i would take mariota. that guy has it all. i think mariota in this offense would be unbelievable.

gotta credit snead too. and he is also at least partially responsible for drafting the key players who came from the fisher era.

but yeah. mcvay snead are looking like a pretty good combo.

Herzog wrote:

And if they do…..

then it just got real.

i just wanna say. johnny hekker. best fuckin ever.

clutch punting.

this game was all special teams and defensive turnovers.

it’s crazy. the next game almost always seems like the biggest game.

i hope this kid blows up. jj and ebukam. two possible long term starters on defense. that’s crazy.

RAMS
Rams linebacker from Nigeria is latest rookie stepping up to become starter

By GARY KLEIN
DEC 02, 2017 | 4:35 PM
PHOENIX

Rams linebacker from Nigeria is latest rookie stepping up to become starter

Rams rookie linebacker Samson Ebukam, making his first start this week, got to Drew Brees for a sack in last week’s victory over the Saints. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

As pep talks go, this one was short and to the point.
Wade Phillips, the Rams’ veteran defensive coordinator, wanted to gauge linebacker Samson Ebukam’s frame of mind this week as the rookie prepared for his first NFL start on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.

“Are you nervous?” Phillips asked.

“Heck yeah,” Ebukam responded.

“Well,” Phillips said, “you better be.”

Ebukam chuckled recalling the exchange.

“Of course I’m nervous,” said Ebukam, who will start in place of injured Connor Barwin. “It’s my first career start. I didn’t think that was going to happen so soon, but I’m excited. I need to show some of my skills.”

The Rams, under first-year coach Sean McVay, have an 8-3 record and an opportunity to sweep the Cardinals, after shutting them out 33-0 in London in Week 7. Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer suffered a season-ending broken arm in that game, but the 5-6 Cardinals still have receiver Larry Fitzgerald and running back Adrian Peterson, both future hall of famers.

That will pose a challenge for the 6-foot-3, 240-pound Ebukam, the latest member of the 2017 draft class to start or play a significant role for the Rams.

Rookie receiver Cooper Kupp is second on the team with 46 receptions for 597 yards. Tight end Gerald Everett has started two games and has 10 catches, and Josh Reynolds started for the first time last week and caught his first touchdown pass.

Safety John Johnson has been a starter since Week 5 and is fifth in tackles, and defensive lineman Tanzel Smart has started four games.

McVay described the rookie class as a “pleasant surprise” for a Rams team that is leading the NFC West.

“What we looked for, really in all these guys, are mature players that understand the game and then go about it the right way,” McVay said. “And that’s both a credit to [them and] some of the veterans we have as well.”

For rookies, it’s been nonstop football since the spring of 2016.

They went through spring practice and training camp before their final college seasons, played 12 to 13 games, and then jumped immediately into preparation for the NFL scouting combine and the draft. They attended rookie camp with the Rams, went through off season workouts and minicamps and then training camp before participating in preseason games.

Now they are going into their 12th regular season game — with four more to play and the possibility of playoffs.

None of the first-year players said they have hit the so-called “rookie wall,” when mental and physical fatigue set in.

“I don’t want to jinx myself,” Kupp said, “but I don’t think I’ve hit it. Taking care of your body and having a love for the game helps too.”

Veterans said the rookie wall was a real thing.

“I still experience it now,” fourth-year safety Lamarcus Joyner said. “I still have to talk myself through it because you just have to find a way to keep grinding and persevering.”

The rookie class showed its capability the first time it met after the draft, Johnson said.

“Once I got around the guys, I knew we were all hard-working,” he said. “I knew we’re all low-maintenance and get-in-the-work type of guys. So it feels good to me to see us actually out there helping the team.”

Ebukam, born in Nigeria and a fourth-round pick from Eastern Washington, did not participate in offseason workouts because of an NFL rule that forbids rookies from fully participating until the school’s spring term is complete. Ebukam then suffered a hamstring injury early in training camp, setting him back.

“When he came into camp, he worked real hard,” Phillips said. “We noticed that real quick. He had a good work ethic, so that helped him fit in real well.”

Ebukam has played on special teams in every game, but he first made his mark with a sack against the Houston Texans that forced a fumble. Last week he sacked Saints quarterback Drew Brees for an 11-yard loss.

“He’s played well, rookie-wise, for the time he’s been in there,” Phillips said, adding, “He’s got a lot of energy and I like that.”

Ebukam described the starting opportunity as a “dream come true.”

Once he gets through the first play against the Cardinals, he said, the nervousness will end.

“It’s the fight or flight scenario,” he said. “Every play I’m going to fight. That’s all I know.”
gary.klein@latimes.com
Follow Gary Klein on Twitter @latimesklein

rams should win this one handily.

i know they’re missing 2 starters but are otherwise healthy i think. no excuses.

That said, in the very near future I can see No. 10 in that role – and making it even bigger one with his skill set. All in due time

that’s what i see too. and i wouldn’t be surprised if he can do a better job at it. he doesn’t have tavon’s speed. but i don’t think speed is the only thing necessary. he’s a good runner with the ball in his hands. i don’t see why it couldn’t translate to the jet sweeps.

just saw the mcvay press conference.

i think it was gary klein who asked mcvay specifically about the touchdown pass to reynolds if it was him who called the audible or goff. mcvay said it was all goff.

so i can only believe what he’s saying is true. it seems more of a back and forth between jared and sean rather than sean just dictating to goff what the audible is.

i think at this point people are so astounded by goff’s turnaround in one year that they’re looking for reasons to maybe discredit him. maybe that’s too strong a word, but it’s just such a 180 that people can’t quite wrap their heads around it.

it’s gonna be awhile before jared gets recognized for what he’s doing.

i think kurt got that for awhile. that he was a product of the system. people couldn’t quite wrap their heads around a guy who toiled in the arena league and nfl europe before exploding in 1999. it happens.

it makes sense. and even despite that, he had 128 total yards from scrimmage this last game.

this is how they give him the best chance of staying healthy.

goff’s feet are something waldman and others would talk about going back to the draft.

“typewriter feet” i think is what one of goff’s coaches called it.

“happy feet” is what others called it…

guess it depends on who’s watching. important thing is he’s making good decisions with the ball. and really good sense of where the pressure is coming from and doesn’t panic.

so josh reynolds. wow. he looked pretty good for his first start in the nfl. i know there was a lot of hype surrounding him even since training camp, but it was nice for him to show it in a game that actually counts. and a pretty important game as far as regular season games go.

i decided to look up reynolds’ combine numbers. i didn’t remember how well he tested there. he only ran a 4.54 40. but his explosion and agility numbers were exceptional.

vertical – 37″
broad – 10’4″
short shuttle – 4.13s
3 cone – 6.83

those agility numbers are especially impressive when you consider how tall he is. those are numbers you’d expect from a guy 5 inches shorter than his 6’3″ frame.

his arms are a little short, but that’s not exactly a deal breaker. this draft class looks better and better.

ebukam has looked good too. 2 sacks in his last 3 games. very very explosive. off the charts explosiveness. reminds me a little of leonard little – frame wise and where he was drafted.

hopefully, he starts to get more playing time these last 5 games.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by InvaderRam.

wv wrote:

I’d be very surprised if McV was the onliest coach doin that. Doesnt seem like rocket science.

w
v

i would think so.

and if by some chance he was the only one doing it, i’m not sure that he’d want that getting out.

and if it was at least partially true, i don’t know that i’d want goff so reliant on this strategy cuz defenses will adjust i assume. maybe as goff develops, mcvay will wean him off.

game not as close as the score. at the same time, they should have just blown this saints team out.

only got to see the second half, but that’s how it appeared to me. too many field goals. gotta complete these drives.

yes. i hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving.