Michael Crabtree : SF 49ers WR Super Bowl Press Conference

Michael Crabtree, the San Francisco 49ers wide receiver, says he’s not blaiming the refs for the last ditch pass to him from Colin Kaepernick that, if it were caught, would have put the 49ers ahead of the Baltimore Ravens, perhaps for good. Instead, Michael Crabtree seemed to crash with the Ravens cornerback, the ball sailed far over his head, no flag was thrown, and the Ravens stopped the 49ers one more time and ran out the clock.

Middlebar: Crabtree Zennie62 Interview At The NFL Draft:

Here’s Michael Crabtree talking with the media at the press conference:

49ERS WR MICHAEL CRABTREE

(on the fourth down pass and red zone series that ended the game) “It is what it is, man. It was the last play, and I’m not going to blame it on the refs. It is what it is; it came down to the last play and it didn’t happen.”

(on if the team practiced the fade pass to the end zone) “Yeah. I mean, that was the play call at the moment. We were just trying to execute the play and make something happen at the end of the game, but we came up short.”

(on if he was held coming off the line of scrimmage) “Yeah. I mean, if somebody grabs me, you always expect the call, but you can’t whine to the referee. It is what it is. You have to just take it like a man, take the ill.”

(on the play call in the red zone at the end of the game) “I’m not going to talk about the play call, because like I said, it is what it is. I think we could’ve made some more plays. I think we could’ve did a better job in the red zone, on the 4-yard line. But coach calls the plays; I just try to execute to the best of my abilities.”

(on if the last three plays were each designed for him) “I mean, it was whoever got open. I’m sure somebody else was open and was complaining about being open, but that’s just how the game goes. I want to see the quarterback hit the open guy, but at the end of the game, it went like it did. I can’t even complain. It was a hard-fought game.”

(on how much contact wasn’t being called) “I mean, it felt like there was a lot of contact. I don’t even want to say this, but if the ball had been a little lower, giving me a chance to make a play, I’m sure they would’ve called it. But it happened like that, man. I’ve got a lot of confidence in my offensive line and quarterback; we fought back. It was a comeback, and we gave it our all.”

(on fighting hard to come back, only to fall short) “It’s frustrating man, it’s the Super Bowl. Everybody wants to win. But at the end of the game, we came up short.”

(on not being able to convert touchdowns in the red zone) “It’s a football game. Obviously, we want to score every drive, but it don’t end like that. Field goals still score points, but I feel like we’ve got to score touchdowns to win games. We just came up short.”

(on if the 4th down play was called or a check at the line) “It was a check at the line. One-on-one and he thought I could make that play.”

(on if he was aware that he was being held at the line of scrimmage) “I mean, I haven’t seen the play yet. I’m sure I’m going to watch film. I’m a football player; I’m going to critique myself and figure out ways to get better. I can’t wait to see it on film. I was just really determined to make the play and he got hands on me. I feel like he got his hands on me, and I guess the refs said he made a good play.”

(on if he thought he would break a long play earlier on the final drive) “I think I’m going to break every catch. That’s what I do, man. I play football and I try to make something out of nothing, whatever it takes. I was just going hard every play.”

(on what was being said in the huddle with the game on the line) “Making a play; that’s all we need. Get in the end zone. We were that close to a Super Bowl win, but we came up short. There’s nothing else I can say.”

(on what Coach Jim Harbaugh’s message was at the end of the game) “He really didn’t have a message, then. We lose and everyone’s down. Guys lose it. Guys go missing. It is what it is. A loss is a loss. There’s not too much you can listen to after a Super Bowl loss. It was a good job. It was good to just be here. But at the end of the day, I just feel so bad, man, that we lost. I’m trying to take it right now.”

(on if the team prepared for the play call at the end of the game) “I was just trying to make a play. Wide receivers, tight ends, running backs; it’s a football game, man. There’s not too much that you can talk about. Each player is trying to get the ball, make a play. We’re all trying to get the win.”

(on the short term outlook of the team’s success) “I just feel the confidence. We keep taking baby steps. First it’s the NFC Championship, now it’s the Super Bowl. I just feel like we need to go on and win it. We’re not going to have this team with so many weapons on our team like this every year. We’ve got to do what we’ve got to do and handle business.”

(on if he thought the team would come back and win) “You always do; that’s how you think in this game. There was no doubt in my mind that we wouldn’t lose. When it happened like that, you feel like you have to go another year. It was a long season and I’m just proud of my team.”

(on if there was too much contact from defenders throughout the game) “I mean, there were a couple of plays where the guy was all over me, before we even got to catch the ball. I don’t even want to talk about it, man. It’s frustrating. It’s the game-winning touchdown, man. It just makes it sad. This is the Super Bowl. This is what you live for. You want to win, but it’s tough.”

(on finding inspiration after game delay) “We had to come back. We had to come back. We had one goal and that was to come back and win the game. We came down to the four-yard line.”

Stay tuned.