Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay spoke to the media to address quarterback Matthew Stafford’s contract negotiations, wide receiver Cooper Kupp’s possible departure, possible free agency moves, and scouting for the 2025 roster.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Warne Sean, I just wanted to ask you about obviously
agreeing to terms on a contractor restructure with Matthew just
haws it feel to have that out of the way,
and what does that allow you to do in terms
of attacking the rest of the roster.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Yeah, it's great, Stu.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Obviously that was always the end goal in mind, and
when you go through these conversations, I think the thing
that I'm grateful for is the collaboration and the communication
throughout the process where sometimes these things can be challenging.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Matthew was great.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
I think Jimmy Sexton, Matthew's agent, was excellent, you know,
Less had a lot of dialogue with him, and then
ultimately sitting down with you know, with Matthew and with
Kelly and then being able to have Kevin Less and
Tony be a part of that. I think it was
a really beneficial conversation and I think ultimately it's about
the partnership and how important it is, you know, to
(00:50):
have him leading the way. And so couldn't be more grateful,
really excited about it and been sleeping better these last
couple of days.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
And just as a follow up to that, were there
any conversation about just how long that partnership will be
as high of a level as Matthew is playing, just
knowing that there are some you know, extensions for younger
players that are going to be coming up here in
the next few years and those sorts of things. How
does that all factoring.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Yeah, you know, we've taken it a year at a time,
and he's earned the right, I believe Stude to be
able to say, hey, I think he could play for
a few more years if that's what he wanted. But
we've always had great dialogue, and I think it's really
kind of been a year to year thing. He's obviously
under contract for two more years with us, but as
long as he wants to play, I know, we're feeling
really good about that. But ultimately, the end goal in
(01:36):
mine was making sure that, like we talked about in
the end of the season press conference, let's get him
settled and situated.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
Let's be able to move forward.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Accordingly, because you guys know that that's such an important
vital spot for us and what his leadership has meant
to our football team over the last four years as
exactly what we wanted, and it's a big deal to
get Alar Jackson signed up as well. You know, we
had a couple of priorities at the start of the
free agency, or really at the start of our off
season planning, and those are two big, big deals for us,
(02:06):
and hopefully we'll be able to knock out a few
more here in the next coming days.
Speaker 4 (02:10):
Appreciate it, Thank you, You're welcome.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Adam Hey, Sean Matthew.
Speaker 4 (02:17):
You know, obviously there was a lot of reporting about
him speaking with other teams and being able to just
kind of gauge his market, and reporting about him taking
less to return to LA as he was going through
that process. Did you pitch him at all on what
a return to LA like? Did you pitch him at
(02:38):
all on coming back? And if so, what was that message?
Speaker 3 (02:42):
You know, Adam, I think what you do is you
have honest conversation. There's four years of equity in a
relationship that means a whole lot to me and a
lot to him that I think, there's there's a body
of work, there's experiences, there's relationships that will go on
a lot further on past the time that he plays
and past when I coach, and so you know, I
don't know if it's necessarily yeah. I mean, if you
(03:03):
want to say, did I want that and was that
the end goal for our group collectively?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Absolutely? But I think you want to allow him to
be able to come.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
To a decision with Kelly and his family that's best
for him, that he could get excited about. I think
that's the important thing is is you want everybody to
feel really good about the partnership.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
You want them to be excited and optimistic. It's so
difficult to.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Do what we do year in and year out, and
especially what Matthew has to do as a quarterback leading
the way, and so you want to make sure there's
good vibes going into it. And we were able to
check all those boxes. But I think the important thing,
and I kind of mention it. I don't know if
you saw when I ended up spending some time with
Wit and Fits on their podcast. I think the important
thing throughout this was the end goal in mine was
(03:44):
always to have Matthew back as the quarterback. There was
never any dispute or discrepancy on that, but we didn't
want to make sure. We want to make sure we
had all the information necessary and didn't want to have
to do things and you know, secret or.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Whatever you will.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
There's a lot of narratives that were out there, some
of which was accurate, and a lot of which are
probably not necessarily accurate based on how things can get
lost in translation.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
All I cared about was our dialogue throughout.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
I've not been afraid to run away from or you know,
I haven't run away from some of the mistakes I've
made in terms of the clear, open and honest and
direct communication and some of these conflict conversations, and so
that was really important, and I think that was key
and critical for us to be able to have, you know,
a smooth process throughout that might have seemed uncomfortable from
the outside, but I think it was able to come
(04:30):
to as good of a scenario as I could have hoped.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Honestly, when we met together on Friday morning.
Speaker 4 (04:37):
You've talked in the past about what Cooper has meant
to you personally, and he's obviously also meant a lot
to the franchise and the fan base. What factors led
to the decision to make him available via trade.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
This officer, Yeah, yeah, I mean you just said it.
I mean, this guy's changed my life for the better.
We've had eight years together. It's not these decisions similar
to Matthew are not made you know, just as separate entity.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
These are for the team.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
You're ultimately trying to put the puzzle together and and
you know, with a lot of thought and consideration, you know,
we just felt like that was the best direction for
our football team.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
It doesn't take away the.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Love, respect, and gratitude that you have for what he's done,
but it just came down to what we think is
best in terms of putting together the whole puzzle.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
And there's obviously a lot of layers.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
To that, and I think you always use the the
you know, you always acknowledge the fact that hey been
wrong before, it could be wrong again. But we always
try to have our core values and the big picture shape,
you know, our perspective and really ultimately our decision making.
Not easy, but couldn't be more impressed with the human
being and how how he handles some of those conversations
(05:45):
and no matter what, his legacy is cemented as an
all time ram and most importantly, I'm a better human
for having had these these eight years with him.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
Were there any discussions with him or his representation about
a contractor structure you know.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
We haven't had those types of conversations. It was more
along the lines of kind of when when Less, Kevin, Tony, myself,
and then obviously with communication from personnel and from the
coaching staff, it was really all right, let's this is
the direction that we're going to go.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
We'll seek a trade, we'll take it a day at
a time.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
I know, Less It's had some communication with Ryan Toner,
Cooper's agent.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
I've had dialogue with Cooper and and uh, and that's
kind of where we're at with that.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
If you are unable to find a trade partners, the
door completely closed on him coming back to the Rams
next year.
Speaker 3 (06:31):
You know, I think I would never speak in absolutes,
but I do think, you know, let's let's gather all
the information, we'll take it a day at a time,
and we'll kind of see what with the next steps.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Entail, Thank you, you're welcome. Sarah.
Speaker 5 (06:45):
Hey, Sean, what if you learned about your role as
a head coach and talking to Les and Tony and
Kevin about trying to balance you reference the short term
versus preparing for the longer term with this roster?
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Oh man, I.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
Think I think you try to refer to the experience, to
a lot of the good decisions, to some of the
things that we would maybe do differently, and then think
it is the element of trusting everybody to do their
role and responsibility. I think the one thing that I'm
so grateful for, and I know I speak for Kevin
Less and Tony, is having an ownership group in the
Kronkey family that supports and trusts us, build safety, gives
(07:24):
us the freedom to fail, but also acknowledge our mistakes
and then ultimately try to be able to do, as
you know, the next right thing for us. And so
it is always a balance and in this league is challenging.
But I think you try to put that puzzle together.
I think you use the previous experiences and then ultimately
is it about building a team and what does that
look like to acknowledge what's been going on? Where are
(07:45):
the things that what are the things that we need
to do to be able to address to be better
in certain spots, whether that's coaching, whether that's schematic, whether
that's personnel related, and how does that evolve and adapt,
you know, with the fluidity and flexibility that's.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
Necessary on year to year basis.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
You know, I would have told you a couple of
years ago that we need this and now that's changed.
And so I think the ever evolving landscape of the
league and the challenges are what make this fun.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
But that is a fluid situation.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
But ultimately it's about the collaboration amongst the group, and
I think it's been pretty fruitful up to this point
and looking forward to trying to do it better than
we've ever done it before.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
Year nine.
Speaker 5 (08:22):
Was there a point at all last week?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
That's crazy? Year nine? Oh Man been too old for
this yeary? Go ahead, Sarah.
Speaker 5 (08:30):
Sorry, Was there a point at all in the last
week or two where you thought Matthew might not be
on on your team next year?
Speaker 3 (08:36):
No, No, that was never That was never something that
I ever thought would occur.
Speaker 5 (08:41):
What were the conversations then, as when he at the
end of this season, you guys sit down for the
first time, What are the reasons I guess that you
were even having those conversations?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
And why are you talking about like right after the
season when we ended up opening up just some other
dialogue with other teams?
Speaker 5 (08:58):
Yeah, I mean the fact that he's under contract technically, yeah,
the free agent.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
Sure. Well, I think here's here's the deal.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
And you guys know, when we made the contract adjustment
last year, there was always an understanding that he wouldn't
play under the number that he was due this coming year.
Now what exactly that was, So we always knew that
there would be some form of an adjustment based on
what we did that last day of training camp in
terms of how we moved things around and got him
to where he was last year.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
So that was something that we always knew was coming down.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
And when he felt good with the way the season ended,
and obviously we were all ecstatic about him wanting to
continue to play and play at a high level. Now
it's just figuring out the semantics of all, right, there's
no there's no way to put an actual value on
what he means, but what does it look like to
be able to fit it for the landscape of our
football team where we're at, knowing how many years you
(09:51):
want to play and what does that look like for
the short end for the long term. And I think
fortunately we were able to come to a compromise and
a conclusion that everybody feels really good it about. And
I think it's a great reflection of him and and
our group.
Speaker 5 (10:04):
And anticipate having this conversation again next year.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Oh yeah, but the positive, here's the positive.
Speaker 3 (10:09):
Last year took about seven months, this year about three weeks,
So maybe it'd be about two three days next year
if we have to do this.
Speaker 6 (10:19):
Yeah, Hey, Seanary, in regard to the meeting you guys
had on Friday, can you give us some insight into
you know, what what happened there?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I mean at that.
Speaker 7 (10:33):
Point was was his decision already made and you guys
just solidified it?
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Or what take us inside that meeting? If you could please?
Who was there?
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Yeah? I think the people that were there, you know,
And I want to keep it, you know, relatively in house,
just because of the you know, the conversation. Here was
the goal and here was the intent, Gary, to make
sure that we're just all on the same page and
we feel good and excited about this partnership moving forward,
no knowing how instrumental really the Stafford family as a
(11:03):
whole is to what we want to be able to do,
how how important it was for our leadership group to
just make sure that, hey, I know this, the people
that I love and care about the most, I'm able
to have real conversations with and ultimately that was the
goal is making sure that, yes, we all felt good
about where we were coming from, and we wanted to
make sure that after we were able to have that
dialogue that was you know, open and honest and very
(11:26):
it went better than I could have ever hoped that
we all felt good about the direction that we're headed.
And that was exactly what was accomplished, and for that,
I was very grateful for everybody that was involved.
Speaker 7 (11:38):
How you know, Jimmy Garoppolo was a pending free agent.
What's the situation with him or do you want to
bring him back again? And do you think he wants
to come back or what's what?
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Yeah, we would with the backup quarterback. Yeah, we would
love to bring him back.
Speaker 3 (11:51):
You know, I obviously have been very busy working through
kind of the Matthew situation, and so that's the hope
and anticipation. Now, you guys know that there might be
some other interest, and Jimmy's earned the right to be
able to have that type of interest. But but yes,
if you said, you know what, I want Jimmy back
here to be able to work in the quarterback room
(12:12):
with David Gohan and Matthew and those guys.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
The answer is absolutely yes.
Speaker 7 (12:18):
Can you update us at all on situations involving like
Bobby Brown, Michael Hoyt, some of your other pending free agents.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Yeah, those are fluid.
Speaker 3 (12:26):
You know, we are a week away from the negotiation
period being able to start where you can start talking
to other teams.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
I think in an.
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Ideal scenario, Gary, you're able to get some of your
guys that you know that you want to be able
to bring back in house taken care of before that
bell rings, just so you have an idea of what
does it look like to be able to build out
and some of the different things that we have relative
to our budget and the team building element of it.
And so don't want to get too specific just for
competitive reasons, but those are guys that you mentioned, and
(12:56):
there's some other guys that we'll be working in the
background to be able to see if we can come
to a decision and a conclusion.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
And and if we are, then we'll be excited about it.
Speaker 7 (13:05):
And then if if in fact, you know Cooper, you
guys do part ways with Cooper, what how will you
approach you know, U replant replacing him in that receiver
corp is that something you would like to do with
free agency, the draft both how how how are you
approaching that?
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Yeah, I think you look at always to you know,
what are the different avenues to onboard people, and you
kind of just mention them. You know, there's there's resigning
our own, there's free agency, there's the draft, and then
there's trades.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
And so we'll explore every avenue.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
I think, similar to what we've talked about, whether it
be Aaron or some of these other special players. You know,
you're not asking anybody to replace her to be Cooper Cup.
He established a legacy and cemented himself as one of
the all time greats. I do think it'll offer an
opportunity for Pooka and Nakua to take on a big
role in terms of just being the natural leader in
his own personality where he's he's able to kind of
(13:57):
lead that room alongside you know, Nat Shield.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Alice and Eric Yarbor and Rob calabresee.
Speaker 3 (14:03):
But we're in the midst of working through that and
so we'll see what that looks like. But you don't
replace at Cooper Cup and what he's meant to us
for so many different things on and off the field.
Speaker 4 (14:14):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
You're welcome. Jorge's son is bright, isn't it.
Speaker 8 (14:21):
Hey Sean kind of a unique thing for Jimmy Sexton
to kind of have the permission to go talk to
the other teams and I guess fact find in fact
check with you guys along the way about what Matthew's
potential market would be with those other teams. What was
that process like intern in terms of I guess helping
(14:43):
keep that communication open and serving as a fact check
for Matthew to understand like what was potentially available to him.
Speaker 3 (14:51):
Sure, yeah, yeah, I can't speak on behalf of what
the conversations with with Jimmy entailed with some of the
teams that were interested, But I think the ultimate and
til you know, from our perspective, Jordan was there was
a lot of conversations and so you know, less being
able to just return some calls and have some dialogue
with the end goal of mine always having him back.
But if that was ever something that was going to happen,
(15:13):
which is not what we wanted, but if that ever
was something that you would have had to go that direction,
there would have been two factors, you know. Number one,
what's the draft comp that you would receive in return
that you would even deem worth even considering. And then
number two, what would be the parameters at which he
would agree to go sign a new deal based on
what we did in.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
Terms of adjusting as contract.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
And so it was really just to have the open communication,
i'd have to necessarily do anything behind the scenes, and
so it was a lot of it was a reflection
of some of the mistakes that I feel like I've
made in previous years.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Jordan and I didn't want to go down that path.
Speaker 3 (15:49):
I wanted to make sure you're accountable for the things
that we've talked about that I've been open about, and
I think that was kind of the you know, the
thought process, and obviously the end goal of mine was
always to end where we did on Friday, and for
that I'm really grateful.
Speaker 8 (16:03):
Just to clarify, excuse me, just to clarify on the adjustment.
Is it year to year under the current framework of
the existing extension or will you guys adjust it to
reflect a one year contract.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
No, it'll be I mean, I'll tell you this, Tony
will work through all those semantics with our group. But
ultimately we were able to agree on what that adjustment
would be for this coming year with the two years
that he has remaining under contract with the Rams.
Speaker 8 (16:30):
Okay, I appreciate that. Obviously, you guys have have looked
at the long term and the short term at quarterback
since last year, I would imagine, because you've been year
to year on this, what's that conversation with Matthew like of, yes,
he is your guy, but you also have to start
planning for the future. And will you guys continue to
(16:50):
add to this room either this year or possibly next
And how is he dealing with that?
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Oh, it's been great.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I mean, I don't think there's ever been like a
threat to if he wants to continue to play, and
I think he's playing at such a high level. It's
not necessarily as much contingency plans. It's just operating under
the assumption where you're saying, hey, you know, however long
you want to play in the way that you're playing,
this is outstanding for us. But at some point when
you decide that that you're you're ready to be able
(17:19):
to transition into a new phase of your life. I'm
hopeful to still be here and we're still hopeful to
be here, And so what does that look like without
him leading away. I think the first thing is you
got to have people that you believe are legitimate candidates
to to be a starting caliber quarterback in the lead
your organization.
Speaker 2 (17:35):
We've been very spoiled since.
Speaker 3 (17:37):
I've been here in a good way with what Jared
Goff did for the first four years and then what
Matthew's done for the last four years. And so I
don't take lightly you know what a big deal that
will be whenever that time comes. Hopefully it's uh, it's
not something that you know, we we have to deal
with at any time. But but I do think that
the important thing is you have to identify people that
(17:59):
can legitimately continue to move your football team in a
manner that's reflective of what you want forward while not
while also acknowledging the fact that it's not going to
be the same in This guy is unique and he's
a whole famer. It's why I'll be putting a bull
jacket on five years after the day he retires.
Speaker 8 (18:17):
Just a quick side question too, the Rob Hanstein and
Tyler Higby. Obviously they are not free agents, but what
is their status? And we'll we be back with the
team next year.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Oh, yeah, yeah, Yeah, that's the that's the full expectation.
Those guys are instrumental to our success. Those are guys
that I thought I thought hate be coming back played.
I thought both of them played at a really high level. Obviously,
you know some of the injuries they both worked through.
But but when those guys were on the football field
for us, we were a different offense. And you could
(18:46):
tangibly feel the difference that Higby made when he came
back from the Jets game on.
Speaker 2 (18:51):
And then obviously you know when Rob was in there, the.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
Leadership, the production, the overall toughness, competitiveness, he was outstanding.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
And both those guys we fully expect back. Thanks Sean,
You're welcome. All right, quickly we'll reap with Wyatt and
then Kurt Hi.
Speaker 9 (19:08):
Sean, what is the process of, you know, gathering information
from from scouts and kind of creating your own player evaluations?
Look like now that the stafford and you know, some
of the bigger moves are out of the way for you.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
As far as he talking about for the draft or
just in general, yeah, for the draft.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
Yeah, Well, I think the first thing why I would
say is is we've got a tremendous amount of trust
and less in his group, I think we've gotten better
and better of.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Identifying all kinds of guys.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
Less in his group does an incredible job of vetting,
doing a bunch of different background checks, trying to be
able to quantify things that aren't necessarily quantifiable, to be
able to help identify the makeup the different things. And
then obviously we let the tape guide the majority of
our evaluations. And so because Lesson I have such a
good rapport and because there's such an understanding of where
(20:00):
we want to go, what the vision is for our
football team, it's been really seamless. Obviously, congratulations to James Gladstone,
really happy for him and what he's going to do
leading the way for the for the Jags. That's awesome
for James. He's earned that right. But it's it's about
continuing to identify and build. And I think when you
literally look at these last two years, we've been able
(20:21):
to hit some spots. You don't take for grant how
special those men are that have come in and earned
their right to be who they've been. But there has
been a very specific and a sequential thought process in
terms of identifying those guys and then being able to
have the ability to draft them when when you feel
appropriate based on what it looks like for the landscape
(20:41):
of the league.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
And so been really excited.
Speaker 3 (20:44):
And then I think there's been a really good process
with our scouts and coaches working in collaboration to identify
undrafted free agents where these.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Guys have come in and contributed.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
And that's been something that's been big for the collective
of our football team. And so it's it's an ongoing
deal you and identify where are those spots. But you
know how many different great players and great people most importantly,
can can we continue to bring into you know, our
atmosphere and our environment.
Speaker 9 (21:11):
There are a lot of conversations soft season about Nate
Shieldhouse and you know, him potentially getting other opportunities. What
is the value of of bringing him back and is
he going to have any other out of responsibilities.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
Well, yeah, he's a stud.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
He'll be the past game coordinator, He'll be involved in
all parts of the game plan, works closely with the
wide receivers. You know, the best thing I can say
about Nate is there's certain people you're around. They come in,
they have a role and a responsibility that's defined and
they do a great job with that.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
But the great ones they redefine.
Speaker 3 (21:40):
What that is because they just do a little bit
more and they're just a little bit more intrinsically motivated,
and they've got just a little bit better feel on
how you deal with people.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
And I think this guy's a special coach.
Speaker 3 (21:52):
And you know, I'm not going to take for granted,
you know, the time that I do have with them,
because I thought it was cool that he chose to
stay with us with some other opportunities he had.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
That meant a lot to me. And he is a
rising start without a doubt.
Speaker 9 (22:08):
Just quickly with the combine this week. And I know
you weren't there, but there any position groups that really
stood out to you.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
You know, I would say this, I've really immersed myself
more in the in the tape, you know, you kind
of get updates.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
And you're kind of watching from afar.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
But part of the reason that we do stay back
is such trust in our scouts to be able to
use the information that's gained during that week to be
able to help with our evaluations. But I know the
most important thing for me and our coaches is to
get up to speed on the college film. You know,
Less in his group have done a great job getting
ahead of that process. That's what they've really been doing
throughout the season in the background, and so continue to
(22:44):
trust the vetting from our group. I'm in tune with
just some of the numbers and things like that, but
I've really been more immersed in the tape and kind
of where we're at in our draft process in house,
and I think our coaches and our scouts have done
a really good job of identifying, you know, people that
we have at the upper echelon of our board and
will continue to work.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
Through that, you know, as we get closer to the draft.
Speaker 10 (23:05):
Thank you, You're welcome. Y, Good morning, Sean morning. Hey,
when when I think about this organization, everything we not
me intrinsically motivated grow where your fear planet, that's Cooper copy.
How difficult was it to collectively come to that decision
that you're going to move past an invaluable asset inside
(23:28):
that locker room.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, there hasn't been a more challenging decision since I've
been here going into year nine. But I do think,
you know, you have to be able to acknowledge and
it doesn't mean that you don't still see a lot of.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Amazing things that he can contribute. It's just it's about,
you know, the big picture. But it was hard, It
was really hard. But I think that, uh, I think
there's a lot of love.
Speaker 3 (23:48):
I think he understands how much he's meant to me,
and I do think that in spite of a uniquely
challenging situation, I know that the relationship and the bond
that we have is strong enough to be able to sustain.
And I think over time, you know, there's there's a
lot of appreciation when you look back on those things.
But been really challenging. But I think the first thing
(24:10):
we always talk about is one of our responsibilities is
is to make sure that you know, we're making decisions
that we think are best for everybody, even if it
doesn't benefit some people that have been, you know, incredibly
instrumental in a lot of good things that have gone
on here set in the culture, each checked the box
and doing everything that's right.
Speaker 10 (24:25):
Kurt, thank you for that. My last question just kind
of the follow up. I think it was Sarah who
asked earlier about were you ever concerned that Matthew wouldn't
be here as a quarterback. And your response was, now,
can you was that based on how well you knew Matthew,
how well the conversation was going, Because.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Based on the process throughout and what we all knew
we wanted as the end goal in mind, I think
that that's that's really as simple as I can get,
you know. And and there was always going to have
to be a decision on our part that it wasn't
going to be you know, if he wasn't going to
be here, And that was an ever something that felt
like ever got close, and it was never something that
I allowed my mind to go.
Speaker 10 (25:04):
To appreciate all the insight today, Sean, thank.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
You, Thanks guys, that's ocean all right. Appreciate you all.
Warne Sean, I just wanted to ask you about obviously
agreeing to terms on a contractor restructure with Matthew just
haws it feel to have that out of the way,
and what does that allow you to do in terms
of attacking the rest of the roster.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Yeah, it's great, Stu.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Obviously that was always the end goal in mind, and
when you go through these conversations, I think the thing
that I'm grateful for is the collaboration and the communication
throughout the process where sometimes these things can be challenging.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Matthew was great.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
I think Jimmy Sexton, Matthew's agent, was excellent, you know,
Less had a lot of dialogue with him, and then
ultimately sitting down with you know, with Matthew and with
Kelly and then being able to have Kevin Less and
Tony be a part of that. I think it was
a really beneficial conversation and I think ultimately it's about
the partnership and how important it is, you know, to
(00:50):
have him leading the way. And so couldn't be more grateful,
really excited about it and been sleeping better these last
couple of days.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
And just as a follow up to that, were there
any conversation about just how long that partnership will be
as high of a level as Matthew is playing, just
knowing that there are some you know, extensions for younger
players that are going to be coming up here in
the next few years and those sorts of things. How
does that all factoring.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Yeah, you know, we've taken it a year at a time,
and he's earned the right, I believe Stude to be
able to say, hey, I think he could play for
a few more years if that's what he wanted. But
we've always had great dialogue, and I think it's really
kind of been a year to year thing. He's obviously
under contract for two more years with us, but as
long as he wants to play, I know, we're feeling
really good about that. But ultimately, the end goal in
(01:36):
mine was making sure that, like we talked about in
the end of the season press conference, let's get him
settled and situated.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
Let's be able to move forward.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Accordingly, because you guys know that that's such an important
vital spot for us and what his leadership has meant
to our football team over the last four years as
exactly what we wanted, and it's a big deal to
get Alar Jackson signed up as well. You know, we
had a couple of priorities at the start of the
free agency, or really at the start of our off
season planning, and those are two big, big deals for us,
(02:06):
and hopefully we'll be able to knock out a few
more here in the next coming days.
Speaker 4 (02:10):
Appreciate it, Thank you, You're welcome.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Adam Hey, Sean Matthew.
Speaker 4 (02:17):
You know, obviously there was a lot of reporting about
him speaking with other teams and being able to just
kind of gauge his market, and reporting about him taking
less to return to LA as he was going through
that process. Did you pitch him at all on what
a return to LA like? Did you pitch him at
(02:38):
all on coming back? And if so, what was that message?
Speaker 3 (02:42):
You know, Adam, I think what you do is you
have honest conversation. There's four years of equity in a
relationship that means a whole lot to me and a
lot to him that I think, there's there's a body
of work, there's experiences, there's relationships that will go on
a lot further on past the time that he plays
and past when I coach, and so you know, I
don't know if it's necessarily yeah. I mean, if you
(03:03):
want to say, did I want that and was that
the end goal for our group collectively?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Absolutely? But I think you want to allow him to
be able to come.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
To a decision with Kelly and his family that's best
for him, that he could get excited about. I think
that's the important thing is is you want everybody to
feel really good about the partnership.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
You want them to be excited and optimistic. It's so
difficult to.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Do what we do year in and year out, and
especially what Matthew has to do as a quarterback leading
the way, and so you want to make sure there's
good vibes going into it. And we were able to
check all those boxes. But I think the important thing,
and I kind of mention it. I don't know if
you saw when I ended up spending some time with
Wit and Fits on their podcast. I think the important
thing throughout this was the end goal in mine was
(03:44):
always to have Matthew back as the quarterback. There was
never any dispute or discrepancy on that, but we didn't
want to make sure. We want to make sure we
had all the information necessary and didn't want to have
to do things and you know, secret or.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Whatever you will.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
There's a lot of narratives that were out there, some
of which was accurate, and a lot of which are
probably not necessarily accurate based on how things can get
lost in translation.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
All I cared about was our dialogue throughout.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
I've not been afraid to run away from or you know,
I haven't run away from some of the mistakes I've
made in terms of the clear, open and honest and
direct communication and some of these conflict conversations, and so
that was really important, and I think that was key
and critical for us to be able to have, you know,
a smooth process throughout that might have seemed uncomfortable from
the outside, but I think it was able to come
(04:30):
to as good of a scenario as I could have hoped.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Honestly, when we met together on Friday morning.
Speaker 4 (04:37):
You've talked in the past about what Cooper has meant
to you personally, and he's obviously also meant a lot
to the franchise and the fan base. What factors led
to the decision to make him available via trade.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
This officer, Yeah, yeah, I mean you just said it.
I mean, this guy's changed my life for the better.
We've had eight years together. It's not these decisions similar
to Matthew are not made you know, just as separate entity.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
These are for the team.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
You're ultimately trying to put the puzzle together and and
you know, with a lot of thought and consideration, you know,
we just felt like that was the best direction for
our football team.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
It doesn't take away the.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Love, respect, and gratitude that you have for what he's done,
but it just came down to what we think is
best in terms of putting together the whole puzzle.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
And there's obviously a lot of layers.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
To that, and I think you always use the the
you know, you always acknowledge the fact that hey been
wrong before, it could be wrong again. But we always
try to have our core values and the big picture shape,
you know, our perspective and really ultimately our decision making.
Not easy, but couldn't be more impressed with the human
being and how how he handles some of those conversations
(05:45):
and no matter what, his legacy is cemented as an
all time ram and most importantly, I'm a better human
for having had these these eight years with him.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
Were there any discussions with him or his representation about
a contractor structure you know.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
We haven't had those types of conversations. It was more
along the lines of kind of when when Less, Kevin, Tony, myself,
and then obviously with communication from personnel and from the
coaching staff, it was really all right, let's this is
the direction that we're going to go.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
We'll seek a trade, we'll take it a day at
a time.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
I know, Less It's had some communication with Ryan Toner,
Cooper's agent.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
I've had dialogue with Cooper and and uh, and that's
kind of where we're at with that.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
If you are unable to find a trade partners, the
door completely closed on him coming back to the Rams
next year.
Speaker 3 (06:31):
You know, I think I would never speak in absolutes,
but I do think, you know, let's let's gather all
the information, we'll take it a day at a time,
and we'll kind of see what with the next steps.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Entail, Thank you, you're welcome. Sarah.
Speaker 5 (06:45):
Hey, Sean, what if you learned about your role as
a head coach and talking to Les and Tony and
Kevin about trying to balance you reference the short term
versus preparing for the longer term with this roster?
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Oh man, I.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
Think I think you try to refer to the experience, to
a lot of the good decisions, to some of the
things that we would maybe do differently, and then think
it is the element of trusting everybody to do their
role and responsibility. I think the one thing that I'm
so grateful for, and I know I speak for Kevin
Less and Tony, is having an ownership group in the
Kronkey family that supports and trusts us, build safety, gives
(07:24):
us the freedom to fail, but also acknowledge our mistakes
and then ultimately try to be able to do, as
you know, the next right thing for us. And so
it is always a balance and in this league is challenging.
But I think you try to put that puzzle together.
I think you use the previous experiences and then ultimately
is it about building a team and what does that
look like to acknowledge what's been going on? Where are
(07:45):
the things that what are the things that we need
to do to be able to address to be better
in certain spots, whether that's coaching, whether that's schematic, whether
that's personnel related, and how does that evolve and adapt,
you know, with the fluidity and flexibility that's.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
Necessary on year to year basis.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
You know, I would have told you a couple of
years ago that we need this and now that's changed.
And so I think the ever evolving landscape of the
league and the challenges are what make this fun.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
But that is a fluid situation.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
But ultimately it's about the collaboration amongst the group, and
I think it's been pretty fruitful up to this point
and looking forward to trying to do it better than
we've ever done it before.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
Year nine.
Speaker 5 (08:22):
Was there a point at all last week?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
That's crazy? Year nine? Oh Man been too old for
this yeary? Go ahead, Sarah.
Speaker 5 (08:30):
Sorry, Was there a point at all in the last
week or two where you thought Matthew might not be
on on your team next year?
Speaker 3 (08:36):
No, No, that was never That was never something that
I ever thought would occur.
Speaker 5 (08:41):
What were the conversations then, as when he at the
end of this season, you guys sit down for the
first time, What are the reasons I guess that you
were even having those conversations?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
And why are you talking about like right after the
season when we ended up opening up just some other
dialogue with other teams?
Speaker 5 (08:58):
Yeah, I mean the fact that he's under contract technically, yeah,
the free agent.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
Sure. Well, I think here's here's the deal.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
And you guys know, when we made the contract adjustment
last year, there was always an understanding that he wouldn't
play under the number that he was due this coming year.
Now what exactly that was, So we always knew that
there would be some form of an adjustment based on
what we did that last day of training camp in
terms of how we moved things around and got him
to where he was last year.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
So that was something that we always knew was coming down.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
And when he felt good with the way the season ended,
and obviously we were all ecstatic about him wanting to
continue to play and play at a high level. Now
it's just figuring out the semantics of all, right, there's
no there's no way to put an actual value on
what he means, but what does it look like to
be able to fit it for the landscape of our
football team where we're at, knowing how many years you
(09:51):
want to play and what does that look like for
the short end for the long term. And I think
fortunately we were able to come to a compromise and
a conclusion that everybody feels really good it about. And
I think it's a great reflection of him and and
our group.
Speaker 5 (10:04):
And anticipate having this conversation again next year.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Oh yeah, but the positive, here's the positive.
Speaker 3 (10:09):
Last year took about seven months, this year about three weeks,
So maybe it'd be about two three days next year
if we have to do this.
Speaker 6 (10:19):
Yeah, Hey, Seanary, in regard to the meeting you guys
had on Friday, can you give us some insight into
you know, what what happened there?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I mean at that.
Speaker 7 (10:33):
Point was was his decision already made and you guys
just solidified it?
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Or what take us inside that meeting? If you could please?
Who was there?
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Yeah? I think the people that were there, you know,
And I want to keep it, you know, relatively in house,
just because of the you know, the conversation. Here was
the goal and here was the intent, Gary, to make
sure that we're just all on the same page and
we feel good and excited about this partnership moving forward,
no knowing how instrumental really the Stafford family as a
(11:03):
whole is to what we want to be able to do,
how how important it was for our leadership group to
just make sure that, hey, I know this, the people
that I love and care about the most, I'm able
to have real conversations with and ultimately that was the
goal is making sure that, yes, we all felt good
about where we were coming from, and we wanted to
make sure that after we were able to have that
dialogue that was you know, open and honest and very
(11:26):
it went better than I could have ever hoped that
we all felt good about the direction that we're headed.
And that was exactly what was accomplished, and for that,
I was very grateful for everybody that was involved.
Speaker 7 (11:38):
How you know, Jimmy Garoppolo was a pending free agent.
What's the situation with him or do you want to
bring him back again? And do you think he wants
to come back or what's what?
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Yeah, we would with the backup quarterback. Yeah, we would
love to bring him back.
Speaker 3 (11:51):
You know, I obviously have been very busy working through
kind of the Matthew situation, and so that's the hope
and anticipation. Now, you guys know that there might be
some other interest, and Jimmy's earned the right to be
able to have that type of interest. But but yes,
if you said, you know what, I want Jimmy back
here to be able to work in the quarterback room
(12:12):
with David Gohan and Matthew and those guys.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
The answer is absolutely yes.
Speaker 7 (12:18):
Can you update us at all on situations involving like
Bobby Brown, Michael Hoyt, some of your other pending free agents.
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Yeah, those are fluid.
Speaker 3 (12:26):
You know, we are a week away from the negotiation
period being able to start where you can start talking
to other teams.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
I think in an.
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Ideal scenario, Gary, you're able to get some of your
guys that you know that you want to be able
to bring back in house taken care of before that
bell rings, just so you have an idea of what
does it look like to be able to build out
and some of the different things that we have relative
to our budget and the team building element of it.
And so don't want to get too specific just for
competitive reasons, but those are guys that you mentioned, and
(12:56):
there's some other guys that we'll be working in the
background to be able to see if we can come
to a decision and a conclusion.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
And and if we are, then we'll be excited about it.
Speaker 7 (13:05):
And then if if in fact, you know Cooper, you
guys do part ways with Cooper, what how will you
approach you know, U replant replacing him in that receiver
corp is that something you would like to do with
free agency, the draft both how how how are you
approaching that?
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Yeah, I think you look at always to you know,
what are the different avenues to onboard people, and you
kind of just mention them. You know, there's there's resigning
our own, there's free agency, there's the draft, and then
there's trades.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
And so we'll explore every avenue.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
I think, similar to what we've talked about, whether it
be Aaron or some of these other special players. You know,
you're not asking anybody to replace her to be Cooper Cup.
He established a legacy and cemented himself as one of
the all time greats. I do think it'll offer an
opportunity for Pooka and Nakua to take on a big
role in terms of just being the natural leader in
his own personality where he's he's able to kind of
(13:57):
lead that room alongside you know, Nat Shield.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Alice and Eric Yarbor and Rob calabresee.
Speaker 3 (14:03):
But we're in the midst of working through that and
so we'll see what that looks like. But you don't
replace at Cooper Cup and what he's meant to us
for so many different things on and off the field.
Speaker 4 (14:14):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
You're welcome. Jorge's son is bright, isn't it.
Speaker 8 (14:21):
Hey Sean kind of a unique thing for Jimmy Sexton
to kind of have the permission to go talk to
the other teams and I guess fact find in fact
check with you guys along the way about what Matthew's
potential market would be with those other teams. What was
that process like intern in terms of I guess helping
(14:43):
keep that communication open and serving as a fact check
for Matthew to understand like what was potentially available to him.
Speaker 3 (14:51):
Sure, yeah, yeah, I can't speak on behalf of what
the conversations with with Jimmy entailed with some of the
teams that were interested, But I think the ultimate and
til you know, from our perspective, Jordan was there was
a lot of conversations and so you know, less being
able to just return some calls and have some dialogue
with the end goal of mine always having him back.
But if that was ever something that was going to happen,
(15:13):
which is not what we wanted, but if that ever
was something that you would have had to go that direction,
there would have been two factors, you know. Number one,
what's the draft comp that you would receive in return
that you would even deem worth even considering. And then
number two, what would be the parameters at which he
would agree to go sign a new deal based on
what we did in.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
Terms of adjusting as contract.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
And so it was really just to have the open communication,
i'd have to necessarily do anything behind the scenes, and
so it was a lot of it was a reflection
of some of the mistakes that I feel like I've
made in previous years.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Jordan and I didn't want to go down that path.
Speaker 3 (15:49):
I wanted to make sure you're accountable for the things
that we've talked about that I've been open about, and
I think that was kind of the you know, the
thought process, and obviously the end goal of mine was
always to end where we did on Friday, and for
that I'm really grateful.
Speaker 8 (16:03):
Just to clarify, excuse me, just to clarify on the adjustment.
Is it year to year under the current framework of
the existing extension or will you guys adjust it to
reflect a one year contract.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
No, it'll be I mean, I'll tell you this, Tony
will work through all those semantics with our group. But
ultimately we were able to agree on what that adjustment
would be for this coming year with the two years
that he has remaining under contract with the Rams.
Speaker 8 (16:30):
Okay, I appreciate that. Obviously, you guys have have looked
at the long term and the short term at quarterback
since last year, I would imagine, because you've been year
to year on this, what's that conversation with Matthew like of, yes,
he is your guy, but you also have to start
planning for the future. And will you guys continue to
(16:50):
add to this room either this year or possibly next
And how is he dealing with that?
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Oh, it's been great.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I mean, I don't think there's ever been like a
threat to if he wants to continue to play, and
I think he's playing at such a high level. It's
not necessarily as much contingency plans. It's just operating under
the assumption where you're saying, hey, you know, however long
you want to play in the way that you're playing,
this is outstanding for us. But at some point when
you decide that that you're you're ready to be able
(17:19):
to transition into a new phase of your life. I'm
hopeful to still be here and we're still hopeful to
be here, And so what does that look like without
him leading away. I think the first thing is you
got to have people that you believe are legitimate candidates
to to be a starting caliber quarterback in the lead
your organization.
Speaker 2 (17:35):
We've been very spoiled since.
Speaker 3 (17:37):
I've been here in a good way with what Jared
Goff did for the first four years and then what
Matthew's done for the last four years. And so I
don't take lightly you know what a big deal that
will be whenever that time comes. Hopefully it's uh, it's
not something that you know, we we have to deal
with at any time. But but I do think that
the important thing is you have to identify people that
(17:59):
can legitimately continue to move your football team in a
manner that's reflective of what you want forward while not
while also acknowledging the fact that it's not going to
be the same in This guy is unique and he's
a whole famer. It's why I'll be putting a bull
jacket on five years after the day he retires.
Speaker 8 (18:17):
Just a quick side question too, the Rob Hanstein and
Tyler Higby. Obviously they are not free agents, but what
is their status? And we'll we be back with the
team next year.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Oh, yeah, yeah, Yeah, that's the that's the full expectation.
Those guys are instrumental to our success. Those are guys
that I thought I thought hate be coming back played.
I thought both of them played at a really high level. Obviously,
you know some of the injuries they both worked through.
But but when those guys were on the football field
for us, we were a different offense. And you could
(18:46):
tangibly feel the difference that Higby made when he came
back from the Jets game on.
Speaker 2 (18:51):
And then obviously you know when Rob was in there, the.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
Leadership, the production, the overall toughness, competitiveness, he was outstanding.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
And both those guys we fully expect back. Thanks Sean,
You're welcome. All right, quickly we'll reap with Wyatt and
then Kurt Hi.
Speaker 9 (19:08):
Sean, what is the process of, you know, gathering information
from from scouts and kind of creating your own player evaluations?
Look like now that the stafford and you know, some
of the bigger moves are out of the way for you.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
As far as he talking about for the draft or
just in general, yeah, for the draft.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
Yeah, Well, I think the first thing why I would
say is is we've got a tremendous amount of trust
and less in his group, I think we've gotten better
and better of.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Identifying all kinds of guys.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
Less in his group does an incredible job of vetting,
doing a bunch of different background checks, trying to be
able to quantify things that aren't necessarily quantifiable, to be
able to help identify the makeup the different things. And
then obviously we let the tape guide the majority of
our evaluations. And so because Lesson I have such a
good rapport and because there's such an understanding of where
(20:00):
we want to go, what the vision is for our
football team, it's been really seamless. Obviously, congratulations to James Gladstone,
really happy for him and what he's going to do
leading the way for the for the Jags. That's awesome
for James. He's earned that right. But it's it's about
continuing to identify and build. And I think when you
literally look at these last two years, we've been able
(20:21):
to hit some spots. You don't take for grant how
special those men are that have come in and earned
their right to be who they've been. But there has
been a very specific and a sequential thought process in
terms of identifying those guys and then being able to
have the ability to draft them when when you feel
appropriate based on what it looks like for the landscape
(20:41):
of the league.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
And so been really excited.
Speaker 3 (20:44):
And then I think there's been a really good process
with our scouts and coaches working in collaboration to identify
undrafted free agents where these.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Guys have come in and contributed.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
And that's been something that's been big for the collective
of our football team. And so it's it's an ongoing
deal you and identify where are those spots. But you
know how many different great players and great people most importantly,
can can we continue to bring into you know, our
atmosphere and our environment.
Speaker 9 (21:11):
There are a lot of conversations soft season about Nate
Shieldhouse and you know, him potentially getting other opportunities. What
is the value of of bringing him back and is
he going to have any other out of responsibilities.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
Well, yeah, he's a stud.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
He'll be the past game coordinator, He'll be involved in
all parts of the game plan, works closely with the
wide receivers. You know, the best thing I can say
about Nate is there's certain people you're around. They come in,
they have a role and a responsibility that's defined and
they do a great job with that.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
But the great ones they redefine.
Speaker 3 (21:40):
What that is because they just do a little bit
more and they're just a little bit more intrinsically motivated,
and they've got just a little bit better feel on
how you deal with people.
Speaker 2 (21:49):
And I think this guy's a special coach.
Speaker 3 (21:52):
And you know, I'm not going to take for granted,
you know, the time that I do have with them,
because I thought it was cool that he chose to
stay with us with some other opportunities he had.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
That meant a lot to me. And he is a
rising start without a doubt.
Speaker 9 (22:08):
Just quickly with the combine this week. And I know
you weren't there, but there any position groups that really
stood out to you.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
You know, I would say this, I've really immersed myself
more in the in the tape, you know, you kind
of get updates.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
And you're kind of watching from afar.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
But part of the reason that we do stay back
is such trust in our scouts to be able to
use the information that's gained during that week to be
able to help with our evaluations. But I know the
most important thing for me and our coaches is to
get up to speed on the college film. You know,
Less in his group have done a great job getting
ahead of that process. That's what they've really been doing
throughout the season in the background, and so continue to
(22:44):
trust the vetting from our group. I'm in tune with
just some of the numbers and things like that, but
I've really been more immersed in the tape and kind
of where we're at in our draft process in house,
and I think our coaches and our scouts have done
a really good job of identifying, you know, people that
we have at the upper echelon of our board and
will continue to work.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
Through that, you know, as we get closer to the draft.
Speaker 10 (23:05):
Thank you, You're welcome. Y, Good morning, Sean morning. Hey,
when when I think about this organization, everything we not
me intrinsically motivated grow where your fear planet, that's Cooper copy.
How difficult was it to collectively come to that decision
that you're going to move past an invaluable asset inside
(23:28):
that locker room.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, there hasn't been a more challenging decision since I've
been here going into year nine. But I do think,
you know, you have to be able to acknowledge and
it doesn't mean that you don't still see a lot of.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Amazing things that he can contribute. It's just it's about,
you know, the big picture. But it was hard, It
was really hard. But I think that, uh, I think
there's a lot of love.
Speaker 3 (23:48):
I think he understands how much he's meant to me,
and I do think that in spite of a uniquely
challenging situation, I know that the relationship and the bond
that we have is strong enough to be able to sustain.
And I think over time, you know, there's there's a
lot of appreciation when you look back on those things.
But been really challenging. But I think the first thing
(24:10):
we always talk about is one of our responsibilities is
is to make sure that you know, we're making decisions
that we think are best for everybody, even if it
doesn't benefit some people that have been, you know, incredibly
instrumental in a lot of good things that have gone
on here set in the culture, each checked the box
and doing everything that's right.
Speaker 10 (24:25):
Kurt, thank you for that. My last question just kind
of the follow up. I think it was Sarah who
asked earlier about were you ever concerned that Matthew wouldn't
be here as a quarterback. And your response was, now,
can you was that based on how well you knew Matthew,
how well the conversation was going, Because.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Based on the process throughout and what we all knew
we wanted as the end goal in mind, I think
that that's that's really as simple as I can get,
you know. And and there was always going to have
to be a decision on our part that it wasn't
going to be you know, if he wasn't going to
be here, And that was an ever something that felt
like ever got close, and it was never something that
I allowed my mind to go.
Speaker 10 (25:04):
To appreciate all the insight today, Sean, thank.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
You, Thanks guys, that's ocean all right. Appreciate you all.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Ridiculous History
History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.