reporters set up the DENVER game

Joe Curley@vcsjoecurley
Keenum on Goff: “He’s doing such a good job of taking care of the ball and giving those guys chances… To be there that first year, to go through what we were going through… it’s been great to see him doing really well. It’s been fun to watch.”

Keenum says the Rams offense is “awesome to watch.”

Keenum says “I know the motors that those guys have.” He calls the Rams “explosive” and “disruptive” up front and says Denver has “our work cut out for us.”

Prime Time

This season’s first snow game could come on Sunday in Denver

Denver, CO
Sunday
Snow Showers

31
°F | °C

Precipitation: 60%
Humidity: 88%
Wind: 7 mph

Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips remains popular in Denver ahead of Sunday’s homecoming (and notes on Cooks/Kupp and Obo): https://t.co/54Yvosptxx

— Rich Hammond (@Rich_Hammond) October 12, 2018

Rams opposition research: Breaking down the Broncos https://t.co/QvVBMYQOIr

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) October 13, 2018

Marcus Peters is not afraid – of success or occasionally getting burned in pursuit of it. Look for a big bounce-back game from the #Rams CB Sunday. Here is what else to watch for when the Rams play the #Broncos in my story for ⁦@TheAthleticLA⁩ 👇👇 https://t.co/ifGFRrnIcT

— Vincent Bonsignore (@VinnyBonsignore) October 13, 2018

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What to watch for in Rams vs. Broncos: Can Marcus Peters bounce back?

Vincent Bonsignore

https://theathletic.com/587455/2018/10/13/what-to-watch-for-in-rams-vs-broncos-can-marcus-peters-bounce-back/

DENVER​ — To locate​ the space Marcus​ Peters​ occupies inside​ the​ Los Angeles​ Rams​ locker​ room,​ one only needs​ to listen​​ for the voice.
It is distinctive, sharp and filled with pride and bravado. It’s pretty much omnipresent. Peters, after all, likes to engage with teammates, and if you’re anywhere near his middle locker alongside fellow defensive backs and linebackers, you’re going to get an earful.
About anything and everything.
Like the day he told everyone — loudly — that if he was constructing a football team made up of NBA players, Russell Westbrook would be one of his defensive backs. A short while later, he explained how he could be a productive NBA player averaging 12-13 points a game. Not due to some great scoring prowess, but because he’d willingly do all the dirty work.
“I’m gonna play defense, so I’ll get playing time,” Peters declared. “I’ll rebound. Set picks. I’ll do all that stuff. The points will come.”
Everyone howled, mostly in complete disagreement of Peters’ claim. Others voiced their support.
The point is, everyone in the Rams locker room was connected. And it was Peters keeping everyone together, on this occasion, by loudly and confidently putting himself out there far enough to invite a reaction.
The fact that most of it was laughter, rolled eyes and pointed rebuttals didn’t matter. Peters is pretty fearless in that regard.
That fearlessness is often times expressed in his play. He can be a bit of a gambler. He is aggressive, and, coupled with an uncanny ability to dissect plays and concepts — or just sense things other cornerbacks can’t — Peters is going to act on it.
That’s one of the reasons why Peters is someone to watch when the Rams play the Broncos in Denver on Sunday (1:05 p.m. PT, FOX). After struggling against the Seattle Seahawks last week, Peters needs to bounce back to show he is completely healthy from the calf strain he suffered in Week 3 against the Chargers.
While his extreme confidence and risk taking has served him well for most of his young career — his 20 interceptions over his first four-plus seasons are the most in the NFL over that stretch as are his three pick-six touchdown returns — it’s also put him in position to get beat. That was the case in Seattle when he got caught peeking at Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and yielded two touchdown passes.
“I got beat,” Peters said owning the mistakes. “I gotta keep my eyes on there, you feel me?”
It’s worth noting Peters rebounded from those negative plays. His coverage helped the Rams defense force the Seahawks off the field on two critical fourth-quarter possessions, giving the Rams offense the necessary time to take the lead and eventually run out the clock.
The key was not to dwell on the bad plays. Peter has had the ability to quickly brush off negatives since childhood.
“(I’ve) had the ‘fuck it’ syndrome for a long time,” Peters explained. “Ever since I was a little kid. My mom was like, ‘Yeah, he’s just gonna, that’s just him. When he says fuck it, it’s fuck it.’ But it’s part of the game, man. I learned that trait early in my career. Shit like that don’t bother me. I go out there and just try to get some shit done.”
“That’s something that you even notice when you watch the tape that you like so much,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said. “I think, especially when you really look at it, the quarterback and the cornerback positions — if you’re going to be a really good player over the course of time in this league, you better be able to handle bad plays because they’re inevitable. You show me anybody that’s been a great player in this league, [and] I’ll show you somebody that’s responded from some form of adversity, been able to make plays after things that didn’t always go their way.
“But also, the thing that says as much about anything is the ownership he displays,” McVay added. “Being able to say, ‘That’s my bad. I’ll get that fixed.’ Taking that extreme ownership that we talk about, demonstrating that accountability, and he’s a fearless competitor. You always want guys that never fear failure.”
It’ll be interesting to see how Peters approaches Sunday’s game against the Broncos, both from a health perspective and the balancing of instinctual playmaking with his assignment in the coverage call.
“Well, he’s one of those guys that’s special in that he sees so many things and he can diagnose routes and those kinds of things. You don’t want to take that away from him,” Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. “But you also don’t want him peeking too much in certain situations. That’s why I say that’s partly me. We’ve got to get him, system-wise, into how we want things done.”
As the Rams look to go 6-0, here are some other things to keep an eye on.

Todd Gurley vs. Broncos defense

It’s hard not to notice the 323 yards rushing the Broncos surrendered to the New York Jets last week. Or wonder how much Todd Gurley is licking his chops in anticipation of going to work against the Denver run defense.
“Yeah, definitely aware,” Gurley said.
The reigning Offensive Player of the Year has 415 rushing yards and seven running touchdowns through five games. He has eclipsed the 100-yard mark twice and is averaging 4.1 yards per carry. He also has 19 receptions for 230 yards and another two scores.
Is this the week he goes off? The stats suggest so, as the Broncos are giving up 139.9 yards per game on the ground — third-worst in the NFL — and are about to confront the league’s best offensive line and arguably its best running back.
Or do those two factors raise such a red flag for the Broncos that they put all their resources into stopping Gurley and take their chances against Jared Goff and the passing game?
“They have a great head coach themselves. I’m pretty sure that’s his objective to get that run defense a little better,” Gurley said of the Broncos’ Vance Joseph. “Obviously, they know we’re going to run the ball. So you definitely get excited, but you don’t get too excited because a team can look like that one week and then the next week can shut a guy down for 50 yards. But that’s why we play this game. We practice and go out there and hopefully execute.”

The health of Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp

Last week in Seattle, the Rams lost two of their best receivers in the first half to concussions. While Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp checked off all the concussion protocol boxes this week and are on target to play against the Broncos, at what level will they play?
McVay said it will be full steam ahead with both players after getting final clearance from the Rams medical staff.
“If it’s something where there’s anything that doesn’t check up or make it feel like, ‘Hey, they’re going to be fully acclimated, they’re ready to go and there are no restrictions,’ it wouldn’t be something where these guys would go,” McVay said. “Unfortunately, this game does involve a bunch of different potential collisions like that, but I think those guys are great competitors and I don’t think there’s any sort of fear.
“You always want to put them in smart spots, too,” McVay added. “It’s not like we’re going to try to ask them to do a bunch of different things that leave them susceptible to injury. But I don’t think you can also be cautious with it because then I think that’s when you almost leave yourself potentially getting injured as is anyway.”

The weather conditions at Mile High

The middle of October in Denver is unlike anywhere else. You can probably say that about any month in this part of Colorado. But this time of year, in particular, can be a bit erratic. Like the snow that’s expected on Sunday to go along with an expected high of 27 degrees and lows of 21.
In other words, the Rams’ first road trip outside the West Coast should be a doozy.
“If it is going to be cold, [you] try to stay warm and do your best,” quarterback Jared Goff said. “I know that equipment will get us ready with a lot of stuff. Can’t really replicate that weather [in Los Angeles] too well. Right now, it’s pretty nice. So if it is cold, we’ll play in it and if it’s not we’ll play in it and adjust accordingly.”
It’s understandable to think the Rams might play a bit more conservatively to compensate for the conditions — which might mean a bit more run emphasis. But keep in mind Cooks played last year in blustery New England, Kupp played collegiately in Eastern Washington, which can get frosty late in the year, and Robert Woods played three seasons in Buffalo. All three Rams wide receivers have experience playing and performing in the cold.
And does anyone really think McVay, one of the most aggressive and creative play callers in the game, is going to be intimidated by some cold weather?
Me neither.