press and others on the Bears game

Rams stifle Nick Foles, cruise past Bears to improve to 5-2

Jourdan Rodrigue

https://theathletic.com/news/rams-defense-stifles-nick-foles-bears-monday-night-football/C3DhGqTUn8eB

The Rams limited Nick Foles and the Bears’ offense to three points, and Jared Goff threw two touchdowns to lead Los Angeles to a 24-10 rout over visiting Chicago on Monday night.

The Bears’ only touchdown came on defense, via an 8-yard fumble return by safety Eddie Jackson with 7:30 to play. The offense’s two trips inside the Rams’ 10-yard line yielded no points, as safety Taylor Rapp intercepted Foles off a tip by Troy Hill, and linebacker Justin Hollins sacked Foles on fourth down.

Foles was intercepted again by Jalen Ramsey to end hopes of a comeback with just over three minutes to play. The Rams (5-2), who entered with the league’s third-best scoring defense (19 points per game), sacked Foles four times and limited the Bears to 279 total yards and 14 first downs.

Goff finished 23 of 33 with 219 yards and no interceptions, and the Rams added 165 rushing yards.

The Rams (5-2) moved within a half-game of the first-place Seahawks (5-1) in the NFC West, which has all four teams above .500. The division is a combined 19-8 through three weeks (16-5 in non-division games) with a point differential of plus-185.

The Bears fell out of a first-place tie with the Packers (5-1) in the NFC North.

How has the reshaped Rams’ defense been so successful?
Jourdan Rodrigue, Rams beat writer: There are many reasons why the Rams’ new defense, under first-year NFL coordinator Brandon Staley, has been so successful — none the least the fact that they have an all-time defensive tackle in Aaron Donald and an all-time cornerback in Jalen Ramsey. Staley schemes up his system to run through those guys in many ways, and in many “sub” packages.

But it’s also other players — cornerbacks Darious Williams and Hill, safeties John Johnson and Terrell Burgess, who was injured and carted off on Monday — who have stepped up in crunch time to make plays that are part of the backbone and identity of this group. Players have bought into a smart, fluid and tough-to-read scheme; the fact that it was installed without an offseason also gives them a little bit of swagger.

The best team in the NFC West is the…
Rodrigue: Pick any two and play a game — the best team in the NFC West might just be whoever is holding the ball last.

NFL Week 7 PFF ReFocused: Los Angeles Rams 24, Chicago Bears 10

https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-2020-week-7-pff-refocused-los-angeles-rams-24-chicago-bears-10

Nick Foles threw two interceptions, and the Chicago Bears‘ offense was held to just a field goal en route to their second loss of the season — this time to the Jared Goff-led Los Angeles Rams, 24-10.

The final score made the game seem closer than it truly was, as the Bears could not find their offensive rhythm despite their defense keeping the team in the game.

STORY OF THE GAME

The Rams’ defense, led by star cornerback Jalen Ramsey and defensive tackle Aaron Donald, nearly shut out the Bears, allowing just 2.9 yards per carry on the ground and snatching two interceptions. Although punter Johnny Hekker saw the field more than Los Angeles would have liked — as the Bears’ defense was no slouch itself — he pinned Chicago inside its 20-yard line on all five of his punts and added a much-needed swagger.

Ramsey was dominant for much of the night, outside of getting sauced by Bears’ rookie receiver Darnell Mooney on a stutter-go and by Javon Wims on a double-move on the last pass attempt of the game — both of which were overthrown by Foles. He corralled his first interception of the season late in the fourth quarter, effectively sealing the Bears’ fate.

Donald was his usual stellar self, penetrating the opposition’s backfield with ease against both the run and the pass. His 10 total quarterback pressures on initial count would lead all defenders in Week 7.

The Rams’ offense was relatively quiet, with Goff and the passing game posting just over 200 yards. Josh Reynolds was the leading receiver, hauling in four receptions for 52 yards and a score, but he was open on a few more occasions where Goff was just unable to reach him.

Darrell Henderson and Malcolm Brown conducted the backfield, with both averaging over 4.5 yards per carry. Brown took the red-zone touches and kept his legs moving on an insane pile push that set up his goal-line touchdown.

Foles was sacked four times and pressured on just under 50% of his dropbacks compared to Goff’s 22%. It made Foles look uneasy in the pocket, and he was inaccurate on some key throws. David Montgomery was the Bears’ backfield, receiving just under 80% of the snaps. He had 19 total touches but netted only 69 yards and zero touchdowns.

On the defensive side, Khalil Mack and Eddie Jackson were all over the field. Mack forced a sack on Goff and played his role in the run game. Jackson had a game-leading eight solo tackles while also returning a fumble for Chicago’s only touchdown of the night.

ROOKIE WATCH

There were not many rookie sightings on the field for either side. Rams second-round running back Cam Akers saw just three snaps and recorded no receptions or carries. Third-round safety Terrell Burgess had 12 snaps before leaving the game with a leg injury. The standout of the bunch was third-round edge defender Terrell Lewis, who forced a key fourth-down stop.

For the Bears, Cole Kmet and Jaylon Johnson all saw more than 20 snaps. As mentioned above, Mooney absolutely cooked Rasmey on a stutter-go backed up to their own goal line, but he was overthrown by a pressured Foles. He caught three balls for 40 yards on the night.

Kmet had a quiet game but missed a defender for a 38-yard reception down the left sideline, finishing the contest with two catches for 45 yards — the second-most on the team. Johnson was the only rookie defender to receive snaps for the Bears, and he continued his strong play this season. He was targeted three times and allowed only one to be caught for 14 yards, forcing an incompletion on another.

𝕋𝕠𝕞 – 𝕃𝔸 ℝ𝕒𝕞𝕤@TL_LARams
Passer ratings for other QBs against the Bears D this season:
77.2, 68.9, 67.7, 86.9, 86.7, 50.4

Passer rating for Jared Goff against the Bears: 108

BGrisakDTRThought balloon@bgrisakDTR
Darrell Henderson is averaging 5.4 ypc. Malcolm Brown is averaging 7.4 ypc.

𝕋𝕠𝕞 – 𝕃𝔸 ℝ𝕒𝕞𝕤@TL_LARams
Why are Rams fans talking about signing Earl Thomas like the Rams don’t routinely find excellent safeties just lying around the facility

Gary Klein@LATimesklein
McVay gave DC Brandon Staley and OLB Leonard Floyd game balls after the victory.

J.B. Long@JB_Long
Opponents that have scored a second-half touchdown against the @RamsNFL defenes this season:

The Buffalo Bills.

Cameron DaSilva@camdasilva
Johnny Hekker was historically great against the Bears on Monday night, pinning all five of his punts inside the 10

Lindsey Thiry@LindseyThiry
“It’s just great that Aaron Donald knows my name,” – punter Johnny Hekker laughs, when asked about the team swarming him in celebration after he pinned another punt down inside the 10. (Donald gave him a chest bump).

Jourdan Rodrigue@JourdanRodrigue
Two great quotes from postgame so far:
Jared Goff on celebrating Johnny Hekker’s punts: “I’m not usually getting off the bench for a punt.”
Johnny Mundt on his big YAC play: “That was supposed to be a stiff-arm…getting used to having the football in my hands.”