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HEAD COACH DIRK KOETTER
(Opening Statement)
“Alright well, give the Rams credit, they made the plays they needed to make and we didn’t. I’m proud of the way we competed, coming back twice from two scores [down] in the second half to give ourselves a chance in the end but we didn’t make enough plays. We had plenty of chances and again, congratulations to the Rams, they got us.”
(On if there was an opportunity to call a timeout following Charles Sims’ catch on the last drive)
“Yes, there was an opportunity. I got a lot of confidence in our two-minute [offense] and I sometimes push the envelope on that, on getting to the next play. I thought we were a little bit slow lining up on that next one, I thought we still had time to check it down again and use it but as it worked out, we were still lining up so I probably should’ve use it there.”
(On if a close game like this is the very reason the team drafted Roberto Aguayo)
“I am not sure about that, we try to draft good football players. Obviously you can’t miss an extra point and the field goal is more difficult but that was just one of many things that we didn’t do good enough tonight.”
(On feeling like they were chasing points)
“We said it on the headphones right after the extra point, you play that game the rest of the game. You’re in that mess of figuring out the two-point chart the rest of the night and it hurt us.”
(On the final play of the game)
“Must score from the 15-yard line on fourth down, we tried to get some guys in the end zone. The way it opened up – now I’m looking at it from the side, you guys are looking at it from up top –obviously when he popped through there in the crowd, the crowd roared and reacted and everything. I don’t know, I’ll know when I see it on tape, but, that ground usually get covered a lot faster in real life than we usually think it does and again that’s one play out of many. There were so many plays that were big in this game, any game like this and that’s one. It shouldn’t come to a fourth-and-15 on the 15 play.
(On a fourth-and-1 conversion thrown to Evans)
“We had a play that we liked if that situation came up and we went with it.”
(On if the Rams took Mike Evans away on the final drive)
“Well, when you’re in the no-huddle, a lot has to do with what hash mark you’re on. Mike and Vince play sides when they’re in the no-huddle, they play left and right, and so some of it has to do with the plays that are called and what side of the field we’re attacking right there, but again, we had our chances there.”
(On if there should have been safety help on the Rams’ first touchdown)
“Yep, we should’ve had safety help there, on that first touchdown, we should’ve had safety help there and we didn’t. On the crossing one, I am not sure if we were in man or zone on that one so I am really not sure on that one, but on that first touchdown, definitely, safety should’ve been there.”
(On if safety play was also responsible for Tavon Austin’s touchdown)
“I am not real sure about that, that’s the kind of stuff that is hard for me to see during the game. I mean Tavon Austin, obviously a talented player, isolated on anybody. It depends if we’re man or zone, so a safety is going to be covering him in man but if it’s zone, that could be based on if we’re on a two-deep coverage or three-deep coverage or quarters-coverage. That could be a variety of different people’s responsibility.”
(On if Charles Sims should have gone out of bounds on his reception during the final drive)
“We always tell those guys when they’re near the sideline, if it’s a situation where they can get out, but if the guy overruns it when we have timeouts then they should take the yardage. He made a good play there.”
(On his level of concern with Roberto Aguayo)
“Well I’m concerned with everything that contributed to us losing and that was one of the things, I mean, there’s a lot of things that contributed to our team losing tonight. Heck I was one of those people that contributed but of course I’m concerned with it.”
(On if 32 points should be enough to win a game)
“It wasn’t tonight so I mean, I don’t think we ever think like that. You think like you need one more than the other team’s got, and tonight we didn’t do it. I thought we might have a chance there at the end to get one more but we didn’t.”
(On what he discussing with his players during weather delay)
“Both offense and defense, the coaches met, talked about strategy, what they were going to do. What we were going to do defensively, it was going to be one play basically to get off the field, what the punt return was going to be and then we had a list of plays. We figured we’d only have one timeout left and that we’d get the ball somewhere around the 35-yard line. We had a list of plays that we wanted to go to in the no-huddle in the two-minute offense and it played out just that way until we got down there and just couldn’t punch it in.”
(On the lesson the team needs to learn)
“That’s a great question, the lesson our team needs to learn is that every week is a battle and it doesn’t matter who the other team is. Our culture is not where it needs to be and that starts with me. I am the head of that so I am putting that squarely on my shoulders. There is something about our culture, I wish I could grab it, I’ve been on teams that have had it and you don’t want to let go of it but when you don’t have it is hard to figure out what it is but there’s something in our culture and it’s my job to fix it, along with the coaches, of letting games like this get away. Please understand that takes nothing away from the Rams because the Rams executed their game plan. I am concerned with what our team does and we just have to get over that hump, and we’re not there.”
(On if his confidence in Roberto Aguayo is shaken)
“We [have to] play better across the board, we [have to] coach better, we [have to] play better.”
(On “Mike Smith’s defense” allowing explosive plays)
“First, you know guys, it’s not Mike Smith’s defense, it’s the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense and I’m in charge of that. There’s plenty of blame to go around and that starts with me. It’s never one guy’s fault. We could line up, we could put all of the pictures up here and check off this guy, this guy, this guy, plays that we left on the field tonight so, there’s no use, there’s no finger pointing, there’s no blaming. This is the greatest team game in the world and we came up short.”
(On Jameis’ Winston competitiveness)
“The competitiveness, not only of Jameis, but the whole team, there is nothing wrong with our competiveness. We preach compete and our guys did that. I have no issue with where we are at competitive-wise but we [have to] play better, we [have to] execute better, in all phases.”
QUARTERBACK JAMEIS WINSTON
(On Rams defensive end Robert Quinn’s sack and forced fumble of Winston in the fourth quarter)
“The defensive end made a good play. As I was about to release it he stripped it.”
(On the play of the Buccaneers defense leading to the final drive)
“The defense did a great job of getting us the ball back. Great situation for us. I’ve just got to complete the football. I missed too many targets and in moments like that, you’ve got to make those completions.”
(On if the team considered calling a timeout after his completion to running back Charles Sims on the final drive)
“No. We had a lot of time left. We had a lot of time left. Chuck, he made a good play. He got us that first down which was needed. So I’ve just got to hit open guys.”
(On if he realized where he was on the field on the final play)
“I did, I was just trying to bait them, get closer to the end zone. In that moment I’ve just got to give somebody a chance in the end zone. But when I [saw] them drop basically the whole team, I was like, ‘Man, let’s see what we can do.’ “
(On if there was an incident between Winston and wide receiver Vincent Jackson on the bench during the game)
“No. I just was in the heat of the battle, just always constantly telling my guys, ‘I need you. I need you to play for us,’ and that’s all. I had that conversation with everybody.”
(On the final play)
“That was just dumb on my part. That was bad. I’ve got to get somebody a chance there.”
(On if he tried to thread his pass into a tight window on the second two-point conversation attempt instead of throwing it away)
“The second two-point conversion, I don’t even remember the play. And if I do remember, I think I did throw it high and it was over somebody’s head.”
(On if his throw on the two-point conversation was his first read on that play)
“No, I don’t think it was.”
(On the play of tight end Cameron Brate)
“Cam’s a great player and my job is to get our good players the football. And he’s going to show up, day-in and day-out, but we’ve just got to get better. But definitely on that last drive I just can’t miss open targets.”
(On if he wished he had just tucked the ball and run on the final play)
“You’re just trying to play football. I knew as long as I can get those guys back and back, I can get to the end zone. But 94 [Quinn] came behind me and got me from the back. I wish I had eyes in the back of my head so I could’ve seen him.”
(On if the lightning delay benefitted the Buccaneers at all)
“I don’t think it benefitted us at all. I think with the momentum that we had, and definitely seeing the way that crowd was, we definitely had that on our side, but you know, you face adversity. But you’ve got to bounce back. I felt like we really fought hard. That was a hard-fought game. You’ve got to commend their team. Their team did really well, their offense did well, their defense did well. Me, I can’t turn the ball over. Our defense got a pick-six to help us out. I can’t fumble and let them get another six on their defensive side of the ball.”
(On what ingredient is missing from the team right now)
“I think this game in particular, just quarterback play. I’ve got to complete the football. That’s the main thing. I had Vincent Jackson wide open for a touchdown in the corner of the end zone. That’s just pitch and catch. I had Vincent Jackson wide open for another big completion. That’s just pitch and catch – I overthrew him. I had Charles Sims coming over on the check down – overthrew him. But I’m going to get better, I’m going to get better, I guarantee you. I guarantee you I’m going to get better.”
(On how he would evaluate the play of tackle Donovan Smith against defensive end Robert Quinn)
“Man, how many times did Robert get to me? That was one time, so I think Donovan Smith had a great day. And I don’t think that was his fault, I think [Quinn] just made a great play. When you’re blocking a guy that’s Robert Quinn and you’re blocking Aaron Donald, and how many sacks did they have today? I don’t think they had [many], so my offensive line did a great job. We played our heart out. Donovan Smith did a great job. Like I say, the quarterback has to step up and make plays for his team. [Our] defense put me in a great situation. Two-minute warning, we’ve got two timeouts. I’ve just got to make the plays.”
(On how the team puts this game behind them and gets ready for the Denver Broncos)
“Like we did last week. Last week you would’ve thought that the sky hit the floor, but we bounced back. We had a decent week of practice. We’re going to be facing a very tough opponent so we’ve just got to battle. We’ve got to keep competing and keep playing.”
(On what it meant that eight-year old Joshua Fisher, a cancer survivor whom Winston knows, led the Buccaneers out of the tunnel)
“That really pumped us up when Josh led us out of the tunnel. I think that helped us, helped motivate us. If you all don’t know Josh’s story, I forget how many times he’s beaten cancer but that kid is strong and when I saw him, I was happy to see him. And that’s the stuff in life that you’ve got to appreciate. You have games like this and I’m going to be down on myself but I’m going to bounce back up because of kids like Josh. He’s been fighting and he’s just living his life and that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to keep fighting, I’m going to keep getting better and I’m going to start helping this team out.”
(On how much his adrenaline factored into the final plays of the game)
“I know I was ready. I know I was ready but at the end of the day, you’ve got to complete the football.”
KICKER ROBERTO AGUAYO
(On his missed extra point)
“Just rushed it a little bit, picked up my head. At the end of the day, I moved on after that. More and more opportunities, but you’ve got to move on from those.”
(On his missed field goal)
“That wasn’t my day. I’m just excited for next week, to move on. Excited to get back to my craft. That’s what I do and [will] just recuperate next week and come back and be ready for Denver.”
(On the team going for two over kicking the extra point late in the game)
“At end of the day, whatever [Head] Coach [Dirk] Koetter wants, going for two or the extra point. But when my name’s called, I’m always ready to go out there. Like I said, moving on to next week and just getting back, recuperating.”
(On his confidence)
“Confidence is always there. Just excited to get back to next week and doing my kicks. It’s there. Times like this are going to happen, you’ve just got to go back. The confidence isn’t shaken, I know what to do. I’m excited to get back on the field and kick again.”
LINEBACKER KWON ALEXANDER
(On the weather delay)
“I appreciate all the fans that came out and stayed even though it rained. I really appreciate that. They are the best fans. We have to get back ready for next week.”
(On how the team will handle two straight loses this week)
“Do the same thing every week. Just have to go in there and correct and just get better every week and perfect on your craft. We’re going to be alright.”
(On if close games are harder to lose)
“A loss is a loss. We don’t need any more losses. We need to start building around each other and start getting victories and turning this program around.”
(On if he feels the defense is improving)
“We’re getting better and better every week. We’re just going to keep getting better, we’re going to keep progressing.”
(On his interception returned for a touchdown)
“I was just in the right place at the right time, just made a great play for my team and my defense. That was the first takeaway [of the season], so it was just a great feeling.”
TIGHT END CAMERON BRATE
(On what worked well to put the Buccaneers in position to potentially win at the end)
"We believe in each other. When you've got a quarterback like Jameis and a receiver like Mike, when those two are on the same page they're really hard to stop. We made some really nice plays on that [final touchdown] drive. We had a good drive going there at the end, too; we just kind of ran out of time."
(On how the Buccaneers handled the delay of the game)
"It's not ideal, it's not what you want, but we did it a couple times during training camp so it's not a situation we're really not used to. Especially down here in Florida, weather's always kind of an issue. We just tried to stay warm, tried to draw up some plays. We knew the defense was going to get a stop and hopefully we'd get a shot there at the end."
TACKLE DEMAR DOTSON
(On Sunday’s game)
“I think we were ready. It’s just a tough game. The lack of effort wasn’t there, but we let it get away.”
(On if Los Angeles did anything defensively that they didn’t expect)
“No, they just fought hard. And I think the guys up front fought hard, but at the end of the day they won the war. But it wasn’t from the lack of effort. I commend those guys, they played their tails off. But you’re not awarded on effort, you’re awarded on wins and we didn’t get one.”
(On what the team was doing and what Coach Koetter said during the lightning delay)
“We were just trying to stay loose. Not knowing how long it was going to take to get back out, but [Winston] was just trying to tell guys to stay loose, hydrate.”
(On if he expected the offense to get the ball back)
“Oh no doubt. It was third-and-11 on like the five-yard line, so we knew the defense would hold out so we all knew that we would get this ball back with a two-minute drive.”
WIDE RECEIVER ADAM HUMPHRIES
(On the Buccaneers losing in the final seconds of the game)
“Any loss is tough. I think we showed a lot of fight in the fourth quarter, we just weren’t able to get it done. We’re going to have to figure out what we need to do to eventually get over that hump and win some games.”
DEFENSIVE TACKLE GERALD MCCOY
(On if close games are harder to lose)
“Yeah, we were in a position to win, but all the loses hurt. We just feel like – getting over that hump, we’ve got to find out what it is we’re doing wrong to get over that hump.”
(On coming out after the lightning delay)
“We knew exactly what we need to do, knew what calls we’d be in and we had calls for every situation for what they might [do]. We made a play on defense and gave our offense a chance. What the offense does from there is none of our business, it’s our business to get the ball to them and we did that. But we put our offense in a terrible position defensively.”
(On Los Angeles’ long touchdown passes)
The first touchdown, this one’s going to sit on my shoulders for a long time because when you lose by five – the very first touchdown we had a play where the offensive line split, I had a one-on-one and I missed with my hands. I know if I were to just landed with my hands, I would’ve at least hit him, at worst. I was thinking about that the rest of the game. As time went on, you’ve got to move on, but I know this one will bug me all night because I know us losing by five, that one play was a touchdown.”
(On allowing 101 points in three games)
“Yeah, that’s a concern. It’s not good. Defensively, we don’t worry about the offense does, but regardless of what they do, if we don’t these teams from scoring, we’re not going to win. That’s not good at all, we have to be better.”
(On if four or five plays determines a winner in an NFL game)
Absolutely. You have all those different plays, but you can pinpoint a couple where you’re like, ‘if we had that one back, maybe this would have happened.’ And [the Rams’ first touchdown] is one I wish I had back. I saw everything. I saw his hands coming. I don’t know how I missed [with] my hands. I have no idea how I missed with my hands. I know I timed it up perfect.”
CORNERBACK ALTERRAUN VERNER
(On the Rams’ long passing plays)
“That’s what we can’t afford, we can’t give up big plays – the one in the beginning and the one at the end. The more we tried to make them dink and dunk it, we played our better football. So yeah, it was unfortunate that we gave up those plays.”
(On what happened on the Rams’ first touchdown)
“It was a little bit of a miscommunication on my part, but at the end of the day I’ve got to make that play. That’s pretty much enough said about that one, it was my play to make and I didn’t make it.”
(On where the team goes from here)
“We’ve still got 13 games. Most of the [teams] in our division, the highest somebody’s going to be is 2-1 after this game, so we still have a lot to play for and we still have a lot of division games and a lot of games to play, so nobody should get their head down.”
(Opening Statement)
“Alright well, give the Rams credit, they made the plays they needed to make and we didn’t. I’m proud of the way we competed, coming back twice from two scores [down] in the second half to give ourselves a chance in the end but we didn’t make enough plays. We had plenty of chances and again, congratulations to the Rams, they got us.”
(On if there was an opportunity to call a timeout following Charles Sims’ catch on the last drive)
“Yes, there was an opportunity. I got a lot of confidence in our two-minute [offense] and I sometimes push the envelope on that, on getting to the next play. I thought we were a little bit slow lining up on that next one, I thought we still had time to check it down again and use it but as it worked out, we were still lining up so I probably should’ve use it there.”
(On if a close game like this is the very reason the team drafted Roberto Aguayo)
“I am not sure about that, we try to draft good football players. Obviously you can’t miss an extra point and the field goal is more difficult but that was just one of many things that we didn’t do good enough tonight.”
(On feeling like they were chasing points)
“We said it on the headphones right after the extra point, you play that game the rest of the game. You’re in that mess of figuring out the two-point chart the rest of the night and it hurt us.”
(On the final play of the game)
“Must score from the 15-yard line on fourth down, we tried to get some guys in the end zone. The way it opened up – now I’m looking at it from the side, you guys are looking at it from up top –obviously when he popped through there in the crowd, the crowd roared and reacted and everything. I don’t know, I’ll know when I see it on tape, but, that ground usually get covered a lot faster in real life than we usually think it does and again that’s one play out of many. There were so many plays that were big in this game, any game like this and that’s one. It shouldn’t come to a fourth-and-15 on the 15 play.
(On a fourth-and-1 conversion thrown to Evans)
“We had a play that we liked if that situation came up and we went with it.”
(On if the Rams took Mike Evans away on the final drive)
“Well, when you’re in the no-huddle, a lot has to do with what hash mark you’re on. Mike and Vince play sides when they’re in the no-huddle, they play left and right, and so some of it has to do with the plays that are called and what side of the field we’re attacking right there, but again, we had our chances there.”
(On if there should have been safety help on the Rams’ first touchdown)
“Yep, we should’ve had safety help there, on that first touchdown, we should’ve had safety help there and we didn’t. On the crossing one, I am not sure if we were in man or zone on that one so I am really not sure on that one, but on that first touchdown, definitely, safety should’ve been there.”
(On if safety play was also responsible for Tavon Austin’s touchdown)
“I am not real sure about that, that’s the kind of stuff that is hard for me to see during the game. I mean Tavon Austin, obviously a talented player, isolated on anybody. It depends if we’re man or zone, so a safety is going to be covering him in man but if it’s zone, that could be based on if we’re on a two-deep coverage or three-deep coverage or quarters-coverage. That could be a variety of different people’s responsibility.”
(On if Charles Sims should have gone out of bounds on his reception during the final drive)
“We always tell those guys when they’re near the sideline, if it’s a situation where they can get out, but if the guy overruns it when we have timeouts then they should take the yardage. He made a good play there.”
(On his level of concern with Roberto Aguayo)
“Well I’m concerned with everything that contributed to us losing and that was one of the things, I mean, there’s a lot of things that contributed to our team losing tonight. Heck I was one of those people that contributed but of course I’m concerned with it.”
(On if 32 points should be enough to win a game)
“It wasn’t tonight so I mean, I don’t think we ever think like that. You think like you need one more than the other team’s got, and tonight we didn’t do it. I thought we might have a chance there at the end to get one more but we didn’t.”
(On what he discussing with his players during weather delay)
“Both offense and defense, the coaches met, talked about strategy, what they were going to do. What we were going to do defensively, it was going to be one play basically to get off the field, what the punt return was going to be and then we had a list of plays. We figured we’d only have one timeout left and that we’d get the ball somewhere around the 35-yard line. We had a list of plays that we wanted to go to in the no-huddle in the two-minute offense and it played out just that way until we got down there and just couldn’t punch it in.”
(On the lesson the team needs to learn)
“That’s a great question, the lesson our team needs to learn is that every week is a battle and it doesn’t matter who the other team is. Our culture is not where it needs to be and that starts with me. I am the head of that so I am putting that squarely on my shoulders. There is something about our culture, I wish I could grab it, I’ve been on teams that have had it and you don’t want to let go of it but when you don’t have it is hard to figure out what it is but there’s something in our culture and it’s my job to fix it, along with the coaches, of letting games like this get away. Please understand that takes nothing away from the Rams because the Rams executed their game plan. I am concerned with what our team does and we just have to get over that hump, and we’re not there.”
(On if his confidence in Roberto Aguayo is shaken)
“We [have to] play better across the board, we [have to] coach better, we [have to] play better.”
(On “Mike Smith’s defense” allowing explosive plays)
“First, you know guys, it’s not Mike Smith’s defense, it’s the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense and I’m in charge of that. There’s plenty of blame to go around and that starts with me. It’s never one guy’s fault. We could line up, we could put all of the pictures up here and check off this guy, this guy, this guy, plays that we left on the field tonight so, there’s no use, there’s no finger pointing, there’s no blaming. This is the greatest team game in the world and we came up short.”
(On Jameis’ Winston competitiveness)
“The competitiveness, not only of Jameis, but the whole team, there is nothing wrong with our competiveness. We preach compete and our guys did that. I have no issue with where we are at competitive-wise but we [have to] play better, we [have to] execute better, in all phases.”
QUARTERBACK JAMEIS WINSTON
(On Rams defensive end Robert Quinn’s sack and forced fumble of Winston in the fourth quarter)
“The defensive end made a good play. As I was about to release it he stripped it.”
(On the play of the Buccaneers defense leading to the final drive)
“The defense did a great job of getting us the ball back. Great situation for us. I’ve just got to complete the football. I missed too many targets and in moments like that, you’ve got to make those completions.”
(On if the team considered calling a timeout after his completion to running back Charles Sims on the final drive)
“No. We had a lot of time left. We had a lot of time left. Chuck, he made a good play. He got us that first down which was needed. So I’ve just got to hit open guys.”
(On if he realized where he was on the field on the final play)
“I did, I was just trying to bait them, get closer to the end zone. In that moment I’ve just got to give somebody a chance in the end zone. But when I [saw] them drop basically the whole team, I was like, ‘Man, let’s see what we can do.’ “
(On if there was an incident between Winston and wide receiver Vincent Jackson on the bench during the game)
“No. I just was in the heat of the battle, just always constantly telling my guys, ‘I need you. I need you to play for us,’ and that’s all. I had that conversation with everybody.”
(On the final play)
“That was just dumb on my part. That was bad. I’ve got to get somebody a chance there.”
(On if he tried to thread his pass into a tight window on the second two-point conversation attempt instead of throwing it away)
“The second two-point conversion, I don’t even remember the play. And if I do remember, I think I did throw it high and it was over somebody’s head.”
(On if his throw on the two-point conversation was his first read on that play)
“No, I don’t think it was.”
(On the play of tight end Cameron Brate)
“Cam’s a great player and my job is to get our good players the football. And he’s going to show up, day-in and day-out, but we’ve just got to get better. But definitely on that last drive I just can’t miss open targets.”
(On if he wished he had just tucked the ball and run on the final play)
“You’re just trying to play football. I knew as long as I can get those guys back and back, I can get to the end zone. But 94 [Quinn] came behind me and got me from the back. I wish I had eyes in the back of my head so I could’ve seen him.”
(On if the lightning delay benefitted the Buccaneers at all)
“I don’t think it benefitted us at all. I think with the momentum that we had, and definitely seeing the way that crowd was, we definitely had that on our side, but you know, you face adversity. But you’ve got to bounce back. I felt like we really fought hard. That was a hard-fought game. You’ve got to commend their team. Their team did really well, their offense did well, their defense did well. Me, I can’t turn the ball over. Our defense got a pick-six to help us out. I can’t fumble and let them get another six on their defensive side of the ball.”
(On what ingredient is missing from the team right now)
“I think this game in particular, just quarterback play. I’ve got to complete the football. That’s the main thing. I had Vincent Jackson wide open for a touchdown in the corner of the end zone. That’s just pitch and catch. I had Vincent Jackson wide open for another big completion. That’s just pitch and catch – I overthrew him. I had Charles Sims coming over on the check down – overthrew him. But I’m going to get better, I’m going to get better, I guarantee you. I guarantee you I’m going to get better.”
(On how he would evaluate the play of tackle Donovan Smith against defensive end Robert Quinn)
“Man, how many times did Robert get to me? That was one time, so I think Donovan Smith had a great day. And I don’t think that was his fault, I think [Quinn] just made a great play. When you’re blocking a guy that’s Robert Quinn and you’re blocking Aaron Donald, and how many sacks did they have today? I don’t think they had [many], so my offensive line did a great job. We played our heart out. Donovan Smith did a great job. Like I say, the quarterback has to step up and make plays for his team. [Our] defense put me in a great situation. Two-minute warning, we’ve got two timeouts. I’ve just got to make the plays.”
(On how the team puts this game behind them and gets ready for the Denver Broncos)
“Like we did last week. Last week you would’ve thought that the sky hit the floor, but we bounced back. We had a decent week of practice. We’re going to be facing a very tough opponent so we’ve just got to battle. We’ve got to keep competing and keep playing.”
(On what it meant that eight-year old Joshua Fisher, a cancer survivor whom Winston knows, led the Buccaneers out of the tunnel)
“That really pumped us up when Josh led us out of the tunnel. I think that helped us, helped motivate us. If you all don’t know Josh’s story, I forget how many times he’s beaten cancer but that kid is strong and when I saw him, I was happy to see him. And that’s the stuff in life that you’ve got to appreciate. You have games like this and I’m going to be down on myself but I’m going to bounce back up because of kids like Josh. He’s been fighting and he’s just living his life and that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to keep fighting, I’m going to keep getting better and I’m going to start helping this team out.”
(On how much his adrenaline factored into the final plays of the game)
“I know I was ready. I know I was ready but at the end of the day, you’ve got to complete the football.”
KICKER ROBERTO AGUAYO
(On his missed extra point)
“Just rushed it a little bit, picked up my head. At the end of the day, I moved on after that. More and more opportunities, but you’ve got to move on from those.”
(On his missed field goal)
“That wasn’t my day. I’m just excited for next week, to move on. Excited to get back to my craft. That’s what I do and [will] just recuperate next week and come back and be ready for Denver.”
(On the team going for two over kicking the extra point late in the game)
“At end of the day, whatever [Head] Coach [Dirk] Koetter wants, going for two or the extra point. But when my name’s called, I’m always ready to go out there. Like I said, moving on to next week and just getting back, recuperating.”
(On his confidence)
“Confidence is always there. Just excited to get back to next week and doing my kicks. It’s there. Times like this are going to happen, you’ve just got to go back. The confidence isn’t shaken, I know what to do. I’m excited to get back on the field and kick again.”
LINEBACKER KWON ALEXANDER
(On the weather delay)
“I appreciate all the fans that came out and stayed even though it rained. I really appreciate that. They are the best fans. We have to get back ready for next week.”
(On how the team will handle two straight loses this week)
“Do the same thing every week. Just have to go in there and correct and just get better every week and perfect on your craft. We’re going to be alright.”
(On if close games are harder to lose)
“A loss is a loss. We don’t need any more losses. We need to start building around each other and start getting victories and turning this program around.”
(On if he feels the defense is improving)
“We’re getting better and better every week. We’re just going to keep getting better, we’re going to keep progressing.”
(On his interception returned for a touchdown)
“I was just in the right place at the right time, just made a great play for my team and my defense. That was the first takeaway [of the season], so it was just a great feeling.”
TIGHT END CAMERON BRATE
(On what worked well to put the Buccaneers in position to potentially win at the end)
"We believe in each other. When you've got a quarterback like Jameis and a receiver like Mike, when those two are on the same page they're really hard to stop. We made some really nice plays on that [final touchdown] drive. We had a good drive going there at the end, too; we just kind of ran out of time."
(On how the Buccaneers handled the delay of the game)
"It's not ideal, it's not what you want, but we did it a couple times during training camp so it's not a situation we're really not used to. Especially down here in Florida, weather's always kind of an issue. We just tried to stay warm, tried to draw up some plays. We knew the defense was going to get a stop and hopefully we'd get a shot there at the end."
TACKLE DEMAR DOTSON
(On Sunday’s game)
“I think we were ready. It’s just a tough game. The lack of effort wasn’t there, but we let it get away.”
(On if Los Angeles did anything defensively that they didn’t expect)
“No, they just fought hard. And I think the guys up front fought hard, but at the end of the day they won the war. But it wasn’t from the lack of effort. I commend those guys, they played their tails off. But you’re not awarded on effort, you’re awarded on wins and we didn’t get one.”
(On what the team was doing and what Coach Koetter said during the lightning delay)
“We were just trying to stay loose. Not knowing how long it was going to take to get back out, but [Winston] was just trying to tell guys to stay loose, hydrate.”
(On if he expected the offense to get the ball back)
“Oh no doubt. It was third-and-11 on like the five-yard line, so we knew the defense would hold out so we all knew that we would get this ball back with a two-minute drive.”
WIDE RECEIVER ADAM HUMPHRIES
(On the Buccaneers losing in the final seconds of the game)
“Any loss is tough. I think we showed a lot of fight in the fourth quarter, we just weren’t able to get it done. We’re going to have to figure out what we need to do to eventually get over that hump and win some games.”
DEFENSIVE TACKLE GERALD MCCOY
(On if close games are harder to lose)
“Yeah, we were in a position to win, but all the loses hurt. We just feel like – getting over that hump, we’ve got to find out what it is we’re doing wrong to get over that hump.”
(On coming out after the lightning delay)
“We knew exactly what we need to do, knew what calls we’d be in and we had calls for every situation for what they might [do]. We made a play on defense and gave our offense a chance. What the offense does from there is none of our business, it’s our business to get the ball to them and we did that. But we put our offense in a terrible position defensively.”
(On Los Angeles’ long touchdown passes)
The first touchdown, this one’s going to sit on my shoulders for a long time because when you lose by five – the very first touchdown we had a play where the offensive line split, I had a one-on-one and I missed with my hands. I know if I were to just landed with my hands, I would’ve at least hit him, at worst. I was thinking about that the rest of the game. As time went on, you’ve got to move on, but I know this one will bug me all night because I know us losing by five, that one play was a touchdown.”
(On allowing 101 points in three games)
“Yeah, that’s a concern. It’s not good. Defensively, we don’t worry about the offense does, but regardless of what they do, if we don’t these teams from scoring, we’re not going to win. That’s not good at all, we have to be better.”
(On if four or five plays determines a winner in an NFL game)
Absolutely. You have all those different plays, but you can pinpoint a couple where you’re like, ‘if we had that one back, maybe this would have happened.’ And [the Rams’ first touchdown] is one I wish I had back. I saw everything. I saw his hands coming. I don’t know how I missed [with] my hands. I have no idea how I missed with my hands. I know I timed it up perfect.”
CORNERBACK ALTERRAUN VERNER
(On the Rams’ long passing plays)
“That’s what we can’t afford, we can’t give up big plays – the one in the beginning and the one at the end. The more we tried to make them dink and dunk it, we played our better football. So yeah, it was unfortunate that we gave up those plays.”
(On what happened on the Rams’ first touchdown)
“It was a little bit of a miscommunication on my part, but at the end of the day I’ve got to make that play. That’s pretty much enough said about that one, it was my play to make and I didn’t make it.”
(On where the team goes from here)
“We’ve still got 13 games. Most of the [teams] in our division, the highest somebody’s going to be is 2-1 after this game, so we still have a lot to play for and we still have a lot of division games and a lot of games to play, so nobody should get their head down.”
