Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay spoke with Bay Area reporters via a conference call on Wednesday afternoon and discussed his team's upcoming NFC West showdown in Southern California with the San Francisco 49ers.
This Niners squad is much-improved compared to the ones McVay has faced in recent years. McVay has won three of the four matchups against his friend, Kyle Shanahan, since the two head coaches took control of their respective teams.
This season, the 49ers enter the game 4-0 and atop the NFC West in the standings.
"They've always been a really good team, even though sometimes maybe the record has been a little bit different," McVay said. "The problems (of facing them) have been there from a preparation standpoint. The guys have continued to compete well, but I think you're really seeing everything come together, and they've done an excellent job.
"I mean, you flip the tape on, and it looks like an excellent team with no weaknesses on any one of the three phases. They've got great leadership, sound schemes, good players; it's all the things that you're looking for from a really good team, and they've got all those things."
Of course, McVay said this before Shanahan revealed that his starting right tackle, Mike McGlinchey, will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and will miss four to six weeks. The 49ers were already without starting left tackle Joe Staley.
McVay was asked about the 49ers' exciting rookie defensive end, Nick Bosa, who caused havoc in the Cleveland Browns backfield on Monday night, and what he has seen from the young pass rusher.
"(He's) relentless," McVay responded. "A mature player for a rookie. He's got a great feel, a great motor, a lot of the same things that you see, really, from their entire group up front. They do an excellent job rotating guys, and they play with an energy, you know, snap to whistle.
"You hear them say, 'All gas, no brakes,' and that's what it looks like when you watch them play."
McVay also praised 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, the talented group of running backs, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, and shared that injuries have been the team's biggest obstacle in recent years.
You can listen to the entire conversation below.
