The following are select post-game quotes from San Francisco 49ers players following Monday night's 27-24 overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
Quotes provided by the 49ers Communications staff.
WR Kendrick Bourne
Tonight you were without San Francisco 49ers TE George Kittle, and without San Francisco 49ers WR Emmanuel Sanders for most of the game. How did you think you guys responded?
"To every situation I think we responded really well. Even in the two-minute situations we started terrible and then it started to click in the last few downs. Kuddos to all of the guys just fighting hard, that was a tough fought game. Kuddos to those guys too [Seattle Seahawks], they played really well. I feel like they came ready with their hard hats. I give a lot of respect to those guys. For us, just like the adversity we have seen throughout the year. That was one of the toughest, most adverse games we have seen. I think how we responded to each situation, even the defense, how they got that touchdown, and [San Francisco 49ers LB Dre] Greenlaw on the last play. The momentum shifts, that we kept getting with the momentum being bad already, was pretty impressive by us."
How do you put drops behind you?
"I am pretty bad with that. I am kind of one of those guys that will beat up on himself. Just having good teammates telling me to keep my head up. Just not really thinking about it. It is tough, especially how it got an interception off of it, that is what really gets at me more than a drop. Even the second one almost got picked. I am just down on myself because those type of things can happen. It is just about focusing in on the ball, because I know I can catch the ball, it is not hard. Sometimes you just squeeze it harder than other situations. When I am wide open I tend to get more relaxed than when someone is on me."
DL DeForest Buckner
You were a part of one of the more amazing plays of the game. Walk us through the play.
"Yeah, let's see. I mean, it was a critical situation. We needed to get a big stop or get the ball back for the offense and make a short field. I mean, we were all just rushing and [Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson] Russell was just wrapped up. Pretty sure the guys got to him and I saw one of the linemen take the ball from him and was just wondering 'what the hell is this dude doing?' you know what I mean? He tried to run with it, which was crazy, so I tried to wrap him up and get the ball out. Didn't know that [LB] Fred [Warner] punched it out, I thought I ripped it out. That hurt. But then I saw the opportunity to scoop it up and make a big play in the game and get some energy back for the team. I saw it and it was, what, about a 20-yard return. Thank the lord, because I was tired. Yeah, it was a great play and tried to bring it back. Tried to help the team and we just came up short."
You guys did a pretty tough job today on Russell Wilson
"Yeah, I mean, he's one of those guys that when you're rushing you've got to keep an eye on him. He's looking for, if he doesn't have a guy open, he's looking to create a play and looking for some rush lanes to open and he got us a couple times. Up front, we've got to do a better job knowing where we're at in our rushes."
How do you expect this team to bounce back, just knowing what you know about this group?
"Yeah, I mean, the guys fought hard, man. It's the little details that we've got to clean up as a unit. You know, offense, defense, special teams. We all made mistakes to come up short tonight and we all know that. I'm just proud of each and every one of the guys for fighting as much as we could, just trying to give us a chance to come out with the win. We came up short. All the guys know the work that we put in each and every single day. It was a little gut check taking this L tonight, but we're going to bounce back."
LB Dre Greenlaw
What did you see on Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson's pass? Can you take us through the return?
"At that time I had man coverage on the hot too, so basically I had anybody coming out to the flat. I looked back inside and saw the quarterback looking that way and instinctively, I opened my hips and tried to do what I can do to get as much yardage to put my team in a position to try to win the game."
What were your emotions like when the play ended?
"It was unreal at the time then it went back to reality. It is about trying to win the game. That is the goal. At first it felt unreal and then it was like we still haven't won the game."
San Francisco 49ers S Jaquiski Tartt credited you with telling the defense before that play, that they haven't scored yet. What was it that you said?
"I told them that they are not in the end zone yet so it is up to us to get a stop. That is just the mentality that we have to have as a defense. That is the mentality that we all have. It doesn't matter if it is fourth and one at the one-yard line. They are not in the end zone, they still didn't get any points so just keep playing our hearts out."
Do you know what went wrong on the Russell Wilson scramble before the game winning field goal?
"I'm not sure. I have to probably go back and watch film."
As a linebacker how difficult is it to contain Russell Wilson?
"It is very difficult. It is everybody's job on the defense from the front seven point-of-view. He is a great quarterback, he is going to make plays, he moves with the best of them. We just have to make sure that we do our jobs, be assignment sound, make sure everyone is in their gaps and be able to play off when he is ready to scramble around."
FB Kyle Juszczyk
What do you think the issues were with the running game tonight?
"They were on it. They seem to have game planned us pretty well. They were moving a lot. When teams start getting gashed by us they tend to start blitzing more, moving pieces and they got us on a couple of them."
Is it frustrating that this is the first time that you guys weren't able to counter punch when teams make you one dimensional?
"Yes. Definitely. That is a weird feeling. Usually, we have always answered this whole season on offense. We felt like we could have done a much better job. Our defense played their freaking tails off. They made some amazing plays and we wanted to compliment them and we didn't do a good job of it tonight."
What is the counter punch when teams are doing that because it seems like that is going to happen?
"It's just capitalizing on plays. We just had a lot of miscues whether it was a missed block or a dropped ball, missed assignment. It is just not having those miscues in those moments."
Have you ever been involved in a game that had so many momentum swings?
"It is definitely up there. I played in a game in Baltimore with five lead changes in the last two minutes against Minnesota which was pretty wild, but I think this one takes the cake. This was one of the most emotionally draining games that I have been part of."
How do you feel after this game?
"Physically, I feel good. I have no problem with the injuries coming back. It was a physical game out there, so I am going to be a little sore tomorrow, but I feel good."
When did you feel like you were able to shake off the rust of not playing in a while?
"Honestly in the second half. The first half I felt like I hadn't played some football in a little bit. I felt like I settled in the second half."
K Chase McLaughlin
The life of a kicker is filled with ups and downs. The first two you drilled right down the middle. What was your thought process on those two and then on the last one?
"The thought process is the same every time. Pick a spot and hit it clean and let it go through."
How hard is this to come in as an epic opportunity and it is disappointing at the finish?
"Like you said, it is the life of a kicker. There are a lot of ups and downs. You have to just stay constant through it. There are a lot of highs and lows, and you've just got to keep moving on day by day."
Did your preparation leading up to this, did it feel rushed, did it feel different than weeks past in your career?
"No, it felt great. Coach [special teams coordinator Richard] Hightower did a great job getting me acclimated with the team and the operation of everything. It felt fantastic leading up to it and it felt good."
What kind of interaction did you have with San Francisco 49ers K Robbie Gould throughout the night?
"We talked a little bit throughout the night. He was very supportive through it all. Any questions I had he was there to answer them. He was definitely a big help."
WR Deebo Samuel
Looks like the offense had trouble finding a rhythm tonight. Any particular reason why?
"We just have to make the catches that are coming our way. We have to make a better effort at bringing those balls down."
How much did you guys miss San Francisco 49ers TE George Kittle tonight?
"We miss him. He is a key to our offense. He brings more energy to our offense."
Seems like the defense gave you guys so many chances to win this football game, given the fact that you guys weren't able to come through, how frustrating is that?
"It is very frustrating. We have to come down with the balls that are coming our way. We also have to block up front. We just have to play better as a whole, especially on third downs."
Is it encouraging to say that if we take care of business with the ball, this is a whole different ball game?
"It is just our mentality, the ball is everything to us. We just have to come down and protect the ball."
How do you keep momentum from stopping coming in to next week?
"We can't dwell on this. The perfect season would be great, but that is not how this league goes. We just have to capitalize from here on out."
CB Richard Sherman
First loss of the season. What was the locker room like after the game?
"It was fine. You don't treat both the same, success and failure, because neither one of them are fatal. It's a learning experience, guys battled and we had a chance to win it. We've got to play better on both sides of the ball. All three phases we've got to play better football. On defense, we've got to give ourselves a chance. We've got to get those stops on those sudden changes. So, at the end of the day, it's a good learning lesson for us. Guys battled, there was a ton of mistakes that guys made but then we made a ton of huge plays to give us a chance."
Obviously, you guys didn't execute as well as you could. How did you feel the team responded to the physical challenge of the Seahawks?
"I think we responded fine. We had a chance to win the game, but we didn't get it done at the end of the day. That's all you can hope for. Guys battled, we battled for 60-plus minutes, all the way down to the wire. All of our guys, through a bunch of injuries, guys going up and down. We will watch the film, we will learn from it. We will correct the things that need to be corrected and we will get ready for Arizona."
Felt like the defense played unbelievable. How did you feel the defense played?
"We played hard, that's for sure. We tried to give ourselves a chance. We didn't play up to our standard, there were plays that were sudden changes, we were backed up but you've got to find a way to get those stops. I think everybody in that room would say 'I've got to make a play.' Somebody has to make a play in those situations. One of those situations [S Jaquiski] Tartt made a heck of a play and got us off the field, but I or somebody else have got to find a way to make a play and get those guys stopped and hold them to a field goal. So, at the end of the day you can only point the finger at yourself and try to get better that way, work hard and get ready for the next opponent."
S Jaquiski Tartt
How frustrating is the loss, given how well the defense played?
"It is very frustrating. We left it all on the field tonight and we came up with a loss, it is frustrating."
Can you take us back through your strip on the goal-line and what happened from your angle?
"I was just trying to make a play. Every play is the defense's mindset to get the ball. For us, they are not in the end-zone until they are in the end-zone. For me, I was just trying to strip the ball, and I just happened to take it away from him."
What was said in the huddle while they were driving in overtime before San Francisco 49ers LB Dre Greenlaw's pick?
"To be honest Dre is the one that was like 'it ain't in the end-zone today, it ain't in the end-zone.' Then the next play he picked the ball off. Take your hat off to Dre for making a turnover like that."
How difficult is it to contain Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson?
"He is a special player. He is the guy that drives their offense. He did what he usually does so give him credit."
How happy were you with the defensive effort tonight?
"We played great. We left everything on that field, we tried our best to keep creating turnovers and we came up short."
LB Fred Warner
Can you explain the fumble and touchdown play?
"Yeah, that was a crazy play. They tried to run a tight end screen. [LB] Dre [Greenlaw] did a great job sniffing it out, grabbing him. I don't know how the tackle, or whoever that was, ended up having the ball in his hands. I was confused at first, but then I saw [DL DeForest Buckner] Buck grab him and I came up and, you know, took a shot at it. It popped out, DeFo made a hell of a play, ran it back and gave us some life. Huge play by DeFo."
What's the mood of the team and how much can you learn from this game going forward just given that you guys haven't been in a ton of close games or back and forth games at this point?
"Yeah, it sucks. Everybody is, you know, pretty disappointed. But, at the same time, this loss is not going to define us. We have an extremely tight-knit group. We've got a big game against Arizona coming up, so preparation starts as soon as we get home. We've got to make sure we're covered."
How did LB Dre Greenlaw play and what were your impressions of the interception in overtime?
"Dre did outstanding. I thought he had a great game. He was out there communicating, lining up with urgency, making plays. That play where he intercepted the ball was just insane. I'm thinking I was going to have a chance at it because [Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson] Russell lobbed it up. Just the execution of that play and what we were running, I honestly couldn't believe it was so, you know, kind of surreal. He's a great player, very instinctive and it showed tonight for sure."
