Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher
(Opening Comments)
“It would be appropriate to congratulate (Vikings) Coach (Mike) Zimmer on his first win. He’s waited a long time for his opportunity for a head coaching job and obviously he did an outstanding job today. We didn’t play very well today. I wasn’t anticipating that out of us. I’m just disappointed. It seemed throughout the game that different players took turns making drive-killing mistakes or allowing drives to continue. This, unfortunately, is one of those where you really have to look at the tape, see what you’re doing (and) what’s going on. The penalties were certainly an issue for us. They killed drives, back-to-back penalties … (WR) Brian (Quick) has to know he can’t grab and twist the facemask of the defender. That’s a killer. We blocked punts in practice and rushed punts in practice without roughing the punter. (RB) Chase (Reynolds) is better than that. I could go on and on, I’m not going to single everybody out, but that’s what happened today. (QB) Shaun (Hill) was uncomfortable the second to last drive, we knew he was dealing with a quad strain. The throw that he made out of bounds was not a good decision. I’m not sure that he injured it and tried to throw it out of bounds at the same time. I’m not making excuses for him, but at halftime we decided that it would not be a good idea for him to return. He has a quad strain, and I’ll know more information on it tomorrow. (G) Roger (Saffold) should be okay. He’s dealing with a neck, not a concussion, and we’re going to have to get (DE) Chris (Long) checked out. He’s got an ankle and did not return. Questions?”
(On explaining breakdowns in the game)
“There’s things that just happened. If I could explain then I should be able to prevent them, but I’m certainly going to go into detail with them tomorrow. There are things that just should not happen. Losing the edge on the defense … now the physical things, the matchups and some of the missed tackles with (Vikings RB) Adrian (Peterson) I can see that, but some of the other things make no sense. (TE) Lance (Kendricks) is one of the more dependable guys on offense and he has two false starts. I told the team this is not going to define our season, it’s just the opener. It’s unfortunate that it ended the way it did here at home with the enthusiasm that our fans brought to the game. We’ve got work to do and we’ve got another game in a week, so we need to get ready for it.”
(On the defense breaking down in the third quarter)
“Our hope there was that right before we threw the interception, we would go in at halftime down six, regroup, take possession of the ball in the third quarter and go and make some plays. This game was taking on the appearance of a 13-10 type of game prior to us going into the locker room down 13, and then obviously things just slipped away there. We felt like this is going to be the way the game is going to go. We’re going to have to make a stop and get tackles for loss in the run game and get off the field on third down, we just didn’t do it enough. That’s when it got away, at the start of the third quarter.”
(On getting no penalty on what looked like pass interference on the long throw to Quick)
“The explanation I got was that there was illegal contact, but the official looked up in the air and the ball was in the air already, so then he felt like there wasn’t enough contact for there to be DPI (defensive pass interference). So since it was in between … it was illegal contact but the ball was in the air … now (Referee) Ed (Hochuli), I think Ed announced that the quarterback was out of the pocket. That’s what I heard, and we weren’t out of the pocket, but Ed stood correct on that when I talked to him. We’re caught somewhere in the middle between illegal contact and DPI.”
(On if contact while the ball is in the air constitutes as pass interference)
“Yeah, I thought so too. There wasn’t enough contact for there to be pass interference, is what they said.”
(On the run game)
“They’re pretty stout up front. They’re stout and we got … you have to get in a rhythm and we didn’t get in a rhythm. Penalties took us out of the run game. We just never really got started.”
(On if not being able to run well affects passing)
“It has a lot to do with it. It opens everything up. Our plays down the field are run-action passes. You have to make those plays downfield.”
(On QB Austin Davis’ play)
“Obviously he’s disappointed in the interception returned for touchdown. There were a few other opportunities where he just needed to throw the ball away and have a shot at a field goal, and he took a sack, so we’ll look at it. He made some plays. He made some good throws. He dissected the defense and made some good throws.”
(On if QB Shaun Hill came into the game with an injury)
“No, it was something that happened during the game. It worsened. It was mild and it was getting worse, so at that point you have to pull him.”
(On defending the run)
“No, we felt like we were in pretty good position, we just didn’t execute. I haven’t seen where the breakdown was. The long one, I think it had something to do with the left end is what the coaches said, that would have been (DE) Will (Hayes) so we probably didn’t play it appropriately.”
Rams LB Alec Ogletree
(On the difficulty of the loss after all their hard work over the offseason)
“I think we did some great things today, but we’ve definitely got a little ways to go. We’ve got to get back to the drawing board, go back to work next week and get ready to go on the road and play.”
(On Head Coach Jeff Fisher’s statement, ‘You can’t let the opener define you’)
“It’s a long season. Like he said one game, we definitely wanted to come out here and do a lot better than we did but like I said, we just got to get back to the drawing board and go back to work.”
(On if they prepared for WR Cordarrelle Patterson running the ball)
“They threw a wrinkle in there, but like I said, you just got to come out and play a lot better than we did. They came out and put more points on the board than we did.”
(On if the Vikings’ touchdown at the end of the first half altered the way they looked at the half)
“We just we didn’t stop them when we needed to. They scored some points on us. Like I said, we’ve just got to put this one behind us and get ready for next week.”
(On how Patterson’s 67-yard touchdown run affected the remainder of the game)
“It was a big play for them. It definitely opened up the game a little more than we needed it to be. Like I said, he’s a good player and we just didn’t do what we needed to do to stop them.”
Rams QB Austin Davis
(On how he felt about his performance today)
“Obviously, you saw that it didn’t go too well. You have to tip your hat to the Vikings. They played a really good game. They took it to us so we have to figure some things out, get back to work and get ready to go next week and put this one behind us as soon as we can.”
(On how it feels to work so hard in training camp and preseason and then have a game like this)
“It’s tough. We put a lot of work into this and we are a much better football team than we showed today. I think the biggest thing is just going to be putting us behind us and moving forward. We have a big game next week. Coach (Fisher) just said that the first game does not define who you are.”
(On all the mistakes that the team made today)
“We made too many mistakes. We didn’t execute when we needed to. Whether it was taking sacks or penalties, just whatever it was, you name it, we kind of found a way to mess it up so we have to flip this thing around as soon as we can and not let it drag us down. We have a long season ahead of us and a good football team. We didn’t show that tonight but we have a good football team.”
(On whether the Vikings did anything to surprise them)
“No. We were prepared, we were well prepared. It was just one of those nights where everything they did went right and everything we did went wrong. You have to tip your hat to them. They played a heck of a football game.”
Rams QB Shaun Hill
(On how disappointing the game was overall)
“It was very disappointing. We certainly didn’t see it going down like that coming into today. We had some opportunities early and moved the football, but it was just kind of self-inflicted wounds. We hurt ourselves with some penalties and backed ourselves up and obviously the turnover at the end of the half. I’d like to have that one back and go into halftime with a one score game. That one there is on me for sure.”
(On if his injury had anything to do with his interception before the half)
“There’s no reason to make any excuses, that’s for sure. The leg is a long ways from the head. That’s a play that I should have done something different.”
(On if the Vikings did anything that surprised them)
“Not necessarily. That’s a good defensive group. We knew that going in. They have good players at every level so we knew that it was going to be a fight for sure.”
(On how excited he was coming into the game)
“I was very excited. The way I feel now about it, it’s hard to think back to how excited I was. The whole group was, the whole group was excited.”
(On the mistakes today)
“This is one game out of 16. There is going to be a lot that we can learn from on the film. Guys were making plays out there. It’s the mistakes and those things that we need to cut out. We will see it on film certainly. Our objective going into Week 2 is correcting those things, those mistakes.”
Rams WR Brian Quick
(On if the loss would be described as ‘deflating’)
“Yeah, it hurt, but this doesn’t define us. We’re going to come in tomorrow and make corrections and we’re going to get better. We’re not going to forget it. We just need to build off of it together.”
(On how he explains the team’s performance)
“We know we’re a better team than that. We have to come out and execute it and show it. There’s nothing else to explain.”
(On if it was difficult to adjust as an offense to playing with QB Austin Davis in the second half)
“No, it’s not hard at all. Like I’ve said, we have faith in all of our quarterbacks. We practice with them and we’re going to make the best out of every situation that we’re in. As a receiver, you have to make your quarterback look good. We just have to do our jobs, and we just fell short today.”
(On his facemask penalty)
“Yeah, it was something I was not supposed to do.”
(On how he felt about his numbers in the game)
“We lost, and that’s not good. I mean, we’re a team. My yards and my individual efforts are not really (important) after a loss. I’m going to come out and get the ball, come out in practice and get better for next week.”
(On the effects penalties had on the offense)
“Yeah, those are little things that define the game. I feel that a couple of those are simple mistakes that become big, and they cost us.”
(On if having so few starters in the final preseason game hurt the team)
“No, that had nothing to do with it. We just ended up short today. It’s unfortunate.”
(On if it feels good to be able to see his role grow within the offense)
“Oh yeah, of course. I just have to build on today and get better for my team. We have to get a win next week, and I’m going to come to practice this week and work and do whatever I can.”
Rams LB James Laurinaitis
(On the game being embarrassing)
“It is embarrassing. We put a lot of work into this preseason, and we have a great week of practice, personally and defensively. To come out here and play the way we did in front of the home crowd for the opener is embarrassing.”
(On the game getting away from the Rams)
“No, I never felt at the end of the first half it was that way. Maybe in the fourth, when things started going real bad. That long touchdown run hurt, that really depleted the place. We didn’t make enough plays defensively to help in any way. Coach said in the locker room, all three phases we just need to go back to work.”
(On the game defining the Rams)
“It definitely won’t define us like Coach said but I think it’s a wake call to a lot of guys. If anything it should humble us and put us back to work. Go back and are you doing everything in practice, are you doing everything in the film room, are you preparing the best you can. It definitely took the patients just for this opening week.”
(On was there anything he wasn’t expecting)
“Not a whole bunch. Couple of little things, the run to Cordarrelle Patterson was something different. We’ve got to find a way to get him on the ground. Every week teams are going to do stuff to break tendencies or change it up on you. We’ve got to find ways to get guys on the ground. You’ve got play rules that you have on certain defenses. I wish I had an answer but we’ve just got to play better. We have to execute our plays that we know how to and we just have to do it.”
Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer
(On game)
It was a good win today. Our guys played well, I thought. In the first half, I felt we kind of self destructed a little bit. We had too many penalties. I like how this team works, I have said that numerous times. It was good to get on the road and get a win. We still have a lot of work to do. There are some good things to take off of this tape and we have a lot of things we have to correct. “
(On looking wet)
“Yeah, I am a little wet. The guys have been wanting to dump on me for a little while.”
(On WR Cordarrelle Patterson and the big play)
“That was a big play and the CB Josh Robinson interception before the half was a big play, because we got some points on the board there. When you get a one play drive like that, Cordarrelle made a great run and the offensive line did a great job blocking. We have been talking a lot about receivers staying on their blocks and keep fighting so that we can get some extra yards, for RB Adrian Peterson especially, but some of our other guys did too. I think he made good run.”
(On if today’s game was an indication on how much Patterson will be involved)
“We always want to get our play makers the football. So however we can do that, by throwing it, catching it, handing it, it doesn’t matter. Our offensive coaches and Norv Turner do an awesome job of understanding where to go and when to take the shots. Our offensive line today played very well against a very good defensive front. We had a few snap problems, but other than that I thought we protected well, I think we had a good plan going into the ball game, and it worked out.”
(On the play of CB Josh Robinson)
“I have never been disappointed with Josh other than when he wasn’t practicing. Josh is a very good athlete; he has a lot of speed. All of these guys have to try and do the techniques we are trying to teach them to do. I saw him a few times in the ball game when I was watching the corner, and I thought he did some good things. Obviously, the interception was a big one.”
(On today being his first Gatorade shower)
“I believe I have had them before. I told them I don’t want any more until I win the big one.”
(On the team settling down and adjusting to correct sloppy play)
“I think they were so excited to play today, with it being opening day, but every team is excited. I I felt like we were over juiced up, as far as getting ready to go. I talked to them at half time and told them to settle down we will be alright. Lets just keep what we have been doing all pre-season and I think that we did. Today is a great learning experience for us, from being a new program and a young football team. How to win on the road, the things you have to do to beat teams on the road. I am proud of them.”
(On the play of the defense)
“It was OK, we still have a long way to go. It is so easy in this ball game, in this profession to jump on and off the band wagon. We just want to continue to get better every day. We keep coaching them real hard. We keep making sure the players are keeping their nose grindstone and I think they played well, but that was today. Next week will be a different week.
(On envisioning such a lopsided win)
“It just happens like that that sometimes. You intercept a pass for a touchdown or you get a big long run and things like that happen. I assume that there won’t be very many of these. I have said for a long long time, that I think the fans of the Vikings will like how this team plays. When they watch this game today, they will be excited about continually watching. We played with a lot of heart and a lot of effort. For the most part we did a lot of the right things.”
(On being nervous about today’s game)
“Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. I felt good about the game, I felt good about the game plan, I felt good about the players, I felt good about how we practiced this week. I had to get a bit of Pepto-Bismal from Sug,but I do that every week, so that isn’t anything unusual.
I was probably more nervous for the first pre-season game. I was nervous, don’t get me wrong, but there are levels of nervousness.”
(On the play of LB Anthony Barr)
“I thought he did some really good things. He still can be so much better. I watched him on two rushes and I was little disappointed in him. I have such high expectations for these players, and especially for him. I anticipate him being really good.”
(On why the expectations for Barr are so different)
“Probably because he is such a young guy, he is really learning a new position. He has great physical skill and he is very smart. I don’t know that my expectation level for him is higher than anyone else but I do have high expectations for him. I want him to be good.”
(On the play of RB Adrian Peterson)
“I thought he was good. He ran the ball extremely hard. He is a physical downhill guy. They obviously made a point to go and cut him, the best they could most of the day.”
Vikings DE Everson Griffen
(General Comments)
“We came in with an awesome game plan and came in ready to play. We had a great week of practice and unfortunately I was sick for a couple, but I love the game of football and Iove my teammates. I want to play for the guy next to me and there was no way I was missing this first game.”
(On the Vikings defense and Head Coach Mike Zimmer)
“You have to take the thinking out of football and let us play. He (Coach Zimmer) makes sure we’re in the best position possible on every situation. He’s very dynamic in his play calling and he allows us to play free and have fun and that’s his biggest philosophy. It’s attack, have fun and be yourself and go make plays.”
(On winning on the road)
“We have to keep on going. This can’t be where we think that we’ve arrived. We’ve got to keep on driving each and every game, have the carryover from this game, fix the penalties and mistakes and go out there get prepared for New England and win against them at home.”
(On whether it was a dominating performance by the Vikings)
“It wasn’t dominating. We can play a lot better – penalties, penalties can kill a team. But, we allowed ourselves to stay in the moment and execute our assignments, but still win the game.”
(On all the pregame talk about the Rams defense)
“It was never about their defensive line, it was always about our guys and what we could do. We knew that they had a good defensive line, but it’s not about them it’s about us and we went out there and executed and won the game.”
(On the Vikings new coaching staff)
“From top to bottom, from Norv (Turner, Offensive Coordinator) to (Head Coach Mike) Zimmer to the coaching staff we have the best game plan in the world. They allow us to come out there and play free and execute our assignments and we got the big win today and I’m so happy for them, our team and each guy on the team.”
Vikings QB Matt Cassel
(On if he could have envisioned such a lopsided win)
“You never know in these games, especially opening day, you don’t know what to anticipate sometimes. At the same time, any time your defense goes out there and performs the way that they, do holding the opponent to six points, I like our chances. I’m really excited for (Head) Coach (Mike) Zimmer. He’s come in here since Day 1 and he said that we need to raise our expectation level. I think it was a challenge to all of us, and I think that the guys stepped up in that room to that challenge and we worked our tail off up to this point. To go out and get a decisive road win, I think that it was a good start to the season for us.”
(On his offense line’s performance against the Rams’ pass rush)
“They had a tough task and I think that they stepped up to the challenge. I think that they were one of the league leaders in sacks last year, and I think we gave up one sack all day. That’s a testament to those guys. I think they work well together. They work hard throughout the week. I was really excited that they played the way that they did and they were able to manage that rush.”
(On Vikings WR Cordarrelle Patterson’s long touchdown run)
“It was easy for me to watch after that. I just tossed it and I basically was a fan at that point, watching him crisscross all the way down the field. He’s a spectacular talent. To be as big as he is, and the shiftiness and the elusiveness that he has is pretty impressive.”
(On Patterson’s explosive impact)
“Any time the ball is in his hands, there’s a chance for a big play. He’s shown that time and time again, and again today it showed up. It was a great play and it was one of those that we all got excited about.”
(On if the offensive approach could look different in the coming weeks depending on the opponent)
“I think it’s just from one week to the next. First and foremost, we knew going in that we were going to be challenged with their rush, so I think that we were trying to slow that rush down throughout the course of the first half. Obviously, we had our hiccups as an offensive unit, but all in all we made some big plays. We took advantage of some situations and like I said, any time the defense plays the way that they do, it usually goes pretty well for us altogether.”
(On how rewarding it was to quiet the crowd over the course of the game)
“It’s huge. That’s what you try to accomplish week in and week out when you go on the road. Any time you can get that crowd to calm down, it’s usually because you’re winning. Again, I think that we got to that point in this game where the game was under control, we continued to pound the ball, we made some big plays and the crowd started to calm down. At that point, you feel pretty good about being able to go up and everybody can hear your cadence and go from there.”
(On how tough it is to win on the road)
“I think we hadn’t had one since 2012, like you said. It was huge. To start the way that we did on the road in a tough environment and for us to come out and play the way that we did collectively, I think it gives us a lot of confidence as we go forward.”
(On his relationship with Vikings WR Greg Jennings)
“Like I’ve said, I have a lot of trust in Greg and I know that he’s always going to be in the right spot. They were giving us opportunities to get the ball to him in one-on-one opportunities. Of course any time you can get the ball in Greg’s hands, it’s a good situation for all of us.”
(On Patterson’s versatility)
“He is so dynamic in that regard. Not only at the receiver position, but being able to hand him off the ball and utilize him in the screen game and do those kinds of things because any time you can get a guy like that with the ball in space, there’s the potential for a big play and you saw that today.”
(On the two errant snaps)
“One of them I should have caught. The clock was running down and I was just trying to get my eyes up on the defense and I should have caught it. The other one was I think there was a miscommunication going on up front. I was trying to redirect protection. They thought maybe I started the cadence of getting the snap started. Those things happen. I’m happy that it didn’t turn out to be a catastrophe, which sometimes it does, but those are things that are obviously still a work in progress. This is Week 1; we knew that there was going to be some hiccups here and there. All in all, I’m really proud about how we performed today.”
(On if he saw Zimmer get a Gatorade shower)
“No, I had no idea. He got a Gatorade shower? Good for him. I’m sure somebody’s going to be in trouble for doing that.”
(On how Vikings WR Jarius Wright is developing as a player)
“Jarius has always been a guy that I think not a lot of people talk about. He’s underrated and he adds explosiveness to our offensive unit. He’s a guy that can play inside; he can play outside. He’s also a guy that’s a really smart football player. I think that he adds a lot to this offensive unit. I was excited to have him out there and be able to get an opportunity today.”
(On if he thinks this win means something to Zimmer)
“I’m sure it means something to him because I think every man in that room was excited for Coach Zimmer. This was his first win as a head coach. He’s a guy that’s been around this league for 20-some odd years and he works hard. He’s been a great coach and I think that to get his first win, we were all excited for him. It was great.”
(On his comfort level going into this game)
“I felt very comfortable going in. We worked hard throughout OTAs, mini camp, everything like that. I think we got to a comfort level there where we all felt really good about what we were doing and had a great understanding for what was trying to get accomplished.”
Vikings RB Adrian Peterson
(On what today’s win meant to him)
“It really meant a lot and this is what we have been building up for. We had a good week of preparation and we came out and executed what Coach Norv (Turner) asked us to do. It worked out well for us.”
(On what it felt like getting a big win against a good defense like the Rams)
“Yeah that was one of the things we accepted earlier. We knew we were going up against a good defense, especially a good front line. Our guys up front didn’t back down and we continued to hit them in them in the mouth. We were able to be effective in the run game and be balanced as an offense.”
(On being outrushed by teammate Cordarrelle Patterson)
“It doesn’t happen often but he’s a tremendous talent. As soon as he got that pitch, I saw a great block by (Matt) Asiata and I threw my hands up because I knew he had the ability to take it the distance. I’m happy for him and we got the win most importantly. I’m going to sleep well on the flight back.”
(On the possibility of having more opportunities to rush when Cordarrelle Patterson runs the way he did today)
“I don’t think they would have us both
