What Kyle Shanahan and others said after 49ers’ 24-14 win vs. Broncos

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and players spoke with reporters after Sunday's 24-14 win over the Denver Broncos.

Here's what they said.

Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.

49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan

Opening comments:

"Injuries from the game. [S] Marques Sigle had an ankle, didn't return. [FB Kyle Juszczyk] Juice, knee, didn't return. [CB] Upton Stout, shoulder, didn't return. Or he did and then went out again."

What about LB Fred Warner? It seemed like he was dealing with something early on in the game, maybe the first half.

"Yeah, he was having some stomach things, but he was all right."

This was a head-knocker, physical game. Was this what you expected?

"It was. We thought it was going to be like this. We talked a little bit about it last night, the type of game it was going to be and it played out very similar to what we were expecting."

At halftime you mentioned having trouble converting on third down. Then you come back out a little bit more of the same early in the third quarter, but then DB Siran Neal makes the play that he makes on special teams. Can you just speak to what that does for the offense?

"It was a huge play by Neal. They held us three-and-out those first two times, I believe, punting there. We actually challenged the special teams last night. The type of game we thought it was going to be, we wanted to run the ball a lot and we said, 'If we're going to meet those goals, we thought the special teams would have to get a turnover.' And Siran came through with that. It was a huge play. It was a huge job, just beating the gunner and making that tackle, let alone getting the ball. Then the momentum changed after that."

You challenged him to get a turnover?

"Not him personally, but the whole special teams. Glad they did it."

What opened up for you there offensively? You had gone three-and-out the first two possessions of the third quarter, only had three points. What happened there?

"There's never a quick answer. Our three plays, some didn't work, some we didn't execute. I thought in the first half it was going like we wanted and they stopped us on two short yardages, which kind of ruined all of our momentum. I forget the sequence of the plays, but I think we had a pass and two runs there to open it up and they stuffed us again. But, once we got it going, got a couple first downs, guys made some big plays and we were able to stick with the run doing it too."

Any early indication on severity of the injuries for Juice or Sigle?

"Juice, we don't know for sure. They're thinking it was probably a knee sprain. His ACL and stuff looked intact, but to find out for sure we'll have to find out tomorrow. Stout, they're guessing an AC, but we won't know for sure until tomorrow. Sigle, they're not sure. They just thought ankle."

You passed former 49ers head coach Bill Walsh for the most games coached as a 49ers coach. Does that stun you when you think about something like that, that you now have passed him in that number?

"A little bit. I feel very awkward talking about myself with that stuff, but I wasn't stunned because I knew it was coming. I was last week when they told me how many games that I had been here, definitely makes me feel pretty old. I was telling Juice and [TE George] Kittle they should feel the same since they've been here for all of them, but it's pretty cool. It shows how good a team we've had, how good of an organization we've had and just to be able to be here that long has been awesome."

How much longer can you go? Another 10? Does it just feel like that to you?

"Oh yeah, definitely not thinking in terms of decades when you say 10, but definitely not thinking about stopping anytime soon."

How good of a job did defensive coordinator Raheem Morris do today?

"He was awesome. The defense was awesome. Last night at the team meeting, we said how we wanted to really run the ball in this game and stick with it. I always say that in team meetings because I don't believe it's just an offensive thing. I said, 'That's our goal, defense. If you guys can allow us to be that way.' And I thought they did completely. Holding them to, I forget, but three points until late in the third or fourth, sixth, whatever it was, and just getting us the ball back all the time and never feeling like we had to get down and panic. They were unbelievable today and that starts with Raheem."

How excited were you when you saw George break into the open field right there with that final touchdown? Was there any relief about where you guys were in the game?

"I've done this too long to have any relief. There was still too much time on the clock. They could go down fast, kick an onside kick and we don't get to touch it again. But, we were excited. We knew it was going to be tight. Just some running situations, anticipating zero and that's what we got. We thought if we could get it versus zero and just get the screen off and make one block, then that's what we'd envisioned because that's the type of player George is. We got that block and it looked like he needs to carry the ball through the end zone, not watch the scoreboard with [Denver Broncos S Talanoa Hufanga] Huf chasing him, but it was a hell of a play by him and perfect timing."

His health, coming back from the Achilles, does it look like he's all the way back now after six weeks?

"I forgot about his Achilles in Australia, just how he looked moving and stuff. We thought about it because it was his first time back and we were trying to be smart with him just early on, but just in terms of how he's looked, he's been unbelievable since Australia."

Fourth straight game without allowing a sack, especially against that front. What does that say about your offensive line?

"That says a lot, especially versus that front. They're a really good pass rush team. Says a lot that we were able to run the ball so much too, so we could stay balanced and not let them be one-dimensional. I thought [QB] Brock [Purdy] did a good job avoiding some too, and just collectively. It starts with the O-Line, but collectively it's been a huge deal and definitely wasn't expecting to do that all the way up until now."

How close a call was WR Mike Evans? He definitely was on a pitch count a little bit today?

"He wasn't on a specific pitch count, but we knew how much pain he was in so we were just trying to limit the percentages of how many hits he would have to take. I didn't think it was possible for him to play throughout the whole week, so in my mind I wasn't counting on it. But, he kept talking a certain way, so eventually I started to listen. But still, a lot of guys do that and you don't really, I mean, ribs are different. No matter how bad you want to go, it's usually too painful. The way he was Friday, just being able to go through the walk-through, and I know how much pain he was in, but he never grimaced, never changed his stride or anything, how he's carrying himself, it was really, really impressive today what he did."

LB Dre Greenlaw's always fiery, but did you sense a little extra from him today to the point of did you even have to maybe try to make sure he was calm a little bit?

"Yes, definitely. We knew he'd be excited going into this game. Dre's excited going into every game, but this one meant a little more to him. I was a little nervous there in the first half. We told him, 'You can get close, but don't be so excited you give them an explosive with 15.' And I really thought someone was going to get one in the second half of one of the teams, just challenged our team to make sure it wasn't us. I don't think anyone ended up getting one, but Dre held his emotions good enough today and led the team in tackles and had an unbelievable game. He's had an unbelievable season so far and we're so happy to have him back at home."

What happened to the snap on the fourth-and-one?

"It was a bad snap. We didn't call a direct snap. I never got to talk to [OL] Jake [Brendel] on it because it all worked out, but yeah, I think he just missed it."

When it comes to Brock, he started out, I believe, 10 of 20. Then after that point, he went nine of 10 from that. Did you see a shift from your perspective or was there any conversation between you and him at any point in the game to cause that shift?

"Yeah, I grabbed him and said, 'Don't throw any more incompletions.' And he listened. I should have told him at the beginning (laughter). No, I think he had some better looks. Didn't get any tipped balls. I think he had better looks and was awesome there."

What was the message to the team after the game? What'd you say to them?

"I just told the guys I was proud of them. Just especially with some of the stuff we talked about last night. I was proud of the offense being able to run the ball the way we did, being able to finish at the end. Doing that two weeks in a row where you're trying to run it, you want to run the clock out, but you also want to score more than anything because you don't want to give it back and make it a one-score game. To be able to finish there with a touchdown, to finish the last three drives with a touchdown, was huge. I was just so pumped at the way the defense played that allowed us to have that mindset throughout the whole game and the special teams being the big point in the game that kind of changed the momentum with that turnover."

The fourth down that got stopped in the first half, was that a little long for a sneak?

"It was a little long, but we had the look we wanted. When you have the look you want, sometimes we get like three to four yards on those, but they did a good job defending it. That's why we took it off later. Then they stopped us again later, so just hats off to them. Wish I had it back because they stopped us on it, but we knew how long it was and still thought he could get it."

You always think week-to-week, but you had the Australia trip, then these three home games, and now at Seattle. Does the season shift a little knowing what you've got ahead of you?

"Not really. I know we have Seattle next week. I'm not even sure after that, but it's been nice to be home for three weeks. It's nice to have Fridays with our families and stuff and it's awesome to be back in there, but now we're excited and ready to go to Seattle."

What did WR Deebo Samuel Sr. mean in terms of impact for your offense as a receiver and a runner?

"I thought Deebo was huge today. Those two runs in the first half that he had, I don't think many people get the amount of yards that he got on that. I think both of them, I think they were about eight yards, but he does something amazing to get over 20 on both of them. He was really big at the end on a couple. They're all less than 10-yard catches, but they were big catches that kept us ahead of the sticks. Then Brock finding him to get in the end zone was huge too."

You talked about Dre. He's been very open and honest about how much he struggled last year in Denver. For him to have such an impact that he's had so far this season, and you talked a little bit about what he means to this team. Just elaborate a little bit more on just how happy you are to have him back here.

"I think people know, but like if I had to wear a jersey, I'd probably wear his. Just the way he plays, what he's done for us over these years, going back to his rookie year and getting us the number one seed in Seattle with the play he made on the goal line. Just the way he inspires people because the way he plays. I think he's an intimidation factor for the other side of the ball because of the way he plays, and it's hard for us not to be as aggressive as possible with how he is out there. So, we missed him for the year, but it was good to, as we feel, get a family member back."

I know you said you thought George looked close to normal in Week One, but was that the point or was there any point in particular where you said, 'Okay, he's back to the point where I can throw a screen to him in a situation like that?'

"I felt like that in Week One, so like everything I've seen with my own eyes, like he had seven months off, not off, but just rehabbing and everything and didn't get a big part of training camp. When you watch him throughout Australia look like he's 100-percent, which he was, you've just got to be careful with how much you use them and stuff like that because his conditioning and everything wasn't quite there. That's the only thing we were trying to be smart with at first, but there was nothing to where it's like we've got to wait to put him on a certain route or a certain screen. It was more about just amount of plays and things like that, but that's all over."

49ers QB Brock Purdy

What'd you think of WR Mike Evans? He's out there gutting it out with fractured ribs and just still doing his thing. What'd you think?

"Yeah, he's a dog. I've said it time and time again, but he's just a true pro. He gets what it takes on every Sunday, every week for a team. And just obviously what he brings to the table with being out in the field and what defenses have to do when he's out there. Then he's out there run blocking still and stuff. He's the man. So, we all respect the heck out of him. And for him to go out there and do what he did and make plays and stuff like he did was really cool."

At what point did you know that TE George Kittle was going to score a touchdown? What point in that play?

"I think after that block. I don't know if that was [OL Dominick] Puni or who that was, but our offensive lineman sort of kicked a guy out. And I was like, they just blitzed, so there's got to be no one out there. And then with George and his speed and just who he is, I was like, 'No one's going to stop him.' So that was really cool. Electric play call for [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan] to call that right then and there with them blitzing. It was just perfect timing."

Obviously, a little bit of a slog in the first half. How were you able to kind of overcome it and get it going in the second half?

"Yeah, I just think there were a couple plays and little detailed things sort of hurting our drives and not getting the first down. I felt like we were moving the ball and stuff, but we were just hurting ourselves with little things. And so, for us to get it going in the second half, shout out to [DB] Siran Neal by getting the punt, getting the ball back for us, and then having us go score. It felt like we wanted to break through whatever that was and it was really just ourselves, I felt like. So, glad we can get some momentum going in the second half. But, that's why it's a four-quarter game. You could start great and not finish well or you could start slow and finish well. That's the game that we play."

You've talked a lot about the offensive line all year, but to go four straight games, especially against that defense, without allowing a sack, what does that say about that unit and the whole passing game?

"Yeah, they're awesome. Just how they come to work every single day, attacking meetings and practice and it just translates on Sundays. And you see them go out there just doing their job, being on top of it, and then wanting to run the ball. You could tell those boys are hungry and wanting to put drives together even though it was hot out and all that stuff. You could feel them out there. For me to be able to drop back behind those guys, I'm extremely blessed. And obviously it's a long year. We've got a long ways to go as an offense and as a team, but just extremely happy with how they're playing and what they're playing for."

There was more emphasis on your guys' run game tonight. How do you feel like that contributed to the game and specifically WR Deebo Samuel Sr. in there?

"Yeah, I thought it was huge to go in there. I think we had 35 runs or something like that. So, for us to stick with the run, commit to it. You've got to run the ball in this league. And so for us to come out with that mindset, even though there were some slow things that happened in the first half, I'm extremely grateful that Kyle stuck with it. The boys wanted to keep running the ball. And then you've got explosive plays in the pass game that came from that. Then it's cool. The fact that Deebo can get back there and obviously get in that rotation with [RB] Christian [McCaffrey] and [RB] Kaelon [Black] and come in and have explosive plays, break tackles. That's a whole other thing the defense has to prepare for. So, yeah really cool."

Kyle said that the Kaelon play on the fourth-down was not a direct snap. You obviously had a good view of that. What just kind of awareness is that for a rookie to kind of grasp that moment and make that play?

"That was a great heads-up play on him. The ball just like hit [OL] Jake's [Brendel] butt and popped back up and I was like, 'Oh gosh.' I went to go get it and then he just snatched it and then kept going on his running back track for the run. For him to do that, be calm about it and still get the first-down, that was huge. Kaelon's extremely mature and he comes to work every day with the right mindset, even throughout the game and stuff. If you have a good play and stuff, he doesn't let that be too high. He doesn't let the lows be too low. He's all about the next play mentality, which is really cool to see from a rookie."

So that play call was supposed to be a handoff to him?

"Yeah, it was supposed to be. Yeah."

What's the rest of your night like? Do you watch the film right now? Do you go eat and watch it later? How much time do you devote to watching it?

"Yeah, I'm going to go home, enjoy the win with the family and stuff and have some good dinner. I don't know, sort of just try to get away from the game a little bit because all week it's been about this moment for four hours and it's a lot of strain and stuff. But, eventually tonight, once I put my daughter down and everything, then I'll open up the iPad and watch it. Tomorrow I dissect it even more and stuff and Tuesday. So, obviously in this league, it's sort of got to be a quick turnaround for sure. But, at the same time, you've got to watch the film and learn and grow and take opportunities to actually get better. So that's what I'm doing."

When you're targeting Mike Evans and knowing he's dealing with what he's dealing with, do you have to try to put the ball in a certain spot so you're not exposing him to hits. What goes through your processing when you know that's the case?

"Yeah, that's definitely a thing where I'm like, I want to lead him, put it on him for sure, just knowing what he's got going on with his ribs and stuff for safeties or linebackers to take shots on him. So yeah, I tried my best to put the ball on him, but at the same time, it is football. So I'm going to be getting hit as I throw the ball or try to throw and anticipate him coming out of his break and the ball might be off a little bit like that. That's part of the game. But, for the most part, I just wanted to give him a catchable ball and let him sort of protect himself as well, whether getting down or just being smart in general with the hits."

Was he at any point saying, 'It's okay, target me' because you weren't necessarily at the start of the game? Then there were a lot of critical times where he came through.

"Mike's really cool. He understands the game. He understands the play calls and what Kyle's trying to get out of the game. But at the same time, he does have the X-factor or dog mentality. I don't know what you want to call it, where it's like, 'Hey, I'm out here and give me the ball. Our team needs it and I'll help this team get going with momentum and stuff.' You could feel that for sure from him, which I love. Kyle called a great game and stuff and he found ways to get Mike the ball when we needed it and Mike delivered."

They lost both of their cornerbacks during the game. How cognizant of that are you during a game? Is that something you talk about on the sideline, attacking the backups more than maybe the game plan called for?

"We're obviously always talking about personnel and stuff. Who's where? Who's out of the game? Who's in? That's just really the coaching and stuff like that. But for me, it's not I'm under center going, 'Alright now I need to change everything.' I let Kyle handle that with his playcalling and stuff and how he wants plays to be drawn up and designed to attack certain things and certain guys and situations. So for me, it's just about trusting the play call, going through my progressions and being hard on myself about making every play its own kind of play."

49ers LB Dre Greenlaw

How emotional was this game for you to go against your old team?

"Oh, it was very."

How do you feel like you fared out there?

"There is stuff I wish I could have back, but I'm a lot better than how I was when I was with them, so I'm just getting better and better."

In 17 weeks, you have to win lots of games in lots of different ways. You had to really kind of gut one out. Defense kept the team in it in the first half of this game. What does it say about this team that you can win one like this?

"It's a big one because they are a good team and they do good stuff and they have a good defense and their offense, it's the 4th quarter and their quarterback can do some good things. But I expected to win the game because it's all about executing over and over and over again. And I think we have the upper hand on that one. I knew that we had to come out there and we had to execute and make them play quarterback and make them play offense."

There was a blitz in the first half that Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris called where it looked like he was going to send LB Fred Warner, but then he sent you and it worked. Raheem seems to be very aggressive with some of those blitzes with the linebackers. How much fun are you and Fred having?

"I love it. He just knows us. He knows how to coach. He knows his players, so he just had a feel for us in the game and he knows when to call it. It was money today, and I wish I had got a sack off of it, but kudos to them for running around and doing what they're supposed to do."

Is there any moment where you had to kind of dial yourself back a little bit just because your energy was so high and emotions were so high today?

"For sure. It ran my energy out a little bit, so I had to kind of like pick and choose a little bit and just be smart and make sure I finish the game out."

49ers TE George Kittle

How free did it feel being in the open field like that on your touchdown run and just what was the feeling like as you were racing along up to the goal line?

"That part was really fun. I would say when we called it you could see the pressure coming. My only concern was usually when they blitz like that, the defensive end usually hangs and [T] Trent [Williams] was yelling that at me. He was like, 'you've got to toss him.' Then he just rushed and I was like, 'I don't even need to block him because [QB] Brock's [Purdy] going to get this out super quick. The reason it works is because [OL Jake] Brendel got out. Very athletic center for such a grumpy guy sometimes, but I really appreciate him for getting out on that one. Anytime you see green grass, I think I ran the entire way with a smile on my face, so that was pretty fun. Always outrunning younger teammates is a great time, especially when they're 26."

How would you describe just the gratification of having that speed given everything it took for you to come back and all the work you put in?

"Well, I expected it. I trained and in July I was hitting 20 miles an hour. I knew that if I could just do it consistently— I think the biggest part was like the acceleration was getting that back. I really felt like starting Week 2 and in Australia, I felt totally weird. From Week 2 and on, I had so much confidence in it and haven't looked back since."

Head coach Kyle Shanahan passed former 49ers head coach Bill Walsh today for most games coached in the franchise. He says that you and FB Kyle Juszczyk should take special joy in it because you've been here for all of them. What has it been like just watching him kind of climb over the years and establish himself in this franchise's history?

"One, I'm incredibly happy for him. I'm happy for myself that I was drafted to an organization like this with him at the helm. The way that he conducts himself on a daily basis, the way that he runs team meetings, the way that he holds everybody to the same standard, everything he's done has been pretty consistent. He's grown obviously as a coach and he's done some things differently, but ever since day one, he's been really the same guy and I've really appreciated that. Being able to be here for each one. I haven't played in every single game that he's coached, but to be here for all of them, it means a lot. It's an honor to go to battle with him every single Sunday. When you have a head coach that one, holds everybody to the same standard but also two, you know how hard he prepares every single week and the hours that he puts in to try to put the best game plan together for us. I just feel lucky every single day that he's my head coach."

49ers RB Christian McCaffrey

It was kind of a slog in the first half. Is that about what you expected, and how did you guys as an offense pick things up in the second half?

"You never know what to expect going into a game. We wanted to stick with it. I think we were definitely a little bit sluggish as an offense, but there were still some body blows in there, some good things that we did and some good things that we saw that we could capitalize on in the second half. We knew it was going to be a dogfight. That's a hell of a team, a good defense with good players all around. For us, it's about playing four quarters, not letting what happens in the first half get to you and continuing to stick with it."

For TE George Kittle to rupture his Achilles in January and be playing the way he is now, what does that say about him?

"I think you can talk about being tough all you want. You can call him tough, but I think football gives you a unique opportunity to really show it, and that's what he's doing. To do what he did all offseason, to grind every single day nonstop, it's showing. I'd love to say I'm shocked, but I'm not. That's just who he is. He attacks everything at full speed, and always has the best attitude, so it's no shock that George Kittle is playing like George Kittle."

DB Siran Neal had a big play today that was a game changer. What did you see on that play, and how big was that for you guys?

"It was huge. We knew this was going to have to be an offense, defense and special teams kind of game, where we all had to collectively make plays. He's somebody who, every week, if you watch the special teams film, shows up. He's full speed all the time. Most of the time, people double him because he's that good, and he still shows up and makes plays all over. Not only to get the strip, but to make that open-field tackle one-on-one with so much space, I don't think people understand how difficult that is. It's just a testament to how much he cares about his job. Again, he's one of the leaders of that unit."

There was a lot of attention on the Broncos defense going into this matchup, but your defense went toe-to-toe with them. How much pressure does that take off you and the offense, knowing that even if you get off to a slow start, the defense can keep you in the game?

"It's huge. We don't get to do what we do unless the defense does its job. They showed up and had our back a lot today. That's why we had a good team win."

49ers DB Siran Neal

How rewarding is it to make a play that kind of swung this game, got the momentum going in a certain direction?

"First of all, I just want to give grace to God, for allowing me to make that play. I knew going into the game that the special teams were going to have to be a big part of this win. As always, we are not a phase of the game that really gets the attention, but we set the destination of the team. So just doing that for my team, I'm just happy."

What you did, an open field tackle like that is one of the hardest things there is in the game. Not only did you do that, but you forced the ball out and then recovered it. So that's kind of a "big three" right there, isn't it?

"Yes, for sure. I've been doing this for a long time. I get respect from a lot of coaches from other teams. I just want to keep it going."

How about wearing number 33 on the day that former 49ers RB Roger Craig has his induction into the Hall of Fame?

"It would be kind of hard to surpass that. I'm very proud of wearing that number, representing him."

49ers WR Deebo Samuel Sr.

This was the first time since 2005 that the quarterback hasn't been sacked through the first four games, the last one being former NFL QB Peyton Manning. Can you talk about QB Brock Purdy and the offensive line's performance today?

"Firstly, shout out to the offensive line. The work that they put in week in and week out has continued to show. Giving Brock an ample amount of time to go out, go through his progressions and get the ball to the right people."

Obviously, this was a tight game, but you were able to break through with that first touchdown. Did you feel like it was just a matter of continuing to push and eventually you'd break through?

"It's kind of our mindset, just a next-play mentality. We always know that anybody on the offense is capable of breaking one. Brock went through his progressions, came back, and I was backside. And what an incredible touchdown by [TE] George [Kittle] on the screen to seal the game."

For the second week in a row, it was a one-possession game and the offense needed to do more than just move the chains. You guys were able to score touchdowns. What does that say about your offense?

"Like I said, it's the next-play mentality. We've got guys who are capable of catching short passes and going the whole way."

49ers LB Fred Warner

Was this more than just another game for LB Dre Greenlaw in your mind?

"There was definitely something a little extra for him this week. He got banged up last game. Everybody was asking him, 'Hey, are you going to be able to make it?' And he said, 'I wouldn't miss this one.' He had extra emotion going into this game. I told him just to use it wisely, which he did. I was proud of him and he played a heck of a game. He's played great all year. He'll continue to play great for us. I'm glad he's on our side now."

It was easy to see how much Dre wanted this one, but as a teammate, how much do you also want to get one for him when they have these "revenge games"?

"I wanted it for the entire team. Of course you want it for Dre, but I wanted it for all of us. This was as big a win for us as there is. I think we won it in a gritty way. We said we wanted to run the football on offense and that takes all phases. It takes special teams stealing a possession. And DB Siran Neal making a play for us with that fumble. Defensively, I thought we fought all day long. There were some things that we definitely wanted to clean up in terms of tackling and some of the random explosives that they got late in the game. But for the most part, I thought we fought right. And so I think as a whole, it was a huge win for us. And we learned a lot about ourselves today and the way we can grind out a game."

When you talk about learning a lot about yourself, Head Coach Kyle Shanahan said that he felt like Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris did an awesome job today. As the leader of the defense, can you speak to the leadership of Raheem and what he's done for this defense and how that played out today on the field?

"I think a lot's made out of what happens the day of the game, right? Because obviously we're all judged on that. We're judged on the results of the game, but it all starts way before that. It starts in OTAs, it starts in training camp. And the week of practice that we put together this week after a ton of plays and things of that sort last week. We knew we wanted to come out this week and try and stop the run. I thought we did a great job of that. At the end we probably gave up a little more than we would have wanted, but just the leader that he is for us day in and day out, helping us be as prepared as possible every single week. That instills confidence in you as a player to go out there and play at your best because you know that you're ultimately prepared for whatever they bring."

With all the injuries you guys have had to overcome on both sides of the ball, but especially that defensive front, how does it feel to be 4-0?

"It feels legendary. It feels great. It feels like we got a great test ahead of us in Seattle coming up. And we wouldn't want it any other way. And I'm, more than anything, just happy with the way that we fought every single week. And like you said, just handling adversity and not blinking, not flinching, and just trying to figure out a way to be 1-0. That's all that matters."

49ers T Trent Williams

Why did you believe that this was going to be the best WR Deebo Samuel Sr. that you guys would see?

"I think knowing him as well as I do, this offseason was probably the first time in his career that he was doubted. He's always been supremely talented, always been a playmaker, and this league, it turns on you quick. I think him having to feel that doubt for the first time, I think it lit a fire in him."

We've seen obviously a lot of guys on this team battle through stuff, but what is it like for you to see WR Mike Evans go out there and kind of do what he did with the rib injury?

"Mike can't gain any more respect out of me than I already have for him. That's the reason why he is who he is and he's a gold jacket guy. Everybody knows how painful ribs are. Nobody in this locker room would have blamed him if he said, 'I can't go, [it's] too painful'. We would have expected that. But for him to go out there and put it on the line for his teammates, I think that speaks to why he's a gold jacket guy."

Can you speak to what you've seen from the offensive line, and did you expect you guys to be this dominant through four weeks of NFL season given the questions early on?

"I think everybody in the locker room goes through those times where you've got to be a little bit, I guess, for lack of a better word, crazy, in a sense to where you've got to believe that you're the best. You've got to believe you have the best o-line. You've got to believe you have the best defensive line whether that's true or not. It's the belief and the confidence that allows you to play like you can be that. I've always thought we had the talent to be one of the best o-lines in the league. I always say I thought [OL] Colton [McKivitz] and myself were probably the best pair of Tackles in the league. With the way [OL] Dom [Puni] has been playing, obviously [OL] Jake [Brendel] has always been real solid for us, the heart and soul of our o-line. [OL] Connor [Colby] taking that big step, that's probably when you reference the question. I understand it's left guard, but we always had faith in him. He has the attributes to be really successful. We've seen that his rookie year and now he's putting on film."

Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton

[Opening comments]

"This is what I told the team, obviously it's not the result that what we wanted. They're a good football team. We knew it was going to be a tight game, and I thought we played hard, and the margins become very slim. There are a couple of plays that can go either direction. Those guys made them, and we didn't. It's a tough loss. And then we go from here."

Overall, offensively, what did you think about the run game?

"That's another challenge. We'll look at the film before diving into it. I think at the half we were still at 30-some yards. That's something that obviously has to get better."

It's a quarter into the season. What do you think about the play-calling situation you have with Offensive Coordinator Davis Webb?

"Yeah, like I said, it's too early. It's a fair question; I appreciate it. It's tough to discuss any of that right now. But I told those guys, 'Hey, we've played some tough teams, and this is another good football team.' There were a lot of things we did well defensively for a good portion of the game. I felt like the time of possession began to affect us. We had the big turnover in the kicking game, and that flips the field and all of a sudden you're back out there on defense. To your original question, we always look at everything in each game and that's how we'll approach this one."

How much were you hampered by the injuries to three significant players? And what kind of report can you give us on that?

"Well, I'm not going to give you any report on the injuries because I don't know, but I would say it probably impacts the defense when both of your corners are down coming into the second half. With [WR] Pat [Bryant], nothing right now. I just asked the same question coming off the field to both, so I appreciate it."

Did you have any issue with San Francisco 49ers LB Dre Greenlaw?

"No, and I said this to [San Francisco 49ers Head Coach] Kyle [Shanahan] afterwards, I think the world of him. I really love everything about him and he plays with that emotion. So, it's all good."

On 4th-and-2 early in the 4th quarter at the 22 yard line, did you give thought to going for it?

"Yeah, I did, but I think the way that game was playing out, I just felt like the points were important, that we'd later have a chance with a 2-point play. So once again, it was one of those weeks where you felt like points were at a premium."

Before WR Pat Bryant got hurt, that was the longest play of the game for the offense. How much did him going out hinder the offense the rest of the way?

"We've got a bunch of other receivers. He's a good player for us, but I don't think that changed it much. Probably shortly thereafter we were in a hurry-up mode."

What was your vantage point on the WR Marvin Mims Jr. fumble?

"We went through the mechanics. We don't have any type of good view, at least from our angle. Sometimes we do. That was on the opposite side of our bench. So, anytime there's a turnover, you're going to rely on replay, so it really doesn't matter."

Were you given an explanation? They said on the broadcast that it was his wrist that went down and not his forearm.

"No, they just said the review saw it as a fumble."

So what do you think about the way that CB Jahdae Barron and CB Kris Abrams-Draine stepped in?

"We'll see the tape, obviously, we get both those guys jumping in. I thought it was overall pretty good."

Is it hard when injuries come in the same position like that?

"Well, it's harder than if they don't. You'll go 16 weeks, and that might happen once every 2 years, and yet, you have to be ready. And then certainly it affects [Defensive Coordinator] Vance [Joseph] and what you want to call. It affects whether you're going to be able to get into dime. Maybe, you know, you can play nickel still because J-Mac's [CB Ja'Quan McMillian] inside, but it may take you out of some packages."

What did you think of QB Bo Nix today? Where is he at right now?

"Fair question. I'm sure he's frustrated. After the first half, then getting into a one-dimensional game, I'm sure he's frustrated."

WR Courtland Sutton was such a big part of this offense last year. He really hasn't been on track. Do you have an explanation for that?

"Great question. We have to look at, if he's not playing outside and [WR Jaylen] Waddle is, then how do we get him away from the rotation? We've had some opportunities, but there are a handful of things that aren't clicking. We've got to figure it out fast because we're going into week five. I think you guys have all made some good observations. I thought [RB] RJ [Harvey] did really well. The thing I felt coming away from the game was that our guys left it out there in the heat and everything, and yet, we have to look closely at the things that we can do as teachers to help them."

You mentioned RJ, he had 10 catches today. What do you think about that?

"Some of it is the defense, as they stay soft in certain coverages. Some of it is that they're on eyes to the ball, they get underneath and get deep in their drops. So Bo, right away, when he feels some of that, some of it's smart. There were some big plays made by him."

Is the way they defend maybe vertical for you guys?

"Yeah, they're going to be more behind certain things. They can rotate that cloud to Waddle, they can rotate it to the boundary. So they do a good job of staying on top of the deeper throws."

You had four offensive penalties in the first 20 minutes. Can you talk about that?

"A couple false starts, right? That's got to be cleaned up. It's back to a little bit of this soft shell. You can point at a lot of things. If you're going to see a defense stay high and stay deep, then there needs to be this efficiency we're talking about right now after a game. In other words, that game was playing out as our defense was playing. At halftime, you're watching the way that game is unfolding, I would say you're encouraged with the offensive starts that they've had. We just didn't have enough answers to get past that to get a lead. And that's the thing that we'll look at."

Did you think that the offensive line played alright in the run game?

"I just want to see it. There are a few things I want to see, like we're 30-some yards at half, so how do we get that corrected?"

No sacks on San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy today. Is that because of the way he played?

"I thought we rushed him pretty well. He came out of the pocket. We got hands in his face. He found some outlets, and sometimes he had to throw it away. I thought our playing defensively relative to the things he does well, and he made some plays getting out and just throwing it away or finding somebody late in the progression."

You're talking about the soft shell coverages, when you're trailing, it seems like they can kind of sit back even more. You've seen a lot of that these first couple of weeks. Can you tell me about that?

"I think it gets back to understanding what you're getting, what you're seeing, and how do you attack it and approach it. I thought there were times early in that game where all of a sudden there's a gain of six yards, or there's a gain of seven yards. Part of that is the type of defense they play. I'm anxious to watch the tape and look at it closely. We got some run pressures in the second half, whether it's the nickel or the safety coming just to move the front a little bit."

Broncos QB Bo Nix

Was there any progress? The fact that you had six 3rd-downs converted in the first half. It's going in the right direction, you still didn't come away with the points though.

"I think it shows us converting, but it just shows that we're in way too many 3rd-downs and we just got to really key in on our 1st and 2nd-down production."

What's the level of frustration overall, I guess, as a group, just in terms of where you're at offensively, or do you have frustration at this point?

"I think the frustrations just come within the losses. Obviously, we want to have a really explosive offense and that'll come, but we've played really good teams. We've played four really good challenges so far, and we're sitting here at 2-2. I definitely don't think we hit the panic button, but at the same time we just have to continue to grind and find ways to get better."

Head Coach Sean Payton said there's three, four, or five plays within a game that kind of change it. They made them today, you didn't. Does that make it easier to digest or more difficult knowing it's kind of close at hand?

"Well, I think we got plays to be made. I think as a team we would all look ourselves in the mirror and say that there's plays out there for us to make, and they were a good football team. They made their explosives and we just got to find ways to make more. Our defense played really well throughout the game and we just made it a four quarter game for too long. We didn't help them out, but overall we'll go back and watch the film, see what needs to be improved on, and I know our team is going to work at it to fix things. And so, that's the positive."

You mentioned last week about coming too high and teams the way they want to play you a little bit with that cloud. Is there a point where you just got to run them out of it so you guys can get vertical, or is it just like, hey, if they're going to stay there, we're going to have to play more of a horizontal game?

"Well, I think it's sort of by game. It's by down and distance, it's by game situation, it's by what's going on. I thought there were some times where we were able to find some intermediate deeper windows out there but then, you throw it to [RB] RJ [Harvey] and he gets 15 and that's a positive play. You throw it to RJ in the flat, you throw it to our backs, throw it down and just let them roll, and sometimes that allows them to be more aggressive and then you can work over the top. I think overall when you get 2-high zone you just want to run the football, and so we just got to find ways to continue to do that."

WR Courtland Sutton only had one catch today. Was there something that they did and defenses are doing to try to take him out of the game, or is that just kind of how these games are going?

"You know, I have to go back and watch. I obviously have the same angle the whole game, but interested to see what actually goes on and how they're doing a good job of covering him, but I don't know. That's a week-to-week thing, and I know we targeted him today. It's just, we got to connect it a little bit more."

When Denver Broncos WR Pat Bryant went down, he was sort of a rising star. Had you planned on using him more in this game before he got taken down?

"Well, he sort of went down a little bit later in the game, and headed into the 4th quarter, so we were just going to continue to work our plan, and the ball was going to go wherever it needed, but I think it's sometimes a little bit tougher to really target one guy and say the ball is going to go to him, cause you could get so many different coverages on the other end that every once in a while you call the play and they could take it away on that specific play. So, it's hard to completely say, we're just going to look at this guy and throw it to him."

What has Pat meant to your offense so far this year?

"He's a great football player. He's meant a lot to us. Hopefully, it's not too bad, and we'll get him back sooner rather than later, but I know he'll be aggressive in rehab and I know he wants to be back out there with us, and we just got to find a way to fill in his spots and continue to find a way to get better."

You're at the quarter mark now. Your confidence in Denver Broncos Offensive Coordinator Davis Webb as he gets started here in his play calling?

"Yeah, I'm real confident in him. I think when you look at the overall landscape, we've played four of the top teams in the league, and not easy for a first-time OC as young as he is to go against some of the, quite frankly, the best teams in the league. So, he definitely is going to continue to work to put us in the right spots. I definitely, this isn't necessarily the first time in my 3-year career we've scored 14 points, but I think it's just overall something that we gotta continue to help him and execute, and as players, you gotta put him in a better spot. You know, it's hard. Like he says all the time, like any play caller, 3rd-and-long, not many plays on that part of the sheet, especially when you're in it over and over and over and over and over in the game. You run all those plays, you gotta figure out which ones you wanna come back to. They've already seen them. So, now you gotta make adjustments and so, we're just not making it easy on him by any means right now. So, we just got to help him."

The sideline reporter for CBS said during the game that, I don't know if it was in a pre-meeting, but you had mentioned that flying, maybe the ankle swells a little bit and you've got to do some treatment with it. Has that been any issue at all? I mean, you look healthy. I'm just, I'm not a doctor, but has that made you more reluctant to perhaps take off? Is the ankle inhibiting you in any way at all?

"No."

4th and 2 in the second half, was there any discussion there at all or not?

"Which one?"

4th and 2 in the second half, early in the 4th quarter.

"Did we kick a field goal?"

Yeah.

"Did we make it?"

Yeah.

"So then when we scored again, we went for two, made it a 3-point game. Pretty good decision, I'd say."

Broncos DL Zach Allen

What are the emotions like when it's such a hard-fought game and where you guys played so well for so long of it but end up on the losing side of the game?

"Yeah, it's definitely not great, but it's a resilient group and on to the Chargers now."

Is it as simple as that? Is there anything that you guys are feeling in here that you feel as though you need to improve on upon next week?

"Yeah, there's definitely things to improve on, but we got to watch the tape. It's a group that's been through losses like this before, so we'll bounce back."

What was the energy like on the field? Not only CB Pat Surtain II, but also CB Riley Moss out with injury.

"Yeah, it's awful, but I thought [CB Kris Abrams-Draine] KD and [CB] Jahdae [Barron] did a heck of a job. It's a next-up mentality and hopefully we get everybody healthy. So, we'll see how it all plays out."

When you kind of evaluate where the team's at game after game, this was such a hard-fought, tight one. What do you kind of evaluate where the team's at after this?

"Yeah, I think after Kansas City it was kind of like, 'Oh, the sky's falling.' I mean, the sky's not falling, it's just you got to make the corrections and onto the next. It's a mature group, so guys will do that."

Broncos T Mike McGlinchey

How much onus does the offensive line take when the run game can't seem to get going?

"A lot. It's a huge part of our job and we're not doing it well enough. We've got to, as a team, run the ball better. We need to be able to rely on that when games are tight, games are close, and we've got to be better."

San Francisco 49ers LB Dre Greenlaw was all over the filed today. What were your thoughts on him out there today?

"Yeah, Dre plays with his hair on fire, he always has. He's a great football player and I'm sure this one meant a lot to him. He made a lot of plays today."

You guys have played a lot of really good football teams in the first four weeks. How small is the margin for error when you have good on good?

"I think the margin for error is always small in this league. It doesn't matter who the teams are that you're playing. Every team can beat you week in and week out if you commit too many errors and if you don't capitalize on opportunities and things like that, that's why you wind up losing games."

Broncos WR Jaylen Waddle

This has been an offense that's been remarkably streaky. When things aren't working like most of the game today, where is the disconnect, do you think?

"I think it's just execution. That's ultimately what the game comes down to, especially with the offense that we want to have. Execution is the formula."

You guys keep talking about getting off to fast starts and again, it doesn't happen. How frustrating is it and how can you rectify this?

"Looking back at the game, especially a game like this, we were in prime position to get points. They called the play, and I didn't execute. If we want to start fast, you've got to make those plays on a consistent basis. That's what it comes down to."

How difficult was it to see Denver Broncos WR Pat Bryant go down like he did in the 3rd quarter?

"It was very difficult. Pat is definitely a key part of our offense and a key part of our team. I told him to keep his head up, and we're praying for him."

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