Rams' Aqib Talib has a (expletive) message for Cowboys' Demarcus Lawrence

It’s a great quote for those of us who prefer colorful quotes, the one Dallas Cowboys pass rusher Demarcus Lawrence offered on Friday when asked about Jared Goff.

Lawrence told reporters in the lead up to Dallas’ playoff game against Goff and the Los Angeles Rams that he doesn’t like quarterbacks.

But it’s a little more than that.

“I go into every week wanting to take the quarterback’s soul. When you get to look in a man’s eye and see fear in his heart, that’s when you know you’ve got him,” Lawrence said. “That’s how I play the game, and that’s how we’re going to dictate the game.”

Great quotes, though, tend to get attention, and your opponents will probably see them. And respond.

‘He ain’t takin’ no [expletive] soul’

In the moments immediately following the Rams’ 30-22 win, sending the team to the NFC championship for the first time since 2001, Fox Sports’ Chris Myers interviewed Goff on the field.

Suddenly, the unmistakable voice of his teammate, cornerback Aqib Talib, could be heard on the hot microphone, approaching Goff.

“He ain’t takin’ nobody’s [expletive] soul out here!” Talib shouted, slapping hands with Goff.

Myers said, “Aqib Talib, excuse the language, he’s a little excited.”

Goff replied, “Bleep that one out. He’s right though. He’s right.”

(Video below … some NSFW language, obviously.)

Talib left the field briefly during the game to be evaluated for concussion, but was cleared and allowed back onto the field.

Goff kept clean all night

Goff and Talib were right: Lawrence wanted to “take [Goff’s] soul,” but the Cowboys couldn’t even get close enough to try all night.

The NFL’s official statistics have Goff getting hit just once, and he was never sacked. He only dropped back 28 times, but he didn’t have to do more than that — Los Angeles had 273 rushing yards, the most the Rams have had in franchise playoff history, and the most the Cowboys have allowed in franchise playoff history.

It’s a credit to the Rams’ offensive line, the only line in the NFL this season to see all five men start all 16 games and led by veteran Andrew Whitworth, who was part of his first postseason win in eight tries (he was 0-7 with the Bengals).

And Goff helped take Dallas’ soul: on the first play after the two-minute warning, with the Rams facing third-and-7 from their own 28 and trying to kill the clock, Goff kept the ball, running to the wide-open space to his right, picking up the seven yards he needed plus four more, and spinning inside to stay on the field for good measure, keeping the clock rolling and forcing the Cowboys to take their second timeout.

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