San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, and offensive line coach and run game coordinator Chris Foerster spoke with reporters after Thurday's practice, as the team prepares for its Week 2 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. Here is everything they had to say.
Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
QB Brock Purdy
One play from last week, the second-and-eight play in the second quarter, you're up right around midfield and you saw [Pittsburgh Steelers S] Minkah [Fitzpatrick] coming off the edge. I don't know if you surprised him, but you kind of spun away from it and you found WR Deebo Samuel. What was your recollection on that play? Did you fool him with your eyes because he did not react until the very last second you spun out?
"Yeah, I was just trying to go through the progression of the play, see the defense and then he came off the edge pretty hot. So, it was sort of like a last minute thing. I was just trying to get out and make a play. I feel like the momentum he had coming at me and stuff for me to just spin out of it, it was tough for him to make that kind of play. Then obviously Deebo hit him on the scramble drill, so it was a good play."
On the fourth-and-one early, I know maybe that's not your role to campaign to go for it. Was there any conversation, Kyle deciding to go for it or was it right away? And then what was your thought process when you knew you were going for it?
"Oh yeah, it was right away. He immediately started saying the personnel for the next play. And I was all for it. And then I think all of us were. We wanted to obviously maintain the momentum, get the first-down and try to score after our defense just got a three-and-out to start the game. So, once we had heard that we're going to go for it, we were all about it."
Does it seem weird that as long as you've been the quarterback, now that you haven't faced the Rams?
"Yeah, in a sense. Yeah, just the game planning. Last year, the two games that we game planned for them and then not playing in either of them. Then here's my third time doing it, so it feels like I have played against them, but I haven't. So yeah, I'm excited to."
What's this week been like as far as just preparing to face them for the first time?"Yeah,
obviously you've got [Los Angeles Rams DL] Aaron Donald. You've got the scheme that they've been doing for a while on defense and so really we've taken things that we've done in the past and what not. Building off those kinds of things. And really for me it's just going to be about going out there, seeing the defense, making sure we're in the right play formation, all that kind of stuff. Keep it simple. Just play ball, play our ball. Yeah, that's about it."
Third-and-11, you scrambled for 17 up by 23 with like 7:50 to go. Were all the coaches okay with that? Were you okay with that now when you think back on it? Or is there some point where you think, 'I don't know, maybe not at this time of the game?'
"Yeah, they were all for it. We moved the chains and at that point, man, we're still trying to put up points on the board and stuff and keep a drive going. So, everyone was pumped up that we were able to get a first-down on third-and-11 and hopefully score after that. So, it wasn't something like, 'Don't scramble, check it down.' It's not like that. We want to win and we're going to do what it takes and hopefully when I'm in the right situation, I'll do what it takes. And so yeah, there's nothing more than that."
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan said yesterday that running ability in college doesn't always translate to the NFL, it's hard to predict sometimes. How have you sort of experienced that? Has it been easier to gain these yards than you might've expected to? How have you kind of seen that transition?
"I feel like in the right circumstance or situation you can pick up some yards in the NFL. I think in college if something broke down, I feel like we saw more busted coverages and what not. So, it's like, 'Man, I can pick up a bunch of yards here with my legs.' Here obviously, everyone is extremely fast, doesn't matter if they're the nose tackle or three tackle, like they're going to be fast, they're going to be explosive. So for me, I'm not always thinking run, run, run. It's how can I dish it off to my playmakers for them to go get the yards? But in the right situation, if I see some green grass, 'Okay, let's go.' I feel like as I've played more and more, I've gotten a little bit better of a feel of it. I feel like at first, I was a little tentative to scramble and what not. But as I've played, it's like, 'All right, the defense gives me 10 yards. Let's take it.'"
Do you remember what you were thinking last year when you guys went to SoFi and RB Christian McCaffrey had his first full week with the team and he threw a touchdown, caught one and ran for one. Do you remember just kind of what you thought of that added an element that was coming to the team?
"So, I remember the first week with Kansas City. It's like, man, I was excited like, 'How are we going to use Christian McCaffrey in our offense? What are we going to do?' So, we had certain plays that he was able to come in halfway through the week and play. But then once he had a full week under his belt, going into the Rams week, and then obviously his versatility to be able to use him like on the sideline for myself. I was like, 'This is going to be fun to watch.' I don't think anyone's really going to expect what we're about to do with him. And so we were all pumped about it. And then when he actually performed and did what he did, we're like, 'Man, this is going to be fun having him in our offense now with everyone else.' So, it was exciting."
Deebo and Christian both talked about the selflessness on this team, there's a bit of star power you could say in the locker room. Do you think that's unusual, that everyone's just focused on the team and not on themselves?
"Yeah, it's rare. I think you have all this, stardom on a team and what not, and for everyone to just put the ego aside and be like, 'Hey, we want to win. We want to win a Super Bowl and we're going to do what it takes.' And I think what we all know is what it takes is to put the ego aside. If I don't get all these yards and catches and touchdowns for one game, but our other guy does, like, 'Hey, I did my part to help win.' And that's what we all care about here. And really the leaders, the guys that have been here for a while have set that standard. It's not like just certain guy, like we've all learned from the older guys that have come before us. So the culture, the organization here, that's the standard."
Does the more success you have, the more you sort of force people to reexamine, what makes a quarterback successful in the NFL and what traits are most important?
"Man, that's a loaded question in a sense. I think it comes down to obviously decision making, being able to make decisions quick, the right decision. And then obviously just being smart with the ball. I feel like if you can just do those things and do what the play caller is asking of you and not doing too much, then I think you can help put the team in a successful position. And so that's something that I've just tried to remind myself of and not trying to do too much, not trying to be a superhero and do everything but make the right decision every single play and do it consistently. And so, I don't necessarily know if that's something that people now are asking themselves if they're going to go draft a quarterback in late rounds and what not. But that's sort of how I do it and I guess it works."
How hard is it for you to throw away a ball? Kyle went over and talked to you about maybe how to make that decision if that's not there. Is it hard for you to say, 'Let's just check it out of the mountains here?'
"Yeah, I feel like growing up, playing football, all that stuff, it's always been like, 'Man, I can always have a chance in a play even if it's not there.' And so sometimes to be able to just surrender for a play, yeah, it's sort of tough. Like, 'Man, I got to throw the ball away and lose second-down to play third-down now. So sometimes there's certain situations where it's like, 'Man, I feel like I could do more, but that's what we preach and that's what they believe and I'm all for it. Like it's about playing smart with the ball and if we have to punt and give it back to our defense, I'm all for it. We got a great defense. So, it's picking and choosing your battles with that."
Is that even harder just given the talent level of guys around you, knowing that if I can just give this ball to this guy in space something big could happen here?
"Yeah, I mean, we all know that like if I can get the ball to Christian, Deebo, [WR Brandon Aiyuk] B.A., [TE] George [Kittle] on a two-yard pass and then they can make something crazy happen. So, I feel like it's definitely always in the back of my mind, but at the same time, it's like we're all human. They can get tackled or something crazy can happen if I do try to force it, so just throw it away. So yeah, it's something I'm continuing to learn."
At the end of 17-yard scramble, you go down on one knee, you gave a little first down signal, you had a big smile. Were you feeling it at that time? And did your teammates enjoy that move?
"Yeah, I think in the moment it's like, man, I'm going through my progressions. I'm trying to hit my guys first and then I just felt like I saw green grass and then to be able to split two defenders and get a first down at that point in the game, I'm just trying to bring some juice and energy to the guys, and I feel like they like seeing stuff like that. And it was real, you know, in the moment I was like, I'm going do this because I see my receivers doing it. So, had a little fun with it and you know, just trying to enjoy football."
What was the reaction in the film room when you guys watched WR Ray-Ray McCloud III and Aiyuk on the Christian touchdown? What were guys saying? Because I mean, that was an extraordinary effort.
"Yeah, yeah, it was awesome. I mean, the first time we watched it just everybody's, you know the sounds that they make, like B.A.'s block first everyone going crazy about that. And then Ray-Ray coming, running around the corner, you could see Ray-Ray starting to run and then everyone's like hyping him up and when he made his block, everyone was going crazy. So yeah, that kind of stuff, man. That's what we're talking about, like not having ego, being selfless, being able to make blocks like that even though those are guys that catch balls, score touchdowns, all that kind of stuff. But being willing to block in the run game down the field we all feed off it and so we got to maintain it and continue that."
Successful college quarterbacks so often are fast-tracked to the pros, you weren't, and now all that experience is looked at as a tremendous asset, but when you came out of college, did NFL teams look at it as an asset or were they wondering like, why weren't you able to leave college earlier?
"Yeah, I think a little bit of both. Some guys look at it like, man, you got a lot of experience, you got a lot of reps, different scenarios, all that kind of stuff which is great and that's what they like. But at the same time, yeah, there was some doubt like, alright, if you are that good, why'd you stay four years? You started your freshman year, how were you not ready after your third year? There's definitely some questions and stuff that they ask, and they push. But again, that's not up to me. That's something that they do ask and that I think that they look at. But, for me, I was able to get four good years in at Iowa State, and all those reps and stuff I feel like added up and helped me, for me to be ready when my opportunity was to come."
QB Sam Darnold was talking about how much he enjoys the challenge this week of being Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford and sort of simulating him for the defense and how important he thinks that is. I'm curious about your reflection on how big that role was for you last year when you were the number two guy simulating the other team and how seriously did you take it?
"Oh yeah, it was huge. I feel like, obviously, you guys see all the videos, like the no-look passes and looking off linebackers and stuff. Honestly, when you're like trying to replicate what an NFL starting quarterback does, and you try to do that at practice, you sort of pick up on some stuff and then you sort of learn things and honestly add stuff to your toolbox, I feel like. So that was one thing. And then obviously being able to, selflessly, sort of put your stuff aside and try to emulate the other team for [LB] Fred [Warner], [LB] Dre [Greenlaw], that's what it was really about is giving those guys a real, legit look. And, so whenever last year when I was on the sideline seeing our defense kill it, I'm like, shoot, maybe I had a little part of helping them do that, have a great week and whatnot. So, it was huge for me and honestly, it made me better too."
Who did you do best? Who was your best?
"Shoot. I mean last year, nah, I don't want to compare myself to [Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick] Mahomes, but yeah, I don't know."
Defensive Coordinator Steve Wilks
Opening comments:
"We had two good days of practice in this preparation for the Rams. I know they're a pretty good football team, well-coached, we've gone against [Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean] McVay several times in the past. Those guys are always ready to play. So last week was last week. I know some of you guys are going to have questions about that. To be quite honest, I've moved on because nothing last week is going to be able to help us this week. So, we're focusing right now on the Rams. And with that, I take your questions."
They target their slot receivers quite a bit. You guys had two different nickel configurations in Pittsburgh. Did you learn anything from that? Did that kind of inform your decision on that position moving forward?
"No, it is not quite a decision. Again, with me, the season is so long, so I don't want to wait until something happens to try to get someone ready. So, it's always that constant trying to evolve and try to get guys prepared whether I can steal a series here or there. I thought we did a great job for us getting [CB Isaiah] Oliver in as well as A.T. [CB Ambry Thomas] and pushing Demo [DB Deommodore Lenoir] to the nickel position."
McVay went extreme ball control last week and Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford was really good on third down. They have two different receivers. They got Los Angeles Rams WR Puka Nacua, who has great hands and they've got Los Angeles Rams WR Tutu Atwell who's a real burner. You have to defend them quite differently. Could talk about what you're seeing on film from those two receivers?
"Well, I think it all starts with [Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew] Stafford. Of course [Los Angeles Rams WR Cooper] Kupp is out, but as you mentioned, they have capable receivers that can get the job done. And they did a great job last week, as you mentioned, controlling, running the football more than they have shown in the past. I think he did an excellent job as far as putting the ball where it needed to be. Great seven-ball route on the sideline. He came down with that. So, it's not so much about really trying to defend certain guys, it's more about the quarterback and what we can do with him."
What do you need to see out of Ambry Thomas for him to stay in that role that he began last game in?
"Well, it's with all the guys, it's about consistency. Again, we stacked a good one the first game, but how can we continue to do the same thing each and every week? So that's what we're looking for from all the guys, just consistent play."
How did he play in that?
"I thought he played well. I thought he did some good things. I'm not all about the production and guys look for the stats and whatnot. I look for guys executing and doing their job, working their technique based off the call and the situation. And I thought within the defense he did that."
S Talanoa Hufanga with that lateral on the interception, is that something that you encourage? Is it something that they practice or is it just something that happens?
"It's something that we talk about all the time with just scoring on defense and yes, we want him to be smart with the ball. We know the ball is everything. I felt like in that situation, he probably could have outran the offensive lineman. So, judgment on him trying to pitch the ball just make sure that, the guy's behind him and not in front of him."
Were you able to check in from upstairs on how DL Nick Bosa was doing throughout the game and kind of what's the plan with him going in this week?
"Well, we constantly talk during each series, all the coaches, myself and [Defensive Line Coach Kris] Kocurek as well as [Linebackers Coach Johnny] Holland and then [Defensive Backs Coach] Daniel Bullocks. So yes, we did. He was fine. I think it was 32 plays he may have had. So, he was great in regards to that. And no setbacks this week."
What's the hallmark of the Sean McVay offense? What makes it unique or its own thing?
"I think it's a lot of window dressing, with all the motions and shifts and putting a receiver in the backfield, tightening at one, running back at one. So, it tests your variables as I call it, and make sure that you're on point. Your communication has to be great because one guy has his eyes in the wrong spot, that's a big play."
The Rams were so good in that game in second-and-long, third-and-long, which is a place where an offense doesn't normally want to be, but they thrived in it anyway. How were they able to do that?
"Well, I think once again, just the guy that's at the quarterback position, Stafford does a tremendous job in getting the ball where he needs to go. The pocket was great. He had time to be able to sit back and go through his progression. And then again, I thought the receivers stepped up. One of the best in the league is down right now and you really couldn't tell based off their performance last week."
What's your assessment of DL Drake Jackson? Is he the next former LB Lawrence Taylor?
"Yeah, we're a long way away from that, buddy. Long way."
What was your assessment? He had three sacks, a big game.
"Well, I was very impressed and you guys know from day one back in the spring, I've been talking about him and his commitment to the offseason in the weight room. He's gotten bigger. He has gotten stronger. He stayed around here the whole time. So that first game was just really the fruits of his labor."
Maybe all of his sacks were kind of second effort or have the quarterback move from the pocket and he's there or he trips him at the right time. Is there a technique to kind of that second effort set?
"No, I think the key word that you just said is effort. That's what you cancontrol. That's the staple of what we do across the board. We don't teach that. Kocurek does a great job and always straining those guys each and every day in practice. Something that needs to be noted though is that our inside guys were like, you call whether it was [Former Utah Jazz Point Guard John] Stockton or [Former Los Angeles Lakers Point Guard Magic [Johnson]. I was joking with [DL] Arik [Armstead] because he's six eight. They did a lot of assists this past week as far as just really giving those guys the pocket inside, it would collapse right here. We were really kidding them inside right there with the rush. Those guys on the outside are going to benefit from that."
Do you have a stat for that?
"No, it's just what we call factor grade. Arik didn't show up in the stat sheet, but you can watch that game and see that he was a factor time and time again, where someone else made the play on that."
It seemed like those guys were getting doubled a lot and Bosa too, which created more opportunities for Drake to go one-on-one. How much can that help that Drake and guys are taking advantage of those one-on-ones, where maybe it opens things up for those other people?
"Well, I think it's going to just like, we do, I do defensively. I think each week it's based off what you're trying to take away and who that opponent is. Take your choice with us. You go with Bosa and you're talking about Arik, you're talking about Drake, [DL Javon] Hargrave inside, if you try to do the inside guy. So, it's across the board and we always say if you are one-on-one, you better win."
How has the communication with LB Fred Warner gone through the radio? I know this was the first real game that you had a chance to kind of go with that play calling back and forth.
"It's been great. Fred, again, is just a great leader out there, takes control. He's so smart and gets the guys in the right checks, right positions, things that we want."
In terms of the motion that you're talking about with the Rams, it seems like they use that and a lot of teams are using that to get receivers in motion and build up some momentum before the snap. What sort of challenges does that present for DBs especially?
"Well, I don't think it's so much of a challenge. I think it's maybe more of a benefit from them to the point to where you're exactly right. They're trying to avoid contact. So, they put guys in positions so they can get free releases, but from the standpoint of us, we can change things around based off our coverage and even our alignment. So, I don't think it's a big advantage."
What do you think of the Los Angeles Rams RB Kyren Williams? He had a couple of good runs, not a great yards per carry, but he falls forward a lot.
"Well, in my opinion, he's more of a power runner than [Los Angeles Rams RB Cam] Akers. I think they both complement one another. We've been talking all week about really wrapping up because those guys do a great job yardage after the contact as far as making guys miss. So just as last week, we got to do a great job getting guys rallying to the football."
With Tutu Atwell, does it help facing a Pittsburgh Steelers WR Calvin Austin the week before, another kind of smaller joystick, speedy kind of receiver like that?
"Yes, it helps you whatnot, but I feel like we get certain different looks in practice and we try to match that up based off jersey number, who we want to wear this for us. The makeup and the composition of that particular player."
Fred's hit on Pittsburgh Steelers RB Najee Harris on the fourth defensive snap. It literally looks like he knows the play. You talked about his smarts. Does he know?
"At times. He does a great job with his film study. He can anticipate and know exactly what's coming. So, I definitely give him all the credit. He's definitely a smart guy and as I said before, he communicates, calls things out pre-snap, which really affects and helps everybody around him."
Offensive Line/Run Game Coordinator Chris Foerster
There's a lot of focus on OL Colton McKivitz – that Pittsburgh Steelers LB T.J. Watt's not a terrible player. But overall, what was your assessment about him?
"Overall, the offensive line didn't play good enough as a whole. McKivitz, [OL Spencer] Burford, [C] Jake [Brendel], [OL Aaron] Banks and [T] Trent [Williams], everybody could have played a lot better. So as a whole, we need to play better. Obviously, we did enough things well to have some production on offense. But it's not to the standard that the guys want play to and we played against a good front on the road, and the game got the way it got, but it's still, our guys, we have to play. We have to play at a higher level and play better. And the first game of the year, you don't know until you get out there how you're going to be. So, we obviously have to play a little bit more consistently is the key. There were some really good snaps. There were some really good things. There were times where all of them were playing at a very high level. There were other times where each guy would take their turn and have just a little bit off, some more than others. But at the end of the day, it wasn't a consistent enough performance by the offensive line."
When you go out to practice for the first time on Wednesday, what are the points of emphasis for Colton McKivitz?
"Same things as always. There's no change. Nothing's changed. So, the same reason you get beat on Sundays, the same reason you get beat in August. The same reason you get beat in April. They're all the same things. There's no, oh gosh, this happened now. We'll fix this. No, it's the same points of emphasis. And during the course of a game, a guy can fall back off and fall back into bad habits. Or a guy can just, in the course of a game, lose sight of it. He needs to set a little bit deeper or set a little bit wider, or he's pulling back his outside hand too quickly. Whatever. There's a hundred different things, but it's no different than you just look at it and go – this is what's wrong. And it's that simple. It's simple, but it's not easy to do and to perform when you're in the heat of battle against a great rush or a silent count, all the things that went into the game, but no excuses, that's what we have to do. We'll be doing it this week and we'll do it every week for the next 17, however many weeks are left, and if we get to play after that, then we'll have to do it then. So, but really there's nothing like, there's no, oh, hey Colton, now we'll go out and now that will never happen again. Shoot. No, it's going to happen again. It's the same things that when Trent struggles with something, it's the same stuff. It's all the same. It's very rare that a guy stops having whatever his Achilles heel is, it's going to kind of stick around for his whole career. It's hard to finally put it to bed. You're always going to have something in you that you have to continue to address, and sometimes new things crop up."
How do you term it though? The mistakes that he made, were they easy fixes? Are they difficult fixes?
"Yeah, no, all the typical, when a guy runs around the corner on you, there's a lot of different reasons for it. Sometimes it's because you don't sit deep enough. Sometimes it's because you lean at the point of contact. Sometimes it's because you don't use your outside hand properly. Sometimes it's because you do something with your footwork. Sometimes it's you reach across with your inside hand too quick, I mean, I could go down a list of 15 things, 20 things that all of them could lead to a guy turning the corner and spinning at the top and getting the pressures that he got from that, which is how he rushed the passer, which is what you work on, which is really hard to replicate during the week. But as the game goes on, you would hope that it would get better. And it just didn't, we just didn't make those steps during the game that you hoped to make. But a great learning experience for him and for our team. And obviously it has to be better and we'll keep working to make it better."
Facing Los Angeles Rams DL Aaron Donald, over the last four years, eight times or nine times you've seen him, how many different places have you seen him?
"Every spot, all five spots I've seen him at. I even saw him off the ball I think at one point in our game a couple years ago when [former San Francisco 49ers C Alex] Mack was here, we were looking at it the other day. But I've seen him on all five spots across the line and they just put him in a position where they think they can get him in a one-on-one matchup without somebody helping – trying to create one-on-one rushes for him. And you see him everywhere. Everybody's going to see him. I think he'll favor our right side and based on how we set things up too, because they kind of know what we're trying to do to them. So, when we show a certain formation, they may put him somewhere else thinking that's where the one-on-one's going to be."
Since 2019, when WR Deebo Samuel got here, that was kind of when head coach Kyle Shanahan and GM John Lynch shifted more towards the physical receivers, particularly as it relates to the run game. How have you seen that commitment to getting physical guys, especially on the edges, in the run game kind of evolve?
"Yeah, I mean, I know one thing in this offense since I was involved in 2010 with Coach Shanahan in Washington is that receivers are required to block, receivers are required to be physical, receivers are required to be the guy that they're not going to say, well, that's acceptable. Everybody blocks. Everybody's held to a high standard and takes all 11 guys to run the football, and if we don't have all 11 doing it, we're not going to be as effective running the ball. That's always been the expectation here. So, the physicality and the blocking, I think those guys have done a phenomenal job. As far as the physicality of running, we're drafting receivers to be receivers. If they happen to be Deebo Samuel who's a running back and a receiver, whatever he's called himself the wide back or something like that. But he is tremendous at both and we've got physical guys, I think if you asked Kyle, I'm not sure he'd say that's the mold that we're trying to fit guys into. We're going to go get good receivers and then whatever they can do from there, they'll do."
Guys like Deebo and WR Jauan Jennings, when other younger guys come in where they're setting a tone though in terms of blocking?
"Absolutely. Our guys are asked to block linebackers on a lot of plays and because of that, they don't turn it down. They do a nice job. It's a challenge for them too. They've blocked defensive ends in our toss-crack game, and they take it as a challenge and they work really hard to do it, and I'm very proud of the way they execute it. So yeah, it shows the other guys that, well, if Deebo's doing it, if [WR Brandon] Aiyuk's doing it, if JJ's doing it, then I need to do it."
Brendel said that what makes Donald so hard to block is that he's small but strong and fast, so he doesn't give you a big target. You guys have had some success against him. How would you describe him? What makes him the special player that he is in your mind?
"Jake nailed it. I mean, he's a guy that's by no means, he's just hard to get your hands on, which that's the key to protection. If you can get your hands on a guy and keep them on a guy. You have a guy like [former NFL defensive end] Aldon Smith who was tall and linear and slippery, you just could never get your hands on him. This guy's shorter and stockier and hard to get your hands on. What's funny is you can put together a highlight reel of some players that you probably wouldn't know who they were blocking him at times because when you do the right things against Aaron, he is a smaller guy, but getting your hands to that spot are almost impossible and he makes it impossible to do it. Even when you do, he has the counter moves to take it off of him. So, he's just got a complete package. There's just not a lot of surface to hit and he's so strong and so low to the ground that once he gets an edge, once he gets something on you, you don't recover from it. It's over. It's over when it's over. And so you have to make sure you make it not be over as long as it can be."