reporters, analysts etc, do the post-mortem on the ARZ game

Turning point: Rams fail to finish

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14628/turning-point-rams-fail-to-finish

EARTH CITY, Mo. — A look back at the turning point of the St. Louis Rams’ 12-6 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night:

The situation: After five consecutive three-and-outs in the third quarter, the Rams offense was desperately seeking traction in its bid to forge a comeback from a 12-3 deficit. Quarterback Shaun Hill connected with tight end Jared Cook and receiver Stedman Bailey for gains of 15 and 38 yards, respectively and the Rams were finally moving the ball. In fact, they got all the way to Arizona’s 7 where they had a chance to score the game’s first touchdown and put themselves in position to steal the game in the closing moments. This isn’t a total focus on one play so much as a sequence that ultimately might have cost the Rams the game.

As it then stood, the Rams faced first-and-goal at Arizona’s 7 with 7:29 to go and a nine-point deficit.

The play: On first down, the Rams opted to hand it off to running back Tre Mason. In a familiar sight on the day, Mason had nowhere to go as he attempted to power up the middle. He was stopped for no gain. On second down, Hill found Bailey over the middle for a completion. Bailey gave it everything he had to try to get into the end zone but he was stopped a yard short to set up third-and-goal at Arizona’s 1. Now, the Rams have struggled mightily to run the ball on third- and fourth-and-1 this year. The Rams are last in yards per carry in those situations at 1.09 and had been stopped on a run in a similar situation on their first possession. With that in mind, it was pretty clear what they were going to do on third down. Problem was, Arizona knew it, too.

The Rams lined up in a typical goal line power formation with tight ends Lance Kendricks and Jared Cook attached to the line to the right and left, respectively, Cory Harkey offset at fullback and Benny Cunningham in the backfield. At the snap, Hill faked a handoff to Cunningham but Arizona doesn’t bite and all of its defenders stayed home to prevent any of the possible pass-catchers from leaking out into free space. Kendricks never even made it past the line of scrimmage and, as Hill rolled to his right, Cook tried to find space in the back of the end zone but was double-covered. Hill threw the ball out of the end zone.

“The one in particular, third down there late in the game (on the 1-yard line), they did a good job of taking it all away,” Hill said. “They really did. You’ve got to give them credit, too.”

The fallout: There was some discussion about whether Jeff Fisher should have gone for it on fourth-and-1 but considering the Rams’ struggles to convert in those situations and the need to make it a one-possession game, it’s understandable why he took the points. On the other hand, the concern with kicking there was that you were leaving your best chance at a touchdown on the field. Indeed, the Rams didn’t get that close again and ended up losing by six. A touchdown there might have changed things but, as Fisher pointed out, it wasn’t about the fourth-down decision so much as his team’s inability to finish before it that killed their chances.

“We’re down there first down, and down their second down, and down their third down,” Fisher said. “We had opportunities. But if we don’t get points then we’re in trouble. So we needed 10, we got three thinking that we had plenty of time and would have a shot.”

And they did but never one as good as the three that passed them by.

Fisher, Cook clear air on ‘we got outcoached’ comments

by Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/fisher-cook-clear-air-on-we-got-outcoached-comments/article_164e4dba-ab37-5819-847e-27a0d7cc8ccb.html

It’s not all that unusual for an NFL coach to say, “I need to coach better” or “we need to coach better” after a tough defeat.

But for a player to say, “We got out-coached”? Well, you don’t hear that too often.

So it fell into the category of the expected when coach Jeff Fisher said Friday that he met with tight end Jared Cook to discuss remarks made after Thursday’s 12-6 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

“We got outplayed, we got outcoached, and we just put a bad display out there,” a dejected Cook said after the game.

At the time, Cook was surrounded by maybe a dozen reporters at his locker stall, and that comment got everyone’s attention. When asked if he cared to elaborate on the “outcoached” part of his response, Cook replied:

“Not really. It’s pretty self-explanatory. We got outplayed and outcoached. All we put up was six points and didn’t get in the (end zone) not once tonight. That’s a pretty unsuccessful night if you ask me.”

So what was Cook talking about?

“I know exactly what he was talking about,” Fisher said. “We discussed it, and I think if he had to do it all over again, he wouldn’t have gone there from the ‘outcoached’ standpoint.

“It’s not really what he meant as far as our discussion, communication this morning. It was kind of a one-fell-swoop: ‘Hey, we just got beat’ and included it all. He wasn’t being critical of coaching.”

So Fisher didn’t take Cook’s comments personally?

“We discussed it, and we’re fine,” Fisher said.

That wasn’t the only out-of-the-ordinary situation Fisher faced on the topic of postgame comments.

Namely, Arizona coach Bruce Arians took a couple of jabs at Fisher’s won-loss record, as well as the Rams’ defense while basking in the thrill of victory.

“Everybody wanted to say how great their defense is, but I think they saw a good defense tonight, and it was in red and white,” Arians said after the game. “I am very proud of our guys.”

Arians also said: “I love it when nobody says that you will have a chance to win. There is an 11-3 team, and a team that is always 8-8. You figure it out.”

Arizona was the underdog entering the game even though the Cardinals had an 10-3 record at the time, compared to the Rams’ 6-7. As for the 8-8 reference, well, Fisher had five squads finish 8-8 during his long tenure as head coach of the Houston Oilers and Tennessee Titans.

Fisher said he was aware of Arians’ comments.

“When the game was over, I went over and congratulated him on the win,” Fisher said, referring to the customary postgame handshake on the field. “I told him that I hoped his quarterback was going to be OK.”

Drew Stanton suffered a third-quarter knee injury, and his status is uncertain for the remainder of the regular season.

“The last thing I said to him was, ‘Why don’t you go win a couple playoff games for the division? Good luck,’” Fisher said. “That’s all I said to him. I have no comments on his comments.”

Arians’ thoughts notwithstanding, Fisher liked the play of the Rams’ defense Thursday night.

He would’ve liked coordinator Gregg Williams’ unit to have come up with a turnover or two — and it came close on several occasions. And the run defense certainly could’ve been better.

But as Fisher pointed out: “We’ve gone 12 quarters without giving up a touchdown now. In particular, the sudden change after the unfortunate turnover, the defense went out there and held them to 3. That’s the mark of a good defense early in the game.”

Fisher was referring to the lost fumble by running back Tre Mason on the Rams’ second possession of the game. Arizona took over at the Rams’ 27 but managed only a field goal.

The Rams lost the turnover battle 2-0 Thursday night, although the second came on a desperation heave by Shaun Hill that was intercepted by Arizona on the final play of the game.

It marked the first time the Rams were in the minus category in takeaway-giveaway differential in a game since the first Arizona contest Nov. 9. It marked the first time the Rams went without a takeaway in a game since their 28-26 victory over Seattle on Oct. 19 in Game 6.

The Rams had three good-to-excellent chances for a takeaway Thursday, all involving cornerback Janoris Jenkins.

In the second quarter, Jenkins leaped in front of a short sideline pass from Stanton intended for Michael Floyd and had both hands on the ball but couldn’t hang on. That one possibly could have been returned for a touchdown had Jenkins come up with the interception.

On a third-quarter pass thrown over the middle by Stanton replacement Ryan Lindley, Jenkins originally was credited with an interception on a diving play. All turnovers are subject to replay review, and the initial call of interception was changed to incomplete after the review because the ball squirted out.

In the fourth quarter, Jenkins forced a fumble on a 1-yard run by Kerwynn Williams, but Jenkins couldn’t grab the loose football. Cardinals left tackle Jared Veldheer got there first.

“The difference in this game was a play here or there,” Fisher said. “One of those takeaways, or a big pass. … That’s what it came down to.”

Rams failing to gain the tough yards

By Bernie Miklasz

http://www.rams-news.com/under-the-lights-rams-rb-tre-mason-video/

I wanted to follow up on something I wrote in Friday’s column, specifically the Rams’ struggle to gain the tough yards on the ground in short-yardage situations.

Let’s back it up with statistics.

This season when the Rams run the ball on third or fourth down, and they need only 1 or 2 yards to move the chains, they’ve picked up only six first downs in 13 attempts. That success rate (46.2 percent) ranks last in the NFL and is well below the league average of 68.7 percent.

Rams coach Jeff Fisher and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer came to St. Louis in 2012 with solid reputations for putting together a physical rushing attack. But it isn’t happening this year, something that Fisher freely acknowledged Friday.

“We’ve got to get better at it,” Fisher said. “We need to be able to line up and say, ‘Here we come. This is what we’re running. Stop it.’ We’re not there yet.”

The Rams have picked up the first down via the run only three times in nine chances when faced with a third-and-1 situation. That’s also the league’s worst percentage.

And on third downs with less than 4 yards to go, the Rams rank 28th with a conversion rate of 53.1 percent — run or pass. The league average is just under 60 percent.

The Rams also rank 24th in the NFL in the number of ball-control drives that take at least five minutes off the clock.

If the Rams’ offense can’t dominate the physical part of the game, that’s a problem. Forcefully running the football is supposed to be the primary strength of the Fisher-Schottenheimer offense.

What’s the problem? The Rams need much better run blocking at center and guard. According to the ratings at Pro Football Focus, Rams center Scott Wells ranks 26th in run blocking among the 28 NFL centers who have played at least 50 percent of the snaps. Starting guards Rodger Saffold and Davin Joseph are ranked 44th and 52nd, respectively, in run blocking among the 60 NFL guards who have played a minimum of 50 percent of the snaps. And tight end Lance Kendricks is a below-average run blocker, according to PFF.

And it’s certainly fair to question the design and the strategy that goes into the Rams’ inconsistent running game.

——-
Rams rookie Aaron Donald continues to be ranked No. 1 among all NFL defensive tackles this season by the analysts at Pro Football Focus. Donald had another excellent performance Thursday against the Cardinals. Wrote Pro Football Focus: “Entering Thursday’s game as our top-graded defensive tackle, Donald extended the gap with one of his best pass rushing games of the season. Working against all three of the Cardinals’ interior offensive linemen, Donald collected four QB pressures … he is showing no signs of hitting the rookie wall.”

Rams owner Stan Kroenke is having a rough year with his U.S. sports franchises. As of Friday morning the Rams were 6-8 and headed to their 11th consecutive non-winning season, the NBA Denver Nuggets were off to a 10-12 start that’s put them 11th in the Western Conference standings, and the NHL Colorado Avalanche were 11th in the Western Conference with a 10-13-6 mark. (What is it with the number 11?) The Rams are 29-48-1 since Kroenke took over as the majority owner in 2010; the 29 wins rank tied for 26th in the NFL over that time.

Here’s Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk on Rams rookie RB Tre Mason. “I believe that (Mason) has ‘It’ and you need ‘It’ if you’re going to run the ball effectively week in and week out in the NFL,” Faulk said Thursday on the NFL Network. “He has ‘It’ and they need to hang their hat on him.”

Faulk and fellow former Ram Kurt Warner got choked up on the NFL Network set Thursday night after watching a tribute to the late Post-Dispatch sports columnist Bryan Burwell. The piece on Burwell was presented with loving care by St. Louisan Steve Wyche, the NFL Network insider. … On behalf of my Post-Dispatch colleagues, I’d like to thank Blues owner Tom Stillman, Rams GM Les Snead and coach Fisher for attending Burwell’s memorial service Thursday.

What a tremendous gesture of respect by the SEC football coaches, who voted Mizzou’s Gary Pinkel as the conference coach of the year. It just reaffirms the prestige that Pinkel has brought to the MU program. … Former Mizzou defensive end Michael Sam was in Atlanta last Saturday to cheer on the Tigers in their loss to Alabama in the SEC championship game.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper believes former Mizzou receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, a sophomore redshirt at Oklahoma, would have challenged Alabama’s Amari Cooper as the top wideout in the 2015 draft “if not for his significant off-field red flags.” Kiper elaborated: “Even though he was kicked off the team at Missouri, his talent level may be too tantalizing to pass up. There are other good wideouts in this draft, and Green-Beckham could get passed on. But if he comes back (at Oklahoma in 2015), stays out of trouble, and plays well, he’s a first-rounder next year.”