Chicago Bears 25, Seattle Seahawks 24
Q. Can you take us through what you saw, and did it come into your mind any opportunity to throw the ball while you were there?
RUSSELL WILSON: In that situation the ball is down in the Red Zone. The ball is on the 8 yard line or so. I'd been moving well for the most part for most of the day, so once it wasn't there, we've had so many scramble opportunities. I was looking for Tyler trying to see if he can move around and just try to get away. Knowing that, okay, no matter what we'll be near the focal range. We're inside of it now. I think the risk-reward trying to score a touchdown, we've done it so many times. I've hit Tyler and other guys, and unfortunately, we weren't able to make that play.
Then, obviously, the situation happens where we don't end up making it, but I was trying to play ball like I know how to do and always do and try to move around and just try to see if we can find a touchdown there. Especially down in the Red Zone that close. It's one of those things that if I can run it in there, if I can slide to the left, slide to the right, boom, some guy is open, touchdown. That was that situation.
Q. Russ, for so long you and this team have been known for finishing games late, getting the stop, the drive, whatever you guys need. How strange has it been this year that finishing hasn't been there?
RUSSELL WILSON: I think that's the biggest and the toughest part about this season. I think about all the great seasons, all the great moments we've had. A lot of times it's -- this season in particular it feels like we have the lead or whatever it may be, and we can finish better. We have to be able to finish better in my opinion on offense. We can execute better. We can do little things better. We had two great opportunities. Like Greg just brought up that one we were trying to find a touchdown, move around. Okay, that doesn't work. Then the next time we get the ball again, and we, unfortunately, have a holding penalty and the ball is on the 8. We get a three, four yard run, and we get pushed back. The ball is on the 38, and then we have another negative play. Now we're out of field goal range just like that. That's really the game. That's really the game.
I think we played really solid football for the most part throughout the whole game. Third quarter we didn't have the ball much, but in the fourth quarter we had two tremendous opportunities to try to find points and touchdowns or at least field goals, and, unfortunately, it didn't work the way we wanted it to. And when you are up like that, we've got to be able to finish, and I think that's happened a a few times this year.
And so obviously, you guys know me, man. I would do anything to win. Love the process of it all, and this year has been tough to be where we are right now knowing that everybody has put so much energy and so much time into it and to know that we haven't been able to be where we want to be. It's definitely disappointing, but I think that the only thing I know how to do and the rest of the guys in the locker room know how to do is to come back to work and give everything that we have.
I think that it's easy to lead when everything is going great and everything is going smooth, and it's a lot more difficult to do it, but it should never change. Your attitude, your mindset, your dedication to the game, what you care about, your passion to the game, the passion to your craft every day. It's always going to be challenges, always going to be tough, and so this year has definitely been tough in that sense.
Honestly, this game, we should have definitely had this one. The way we were playing, the way that I felt like we were moving the ball. Rashaad Penny had an unbelievable game. The line was blocking their butts off. D.K. scored that touchdown. That was huge. Other guys -- Gerald, getting in the end zone. That was awesome. We had some really great things to. DeeJay Dallas had a great game. Some amazing great pieces that we did a great job running the ball, made a couple of plays on offense and then, obviously, special teams efforts. As a collective effort, we could have finished better.
Q. Did the snow or anything change anything today? Were the conditions any challenge there?
RUSSELL WILSON: It was definitely windy throughout the game. It changed a little bit, but I thought that, no, we haven't played in a game like that here. I thought it was great. I thought I was seeing it well, throwing it well for the most part and everything else. I don't think the weather was really a factor for us. I think that the biggest thing that was -- it was cool just to know that it's our first time being here in that situation, and, okay, let's go step up to the plate, and let's take it. Great charge, great energy around it. Guys were fired up for the game and everything else. I thought we definitely showed that throughout the first half, and then it kind of slipped away from us late, but, like I said, I don't think that was a factor, no.
Q. This may vary by game, but at the end of the first half you guys decided not to burn a time-out after getting a stop. 30 seconds ran off the clock where you guys kept that second time-out. As the quarterback in that situation, would you rather have that extra time-out or the extra 30 seconds there?
RUSSELL WILSON: I think any time you're in two-minute, the more time you have, the better, obviously. I think that it was two-minute warning hit, and then I think they had a play, and then it was a situation where we could have called time-out. They decided to save the two time-outs, and that was the coach's decision and all that stuff. I think it's not a bad thing. I think that either way, you have two time-outs or you have one, but more time. That's a decision that Coach makes.
Q. You mentioned Rashaad Penny earlier. He had the big game in Houston. To see him come back and have a few games in a row, what does that mean? All the adversity he has had, what was it like to see him go through that?
RUSSELL WILSON: The thing about Rashaad Penny, I think he has had three or four great games. He has been battling. I know in the Rams game he got kind of pulled up a little bit there on one of the plays, but I think the Houston game was exceptional. I think this game was exceptional. Just how he was running the ball, how physical he was, that was really cool to see. He has put the work in, and I think any time you put the work in, a lot of times it comes to fruition at some point. It may not always be right away or maybe later, whatever it is, but he has been doing it his whole career trying to get back and trying to play at the high level that he knows how to, and I think that it's been cool to see. It's been one of the highlights watching Rashaad Penny run the ball.
Q. You guys have, obviously, been so successful. How surprised are you that you guys are where you are right now in the season? Playoffs are done and --
RUSSELL WILSON: I mean, definitely surprised. I feel like we could have at least had a few more wins early on and then throughout the process, and it's been a challenge along the way, but I think that you have to take each game and each moment -- this is what I've always believed, win or loss. Each game has a history of its own, and I think this game in particular, it had a history that we played great throughout the early part of the game, and then the fourth quarter with seven, eight minutes to go, we really should have won it on our side of the ball, we felt like. At least that's how I always think. We had two great opportunities at it, and then we got the ball back. Seven minutes. Then we got the ball back with five or somewhere around there, and then, unfortunately, we got pushed backwards.
So I think that everybody is trying to put the work in every day, and that's the thing that is disappointing, too. Every guy is putting everything they have into it, and I think that's where we want to be better. It's, like, man, where can we find these little moments? Any time you play in the National Football League, the difference of winning and losing are these little moments where we can be cleaner and be disciplined and make those things happen and find ways to make the plays. I always want to make the play. I always want to find a way, and I'm always trying to do everything I can. I can be cleaner and just try to be better as much as I can. We felt like we should have won that game for sure.
Q. Kind of made it clear you like to win, and you want to win championships specifically. Now that that's off the table for this season, what happens now?
RUSSELL WILSON: We get up tomorrow morning, and we give everything we have and get back to work, watch the film. I'm going to watch it tonight and see where we can get better and where I can get better and continue to learn as much as I can. Nothing ever changes in that sense. To me that's how you do win. That's the process of winning is every day no matter the highs and lows in life, what's going on around us, what's being said or this or that, I think that you have to be consistent in your approach every day. I'm not going to waiver in that sense. I'm never going to waiver in my approach and how I'm going to approach the game and approach the next meeting, the next lift, the next practice, the next moment and give everything I have in that sense. That's the only thing I know. I don't know anything else.
I've had tough times in my life, and I've had some of the highest of the highs and some of the tough ones too and lows, and the only way I know through is the work, is the process, is the language, is staying the course. There will be better days ahead in that sense, and if you continue to do that in anything in life, not just in sports, but anything no matter what we're all facing, I think the best thing you can do is to focus on today. I really believe that. That's always going to be my focus.
Q. Your head coach came in here and said, "I have to be better for my guys." What does that say to you? What does that mean to you? What do you think that tells?
RUSSELL WILSON: I think Coach saying that, I think it's all -- we all have to be better. We all want to be better. I think I want to be better every day. I want to be the best at it. I want to continue to work at it. I think we all want to get better at it. I think every player in that locker room, every coach and everything else. The only way to get better is to be able to stay focused on what's right next ahead of us, and that's going to be tomorrow morning when we wake up -- God willing, we wake up and tomorrow morning we get to do it and focus on that, and I think it's the only way to get better. Like I said, this season has been disappointing for sure in that since. Despite the disappointments, in sports and in life and in anything, I'm grateful that God gave me the opportunity to play and to do it again and to play every moment. I cherish these moments.
I think my dad up in heaven, man, no matter what, he is always smiling down. Whatever else is going around in anybody else's thinking or whatever, and so many people have so many things in their life they're going through, and the thing for for me is always stay focused on joy. I mentioned that to you guys several weeks ago, and that's been my focus. I think that, like I said, tonight I felt great. I think we felt great as an offense and team. We let it squander away from us, and that can't happen. We'll have to figure that out.
Q. Russ, both your touchdowns came on plays where it looked like designed roll-outs to the right, and to the untrained eye would look at that and say why isn't that a bigger part of your offense? Do you feel like it could be, should be?
RUSSELL WILSON: Well, the one to D.K. I didn't really roll out right, but he did a great job on that run. That was awesome, man. Just good to get back in the end zone. He has been working his butt off, and our relationship, we've been working every day at it, at making those plays and doing those great things. He is a tremendous worker. He is a guy who brings it every day, man. I love D.K. For him to get in the end zone there on a sweet route, he did a great job stuttering the guy and got by him and put it out there and let him go get it, and he made a beautiful catch. We worked on that stuff, and we just continue to make those plays. That was great for D.K. to see him back in the end zone.
Then the other one with -- the Everett one, for sure. That was a great play just getting out on the edge. I think Shane had a good call on that. We tried to play a little faster up-tempo in that moment. Had a couple of nice runs, a couple of nice plays there, and we felt like I could get on the edge, and sure enough, I did. I kind of looked it down and then threw it up high to Gerald there, which he can catch everything, man. It was cool to see him get in the end zone too.
They had just scored, so we really needed that touchdown, so to be able to answer right back and make that play to separate the game again, that was key for us, and that's where we felt like we could have finished. Then I think we had a couple of other nakeds that got on the edge and got the ball out to Freddie on that one. I think a nine-yard play. Nine- or ten-yard play. That was cool to see Freddie out there and get that too as well.
Q. One of the recurring themes on offense is D.K. goes long stretches without touching the ball, and it happened again today. Why is that happening?
RUSSELL WILSON: I think today how we were running the ball and how we were doing things and everything else, we were trying to find ways to get it to him, and they were double-covering him. They're definitely doing that for sure. We have other great guys that can make plays too and everything else. I think that throughout the game, we were trying to find different ways. They kept trying to double him, and we kept trying to move him around a couple of times, this and that. Any time he touches the football, it's a good thing for the Seahawks. I think that is important for us. And I think guys like Tyler, obviously Rashaad Penny had a great day. We always want those guys to have hot hands.
Q. Another recurring issue has been third down at this point. What can you say about what's going on? It's happened today. It's happened all year. What's going on?
RUSSELL WILSON: I think we had some really good third down conversions. The ones we did. Kind of moved around. Obviously hit D.K. for the touchdown on third down. I think we had -- Gerald had two really good ones. Had to kind of scramble and move around and found him. He made some great plays on those. Then we had a few that were long distance, like kind of near the end of the game. That last seven, eight minutes we had a couple of third downs that were a little bit longer, and so I think it takes two more. Two more, it changes the game here and there. That's really the focus point there.
Thank you, guys. Merry Christmas to everybody. Disappointing, but appreciate you guys. Go Hawks.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports