There were a lot of things to be happy about for Bruce Arians as he spoke to the media following Tampa Bay’s victory over the previously undefeated Rams on Sunday.
Not only did the team put up a franchise-record point total, they did so on the back of four defensive turnovers and nearly flawless play from their franchise quarterback Jameis Winston. Arians spoke about the resiliency needed to escape Los Angeles with the win and how much confidence that could bring a young team at this point in the season.
Opening statement:
“After watching the film, really, really pleased, probably more with the resiliency of our football team. We throw the interception, it’s 45-40 and no one blinked. We went right down the field and made it an eight-point game and the defense comes out and wins the game. I think those are huge strides for a young team, it could have easily gone the other way. They put last week behind them when they showed up for work last Wednesday and we’ll put this one behind us when we show up for work this week.”
On the possibility of making Ronald Jones the starter:
“I like where we’re at. Peyton [Barber’s] had a big game and when RoJo get’s going he’ll stay in there.”
“When you get the hot hand. He had the hot hand and was making people miss, Peyton had that in Carolina. It’s a good problem to have, to have two guys, and both did a great job of scoring in the red zone.”
On keeping Aaron Donald in check on Sunday:
“[The offensive line] played fantastic. I don’t know if they had two sacks but if they did, Jameis [Winston] just held on to the damn ball too long because Harold [Goodwin] and Joe Gilbert had a great plan to try and minimize him as much as possible, which is hard to do. I think that our guys, our guards and centers all did a great job with it.”
On these games going down to the wire:
“It’s going to be interesting until the end but I love the fact that we’re finding ways to win again. We did it in Carolina, we should have done it against the Giants, and it’s all a part of that learning experience and I think that the team that shows up on Wednesday is going to be a much more confident team, knowing that talent is not an issue. It’s not talent, it’s whether we play well enough in critical moments.”
Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Getty Images
On if he’s ever utilized a wide receiver as a blocker like he does Chris Godwin:
“I’ve been blessed. Hines Ward was one of the best ever, Reggie Wayne bought into it and was a physical receiver, Larry Fitzgerald was one of the best blocking receivers the last few years and Chris, that’s his role. That’s why I love when guys have the breakout games of 10 catches, or whatever, and 170 yards because he’s doing all of that grimy work. You can throw them those screen passes in the red zone, not just because they’re good at it, but because they deserve it. He blocked Clay Matthews better than our tight ends did at times.”
On his confidence in Winston:
“It’s just continued growth. [Running the ball after Winston’s interception] wasn’t an indictment because he threw an interception, we were just gaining five yards per clip against the Giants so why not keep it up? I thought that the red zone was the biggest difference in this one. Third down and the red zone, with 62 percent or whatever he was on third down, he played great on third down. The red zone, we were four out of five or five out of six, that’s the ball game.”
On this great three-game stretch from Winston:
“He’s just growing in the offense. I think that Byron [Leftwich] and Clyde [Christensen] are doing a great job with him, fundamentally and mentally. I don’t know of anyone who’s played better over the past three weeks than he has and the numbers should show it, we’ve put a lot of points up. Especially when you jump out 21-0 you take the crowd out of it and then you just keep playing. The one thing I kept preaching was to just keep scoring. Keep scoring, keep going after it because I knew the Rams were going to score some points.”
On the Rams never committing to the run, even early:
“I think Sean McVay made a choice that he was going to throw the ball, he wasn’t going to run it, which having played them in the past is different. But to throw the ball 70 times or whatever it was, I’ve never seen it and I’ve never lost to it. It was a lot of yards but it’s conscious decision. We’ve had three really good backs that I don’t think have 100 yards between them. We’re built to run and stop the run, then get after the quarterback and take shots. That’s our M.O. and we’re not changing.”
On playing fearless:
“You have to play fearless and that’s one of my biggest messages to Jameis. Throw it. Don’t worry about it, just throw it and know why you’re throwing it. We have to play that way and we still have some young DB’s who are playing a little careful and my message to them is, it’s time to play fearless. If you make a mistake you make a mistake but don’t hold your breath, let it go.”
On how much this win helps going into a long road stretch:
“It doesn’t look as bad right now. We got one under our belt, we have two big road wins so we know we can handle the crowd noise and we know we can handle the road so it’s not as daunting as it was back in August when you look at it. Obviously any time you go to New Orleans it’s different. It’s probably the loudest and hardest place to play because there’s great noise, but it’s a great team.”
Bucs LB Lavonte David – Photo by: Getty Images
On Lavonte David missing all of preseason but still being able to play great:
“He’s at a point in his career where he probably doesn’t need preseason but it was an injury that scared me because I know how good he is. He’s a great tackler, he forces turnovers and I have to give M.J. Stewart credit because he played that slant and made [Jared] Goff hold it just a tick and Lavonte made a great play on it.”
On Jack Cichy:
“MRI’s aren’t back in but his elbow, he could be two to four weeks.”
On Breshad Perriman:
“He’s got a hamstring injury, we don’t know yet. He’s in the tube right now also so we’ll see the extent of it. I liked the way the young receivers stepped in and played and it was a shame because Scotty Miller had his opportunity for his first touchdown and Jameis got hit right when he let it go because he had split the coverage and was about 10 yards behind him.”
On Chris Godwin’s catches all going for first downs or touchdowns:
“That’s a great stat. That’s the thing, when you’re running the ball and blocking like he does, there’s a lot of opportunities around the middle of the field to make big plays, and outside. Again, it goes back to our philosophy, mine personally. If you’re willing to do it, I’m willing to get you the ball.”
On Devin White:
“We’ll see him and Jamel [Dean] run today, so hopefully they’ll practice on Wednesday.”
On struggling on kick returns:
“I thought T.J. [Logan] should have stayed in on that last one, I thought it was a poor decision on his part. He got the one out to the 28 but the ball was kicked the opposite way of our return and it was just a poor decision.”
On what Ryan Smith brings with his return:
“Speed on special teams. He’s a special teams player and we look forward to having him back.”
