CARDINALS HEAD COACH KLIFF KINGSBURY
Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, November 29, 2020
KK: Obviously a couple kicks we would like to have back but I think he's kicked the ball well, fourth over last two seasons. We've got to be able to come up with that, so we'll just keep working.
Q: How much did you guys draw up differently to give Kyler more protection? Was that a factor?
KK: I don't think so. I think he was feeling pretty good and I thought he really played an efficient game. Took what was there, checked the down, ran when he needed to run. You know, gave us a chance to win at the end.
Q: Overall, what do you think are the struggles for the offense the last couple weeks?
KK: I think New England had a good plan. I think once again we had some opportunities and didn't take advantage of it. Didn't have a ton of possessions. So we needed to maximize the ones we did have and weren't able to do that.
Q: On the last Simmons penalty, was it a decent call? What were your thoughts?
KK: I couldn't tell. You know, I just saw the replay like y'all did. Looked like the quarterback was still in play, but I didn't get a great look at it.
Q: When it comes to Zane, what do you think the issue is? Is it a matter of confidence? Is it the difficulty of the kicks?
KK: I'm not sure. I'll have to get with Coach Rodgers and kind of talk through what he saw on that and what Zane felt.
Like I said, he's kicked well for us the majority of the time. We've just got to find a way to get that done and there are a ton of plays in that game that could have made up for that.
Q: What's your frustration level right now?
KK: Disappointed that we didn't find a way to win the game, but that's the NFL. We knew coming up here we'd face a tough team with their backs against the wall and give their best shot. I thought they had a good plan and played hard and found a way to get us at the end.
Q: How much consideration was there for using Kyler for the play at the end of the second half?
KK: Not much. They had a good plan. Like I said, on almost all of our run plays, really keying on him and I like what kd brings in those situations. He usually has a nose for the end zone and unfortunately it didn't work out for us that time.
Q: What's your motto when it comes to short down yardage and sneaking a quarterback up the middle?
KK: Yeah, it's not really our deal right now and that's kind of what it is.
Q: Was there a plan to not have Kyler run as much? I know you were asked a similar question earlier, but are you trying to protect the shoulder and not have design run plays for him?
KK: Just trying to take what the defense gives us.
QUARTERBACK KYLER MURRAY
Postgame Press Conference
Sunday, November 29, 2020
Q: Coach said the Patriots were keying on you. What were they doing specifically?
KM: Yeah, I think they were just, you know, whenever, obviously the zone read opportunities, they were just playing me. Made me hand it off. I mean, it is what it is. My read is to hand it off if they play me, and that's what I had to do.
Q: How much of your game did you have to change either in advance or in the moment from any lingering injury?
KM: I mean, I didn't -- I didn't adjust anything, like I said, if they play me, I have to hand the ball off. You know, thought I probably could have checked it down maybe a couple -- once or twice more than I did, you know, in the pass game. But other than that, there wasn't really any situations where you know, I shied way from a hit or anything like that. I mean, they hit me a couple times anyway, so I played with -- like I said, I wasn't going to play if I couldn't be myself.
Q: There were a lot of plays that helped define this game that didn't go for you. Was one of the biggest ones for you not getting point at the end of the first half? Is that what's going to stick with you the most?
KM: Yeah, I'm not going to speak on it too much, but that's an unfortunate turn of events. You know, obviously we get points right there, we put ourselves in a better situation.
Q: Going back to that last second Wednesday before the half, what you just talked about, was there an option for to you check out at any of those plays and do something different than what was called?
KM: You watched it?
Q: I did.
KM: Yeah, I mean, I didn't see anything wrong with the play calls. We just didn't execute.
Q: We asked cliff this and he says you quarterback sneaking is not really in the game plan. How comfortable are you with that if he was to call that and you had to sneak the ball?
KM: I mean, if the game's on the line, I mean, I'd do whatever to win the game. There's no question there. We just -- that was not the calls that we called. Again, the plays were there to be made. We just have to execute.
Q: Curious whether you were missing Larry Fitzgerald in the red zone today.
KM: I mean, I said it before the game, obviously not having Larry, that was a huge loss for us, but at the same time, we have a next-man-up mentality and we have to step up. We knew coming into this game we weren't going to have Larry, so like I said, I think the plays were there to be made. We just did not execute.
Q: In those tough situations for Zane where he's missed a field goal, is there anything you say to him after the game as leader on this team?
KM: I mean, you know, it's one of those positions where you don't get that many opportunities, so it's not like -- I'm sure it's very mental. I have never been a kicker. I can't speak on it. I don't know. But no, I don't -- I'm not down or I don't go and bash them or anything like that. I know how tough it is. It's a tough game. He made every other kick. You know, it just didn't happen to go his way.
I think we had a lot of other opportunities to make that game easier on ourselves, and we didn't.
Q: Just looking at the last stretch of games coming into the end of the season, what would you like -- where would you like to see the biggest change made?
KM: I think we just lately, or you know, in the games that we've lost, we have just kind of found a way to shoot ourselves in the foot, you know, in a lot of games that we feel like we should have won or like I said, we come out and we shoot ourselves in the foot and it's not a good feeling to keep doing that over and over again. You know, we got to clean it up. It's pretty obvious. I think everybody watching it, sees it.
Q: With the way Seattle has played you and then the way the Patriots did, people taking away the run, what's the counter to that? How do you make them pay?
KM: I feel like I should -- I mean, I don't think I have to run for us to be successful. I mean, I'm very confident about running backs. It just is what it is. They choose to take me out of it. I've got to hand the ball off. I can't control the ball after that. I've got to hand the ball off.
Q: Just to follow up here, you guys are 6-5 now, five games to go, how is the attitude on the team and how is your attitude going forward?
KM: Got to remain positive. You know, this is a very tough league. It's tough to win in this league. You can be beat any Sunday, obviously. Just got to remain positive, one day at a time type of mentality.
ADDITIONAL CARDINALS PLAYERS
Markus Golden, LB
(On his interception)
"I have to give credit to Jordan [Hicks], he made it happen. I had the easy job, the ball came right to me and I just caught it. It landed right in my hands. I am happy that it is my first one, but I have to give credit to Jordan because he made it happen. It was just an easy catch for me. It felt good though, it felt really good to get it."
(On having a 6-5 record and working to get in the playoffs)
"Honestly, my best thought right now is going to work tomorrow, watching film and getting together with the team and the coaches and fixing everything we can fix to get ready for the next opponent, which is the Rams. That is the NFL for you, there are ups and downs but you have to be able to push. I am looking forward to pushing and doing what we have to do to get things right, to get right and get some wins."
(On Isaiah Simmons' hit on Cam Newton late in the game)
"I was running to the ball so I couldn't really see exactly, usually those types of calls happen. He was playing hard, the rookie Isaiah Simmons was playing hard, and laying it on the line for his team. You can't really fault him for it because there are going to be close calls like that. I still respect Isaiah for laying it on the line for his team. I respect him for going hard."
(On this being a disappointing loss on the road)
"Of course, you want to win, I wouldn't say disappointing. You want to win. You want to go out there and get a win especially when it is a close fight like that. Everyone out there is working hard and playing as hard as we can to win the game. You have to give those guys credit, they fought to the end of the game and came out with the win. We still fought our hardest and played hard, but you have to give them credit. They were able to pull it off today and that is the NFL; you have to keep working hard."
(On being able to contain Cam Newton)
"Cam [Newton] is a great player, you have to respect him and he has done a lot in this league. With that you have to give credit to our coaches because they put together a great game plan. We were able to get out there and make some stuff happen and keep Cam and slow him down a bit. I give credit to the coaches. We drew up a good game plan for this week for him."
(On losing three of the last four games)
"What I say is, you just have to work hard. It is a part of the NFL and it is not easy. It is not easy to win in the NFL but everyone wants to win and everybody has been working hard all week to get the win. At the same time, you have to go back to the drawing board. You have to be excited for stuff like this, and that's what I live for. I know a lot of the guys are ready to get back to work and do whatever we can to fix it and get back on a winning streak."
Justin Pugh, OL
(On the Patriots defense keying in on Kyler Murray's run game)
"Obviously, they were scheming it. We have to do a better job on running the ball effectively on first and second down, putting us in manageable third-down situations. They made the biggest plays in the biggest moments and we did not. We are sitting here at 6-5 with five games in front of us. We have to go out there and win some games."
(On the pressure to win and the leadership needed)
"Yeah, we are going to find out what we are made of. I always say that when things don't go your way, you find out the character of the men in the room. I know the character of the men we have, so I am excited. We have to look at it that way. We have to go out there and fight and battle. Nothing is easy and nothing is given to you in the NFL. We have to go out there and earn it."
(On getting stuffed on the goal line)
"Yeah it was tough, that is on the offensive line. We have to convert that. That is one that is going to haunt us. We are going to watch the film. Like I said earlier, they made plays at the biggest moments and we did not. That is the difference in that game. We convert that one and it is a totally different ballgame. We are going to look back and we are going to be angry, we are going to be upset. But we have to let that stew for 24 hours and then get over it and move on to the next one."
(On what he would like to see differently on third and fourth-and-short situations)
"We have to step up in the biggest moments. Everyone across the board. It just seems like we are not making those big plays at those big moments. Go in there, watch the film. Offensive line, we have to do a better job at getting a push. Obviously, we have got to get in and watch the film and see what went wrong on those big plays. We are in this together, it is all 11 guys out there. I am excited about the character of the men in this room. I keep harping on that. That is what is going to get us through in these toughest moments."
(On not having Larry Fitzgerald to play in the game)
"Yeah it was huge. Larry is one of the leaders of this team, of this organization. He makes big play time after time. We miss him dearly. Hopefully, he is getting healthy and getting back out there. There are things that are bigger than football. We obviously want him to get healthy and make sure he is fine in that regard and get him back out here. He is the leader on this team and you need a guy like that at all times."
