Pittsburgh Steelers Media Conference
Sunday, November 14, 2021
Head Coach Dan Campbell
DAN CAMPBELL: Not necessarily, but it’s like I told the guys, I was upset we didn’t win. But I was also proud of
them because of the fact we put ourselves in a position to win that game in overtime and it didn’t work out.
And our defense has to go back and take the field. And they’re driving. And we force a turnover, which I
thought was big, you know. And that kept us from losing is what it did.
So we want to win. We’re looking for our first win. But I know this, we were better than we were two weeks
ago. So that’s a good team.
Q. You talked about the challenge of beating the Steelers at their own game. (No microphone.) How much
of that was necessitated by Jared not being able to do the things that he normally would?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I think it was weather and I think — and it was a little bit of him. It was both really.
You know, we had an idea the weather was going to go this way, particularly last night. It was confirmed. So
we were set up to do that if need be. But I don’t think we necessarily saw it being quite that much.
So it was — I think it was really both.
Q. On the sideline we saw him even laboring through some of those warmup drills. What went into decision
to stick with him after (no microphone) —
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I mean, I kept talking to our trainers and talking to him, talking to Brunell and, you
know, it was — the consensus was leave him in there. He was good to go. He wanted to go. He felt good
enough to do what he needed to do. And so that’s what we did, stuck with him.
Q. And did you — were you calling offense?
DAN CAMPBELL: I was. But there again, it was — this is — listen, man, this is a collaboration here. And I’m
taking a lot of input. I still talk to A. Lynn. Plays come in. But, yes, I was giving it to Jared.
Q. Can you explain why you decided to do that this week?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I just — one of the things was why not change it up a little bit here. I wanted to be able
to talk to him in game.
Sometimes I think when you’re able to get in the flow of the game when you’re the guy who’s calling it, it just
helps to know exactly where to go, whether it’s a third down or — and so, yeah.
But, there again, it’s just — honestly, I don’t think it’s a big deal. There were still things I was giving to A. Lynn
when he was calling. It’s just now I took the green dot basically to Goff so I could communicate to him. So I’ll
still grab some calls from them. I’ll use my own calls. It was a joint effort by all those guys.
Q. Is that the plan going forward?
DAN CAMPBELL: I don’t know. We’ll see. Just kind of analyze it. I need to see what I did, what I can do better.
Is there a better way to go or — just kind of go from there.
Q. You had to consider at some point taking Goff out because of the injury situation. But the fact the game
was still tight and the running game was working, did that sort of make the decision for you to leave him in
there?
DAN CAMPBELL: I think it was more that. We all felt like he was good. He was good enough to go. I mean, from
him — that’s what I was just telling Justin. I mean, from him to Brunell to the trainers to — we all felt like, you
know what, okay, he’s good enough to stay in there.
And so that’s why I stuck with it. I have to go with my gut and look him in the eyes. And I have to listen to the
opinion of our trainers. And if we feel like he can make it, he can make it.
Q. But did you think you could win that game just running the ball without much of a passing game though?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. We should have. We didn’t, but we should have.
Q. Obviously, you avoided becoming the first 0 and 17 team. It’s not a win, but it’s also not a loss.
DAN CAMPBELL: Honestly, I don’t know. Like I say, I don’t — I’m in this twilight zone. I don’t know what this is
really. And I’m sure I’ve been in a tie before as a player. For some reason, I can’t remember that, if it was. So I
don’t know.
It’s just — I have to — there again, I just — I’m just proud of the way that they played, man. They snapped back.
We were better than we were two weeks ago. And now what we have to do is improve from this week and
find a way to beat Cleveland next week.
Q. How much has your game plan changed — (no microphone).
DAN CAMPBELL: Listen, Swifty I thought had a big game, man. He did some really good things in the run game.
We know he’s been pretty dynamic in the pass game for us, able to do a few things. But, man, to see him —
and you could feel it early.
I had a feeling he was — first couple of runs, man, he kind of had that look. And so just being able to give him
the ball. And certainly with Jefferson going down, he was going to get more of a load. But, yeah, I think this
will be big for him.
Q. How much did your game plan change with Mason in there instead of Ben? And when did you —
DAN CAMPBELL: Not much.
Q. — learn that was going to be the case? Were you surprised at all?
DAN CAMPBELL: Not much. We found out last night that that was going to be it. And so I would say for the
most part it didn’t change that much.
We knew we had to try to stop Najee Harris. That’s what everything was going to run through. So it really
didn’t alter what we had to do.
I mean, we were prepared for other things knowing that Ben was down but…
Q. As well as you ran the ball the first two and a half, three quarters, they did a pretty good job in the last
quarter (no microphone) —
DAN CAMPBELL: They did. Yeah. I mean, look, I just need to see the tape. There were a couple of things where
they were over shifting, which we knew. But they were trying to do that in the first half, you know.
We had a couple just — yeah. I mean, they load the box. That’s tough.
We did try to make a couple throws down field. We ended up under duress. And, look, man, it’s a credit to
them. They did — I would have liked to have thought that with the production we had and what we were able
to do that fourth quarter, we should have been able to continue that, and we didn’t.
Q. You had a chance to win the game. Beyond the conditions, was there anything else that went wrong with
the operation that caused that kick to not go through the uprights?
DAN CAMPBELL: No. I — no. No. I mean, it just — it happened, you know.
You’d like to think they’re going to make that kick, but it’s also — those conditions were rough. That’s why if
anything I put that on us offensively, we didn’t get down there further.
We put ourselves in a bind. We ended up in a long yardage situation, just trying to get some of it back if not
more.
If you don’t, at least get yourself closer to the field goal. So, you know, it stinks. Didn’t work out.
Q. You mentioned the weather. I mean, was Jared’s — I guess how much did Jared not feeling great hold you
back with the play calling the second half? Was that more the weather? What was the split there?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I think it was — it was both. I mean, I don’t know if I can put a percentage on both.
But, yeah, the weather played into it, but a lot of it was — it was both. I mean, it’s — you know, it does. It had a
little bit of a bearing on it.
Now, he was able to make a couple of throws there at the end so —
Q. How close to the line were you, I guess, to saying you need to get him out of there?
DAN CAMPBELL: I thought about it. But there again, I mean, like I’ve — like I’ve said, this will be the — you
know, I talked to him, I talked to our trainers, I talked to Brunell, you know, talked to A. Lynn. Hey, he’s good.
He wants to go. He’s good. He can do it. So we hung in there and trusted him.
Q. What did happen to Jared?
DAN CAMPBELL: It’s really a rib oblique kind of — we’ll see what it is.
Q. It’s not a win. But in these conditions against that team, is there some impact for that team in the locker
room right now to come out with a tie?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I mean, look, here’s the positive of it is that’s a good football team. And that’s a
winning football team. They’ve done it right for a long time. They play a physical, bully-type brand of football.
And we went toe to toe with them. And I think that’s what it says.
So in that regard, I was proud of those guys. And I think you do take something away from that as we were
able to go in there.
And, no, we didn’t win, but we didn’t lose either. All you can ask for is improvement. We improved. We did.
Q. You mentioned Swift and the job he did but you guys have missed Jamaal the last two weeks. What
about the job Jamar did coming in, having a big run and Godwin. They gave you really something you
needed with Jared being the way it was and you guys had to run the ball?
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I was proud of those guys. All those guys had production. Went in there and just did a
great job.
So Duce has done a nice job with those guys. They’ve got ability. Godwin did a good job returning today again.
So, yeah. Did well.
Q. Justin asked something similar. Jamar had a role that was clearly defined. Godwin took those first two 14
and then 42. Wasn’t really involved much in the offense. Was there a reason? I think we all know who Swift
is and what he can do. (No microphone.)
DAN CAMPBELL: Yeah. I think it was just where we were at in the game. And as that clock is ticking down,
you’re just — they had — you can say, well, Godwin had a hot hand too, I mean, no doubt.
But, at the same time, we just kind of wanted to — it’s hard to take Swifty out if he’s ready to go. That’s all.
But certainly we trust these guys. We wouldn’t have put Godwin in had he not — you know, I mean, Swift had
some good runs and did some good things.
So really just — if you’re asking, yeah, it probably would have been good to get Godwin a couple more carries.
It would have been good.
Q. I was just going to ask about the — (no microphone). Getting Decker back and having Nelson play in that
role.
DAN CAMPBELL: Listen. That’s what I said. Nelson — getting Decker back was twofold. Number one, the player
that he is. But also to be able to have Nelson going in to play our jumbo tight end, he’s outstanding, man. He’s
a good football player.
He’s done a good job for us as tackle all year. And, man, I thought he stepped in and was — he did a really,
really good job.
Pittsburgh Steelers Media Conference
Sunday, November 14, 2021
Jared Goff
Q. It looked like maybe the deep shot kind of came in to play. Can you just explain kind of what you were
playing through and why it was important for you to stay out there through it?
JARED GOFF: Yeah. On that play there, I describe it, I thought, a sprained oblique. Just kind of nagged me a
little bit throughout the game.
I felt like I was fine in there and felt like it didn’t affect me through the game. But it will be a little sore
tomorrow, but I’ll be fine.
Q. In a game where it’s 50 yards through four quarters, I don’t think you’ve experienced — what’s the —
JARED GOFF: That was part — I mean, that was part of the plan anyways with the weather and the way that
they play football and the way that we wanted to today was to run the ball efficiently and we did that. And
even in situations where we typically wouldn’t.
Of course as a quarterback, I want to throw the ball. But that was our game plan this week. And I don’t know
how many attempts we had, but it was part of the game plan. And had we have won, I’d be sitting here saying
I don’t want it any other way.
Q. What was the difference in the way you were communicating with Dan?
JARED GOFF: I thought he did a great job, man. It was really good. Stepping in, his first time doing it obviously.
But it was really good. I thought he did a great job and had a good feel for wanting to come back to something
we had done previously and kind of want to mix it up. I think it will only continue to get better from here.
Q. Have you ever pulled that oblique before?
JARED GOFF: I never have, no. It was weird.
Q. I know you’ve been around the game a while, but in terms of facing tough defenses, how do the Steelers’
defense compare to others?
JARED GOFF: Yeah. They were tough. They were tough. They’re always tough.
They’ve got good players at every level. And I know TJ went down today, but he’s as good as anyone in the
league right now. When he’s healthy and they’re rolling, they’re as good as anyone. And the conditions like
they are today, that plays in their favor sometimes.
Q. (Question regarding Dan calling plays.)
JARED GOFF: Yeah. I wouldn’t say that’s, like, his style. But I think he had a good feel for understanding — you
know, being on the field and feeling the weather and knowing where we’re at and how good our defense was
playing and being able to — I mean, the way the weather was, we had to keep the ball on the ground in some
certain situations. I thought he had a feel for that.
Q. He said sort of compared this to the twilight zone. Right? You want to win. It’s a tie. Don’t quite know
how to feel.
JARED GOFF: I don’t know how to feel either. I think it’s my first tie, if I’m remembering correctly. Feels better
than a loss but still not where we need to be.
You know, it’s — it’s a step in the right direction. And it’s encouraging the way we fought and some of the plays
that we were able to make on offense.
We just felt like offensively, good, bad, or ugly, we were doing things the right way and our O line was — we
were leaning on them.
Q. Does any pressure come off of you guys? (Question about 0-17,)
JARED GOFF: No. We didn’t care. That was you guys. We didn’t care.
Q. I just asked Dan this too. But he said he talked with you a few times on the sideline about the injury. How
close were you to saying I can’t go or I’m not feeling well enough?
JARED GOFF: If I couldn’t have thrown, I wouldn’t have gone. It was — it was — I don’t want to sit up here and
say I was hurt and whatever, make excuses. But it was bothering me, but I felt I could compete and throw fine.
And I felt like I did.
Q. The run game, the play action, the running game as often as you do and effectively as you do, do you find
when you try to run some of those play actions, they were selling out so aggressively to the run —
JARED GOFF: Maybe so. Yeah. I don’t know. I think — it’s a rhythm, right? It’s a rhythm of the game. I think had
we had exactly the conditions we had wanted and everything was perfect, I’m sure we would have mixed in a
lot more play action and the rhythm would have kind of settled in a little more.
I don’t know to answer your question honestly why that would happen. I think their defensive pass rush was
pretty good.
Q. Do you think besides your injury, the weather dramatically altered the amount of time you guys threw?
JARED GOFF: Absolutely. I would say it was much more weather than anything to do with me. I felt like I was
capable — you know, hurt, but it was — it wasn’t a hindrance.
Q. Can you describe the — we’re up in the press box. We see the rain. But what’s it like playing in that?
JARED GOFF: Yeah. It was just raining. It was just a rainy game. I think unfortunately the field conditions were
what they were too.
And I know you guys can’t tell from up there, but it’s dirt, sand, it’s — they played a game here Thursday night.
Sometimes it’s the way it goes.
They had weather Thursday night when they played on it. We had weather now when we played on it. It gets
sloppy, wet, and muddy. I think that can affect footing, it can affect the ball, it can affect a lot of things. But at
the same time, they were playing in it too. And, ultimately, we came up just short.
Q. What can you take from this just momentum and carry over into the next week?
JARED GOFF: Like I said, I think it’s encouraging the way we fought and the way we were responsive. And I
thought our O line played really well.
I thought our run game, obviously, was tremendous. It just felt like at least offensively we were — like I said,
everything we were doing was for a reason. And it was really — you know, it felt purposeful. Right?
It felt like we were really on top of what we were doing offensively and, you know, something we can build on.
Q. What went into the strategy this week of making this kind of a run first offense knowing that the Steelers
don’t allow too many hundred yard rushers? Just the weather or something else you guys saw?
JARED GOFF: You know, probably — yeah, the weather is part of it. And then I think we wanted to kind of play
their game a little bit.
We knew that what they do over there with 22 and their offense is pretty good. And we wanted to win the
game that way, win it at the end type of thing. And had our chances. Unfortunately came up too short.
Q. You stayed even keeled in your position for the first 60 minutes of this game and felt fairly standard
football game. At overtime was chaotic. The emotional ups and downs of that overtime, how tough was it
to stay poised compared to —
JARED GOFF: It was hard. But I think that whole game was kind of weird. The whole flow of the game kind of
put us in that situation where we were kind of — we don’t get exactly what we want.
It wasn’t — we were confident in our defense. And we were confident in the things we were doing on offense.
We were doing some play action there at the end. And in the OT where we hit across the field. We had some
stuff we were feeling good about. But it was kind of weird the whole day and we were feeling that.
Q. When you guys were in the locker room afterwards, were guys saying that out loud, like, God, that was a
crazy one? That was weird? What was really, like, the general mood?
JARED GOFF: Yeah. I think that’s it exactly. It’s just weird. I’ve never experienced a tie. You don’t know whether
to be happy or sad.
I mean, really, you’re not happy because we could have won it and we didn’t. But it is better than a loss, I
guess, you know. It’s not — that’s not any consolation. But on paper, it is. And it feels that we are inching closer
to where we want to be and be in positions to win games like that.
Q. That’s the first time you’ve tied in your career?
JARED GOFF: As far as I can remember. Yeah.
