played really well, minus really early in the game, the first quarter. That’s a very talented team. Antonio Brown is the real deal and Le’Veon Bell is the real deal. Ben (Roethlisberger) is obviously the real deal. We fought back, we fought hard in the second half…really the second quarter on. We’ve got to find a way to get a couple more turnovers, flip the field position and do our part.”
(On becoming the Rams’ all-time leading tackler)
“I’ve just been really blessed by the Lord to stay healthy for seven years. I really wish we could have won. I’ve been saying it all week, I just want to be on one of those pictures in the hallway like the ’99 team. You can look at everything that’s nice and pretty at Rams Park, but you know the ’99 team got it done. That’s what I really care about. I’ve been blessed to stay healthy and just humbled that the Rams have believed in me for seven years. Just glad to be able to stick here.”
Rams DE Robert Quinn
(On if he feels good about holding Pittsburgh to 12 points)
“I think we did a great job constantly giving ourselves a chance of staying in the game. We missed a few big plays. They made a few good plays. We just have to figure out how, when the opportunity presents itself, we get our hands on balls that we’ve got to come away with. They made some incredible plays on the other side, so we’ve just got to knock those few little plays out and I think we’ll be alright. But, back to work we go.”
(On if he feels like they let one slip away today)
“Yeah, like I said, we we’re there. Tough ball game. Great opponent. Of course, we thought we had a play here, a play there. The big plays are what hurt us. We’ve just got to capitalize. They made some huge plays when they needed it and gave themselves a chance to win the ball game. When it’s our turn or opportunity to make a play, we’ve got to make the play or do something to put momentum on our side. I trust the guys in the locker room. Nothing to worry about.”
(On holding the Steelers to 12 points and thinking that would be enough for a victory at home)
“Yeah, you would think that, but it was a defensive ball game. Unfortunately, the accident on Ben Roethlisberger, he was out of the game. (No.) 26 was running his tail off. We gave ourselves a chance. 12 points – you expect to win those. But, they held us to six. We’ve just got to do a little bit better. When the time on the clock says zero, we’ve got one more point than our opponent. Like I said, we’ve got some work to do.”
Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin
(Opening Statement)
“This was a good, tough ball game. It is good to come out on top of those. You grow infinitely when you find ways to pull those out. Obviously, it was not the type of game, in terms of how it unfolded, that we are searching for, but a win nonetheless. We are excited about it. I can’t say enough about the efforts of the people in there. Hopefully we will learn and grow from this.”
(On team injuries)
“Obviously, (Steelers QB) Ben Roethlisberger has a knee and he is being evaluated. We will get him an MRI and I will have some information for you the next time we come together. (Steelers TE) Matt Spaeth, hurt his hand and that is being evaluated as well. The rest of it is normal bumps and bruises associated with playing.”
(On the team’s effort)
“I can’t say enough about the effort of all of the men in that locker room. It takes a collective effort to win a grimy game like that. It feels good to play good defense.”
(On if he had a problem with the hit on Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger)
“I didn’t.”
(On the defense’s play)
“Hopefully, it something that we can build on as a unit. It is good to put winning performances back to back. I told the group last night, if we are going to be the type of team we desire to be, we have to stack winning performance on top of winning performance. We have to be able to go on the road in a hostile environment and be able to win. We can check those two things off today and hopefully we can grow from it.”
(On if he considered going for it on fourth and inches)
“We were playing good enough defense where I felt comfortable to let those guys go play.”
(On the comment that this was a hostile environment even with all of the Steelers fans in attendance)
“The Rams’ front had something to do with it being hostile. It might not necessarily mean the fans, it might just mean how they were playing. I have a lot of respect for those guys and knew it going in. That is why we talked about it the way we talked about it. They showed up and were themselves, give them credit for that.”
(On Steelers QB Michael Vick)
“He got us out of the stadium. That is what the backup quarterback’s job is. If he has to play next week then he gets a full week of preparation. My standards and expectations will be different under those circumstances. It is above the line today, he got us out of the stadium.”
(Roethlisberger’s injury)
“I don’t even know the status of his health yet, so I would just be speculating a comment on that.”
(On if Roethlisberger is being x-rayed an if they speculate a break)
“Again, like I said, he is being evaluated. I gave you all of the information that I have. I promise that I will give you some more when I get it, just to get you off of my back.”
(On the Rams’ offensive line and handling changes)
“I think they just played well. I don’t want to take anything away from those guys. We knew what they were capable of, they played really well. Thankfully we also played really well.
We did enough to win the football game. That is ultimately what matters. Six months from now we won’t even remember all of this stuff; we will just remember that we got the job done. That is why we have the mentality that we have.
(On how he evaluates Vick)
“This guy has been in the National Football League a long time. Nothing is really new to him. It is language, interpretation of language and getting up to speed. He is the type of guy that is in shape over a twelve-month calendar, so getting a level of football condition is not an issue.
He just brought a lot of things to the table that were helpful in the process. With that being said, if he has to play then we have some work to do and we respect that as well.”
(On Steelers RB Le’Veon Bell)
“I like the way he plays the game. I like the energy in which he plays. He wants to be a reason why we win. He is never fazed by the elements, meaning we were playing good defense and yards were tough to come by, but he had a good look in his eye and he is always positive. Those are just some of the reasons that we like his play.”
(On Steelers WR Antonio Brown)
“I am glad he is on our team. I don’t get into all of that global stuff. I wouldn’t trade him for anybody.”
Steelers Quarterback Michael Vick
(On his reaction to Roethlisberger’s injury)
“You know, I was kind of stunned. You never want see a guy like that go down. We were so in the game on the sidelines that I was looking at the defense, and I didn’t see Ben go down. When you see him down, I just grabbed my helmet and got ready to go.”
(On what he knows about the injury to Roethlisberger)
“I think as of right now, he’s going to have an MRI later on today. Hopefully things will work out for him. We all want it to work out for him. We just gotta keep our fingers crossed.”
(On how he felt the first couple of snaps out there)
“It was weird. It was a tough situation. I think it was only 9-3 at the time. You know, you have to go out there and prove that you belong every day in this league. It’s a constant battle to be consistent and stack up performances and I understand that. I just wanted to go out there and help this football team today and just get out of this stadium. You know that’s a really good St. Louis football team.”
(On if he’s caught up with the playbook as of yet)
“Yeah, you know I’ve crammed it all in the best that I can. I know how to compartmentalize and put it together the way I know how. This is my fourth offense that I’ve had to learn, so I’m just taking it one day at a time. I feel good and I’ve worked extremely hard to get here and prepare myself to go out there and be able to play like I did today. I wish it could have been better. I wish I could have done some things differently, but that will come with weeks of work.”
(On the difficulty of a short week)
“Yeah, it’s a short week, but we’re all professionals. We know what a short week entails. We know what we have to do. You just have to get in tomorrow and grind. I certainly look forward to that, you know, staying in my normal routine and get with the quarterback coach and offensive coordinator and even talk with Ben and other guys and try and figure out how we’re going to get this done.”
(On if he spoke with Roethlisberger and if he’s preparing to be the starter this week)
“I spoke to him at the locker when we got into the locker room and we talked, and he congratulated me. My concern is his health and how he’s doing. Ben’s a great guy. He’s the guy that we all look up to in this locker room. He’s the centerpiece. I was brought here for a reason, so I have to hold it down until No. 7 gets back.”
(On his confidence in himself with this offense)
“I got plenty of confidence in myself. This is what I was born to do. I’m not a young guy anymore. I’m a seasoned veteran. It’s not about me. There are a lot of great players in this locker room that are confident in the outcome of a football game. I won’t put it all on my shoulders. I’ll take sole responsibility of everything that happens, but I’m just going to prepare myself and get myself in the position to help this football team.”
RB Le’Veon Bell
(On how tough it was to see Rothleisberger get hurt)
“It sucks, you know. Obviously my prayers and thoughts are with him. I hope the best for him. But it obviously sucks. I know how it feels to be hurt and not out there with your team.”
(On how much confidence he has in QB Michael Vick)
“Yeah, I’m very confident. He’s a guy who’s been in this league for a long time and won a lot of games. He played in championships, so I’m very confident. Once we plug him in we just need to keep it going.”
(On why it was so hard to run today)
“Well, those guys are good up front. Obviously, we knew that coming in. It was going to be challenging running the ball on those guys and even passing the ball on those guys because those guys are so good up front. They got all first rounders up front. No. 99 (Aaron Donald) is the real deal. I know why he was a Pro Bowler last year. You know he really gets the rest of those guys going up front and they’re really talented.”
(On if he felt any rust today)
“No, I wouldn’t say I felt rust. I felt fine. It just felt good to back out there again. My adrenaline was kind of going crazy at first but I just had to calm down and realize it’s just football. I’ve been doing it for a long time already, and just start playing the game. I didn’t want to get too excited or over my head and try to do too much.”
(On how the offense changes with (Michael) Vick at quarterback)
“I’m not sure. I’m sure that they’ll supplement in for Vick to do the things that he does well. Obviously, I don’t think we’ll change too much. We have playmakers all over that field and we’ll have to use them.”
Pittsburgh Steelers WR Antonio Brown
(On rushing over to check on QB Ben Roethlisberger after he was injured)
“It’s always disheartening when your leader takes a fall and goes down. I’ve never seen him down so it was a little shocking, so I just asked him how he was doing. He said he was alright and he’ll be back.”
(On the physical play of today’s game)
“It was a real physical game. We’ve still got to find ways to score in the red zone. We did a good job protecting the ball. I didn’t think we had a turnover this game, but we found a way to win.”
(On what QB Mike Vick brings to the team at this point in his career)
“He’s a leader and he’s been doing it for a long time. It’s not only about him. We’ve got to be able to help him, catching passes, got to be able to run the ball, protect the ball and help him out.”
(On what he and RB LeVeon Bell can do to offset the potential loss of Roethlisberger)
“We’ve got to find ways to be able to win, like I continuously say. We’ve got to continue to grow. We’ve got to continue to make plays and will the team to win.”
(On the Steelers defense stepping up today)
“Football is the ultimate team game. We like to say the offense is the identity of the team, but there’s three phases of the game – offense, special teams and the defense. All three phases could be the reason why we win. The big turnover by the defense allowed us to get position to secure a victory.”
(On if they enjoy this win until they land in Pittsburgh and start preparing for Baltimore on a short week)
“Absolutely. We’ve got a hostile opponent. We know what the Baltimore Ravens bring. It’s going to be at Heinz Field Thursday night. Short week, so we’ve got to get our minds focused on that.”
DE Cameron Heyward
(On if QB Ben Roethlisberger’s injury means the defense has to step up their play)
“I don’t think it really puts anything on us. Ben’s injury is a tough one because he’s are starting quarterback of this team, but it’s time for
