INGLEWOOD, Calif. – The Rams' 30-25 loss to the Seahawks came down to the wire in Week 18. While the Rams had already clinched the NFC West before the game, the loss dropped them from the No. 3 to the No. 4 seed in the NFC.
After the game, head coach Sean McVay and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo spoke with the media about the team's final game of the regular season and upcoming playoff matchup against the loser of Minnesota-Detroit on Sunday Night Football.
Here are the top quotes and talking points from the press conferences, which can be viewed below:
"There were so many positive contributions today, I thought it really was a testament to the depth that we were able to establish on this roster... I liked what we were able to do defensively... Got some good stops that allowed us to get back in the game. And offensively, I was really pleased. I thought Jimmy did an excellent job, I thought (offensive coordinator) Mike LaFleur did a great job mixing it up." - McVay
As he often does, McVay lent play-calling duties to an assistant coach in a somewhat inconsequential game. LaFleur called plays for the first time this season and it resulted in a 25-point performance with most of the offensive starters on the bench. McVay said that running back Blake Corum, who exited the game with an injury in the first half, fractured his right forearm and will miss the postseason.
When asked if McVay cares about who they play in the postseason, he said "no, I don't." He's thought about the different scenarios and matchups, but believed that resting starters was the best option for the team regardless, because they have to play tough opponents to get to the Super Bowl either way, so the seeding was less important than the rest.
McVay said they won't put too much emphasis on how close they played both Detroit (26-20 overtime loss in Week 1) and Minnesota (30-20 win in Week 8). They matched up so early that the mindset is, "there's a little bit of familiarity, but they have the same thing with us," he said.
"I got hit pretty early, like I said, it just took one hit and I felt like it was right back to normal." - Garoppolo
Garoppolo jokingly said earlier in the week he was going to get his brother to him him before the game to get him ready, but "he was busy this week," so that never happened. But after one hit, Garoppolo was able to lock in. He gave a credit to the blockers in front, not just the offensive line, but the skill players that allowed the screen game to flourish.
They didn't get the win, but Garoppolo threw for 334 yards and two touchdowns in his first start in over a year. He said "when you got guy like (McVay) that brings energy every day, it just kind of trickles down to everyone else."
Garoppolo will have to go back and watch the film to evaluate his performance because he's "pretty critical" of himself. But overall, he kept Los Angeles in the game until the final seconds and moved the ball well.
