Recent Forum Topics › Forums › The Rams Huddle › week 7 thotz…are the Rams shaping up into a contender?
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October 16, 2017 at 1:19 pm #76168znModerator
The Rams’ defense is starting to dominate
Alden Gonzalez
http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/35879/the-rams-defense-is-starting-to-dominate
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Los Angeles Rams’ defense spent an entire week preparing to stop the Jacksonville Jaguars’ rushing attack, then watched it all blow up on them in a matter of 11 seconds.
Leonard Fournette, coming off an 181-yard game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, broke a 75-yard touchdown run on his team’s first offensive snap. The 228-pound rookie found a wide-open hole in the “A” gap, brushed aside a feeble tackling attempt by inside linebacker Mark Barron and exploded into the second level, beating rookie safety John Johnson up the field and spoiling any joy the Rams might have felt from watching Pharoh Cooper turn the opening kickoff into six points.
“I’m sure somebody got out of their gap or something,” Barron said. “That’s the only way those type of plays happen.”
Walking back to the sideline, Barron remembered something that first-year head coach Sean McVay says often: “Don’t flinch.”
Later, Alec Ogletree, an inside linebacker and a captain, strolled up and down the bench and reminded his teammates that an entire 60-minute game remained. Connor Barwin, an outside linebacker in his ninth season, had a similar message.
“‘That play’s over,'” Barwin said. “‘Don’t let that play dictate our mood the rest of the game. It’s one play. Move on to the next play.’ That was the message. That’s the way we played.”
The Rams eventually overcame that play, winning 27-17 on Sunday in a game dominated by their special teams and their defense. Fournette gained 98 yards on his first four carries but only 32 yards on his next 17. The Jaguars scored 14 points on 159 yards in their first three drives but only three points on 230 yards in their next 13.
By the end of Week 6, Fournette’s opening run was a distant memory.
“It’s a long game,” defensive tackle Aaron Donald said, with his team 4-2 and in first place in the NFC West. “If you let that hurt you and keep thinking about that, it’ll be an even longer game.”
The Rams’ defense turned it around Sunday the way it has the past three weeks. Wade Phillips’ unit gave up 90 points in a 10-quarter stretch against the Washington Redskins, San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys from Weeks 2 to 4. In the 10 quarters that followed — dating to the second half against Dallas — the Rams have allowed only 39 points.
“They continue to improve,” McVay said.
“I think we’re in a decent place,” Barron said, “but I think we’ll keep getting better.”
A big reason for their surge, as McVay pointed out, is the dominance exhibited by Donald, who picked up his second sack on Sunday and is consistently penetrating into the backfield. Another reason is a couple of key adjustments by Phillips, who moved Michael Brockers to defensive end and carved out a path for rookie safety John Johnson. But the Rams have also benefited from more time in this system.
Early on Sunday, they missed a handful of open-field tackles and apparently had a hard time setting an edge. But then, once again, the Rams resembled the elite defense they expected to be.
“From day one, I knew we could be a top defense,” Ogletree said. “It’s a matter of everybody getting the system down and keep playing, each and every week, and just getting better in practice. I feel like we’ve been doing that lately, and it’s starting to show.”
October 16, 2017 at 2:33 pm #76175
wvParticipantWell it always about matchups, i suppose. Its one thing to look like a top D against Bortles and the one-dimensional Jags — its quite another to shut-down Carson Palmer and the wiley Adrian Peterson.
So, another test.
This is fun.
I’d love to see Watkins catch a deep one against the evil Patrick Peterson.
w
vOctober 16, 2017 at 3:03 pm #76178
ZooeyParticipantPeterson was certainly a big surprise yesterday. But I don’t think Peterson has ever gained a single yard against the Rams’ defense while playing for the Cardinals, so I don’t see why that will change this Sunday.
Plus…it’s well-known that Fitzgerald and Palmer are at the age where jet lag really takes a toll physically. It’s questionable whether they will even make it to the stadium.
I think the Rams could threaten their old record of -7 total yards.
October 16, 2017 at 3:31 pm #76181
nittany ramModeratorPlus…it’s well-known that Fitzgerald and Palmer are at the age where jet lag really takes a toll physically. It’s questionable whether they will even make it to the stadium.
Plus, I hear that BBC Four is planning a “Last of the Summer Wine” marathon this weekend. If they happen to catch part of that there’s a good chance they won’t even make the flight home.
October 19, 2017 at 2:00 am #76262znModeratorRams are happy to be 4-2, but not content
VINCENT BONSIGNORE
link: http://www.ocregister.com/2017/10/18/bonsignore-rams-are-happy-to-be-4-2-but-not-content/
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The dark clouds and wet, gloomy conditions that besieged North Florida the last couple of days lifted by the time the Rams returned to practice Wednesday in preparation for their Sunday game against the Cardinals in London.
But Florida being Florida, sooner than you could say Aaron Donald is the best defensive lineman in the NFL, daunting clouds rolled back in to add a definite shade of gray to what had mostly been blue skies.
And in a way, it offered the perfect overhead from which to view the Rams current position and frame of mind as they near the halfway point of their very telling second season in Los Angeles.
At the risk of playing the clichéd game of after-the-fact rationalizing, it’s safe to say had you asked the Rams and their fans at the beginning of training camp whether they’d accept a 4-2 start to the 2017 season, a mass rush to click the “Absolutely” link would have ensued. And, with the Rams sitting in that precise place six games in, it would be a bit disingenuous not to express satisfaction as a result.
But here’s the rub: It’s a satisfaction that comes with an asterisk. The Rams don’t feel fortunate to be 4-2. Nor lucky, fortuitous or charmed.
Quite the contrary actually.
Their asterisk represents a definite feeling of “but it should be even better,” after the stubbing of the toes that occurred in losses to Washington and Seattle. And for longtime Rams accustomed to experiencing sinking feelings this time of year, that’s, well, kind of cool.
“It just feels good to feel that way,” said defensive tackle Michael Brockers. “Even with two losses on your record, you feel like you could have won one of those games. Or both of them, and be here sitting at (6-0). And that’s a great feeling. I haven’t had that feeling in a long time.
“It feels good to not have a losing record, but also know we can be so much better.”
The Rams can’t rewrite their wrongs through the first six games of a 16-game season. The five turnovers against the Seahawks and the untimely mistakes against Washington are disappointments they just have to swallow. But you get the feeling their reaction to where they sit now creates almost the perfect position from which to attack the rest of the season.
Good but could be better. Happy but still not content. Satisfied, but …
“Happy with where we are but at the same time disappointed in some of the things that caused us to lose two of those game,” is how quarterback Jared Goff put it. “There’s definitely that, not being content and wanting more and I think that’s the sign of a great team. That’s good to see around here.”
This isn’t last year, or so many others previously, where the Rams talked about improvements or finding solutions and answers but, in the deepest part of their souls, knew those answers weren’t coming anytime soon.
Damaged rosters provided no ready-made improvements. A flawed coaching staff offered insufficient guidance or ability to fix and lead.
So while they talked a lot, it was all in lieu of real solutions or meaningful change. That isn’t the case anymore, which is why the defensive woes of early in the season were more easily accepted because there was sufficient talent on hand and a proven coach and system under coordinator Wade Phillips.
After giving up 90 points over the first 10 quarters of the season, the Rams have allowed just 39 points over the past 10 as players get more acclimated to the 3-4 defense under Phillips, and Donald continues to round into form.
“We’ve just been buying into the system and trusting the process and it’s been working,” Brockers said.
And it’s why they can be disappointed at the offensive breakdowns over the past two games that cost them the game against the Seahawks and made the one over the Jaguars closer than it should have been, but not completely disheartened.
The Rams’ woes in the red zone and difficulty converting on third downs on Sunday — they were 4 of 13 — are fixable. Not in the way it’s been in the past. In fact, the Rams have already shown enough proficiency in both areas this year — from a talent, scheme and execution level — that there’s confidence they can reclaim that previous efficiency.
“I think it’s just execution on each play,” Goff said. “I think we had some good plays on (recently) and we just didn’t quite execute them. Everyone’s a part of it. I can throw a couple of balls a little better, I think. We can do a little better running routes. But for the most part it’s just execution. And we look to bounce back in that this week.”
The Rams in the past uttered similar answers. They talked about fixing things and getting better and executing more efficiently. It all sounded great. But just like the taste of cotton candy dissolves into virtually nothing almost immediately after you take a bite, all those proclamations and promises never amounted to anything.
You don’t get the feeling that’s the case with these Rams. Their answers seem available, that execution attainable. And it’s driven by a surprisingly frank mindset.
The Rams don’t feel lucky to be 4-2, even after more than a decade of losing. If anything, there’s genuine disappointment that they aren’t 6-0. It’s a perspective that bodes well moving forward.
“Our two losses, we lost by six points and seven points,” Rams guard Rodger Saffold said. “And those are things we look at, especially as an offense, and say: ‘What could we have done better to put more points on the board? What can we do to stay on the field longer, to help out the defense?’
“And those are constant challenges that are getting us to work, day after day after day, instead of just sitting back and looking at our record like: ‘Hey, we’re doing so well.’”
October 19, 2017 at 2:01 am #76263znModeratorFor Rams, ‘everything is different’ under Sean McVay and his refreshing standards
Alex Marvez
JACKSONVILLE — The last time the Rams opened a season 4-2 was 2006, when the club was in St. Louis and Scott Linehan began his first year as head coach. The Rams would then lose 23 of their next 30 games before Linehan was fired four games into the 2008 season.
I mention this as a cautionary tale for those who think Sean McVay already has proven himself as the long-sought answer for a franchise that hasn’t reached the playoffs since the 32-year-old wunderkind was a freshman wide receiver at Miami University in 2004.
The body of work simply is not yet available to prove McVay is the second coming of Dick Vermeil and can avoid flaming out like Linehan after initial success. Plus, so many things go into the head coaching position beyond Xs and Os. The NFL’s nature dictates there will be more challenges on and off the field, which McVay still must prove he can handle.
All that being said, count me in as a believer.
It wasn’t just the way Los Angeles bounced back from a Week 5 loss to Seattle with Sunday’s 27-17 road win over Jacksonville that continues to make McVay the early front-runner for NFL Coach of the Year honors. It’s the immediate impact McVay has made in defusing the malaise that had settled over the Rams during Jeff Fisher’s four-plus seasons at the helm prior to his firing in December.
“The whole culture changed as soon as McVay got in here,” Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson told Sporting News from the visitor’s locker room at EverBank Field. “Go back to OTAs, training camp … Everything is different.”
Being atop the NFC West at this point of the season is something different for Johnson from his previous five seasons with the Rams. The same goes for linebacker Alec Ogletree, who has experienced the same playoff drought since he was drafted in 2013.
“We haven’t had the best of seasons in the past few years,” Ogletree told SN. “We definitely were coming in with an open attitude. We just wanted to get better in any way possible.”
What Los Angeles displayed against Jacksonville feeds into Ogletree’s conviction that “all three phases believe in one common goal.” While that sounds like a vintage football cliché, it was rarely the case with Fisher’s squads because the Rams were so poor offensively compared to their quality defensive and special teams units.
These Rams were superior across the board against a Jaguars team also trying to break its losing ways under a new coach in Doug Marrone. Special teams produced a Pharoh Cooper 103-yard touchdown return on the game’s opening kickoff, a blocked Jaguars punt for another touchdown and a two-for-two field goal performance by Greg Zuerlein, which stood out in comparison to erratic Jacksonville kicker Jason Myers missing two 54-yard attempts.
The defense rebounded after surrendering a 75-yard Leonard Fournette touchdown run on Jacksonville’s first offensive snap. Fournette was held to a 2.8-yard average on his other 20 carries, which placed more pressure on Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles to carry the load.
That isn’t his strength. Bortles completed 23 of 35 passes with one touchdown but was sacked five times and threw a fourth-quarter interception with the Jags in field-goal range.
The Rams also rely heavily on their running game for offensive production, and Todd Gurley delivered with 116 yards on 23 carries. But they actually have a QB who is starting to live up to his high draft status.
Although he has made only 13 career NFL starts, Jared Goff already looks more advanced in his second season than Bortles does after 51 starts since 2014. Goff stayed composed in a modest 124-yard, one touchdown performance against a Jaguars defense that entered the game with a league-high 15 takeaways that led directly to 77 points.
Goff’s improvement under a quarterbacking guru like McVay hasn’t gone unnoticed by Rams defenders.
“We were the 32nd-ranked offense last year,” Johnson said. “Now, we’re in the top five. That’s a complete change right there.
The improvement doesn’t surprise Rams center John Sullivan. Neither does the team-building McVay has done since leaving his post as Washington’s offensive coordinator for the head coach role in Los Angeles.
“I expected what we are seeing now, which is a change in the culture, a change in the standard that was set and the expectations for this team,” said Sullivan, who was lured away by McVay from Washington to LA in free agency. “Today, this wasn’t our best offensive performance, but things have really turned around. We expect to be a winning organization on and off the field.
“He preaches about the character and culture of this team. It’s a constant reminder in our team meetings what a Ram is supposed to be, what our core values are, and what dictates our actions on a daily basis as players and professionals.”
Another Rams newcomer expressed similar insight to Sporting News.
“The essence of everything starts with my character and who I am on a daily basis,” said left tackle Andrew Whitworth, who had played the previous 11 seasons in Cincinnati before he arrived in LA during the 2017 offseason. “Consistency is the most important thing that matters.
“You can be a guy who has a splash play one Sunday and you think you’ve arrived. But the greatest measure of individual success is if week-in and week-out that you’re there for your team. That’s what builds a franchise — when your best player and worst player have that same mentality. Everybody is getting better, not just certain guys on the team.”
McVay’s team-first mantras were recently put to the test by wide receiver Sammy Watkins, who complained on social media about his lack of opportunities following the Seahawks game. McVay responded by personally watching video with Watkins to highlight areas in which both sides could do a better job in the passing game.
A source told Sporting News that McVay also reminded Watkins of why the team traded for him in August: They want him to become a long-term part of the roster. Watkins, a 2014 first-round pick by Buffalo, is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
Although he only caught one pass on four targets against Jacksonville, Watkins didn’t kvetch about it to the media afterward.
“The only thing I can do is keep working hard on my craft and put everything on film,” Watkins said, per the Los Angeles Times. “I think I played hard, stayed in the game and managed it. We got the win, that’s the biggest thing.”
McVay admitted after the Jags game that “coaches and players alike” are still “learning about each other.”
“They’re working through the good and bad,” McVay said. “These players are mentally tough. I think that’s because they’re becoming that identity that you hear us talking about all the time.”
It’s one that would make McVay and the Rams built to last for the long haul.
“We have the pieces here to win if everybody just keeps believing and doing their job the right way at a high level,” Ogletree said.
The process has begun.
October 21, 2017 at 6:09 pm #76346znModeratorBlue and Gold wrote:
Interior line has been pretty good this year. Rams, for the last long while, have had problems at center and guard in terms of pass protection and run blocking ,too. We have had quick pressure up the middle too many times to count and coupled with breakdowns at left tackle, it’s been a problem.
While not perfect, Sully, Brown and Saffold have allowed Goff to step up and make throws. Probably have to go back to Timmerman, McCollum days to find the front of the pocket protected this good.
And the WRs. Watkins is getting open. As he and Goff get the timing down, there will be some big plays there. Kupp gets open, Woods gets open. Gotta go back to Holt and Bruce and Curtis to find 3 WRs getting open consistently.
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