cool. don’t just work hard. work smart.

it means the team is 1-0.

we’ve seen this team slug it out with seattle before and won. can’t get complacent. need to really give it washington next week.

but i am encouraged that they did it without a great running game. i think it’s important that the qb and receivers gain some confidence and chemistry. then when the reinforcements come in, the offense can really take off. i think that’s extremely important in the big picture. having a dominant running game is important, but they’re going to need the passing game to make some clutch plays at times. games like this should only help that. knowing that foles can make passes when necessary will give this team that much more confidence. it will also make the running game that much more dangerous. but they gotta take care of the ball.

on a side note, i think for the big picture we got to see tavon’s role in this offense. i think he may have a bigger role than any of us anticipated. he looked good. and with more confidence. hopefully, he keeps getting better and better.

i’m also encouraged that the defense came out fast. hopefully, they can maintain this for the entire season. the rams defense is finally enjoying continuity it didn’t have until this season. this should allow them to play fast and not have to think so much. if you take away the st touchdown and sack fumble return for a touchdown. and if you take away the fumble which led to a field goal, the rams d held the seahawks to just 14 points. i think for the bigger picture we got to see the emergence of donald building on a great rookie season. i look for him to take on a bigger leadership role. i really think, along with foles on offense, he inspired this team to keep digging and clawing. even when it looked hopeless.

ultimately, this season, i think we see the emergence of the future leaders of this team. and i think this game was representative of that. on offense, it was foles. and i think ultimately gurley as well. on defense, you had donald. and hopefully guys like quinn as well.

going forward to the immediate future, it’s important that tre come back against washington and play well. it’s important that the offensive line continue to gel. it’s also important that they don’t get complacent against mediocre teams. washington is a team they should beat handily. and when gurley is cleared to return. watch out. rams could really have something going here.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by InvaderRam.

is donald the face of this franchise? i think so. i like quinn. but he doesn’t seem to have the intangibles that donald does. i think donald is able to inspire those around him.

can certain players elevate the play of those around him? i know some people don’t believe in that, but i think donald does that.

i hope gurley can do that for the offense.

from quinn…

So once we started getting back there, we just try to stay consistent. ‘A.D.’ (Rams DT Aaron Donald) started it off and after that, guys just tried to follow him. We’ve got a special guy in (No.) 99 so I guess we just need to follow his lead.

i don’t think that’s just lip service. when the best player on the field is busting his tail every play, i think the others take notice of that. it becomes contagious.

it’s the best i can remember. i mean you had the uneasiness in the first half. then the young rams surge in the third quarter. then the deflation brought on by a seahawks comeback. and just when you think it’s over. they fight back to tie it. overtime was just icing on the cake. i haven’t been that thrilled in awhile. especially a season opener.

that foles to bailey pass in ot i think. beautiful. that safety just happened to be earl thomas. albeit an injured earl thomas.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by InvaderRam.

i don’t know, but we got a great shot at being 2-0. bring on washington!

i just can’t wait until gurley and mason come back. that’s the engine of this offense. i think there’s potential here. wow.

rfl wrote:

PS, watching the NFL Channel replay of that last play, one saw BOTH Ram DTs destroying the rushing attempt.

I mean, that’s defensive football heaven, when BOTH of your DTs step up like that.

However, I see on the stats sources that we gave up 125 yards or so rushing. I imagine some of that was RW scrambling? Hmmmmm.

yeah. but you gotta remember this was the number one rushing offense last year at 172.6 yards a game at a 5.3 average. rams held them to a 3.9 average.

yeah three td drives against the best defense in the nfl. or at least top 3. without gurley and mason. and that backfield could be or at least should be the defining piece of this offense.

impressive.

but what they need to address is taking care of the freaking ball!

reading about wichmann gives me some comfort should saffold go down.

the offense on the other hand. i fully expect it to take a long time before we see this offense in full stride. whether that full stride is effective or not remains to be seen.

i don’t know technical stuff, but i am even more excited than i was last year. maybe it’ll all end up being for nothing, but i haven’t been this excited in awhile.

second year under the same coordinator. that’s huge. that’s something they haven’t had under the fisher regime, and i’m hoping that is the difference. they’ve been inconsistent every year under fisher. but maybe this is the year it changes. guys are entering their prime years at the right time and at important positions. again. quinn and donald should be better than they were last year. ogletree. you read good things about him this year as opposed to last year when he showed up out of shape. and in the backfield, mcdonald to some played like the best safety in the league in the second half of the season if you believe those sabremetrics.

the one downside is losing gaines. i was really counting on him this year, but hopefully, joyner can emerge and offset at least some of that loss. long and laurinaitis are a year older. but the positives definitely outweigh the negatives.

i’m hoping this is the year the defense finally steps up and becomes great.

my guess is it relates to the division they’re playing in as well as strength of schedule overall. in an easier division, their mean win should go up and their playoff chances as well.

playing against the number one team in seattle will do that.

atlanta for example has some pretty weak teams in their division thus increasing their chances of winning and making the playoffs.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by InvaderRam.

not sure i buy that a fix was in but i do believe the patriots cheated.

all along people said the destroying of the tapes was inconsequential. i don’t buy it. the nfl is hiding something. wouldn’t be the first time.