The Seattle Seahawks ( 2-2) will travel to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to take on NFC West Division leaders LA Rams (3-1) Sunday 1:05 p.m PT. The Seahawks are coming off their best half of the season which saw their offense score 36 second-half points in their 46 to 18 home win over the Indianapolis Colts (1-4) The Rams are coming off an impressive 35 to 30 road win over the Dallas Cowboys.
Here is what the coaches had to say about their upcoming NFC West showdown.
SEAHAWKS PETE CARROLL
On facing the Rams
“We are ready to go. I’m sure you have some questions about some of the guys as far as injury stuff. I’ll let you ask that. This is a good opportunity for us to jump back into the division. We’ve seen the Rams play really good football in the start of the season. They have been explosive on offense and really control the ball. They lead the league in scoring, which is a tremendous turnaround for their program but also just a great job by Sean [McVay] and what they had done with the offense in short order. Defense has changed too, with Wade Phillips going in. We are looking at that to try and understand how it all fits together. But he has been a great coordinator and put together nothing but good defenses forever.
We know we got problems there. This also happens to be one of the better special teams groups we have played. [Johnny] Hekker is a great punter, the kicker [Greg Zuerlein], they got returners, and they got the whole thing in there. [John] Fassel does a great job with the scheme too so we know we have challenges across the board. They are a good match up and we got to be right and have a heck of a week to get ready for it.”
(On what have you noticed about Goff since the last time you saw him)
“He is really sure of himself. The ball is coming out quick. He is utilizing the calls really well and that quick game, ball’s out. He is doing a great job checking the balls down evidence by Todd’s [Gurley] catches. He has 20 catches, leading the team in receptions already. More efficient, they have only been sacked four times. So everything is working really well and it’s fitting together. He is a quick decision guy. He gets the ball out. That is playing right into, I’m sure, the way they are talking in their style.”
(On Gurley’s ability to run and catch the ball and being a well-rounded back)
“He is just that. He is a terrific player. He really can do everything. He runs good routes. He makes plays down field. He can shake and make you miss in the short routes passing game. He is an in-depth runner. He is tough, he is creative. He is off his feet a lot, jumping over guys and doing a lot of creative stuff. And he is obviously really durable. He is a stud. He can really hang in there and take all the load. He has been playing a lot.”
LA Rams head coach Sean Mcvay
(On how would you assess where your team is through the first 4 games)
“Well I think the first thing is that we have a bunch of really good players that bought in and are continuing to just do what we talk about and that is taking things one day at a time. We just focus on trying to get better every single day and we got a great challenge ahead with the Seahawks, but I think in terms of where our team is at: making a lot of progress, not even close to where we need to be but I think when you look at all three phases, they have done some good things at certain points throughout the first quarter of the year. For us to be able to give ourselves a chance to compete against the Seahawks, we got to put three phases together and we got to be at our best.”
(On how you and your team view the Seahawks in terms of the division)
“Well I think the way we kind of try and take it one game at a time. We know that they’ve done an excellent job being relevant and winning the division a handful of the last few years. But this is a great challenge for our team. We certainly have a huge amount of respect for what they represent and the type of competitors that they are and the way that Coach Carroll always gets those guys ready to go, week in and week out, so we know we have a great challenge ahead. We just try to take things one day at a time and hopefully our approach and our preparation will give us a chance to have a good performance. This is one of the best teams in the league without a doubt. I don’t think they have any weaknesses. They are strong in all three phases and it’s why they have been so consistent over the last handful of years.”
