reporters set up the Packers game

First Look: Rams Return Home to Face the Packers

https://www.therams.com/news/first-look-rams-return-home-to-face-the-packers

Rams Know They’ll Face Unique Challenge in Aaron Rodgers and the Packers

https://www.therams.com/news/rams-know-they-ll-face-unique-challenge-in-aaron-rodgers-and-the-packers

Quotes & Notes 10/24/18: Jared Goff, Marcus Peters Talk Facing Aaron Rodgers

https://www.therams.com/news/quotes-notes-10-24-18-jared-goff-marcus-peters-talk-facing-aaron-rodgers

Former Cal QBs Goff, Rodgers Will Square Off for First Time

https://www.therams.com/news/former-cal-qbs-goff-rodgers-will-square-off-for-first-time

Injury Report 10/25: Despite Landing On Report, Suh and Brockers Expected to Play

https://www.therams.com/news/injury-report-10-25-despite-landing-on-report-suh-and-brockers-expected-to-play

Quotes & Notes 10/25/18: Gurley’s Take on Having the League’s Best Run Game

https://www.therams.com/news/quotes-notes-10-25-18-gurley-s-take-on-having-the-league-s-best-run-game

Daily Dose: Predictions for the Next Page in Rams-Packers History

https://www.therams.com/news/daily-dose-predictions-for-the-next-page-in-rams-packers-history

Marcus Peters has Much Respect for Aaron Rodgers

https://www.therams.com/news/marcus-peters-has-much-respect-for-aaron-rodgers

Packers vs. Rams: 5 key matchups to watch in Week 8

Cameron DaSilva

Packers vs. Rams: 5 key matchups to watch in Week 8

The Los Angeles Rams end one stretch of games and begin another this week with the Green Bay Packers coming to town. After three straight road games, the Rams now embark on a seven-game path against teams that are a combined 26-17-1 this season, starting with the 3-2-1 Packers.

Green Bay is coming off a bye and is getting healthy for this NFC showdown. The Rams are still the clear favorites and should come away victorious, but if the Packers can win some of these matchups, an upset could be in the making.

John Johnson vs. Jimmy Graham
In the Rams’ talent-littered secondary, Johnson might be the best of the bunch. The second-year safety is tied for the NFL lead with three interceptions and has become a consistent playmaker since a shaky Week 1 outing against Jared Cook. He’ll once again have his hands full with an uber-athletic tight end in Jimmy Graham.

Graham is Aaron Rodgers’ second-favorite option on offense, targeting him 45 times – only trailing Davante Adams’ 71 targets. Johnson has the size and athleticism to match up with Graham, but this week, he’ll be asked to cover the slot more often, rather than just an inline alignment for Graham.

Expect Rodgers to look Graham’s way often, especially when the Packers get near the end zone. Stopping the big tight end could be the difference in touchdowns or field goals for Green Bay.

Aaron Donald vs. Packers’ guards

The 49ers had no answer for Donald on Sunday and it’s unlikely the Packers will, either. Very few teams do. Coming off a four-sack outing, Donald will look to continue his hot streak this weekend against a much better offensive line in Green Bay. Justin McCray is healthy again and may be in line to get the start, which would bump Byron Bell from the right guard spot. That’s yet to be determined. On the left side, it’ll be Lane Taylor.

Donald has shown no one can stop him one-on-one, so expect to see plenty of Corey Linsley shading his way in pass protection. If Donald has the sort of game he had in Week 7, Rodgers and the Packers will be in trouble, especially with Rodgers playing on a knee that isn’t 100 percent.

Troy Hill vs. Davante Adams

Adams lines up on both sides of the formation, but he’s most frequently found as the X receiver on the left side of the offense. With Marcus Peters playing left cornerback, that means Troy Hill or Sam Shields will be asked to cover Adams more often than not. After all, why would the Packers put their best receiver against Peters if they don’t have to?

Hill was fantastic against San Francisco and will need to turn in another solid performance this weekend. Back-shoulder throws are a staple of the Packers offense between Rodgers and Adams, given how difficult they are to defend when executed properly. If Hill isn’t up to the task, Wade Phillips could give Shields a look instead. This might be the most important matchup for the Rams defense.

Wade Phillips vs. Aaron Rodgers

If you want to beat the Packers, objective No. 1 has to be stopping Rodgers. How do you accomplish that? Good question. There’s no specific formula for limiting arguably the most talented passer of all time, considering how good he is in the pocket, outside the pocket, throwing off his back foot, with a side-arm release – deep or short. You name it, Rodgers can make the throw.

For Phillips, the challenge will be doing just enough to slow him down slightly. Whether that’s with blitzes off the edge combined with Donald rushing inside or having the cornerbacks play more man coverage than they already do, Phillips must devise a game plan to keep Rodgers in check – a near-impossible task, of course.

Todd Gurley vs. Packers LBs

The Packers have really struggled to stop the run this season, ranking 22nd in rushing yards allowed. The Rams, on the other hand, lead the league in yards on the ground, which makes this a difficult matchup for Green Bay. That sound you hear is Gurley licking his chops.

The Packers have three linebackers they can deploy in Blake Martinez, Antonio Morrison and Oren Burks. Martinez will play all three downs, but Morrison is a better run defender than he is a coverage linebacker. Burks is just the opposite, which could make for some enticing matchups for Sean McVay.

Running against this front typically presents success, especially with Burks on the field. When it’s Morrison, Gurley can have an even greater impact in the passing game as a receiver. Either way, this matchup greatly favors the Rams.

PFF: GREEN BAY PACKERS @ LOS ANGELES RAMS – FOX, 4:25 PM

https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-nfl-week-8-fox-green-bay-packers-los-angeles-rams-preview

Rodgers the master of third down

Aaron Rodgers gets it done when it counts. He leads the league in virtually every metric on third downs, including adjusted completion percentage, passer rating and yards per attempt. Rodgers has an overall grade of 90.2 this season, which is tied for sixth among quarterbacks.

The offensive line doing their job

Aaron Rodgers is scary as is, but when you also give him one of the best pass-blocking offensive lines in the league, it just makes Rodgers and the Packers that much scarier. Green Bay’s offensive line ranks first in pass-blocking grade (91.2); as a unit, they have allowed only 59 pressures on 296 pass-blocking snaps.

Packers’ pass-rush improvement

The Packers’ pass-rush is generating pressure on 38.4% of passing snaps this season, ranking third in the NFL. Much of that is due to Kenny Clark and Mike Daniels generating pressure from the interior. Both Clark and Daniels rank in the top 10 in pass-rush grade among interior defenders this season.

Packers going man-to-man

Green Bay has used man coverage on 46.5% of plays this season, which is the second-highest rate in the NFL. When playing man, the Packers have allowed a lowly passer rating of 84.7. The opposing quarterback this week, Jared Goff, has the second-best passer rating against man coverage this season (117.5). Something will have to give when these two duke it out, man-to-man.

Goff is money over the middle

Jared Goff is in the midst of a breakout season, ranking third among quarterbacks with an overall grade of 90.8. Most of the damage Goff has dished out has been right down the middle of the field. He ranks third in passer rating and second in yards per attempt when passing down the middle.

Gurley’s red zone running

Todd Gurley is having an MVP type of year, and one of the reasons is because of his work in the red zone. From inside the five-yard line, Gurley has converted 7 of his 12 carries into touchdowns. Once Gurley gets close, he can’t be denied.

Donald wrecking the game

Aaron Donald is arguably the most dominant player in football. Before the halfway point of the season, Donald already has two games in which he registered 12 or more pressures in a single game. If there was ever a guy who was so good that he can win games by himself, it’s Aaron Donald.

Pressure without the blitz

The Rams’ pass-rush hasn’t needed much help from blitzes, as they rank second in pressure percentage without blitzing (39.7%). Fortunately for Los Angeles, the ability to generate a pass-rush and still have extra coverage defenders has long been a recipe for defeating elite quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers.

Key matchup

Rams run of Super Bowl-winning QBs starts with visit from Aaron Rodgers
play

Lindsey Thiry

http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/39208/rams-run-of-super-bowl-winning-qbs-starts-with-visit-from-aaron-rodgers

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Ndamukong Suh isn’t so sure Aaron Rodgers likes him.

It’s unlikely their upcoming run-in on Sunday at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum will lend any clarification.

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers should have more mobility when the restrictive brace he has worn on his injured left knee comes off after the bye. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
“He usually doesn’t talk to me,” Suh said about Rodgers, whom he faced regularly in the NFC North as a member of the Detroit Lions. “But I don’t really need a response. My response is when he’s getting up from the ground. That’s what I’m excited for, or giving him a nice L.”

The Los Angeles Rams are undefeated through seven games for the first time since 1985 and, as they hit the halfway mark of the season, are preparing to face a gauntlet of Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks, starting with Rodgers and the 3-2 Green Bay Packers.

Suh, who played five seasons in Detroit, has sacked Rodgers 2.5 times and has defeated him twice in their seven meetings. The Rams, however, are 0-4 against the two-time MVP, though Rodgers has never faced a Sean McVay-coached team.

“The great ones, you try to slow them down,” defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. “Certainly, you don’t shut them out, but we’ve got to play really good pass defense, got to have a rush and all the things it takes.”

Rodgers is coming off a bye week after back-to-back performances in which he passed for 400 yards with no interceptions in a loss to the Detroit Lions and a victory over the San Francisco 49ers.

Rams players said they were plenty familiar with Rodgers before studying him on film this week.

“It’s A-Rod,” said cornerback Marcus Peters, who keenly remembered losing to the All-Pro quarterback as a rookie with the Kansas City Chiefs. “C’mon now. We all know what he’s going to do.”

Said Aaron Donald, whom Rodgers defeated in 2015: “He’s a great quarterback. Just from watching him, from growing up and watching him since I’ve been in the league.”

This season, Rodgers is ranked 10th in passing yards with 1,997. He has thrown 12 touchdowns and only one interception, despite playing through a knee injury.

“He’s an elite quarterback,” said Suh, who has three sacks and two fumble recoveries. “Very smart, cadence-wise as well as situation-wise, tries to keep you always guessing.”

For the Rams’ part, their 13th-ranked total defense appeared to hit its stride last Sunday in a 39-10 victory over the 49ers.

After a fast start through the first two games of the season, which included six consecutive shutout quarters, the defense struggled to keep teams out of the end zone, giving up 31 points to the Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks, and was unable to put together a complete performance between the pass and the run. Now, the Rams’ pass and run defense both rank 12th in the league, giving up 227 and 100.1 yards per game, respectively.

Part of the issue, players said, was building chemistry.

“We’re learning each other,” safety John Johnson III said. “We’re learning what our strengths and weaknesses are and we’re going from there.”

The Rams added Suh and Peters in the offseason, along with Aqib Talib, who was put on injured reserve after Week 3 and has been replaced by Troy Hill and Sam Shields. At times, players tried to do too much, especially in the run game, and broke from assignments in an effort to make plays.

“I think we had to hit a little adversity, teams scoring the ball, moving the ball on us,” said Johnson, who has a team-high three interceptions. “But I think we’re still growing and as long as we keep going up, I think we’ll be in good shape.”

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Against the 49ers, the Rams forced four takeaways that resulted in 24 points and sacked quarterback C.J. Beathard seven times.

“Definitely feel like it’s a positive coming off that performance,” linebacker Mark Barron said. “It wasn’t perfect, but we most definitely played a great game. It was definitely something we can build on.”

Like Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, whom the Rams have defeated in two of their past three meetings, the key will be keeping Rodgers from extending plays.

“He can move around in the pocket, he can do a lot of different things with his feet,” said Donald, who had a career-high four sacks last Sunday but has never taken down Rodgers. “Got to get to him and bottle him up.”

And the Rams’ secondary, which intercepted two passes last Sunday, must keep track of the Packers’ receivers for a prolonged period.

“You just going to have to cover for a little bit longer than three seconds,” said Peters, who has one interception this season. “But I think we got the perfect D-line to add some pressure to him, to try to get him to stay in the pocket and do exactly what we want for him to do.”

Said Phillips: “It’s obviously a big task. The guy’s a great player and unfortunately for us, he got a week to rest.”

Rams opposition research: Breaking down the Packers https://t.co/cMCfQiGVCE via @theramswire

— RamsNewsNow (@RamsNewsNow) October 28, 2018