HEAD COACH BILL BELICHICK

POSTGAME VIDEO CONFERENCE
October 25, 2020

BB: We were clearly out-coached, outplayed. Just out-everything. So we need to just keep working here and find a way to just do everything better. We're just not performing at a good level right now in any area. So that's across the board. We just got to get back to work and keep working and find a way to play better than we played tonight and coach better than we coached tonight. So really there's not much else to say about it. The 49ers are a good team. Kyle did a good job, like he always does. And but we just, we just didn't do enough and look at what the results were.

Q. Last week you mentioned that your team didn't practice and it looked like it on the field. How would you assess how well your team played and its improvement from last week's performance and getting back on the practice field and how you looked today?

BB: I just did that. I think I just assessed that. We got better last week. We needed to get back on the practice field. We definitely got better. We improved in some areas. It didn't show up on the score. We still have a lot of work to do, but some of the things that we worked on were better. But we're still a long way from where we need to be. That's obvious.

Q. Do you plan on having Cam Newton as your quarterback going forward?

BB: Yeah, absolutely. Just wanted to give Stid [Jarrett Stidham] a little experience here.

Q. Are you disappointed with the way the offense played together given that you did have a full week of practice this week?

BB: Yeah, I just said that in the opening statement. I said that we didn't perform well enough in any area, offense, defense, special teams, running, passing, defending the run, defend being the pass, ball security, tackling, blocking, none of it was good enough. Maybe I left something out, but we just got to do a better job all the way across the board. I don't think everything was bad, but there was enough bad for the results to be bad, so we need to improve in all areas.

Q. How surprised were you by your team's play after having the week of preparation? Did you guys seem to get back to normal? Certainly that happens in professional sports, but how surprised were you about what happened on the football field today with your team the way it played?

BB: I don't know.

Q. What kind of struggles did you see from Cam and the offense in particular today? Was it decision-making? What kind of things did you see?

BB: I think I already covered that. I think we need to do better job in all areas. I don't think there's anything you could say that we don't need work on. So they all work together. Obviously we weren't good on third down on either side of the ball. We weren't good in the red area. The opportunities that we had we didn't, weren't able to capitalize on. We turned the ball over. One takeaway, basically. So we just, just need to be better everywhere.

Q. How do you feel about the team's effort level today?

BB: I thought we competed hard. We just didn't do things well enough.

Q. Defensively how much would you ascribe the trouble you had today to just fundamental breakdowns versus anything else?

BB: As I've already said several times, that was a part of it, for sure. Fundamentals, some scheme, coaching, playing. Everybody contributed to it.

QUARTERBACK CAM NEWTON

POSTGAME VIDEO CONFERENCE
October 25, 2020

Q. How disappointing was that performance after getting a full week of practice to be shut out, well shut out, six points today?

CN: Very disappointing, but we just got to be better.

Q. I know you don't want to make excuses, but on some of those throws it looked like you were laboring a little bit. Is your shoulder, are you feeling okay physically?

CN: Yes, sir.

Q. You said during the week that you felt like you hadn't played well. After a game like this, how is your confidence right now? How is your mindset? And how do you approach things when you've been in a rut like this to pull yourself out of it?

CN: I don't know. But I can't, one thing that can't happen is I can't allow myself to feel sorry for myself. I know what the issue is and you just have to attack it and do better.

Q. You know what the issue is. What is the issue?

CN: Me not playing good.

Q. Is there something leading to that?

CN: It's simple. Play better.

Q. How do you sum up what went wrong today?

CN: I can't speak for everybody. I just stick to the man in the mirror and I wasn't good enough. I didn't -- in no way shape or form did I put this team in a position to compete, and that's inexcusable. This is the National Football League where a lot is put on the quarterback and I have to deliver and I haven't done that. Quite frankly, it's evident. So here moving forward I know what the issue is, like I just said, and I just have to be better.

Q. All quarterbacks go through things from the standpoint of struggling. You've certainly have done that in your career. How in the past have you gotten through that and how much of it right now is mental to you in not making the right decision and things like that, in your mind, with this offense right now?

CN: It's a lot of it mental. I'm not going to point fingers at nobody else being the fact that I just didn't get the job done. And when you have a performance like that going against a team like this, what happened tonight will happen again. So like I said, it's a distasteful taste and feeling, but yet here moving forward you just got to get on a roll. We just got to get one. Once that happens -- we just got to start with tomorrow, come back, review the film, and don't put too much into understanding life's lesson. So with that being said, I understand what's expected, and only thing that I can control is putting a good body of practice in a week and put myself in the best situation.

Q. After the game, Coach said, Cam's our guy. How confident are you that you can be the guy starting next week and getting this team right again going forward?

CN: Without a doubt.

Q. What happened on the interception to Fred Warner? I think it was on a pass to Jakobi Meyers.

CN: That's sad when you have to think about it. Yeah, I just lost him. I lost him and I seen -- I just eyed Jakobi too much. I should have just threw it away, got down. The decision-making is inexcusable and I think that's the most frustrating thing, being that once you pride yourself on certain things, that -- facing -- and you're doing or doing things that you're doing, it even makes matters worse. So the point of emphasis all year has been protecting the football and you know you have to protect the football. And when you do not protect the football, that's when you kind of question a lot of things. But yet at the end of the day, we're just going to come back to the drawing board starting tomorrow and I have full faith in the coaching staff and to be prepared. So it's just about player production.

Q. Jakobi is a guy who hasn't played a lot this season, but it seems like you have some confidence in throwing it to him when he did get in there. What gave you that confidence to throw it to Jakobi so much?

CN: It didn't matter if it was Jakobi or Julian or Burk, we just got to make sure that -- everybody's in there for a reason and I have to read my keys and get to the right guy.

Q. How would you characterize the health of your right throwing shoulder?

CN: It's fine.

Q. Could you repeat that? I couldn't hear it.

CN: It is fine.

Q. I'm just -- mechanically, how are you feeling, the mechanics have been the last couple weeks since you've been back?

CN: Well, I've just been pressing. I don't think it's anything with mechanics. It's seeing the situation at hand and I caught myself just pressing too much. The energy is definitely been off for me and at times it's not rewarding when you're just going out there with this aura about yourself that's not you. I love playing this football game. I have fun playing this football game, but the performances here hasn't been somewhat delightful for me to have fun in doing so. So I just got to be better. And a lot of things starts and stops at that position and I understand that. And I have put this team in a rut with the performances here, and yet just start over with Monday and see where it goes.

Q. After the Julian interception his frustration was pretty obvious. Just wondering if you had a chance to talk to him and if you did, from your standpoint how two of you could work together to bring things back on, back to normal quickly?

CN: Well, we got to figure it out. We got to figure it out. Our Wi-Fi is definitely off. And it's frustrating because knowing the person Julian is and knowing the body of work that he puts in each and every week and day and from preparation to biometrically with his body, you fall in love with a person like that. And with me, I just want to win. I just want to find a way to win. And here of late, that hasn't been the case.

So we have a team full of warriors. We have a team full of guys who knows how to figure certain things out and that's what we're just going to have to do here moving forward.

QUARTERBACK JARRETT STIDHAM

POSTGAME VIDEO CONFERENCE
October 25, 2020

Q: Bill Belichick just said that Cam Newton absolutely will be the starter moving forward. Was the team made aware of that as well?

JS: I mean, I don't think -- I mean, look the message after the game wasn't anything about that or anything of that nature. The message after the game was, We all have a lot to work on. We all have a lot to work really hard on to get better to improve, and then that's where our focus needs to be. Our focus needs to be coming in starting tomorrow and getting better and working and doing everything that we can to get better and to improve on a daily basis.

Q: Just for you, has it been frustrating at all that the only opportunities that you've had have come when you're kind of thrust into the game and maybe not given a regular week to prepare for that situation?

JS: Look, from my standpoint, I prepare each week like I'm the guy, whether it's film study, getting ready for practice, going through the playbook, whatever it may be. I always prepare like I am the guy. So I can't control those types of things. I can control my efforts, my attitude, and how prepared I am for the game and how ready I am for the game, and that's what I'm going to continue to do.

Q: What went through your mind or what did you see when you threw the ball to Julian in the right flat, the one that got picked?

JS: I just got to place the ball better. That's really all it is.

Q: When you're thrust into that situation, especially when a team knows you're going to be throwing every down, sort of what are the challenges for a quarterback in that spot, as opposed to you have some diversity in your game when it's even score or whatever?

JS: I think for me it's just to come in and come in prepared and to run the called play and try and execute it to the best of my ability. I mean, that's my job and that's what I'm prepared to do every time I go out there and that's what I'm going to continue to try and do.

Q: I know you were just asked about Belichick's comment that Cam was absolutely the quarterbacking going forward, but what's your reaction to that? How are you feeling about where you stand in the depth chart?

JS: Look, like I just said, those types of things I can't control. But what I can control is how I prepare. And the things that I can control is how much film I watch, how prepared I am for that game coming up and the game plan and everything like that, and that's regardless of what's going on around me. That's what I can control and that's what I'm going to continue to do.

Q: So through your performance today you talk about finding things you need to improve on. What do you feel you need to do better, based on your performance today, and what can you do to improve going forward based on that?

JS: No, I wouldn't say it's one single thing. I think there's a lot of things that I can personally work on. And obviously, the throw to Julian, I got to place that ball better, can't leave it inside on an out breaking route. So there's a lot of things that I can personally work on. And as a team, I think there's a lot that we can work on and that's what we're going to do moving forward.

Q: Coach talked about it and so did David Andrews and they talked about execution and it just being a struggle. Why has the offense execution been such a struggle to put points on the board?

JS: I think this game, the game of football, it's not just about one person doing something right or three people doing something right. When it comes to this game, all 11 guys have to be on the same page and they have to do their job to be able to execute at the highest level. Right now we're just falling short on that, but I do know that the locker room is extremely eager to get back to practice. I wish we could practice tonight, honestly, just to get back into the swing of things. That's just really what it comes down to. All 11 guys being on the same page and doing your job. We preach that all the time of do your job, do your job. And I think the game of football you have to be able to do your job in order to execute plays.

Q: How quick do you want to get this taste out of your mouth and get back to practice and kind of get back to maybe playing a little bit or much better than you have been?

JS: Obviously we're coming in tomorrow morning and we'll get right back to work and watch the film and do what we can to get better and put our best foot forward and put our working caps on and get back to work.

Q: The last two games you've been the No. 2 quarterback. And I'm curious how has that changed practice for you leading up to the games, if at all, in terms of you moving up one spot up the depth chart?

JS: Yeah, I wouldn't say it's changed dramatically. There will be times where I get reps with the 1s and that sort of thing, just a couple reps here and there. But other than that my approach to practice, all of that has always stayed consistent and has always stayed the same.

Q: What would you say are the biggest things you've learned about what it takes to be a high-quality NFL quarterback through this game and also back to the Kansas City Chiefs game, biggest lessons learned about what you need to do in order to execute the position the way it needs to be?

JS: Yeah, I think the biggest thing, first of all, is ball security. Making the right decision, making a good decision when that presents itself. Really just trying to rally those guys in the huddle and being a leader. That's something I always strive to do each and every time I step in the huddle, lead those guys. And I think that's something I've learned, obviously, from last year and into this year from Tom and now Cam and a lot of the guys in the locker room that have been here for so long. I think that's one of the biggest things for a quarterback and that's something that I always try and work on it as much as I can. So there's a lot that goes into it, but I'm just ready to get back to work starting tomorrow and try and get better for Buffalo.

Q: How frustrating a day was it for you, for Cam, the offense? And what were the conversations like as the game went on on the bench amongst you guys and with Cam about trying to get going, trying to get him going, trying to get you going as you went along?

JS: Yeah, I think the message basically stayed the same throughout the entire game is really we can't look too far ahead. Nobody can try and do everything at once. You just got to keep chopping wood. And that was kind of the message throughout the entire game, at halftime, so on and so forth. And once you put one good play together you got to put another play together and so on and so forth. So I think that was the biggest message and guys were really trying to do that throughout the entire game, and like I said earlier, we just fell short a little bit and we all have to be on the same page to execute things the right way.

Q: As a teammate how much do you feel in that situation for Cam and the day that he went through? He certainly struggled.

JS: Well, a lot of things can happen throughout a game. And I will say, he's a fighter and I've learned a lot from him this year. And he, even whenever I went in, he came over to me and kind of got me up and kind of gave me a word of encouragement. So he's definitely a great player and a great person and I know all of us are going to be itching to get back out there this week and get ready for practice.

Q: How much confidence do you have in just the quarterback room and the offense that you guys can collectively figure this out and improve upon the last two games?

JS: No, I have a lot of confidence in the room. Like I said, we all are extremely eager to get back to work tomorrow, whether it be myself, Cam or Hoy or whoever it may be. I know we're all itching to get back out there and learn from our mistakes from tonight and try and get better moving forward. So I'm really looking forward to it.

ADDITIONAL PATRIOTS PLAYERS

CENTER DAVID ANDREWS

(On what the offense has to do to get going)

"It starts with practice. We've got to practice better. I thought we had pretty good practice this week, but it wasn't good enough. We've got to come in tomorrow and learn from that and start on the right foot and just continue to execute. You can talk about effort and all those things, but at the end of the day, this game is about execution. We're just not doing that right now."

(On the confidence he has in the offense and that they can turn it around) 

"I've got a lot of confidence in this room. I've played a lot of football with a lot of these guys, and we just have to execute. We have to be better. We've got to start holding each other accountable and it's not all bad, there's some good things, but we're just squandering away opportunities. You can't do that and win games in this league. I have confidence in this team, we've got the tools to win. But if you don't execute, it doesn't matter what you've got. 

(On how surprising the team's performance was today)

"I don't think anyone wanted to play like that today. You've got to take pride in this game, take pride in what you do, because if not, this game can be ugly to you like it was today. That's just part of it. This game can humble you real fast and it can be great to you at the same time. But just go back to work, that's the only thing I know how to do, is come in tomorrow and go to work. That's really all I've ever known and at a time like this, you don't do anything else."

(On how badly he wants to get back out on the field after a performance like this game)

"Yeah, you wish you could go practice tomorrow, you know? But you can't, you're going to have to learn from those mistakes and come in and watch the film and deal with it. Then take Tuesday off and get ready for your next opponent. Then come in Wednesday and you've just got to attack the week. But anytime you have a performance like that if you're a competitor, you want to get that taste out of your mouth pretty fast."

CORNERBACK STEPHON GILMORE

(On the mood of the group, how the team is feeling.)

"We just lost the game. They had their way with us. Frustrated because we just lost, lost bad. Just have to go back and watch the film and see what we can do better and go from there. 

(On the season potentially getting away from the team.)

We just have to keep playing. The last three weeks we haven't won, so we have to change something. We have to do some of the things better. From all of us. Everybody has to play better. We just have to try to work harder and hopefully get better results next time."

(On whether it's harder to defend certain types of offenses)

Everybody's different each and every week. The things we don't stop other teams are going run until we stop it. So, if we don't stop it they're going to keep running it. We got to take it from there.

DEFENSIVE BACK DEVIN MCCOURTY

(On whether it's tough to believe how that game went)

"I mean it is what it is, I think. I mean anybody that's been here for a while, we haven't been in this position, but I do know we have to stick together and we got to just fight. You don't ever want to come out here and get embarrassed the way we did today. And there's no excuse. There's nothing to talk about. We just got to keep working. We just have to keep fighting together. I'm sure I'll be saying that the whole night, I mean, it's just embarrassing the way we went out there and played. I mean we got to go out there and play to keep jobs right now, you know, I know coach Belichick, the Kraft's, they're not they're not fielding a team for us to go out there and play like that, so we have to improve and we have to improve in a hurry."

(On the biggest issue the defense faced)

"We never had control of the game. Inside runs outside runs, a couple different big plays, the wheel route in the passing game. A lot of the passes were, you know, that kind of missile jet-sweep. It's like a run but it's a pass and a bubble passes, but I mean, you give up 33 points, I don't think we did anything really well today."

(On wrinkles the defense wasn't expecting)

"They just outplayed us. Even some of the things we had to adjust to, I would say they still did a way better job of executing than we did. I think we talked about different things and we were ready for things, we didn't execute anything."

(On the team's effort level)

"Yeah, but I mean, you can give all the effort you want in this league, we have to go execute. Effort is there. There's always going to be times when you feel that you could have did some more. But we have to execute. We can't just come and try hard. Every team is going to come and play hard. We have to give effort, but we also have to execute. You know I can only speak from a defensive standpoint, like we have to go do our job well. We can't just be out there and look at each other and say, 'At least we're trying.' Like, that's just not good enough. This is a National Football League. That was a good San Francisco team that came in here, but we can't just try. We have to go and play well. We come out and just try every week, we're going to have some weeks where we lose by three or four points, it's a close game and we could have done this could have done that. Or today where we don't execute really at all, and a team that's executing at a high level, we really don't stand a chance, but it's never going to go well for us. We might win a game here or there when you just have effort. We have to actually execute, too."

WIDE RECEIVER JAKOBI MEYERS

(On what went wrong this game) 

"I don't want to point the finger at anybody but there's a lot we've got to correct. There's a lot of plays that we didn't execute well enough. I feel like we've got a great coaching staff so we'll come in tomorrow, learn everything that went wrong and what we're hoping to do better, and we'll try to do it better next week."

(On the importance of making the most of his playing opportunities)

"This is a business and I know if I don't perform, no matter what the excuse is, what happened prior to me being in there, if I don't perform when I get in there, they won't need me anymore. So I just want to come in, prove that I can be there, be that guy that they rely on when tough times happen and hopefully I show something to move forward and play more."

(On if he feels like he needs to prove that he deserves more playing time when he's on the field)

"Not to prove that I deserve more, just to prove that they can rely on me, if that makes sense. I just want them to know that I'm a trustworthy guy. No matter how many reps I get in practice, how many reps I get in the game, that I'm always paying attention, I'm always locked in. If they need me to go in for somebody, they can count on me."

(On what happened on Cam Newton's deep pass to him that resulted in an interception)

"I feel like he threw a pretty good ball, I just got my feet tied up with the DB's feet. I ended up going down, he ended up staying up, making the play."

(On what's missing from the offense)

"I couldn't tell you what's missing. I feel like our coaches will definitely have an answer for it tomorrow when we come in and I feel like if we all buy in – which I know we've got a bought-in team, so we'll all be here tomorrow, ready to work, be professionals. I feel like this is a very professional team. Whatever it is that our coaches tell us we need to be better on, I feel like we'll come in tomorrow and start a good week as far as getting better with that."

(On the mindset in the locker room after the game)

"I feel like Slate [Matthew Slater] said it best. He said we've all got to prepare and be better and execute better. This is the NFL and people are not going to come here and lay down because we're the Patriots. We've got to go out and be the best team we can be and I feel like we'll do that moving forward."

(On how quickly they have to move on to next week)

"Now. We've got to be better right now. Come in, let this game go and continue to think to ourselves like, "What can we do to be better?" And then when that time comes to practice, or watch film or learn from the game, do it right away because there's no time to waste. We've got to get ready to win the division, play hard and just execute better." 

WIDE RECEIVER MATTHEW SLATER

(On what gives him a positive outlook for the rest of the season) 

"The character of the men in the locker room. I believe in the men in that locker room and I believe in who they are as people. You look at some of the things that we have had to deal with, regarding some of the guys and their personal lives this year and the way that they have been able to endure, keep faith and overcome, it has been really inspiring. When I look at our football team right now, obviously we are in a very tough position, a position that we are not excited about but if there is anything that sees us through this, it is going to be our character and commitment to one another and then our commitment to our game. I certainly have a lot of faith in the men in that locker room. We are going to have to demand a lot of one another and at the end of the day we have to continue to believe in what we are doing and continue to believe in who we are."

(On his thoughts as a captain leaving the field with a loss tonight) 

"Frustrated and disappointed, obviously. You know you work so hard at this game, you give it everything you have in order for you to be successful as a team and certainly we are disappointed with the way things have gone thus far. I think there is a lot of football out there for us and a lot of opportunities. The one thing we can't do is feel sorry for ourselves because no one else is going to do that and if we do that then it is going to be a long season. Again, I believe on the men in this team and believe we can find a way to ride this ship." 

(On the special teams strategy in taking it out of the end zone) 

"We have a lot of confidence in Gunner Olszewski and want to be aggressive. Our hope is that we can go out there and make plays to help the team win so when we feel like we have opportunities and matchups that we like we are going to try to take advantage of them and continue to be aggressive. That is the way we have always played but we just have to find a way to be more consistent across the board."

(On how he supports Cam Newton) 

"I think not just Cam but I think we all need to support each other right now. There is not a lot of people outside of this locker room and our families that are going to provide us with much support during these times. Whether it is Cam or any other player, I hope and pray that we would support one another and be there for each other. Football is about relationships and a football team thrives off of relationships so hopefully our relationships are strong enough to see us through a time like this."