On the two-point play, was it strictly called for WR Trent Taylor or were there other options on that?
"No. [WR] Pierre [Garçon] was number one in the progression. They played it pretty good. [WR] Marquise [Goodwin] was number two. Trent was number three."
You had to call a timeout before that and the play before that. Were you having a hard time getting the play call? What was going on there?
"No, the last one, [QB] Brian [Hoyer] slowed down with the clock. The receiver came out on the wrong side, so I wanted to make sure to get him right. It was too big of a call to trust that they were on the same page, so I called a timeout."
The offensive pass interference call (on WR Trent Taylor), critical to the game. Did you see it? Did you watch it?
"No, I didn't see it. They didn't show it up on the screen, so I never saw it."
After Brian's interception to start the game, you had an exchange with him on the sideline. Can you, what was your message to him at that point in the game?
"I just told him, 'Let's start over.' It was the first play of the game. We were hoping to get him a completion early, get one to Marquise there but the corner made a great play. He jumped it. He made a good play on it and we had to go back to work. We didn't change anything. Went right on with the script. It was a tough way to start out, but I thought he did a good job leading us down on the score and making a play to get us in the end zone on that next drive."
What did he show you maybe the whole rest of the game? The way he bounced back from that?
"It was a tough way to start, the situation we were in, especially after Sunday vs. Seattle. I knew it was going to be tough. We wanted to come out here and play well. To start out with the first play as a pick, basically a pick six, I think they took it to the two. I knew that was going to be tough, so I just went up and talked to him, looked in his eyes, he looked fine. He said, 'I'm ready to go. I'll be alright.' He responded pretty well the next drive."
Do you think the Seattle game had an effect on this game? Did you see your guys sluggish or not quite ready to begin the game?
"I don't know. You never know what the reasons are. We definitely didn't begin the game well. I don't know exactly why that was, we got off to that turnover. I know they scored on most of their early drives to start the game. So, I know we started pretty slow on defense too, but the guys kept fighting and I was proud of the guys in the locker room. I thought they battled to the end, but definitely didn't get the result we wanted."
A whole lot of big plays after not getting much offense the first couple weeks. What was the difference this game?
"We had more opportunities, had some better looks, guys made some big plays. It's a matter of time. We went against a couple tough defenses the first two weeks. This was a challenge too. They have a lot of good players over there. They made plays also, but our guys responded. I think our guys felt pretty strongly that we didn't play to our capabilities the first couple weeks. By no means did we today either, but I thought we did improve at least on the offensive side of the ball."
There was a sequence in the first half when you were inside the five, gave the ball to RB Carlos Hyde three straight times. You guys didn't make it. How much did that influence later sequences when you seemed to mix it up a little bit more with the play calling?
"Everything influences everything throughout the game. Each play matters, how they play stuff. We lost our fullback in the second half, which changes some stuff up too. The type of runs you can run. When you get into the redzone, especially inside the five-yard line there's lots of fronts and coverages people can play and send all out blitzes. And if you don't have a fullback then you're going to be outnumbered. Or if you don't use your quarterback as runner, you're going to be outnumbered. They put you in a bind in some spots where they force you to pass and you still aren't going to do it every time, but you've got to mix it up based off some of the looks you're getting."
End of the first quarter into the second, where QB C.J. Beathard really looked like he was warming up and you did talk to Hoyer. Was there any thought of making a change?
"No, there was never a thought of making a change. I didn't even see that Beathard warmed up. I'm sure he did because after the personal foul, Brian was on the ground for a little bit. We didn't know if he was alright when he was laying there. You don't have much time. I don't know, I'm sure [quarterbacks coach] Rich [Scangarello] told our backup to warm up. So, I'm sure that's what happened, but Brian popped back and was able to finish the game."
Do you have a sense of the seriousness Juszczyk's injury?
"I think it was a concussion. I'm not sure. I know they told me that he was out. I don't get much information on it. I just know that it was a concussion and I'll find out when I go back in. I'm sure it'll be in the protocol."
Do you think playing these games on Thursday after a short week of preparation, do you think that leads to more injuries or is it just kind of a coincidence today that there were so many?
"I don't know. I'm sure if we keep doing this for 20 more years, we can have the right stats that can show that, but I don't know what the reasons are. We lost a lot of guys during the second half, but it's a physical game, so it happens on Sundays also. I can't tell you why that is."
To lose after a miraculous fourth quarter comeback. What do you tell the guys after this game?
"I was proud of the guys, how they fought. We just need to get better. We've got 10 days until our next game. It's a division opponent in Arizona. I know we're all excited for that. Right now, it is a grind to play on Thursday, but the benefit of it is you get a little bit more time to recover. I think we do need that now, so we're going to have rehab for the guys to get healthy and try to get the players away from us for about three days. I just really challenge them to use those three days away to get their bodies and minds right, because we plan on them coming back Monday and we plan on getting better each week. I told them, 'When you're 0-3 and you're facing some adversity, you either get better or worse.' If you have mentally strong people, I believe we can get better from all this stuff and I believe we do have the right guys in that room. I don't really care about the record right now. I care about how guys are responding to it and I want these guys to come back Monday ready to go and ready to fight to get our first win."
What do you think the issue was on defense, you seemed to have a tough time generating pass rush?
"I'm not sure. Obviously, they must have blocked us well. We've got to be more relentless. We've got to get after the quarterback. I thought they did a good job of that versus Seattle. I can answer that better after I watch the tape, exactly why. It didn't seem like we did that as well today. He had a little bit more time and didn't tackle as well either."
When you miss the extra point, how does that change the dynamic of the rest of the game?
"It changes it huge. That's why we ended up having to go for two there to try to tie it up and we didn't get that done. It definitely affects it. We missed the extra point, but our special teams also did a hell of a job getting us a couple turnovers and getting that onsides kick. They were one of the reasons we were in that game."
* Transcript provided by the San Francisco 49ers
