Five Takeaways from the Rams’ Victory over the 49ers

Myles Simmons

http://www.therams.com/news-and-events/article-fivetakeaways/Five-Takeaways-from-the-Rams-Victory-over-the-49ers/4473c0f1-2a7b-461f-8911-24ef35cfd8cd

Los Angeles won its first divisional matchup of the year on Thursday night, outlasting San Francisco 41-39 on Thursday Night Football. With plenty to go over, here are five takeaways from the victory that made the Rams 2-1.

1) Excellent offense

Despite the short week, Los Angeles looked prepared and confident throughout the game on offense. The Rams racked up 418 total yards — the first time the club has eclipsed 400 yards since 2014. The club has now scored 107 points through the first three games, which is a far cry from the 46 it had at this point last year.

“Credit goes to the players for being able to execute and being able to maintain some drives and put up some points,” head coach Sean McVay said postgame.

“We had a short week so we only had so long to game plan,” quarterback Jared Goff said. “We have so much variety in our offense and so much stuff that we do, that we can mix and match and dress up in different ways.

“So I think that’s the main thing we tried to do, is run stuff that we know we’re good at and run stuff that we know we’re comfortable with, but maybe make it look like something else. But at the same time, if we can run the ball like that, it’s tough to beat.”

Additionally, the Rams hadn’t scored at least 40 points in two games since 2006. Now they’ve done it two of their first three times out.

There’s still improvements to be made, for sure, but L.A. has clearly made significant progress under McVay.

2) Goff looks the part

Within those 418 yards and 41 points were a number of strong individual offensive performances, one being quarterback Jared Goff.

Last year’s No. 1 overall pick finished 22/28 passing for 292 yards with three touchdowns. That works out to 10.4 yards per attempt and a 145.8 passer rating. A perfect passer rating is 158.3.

“I think he did a lot of really good things. I thought he distributed the ball well. I thought in crunch time, some of the third down conversions he made were really exciting,” McVay said Friday. “Anytime that you go 22-for-28 you feel pretty good, taking care of the football and then again, no sacks, huge credit to the offensive line, so can’t say enough about what those guys did yesterday as well.”

Through three games, Goff has looked like a player who spent a lot of time working to improve during the offseason. He’s completed 70.4 percent of his passes for 817 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. He’s averaging 10.1 yards per attempt, 14.3 yards per completion, and owns a passer rating of 118.2

“What’s crazy is how much he humbled himself and just went to work,” offensive lineman Rodger Saffold said. “After that he started trusting us — trusting the guys in front of him. I mean there’s going to be battles, there’s going to be technique off here and there, but to be able to sit in the pocket and throw whenever you have somebody barreling at you or if you have somebody right in your face, that’s what makes the difference. He is just gradually becoming the quarterback that we want him to be and the way that he’s supposed to be.”

3) Gurley does, too

In just three weeks, running back Todd Gurley has already equaled his touchdown total from last year.

Gurley had three first-half touchdowns on Thursday night — two rushing, one receiving. He had a rushing touchdown in Los Angeles’ win over Indianapolis, then a rushing and receiving touchdown against Washington last week to give him six on the young season.

The Georgia product finished the game with 149 yards from scrimmage — 113 yards rushing, 36 yards receiving. It’s the first time Gurley has gone over 100 yards rushing since 2015.

“It felt good,” Gurley said. “Obviously defense gave me the easiest touchdown ever on the first play. And we just got into a rhythm, everybody was getting going. We were able to have a little success running the ball and we’re opening up the passing game. It just felt good to be out there and execute as an offense.”

The running back helped the Rams build their lead, and was the offense’s needed closer, too. Gurley started a fourth-quarter possession with a 29-yard run, and followed that with a 27-yard check down reception on 3rd-and-10 to extend the drive.

Gurley has been heavily involved in the passing game so far this season, making 13 receptions for 140 yards.

“It’s very comforting knowing that he can make a play and make a catch,” Goff said. “He’s a very sure-handed player. He’s also a very good communicator, in body language as well as verbally, while he’s running his routes and on the sidelines as well.”

4) Woods, Watkins steal the show

Two former Buffalo receivers Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods have shown how productive they can be in Los Angeles’ offense, becoming the first pair of Rams to eclipse 100 yards receiving in the same game since 2006 when wideout Isaac Bruce and running back Steven Jackson accomplished the feat.

Watkins made six receptions for 106 yards with two touchdowns. Woods finished with six receptions for 108 yards.

“That’s our offense — we want to just keep it like that, keep it balanced,” Woods said. “You don’t know who is going to strike at any time. I think now when teams play us, they can’t hold the box, they can’t play outside. So just have to keep being balanced and I think it will open up our offense to keep scoring points like that.”

“It means a lot [to have them on the offense], obviously two explosive guys, two guys that make plays together,” Gurley said. “So, they have been doing a great job for us in helping us out.”

Unfortunately, Watkins had to leave the game in the fourth quarter and has been placed in the concussion protocol. But both wideouts have made their presence felt.

5) And about the defense and special teams…

There’s no question the Rams’ defense and special teams will have to improve after Thursday’s performance.

Defensively, the unit performed well when it had to — like on the two-point conversion attempt and after the onside kick. But defensive tackle Michael Brockers credited the Niners for having a strong plan of attack.

“I think it’s just a chess match,” he said. “We were prepared for them to run the ball a little bit. They came out on first down and did some play action passes, caught us in some stuff. But this game is a chess match, they’re adjusting and we’re adjusting so I just give it to a testament that they made some good adjustments at halftime and had a great game plan for us.”

As for special teams — which had an uncharacteristically sloppy day under coordinator John Fassel with turnovers and penalties — McVay said he expects the unit to correct the mistakes.

“We’ve got to take better care of the football,” McVay said. “Those are things that with our players that are touching the ball, it will be addressed, they’ll make sure that they’re moving on and improving from that. Then just some of those situations as far as jumping offsides from a 4th and 2 where you give them a first down – we just can’t do that. It starts with us as coaches and then the players have to make sure that they understand those situations.”

How to package run plays w/motion, brought to u by the @RamsNFL Sean McVay. Inside zone, end around for a TD and a toss for explosive gain pic.twitter.com/UdN5IpRxUu

— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) September 22, 2017

Head Coach Sean McVay – September 22, 2017

(On how his night of rest was)
“Probably not as good as it should have been. We got in here, got a chance to watch the tape with the players, cleaned that up and then we’ll get them a couple days of rest. It will be a good chance for the coaches to catch their breath a little bit too because those short weeks definitely take a toll on coaches and players. But, I think it was good for us to come away with a win and hopefully I’ll sleep a little bit better tonight.”

(On the statuses of WR Sammy Watkins and WR Tavon Austin)
“Those guys are in the concussion protocol. We’ll continue to monitor them and hopefully we’ll get some good news on them in the upcoming days. With (S) Lamarcus (Joyner) with his hamstring strain, he’ll be day-to-day. (C) John Sullivan with his groin he will be day-to-day. From the game, those are really the guys that from an injury standpoint just to update on.”

(On if he thinks the offense is ahead of schedule at this point in the season)
“I don’t know if you ever really look at it like that. You kind of just take it one day at a time and really one game at a time. I thought yesterday was a good offensive performance. I thought the players did a good job executing. Anytime that you’re able to go 8-for-12 on third down, 5-for-7 in the red zone, those key situations – that’s going to give yourself to score some points and do some good things. I thought the players made the plays and continued to kind of respond the right way and they did some good things yesterday. But, now we know when we come back against the Dallas Cowboys, they’re an excellent defense – (Cowboys Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Rod) Marinelli has those guys playing really hard. They fly off the football and just being in that division the last couple of years, a lot of respect for them.”

(On the special teams mistakes)
“I think when you really look at it, the thing you feel good about is I think ‘Bones’ (Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel) is as good as there is as far as a leader of the special teams. They’ve consistently produced, year in and year out and I think when you look at the things yesterday, all very correctable mistakes. We’ve got to take better care of the football. Those are things that with our players that are touching the ball, it will be addressed, they’ll make sure that they’re moving on and improving from that. Then just some of those situations as far as jumping offsides from a 4th and 2 where you give them a first down – we just can’t do that. It starts with us as coaches and then the players have to make sure that they understand those situations, but one of the things that I do know about those guys that are some of our key players on special teams, they’ll respond the right way, they’ve got the right approach and attitude and clearly our special teams leader in John Fassel and (Assistant Special Teams) Coach (Tyrone) McKenzie will do a good job and we have all the confidence in them.”

(On the defensive struggles)
“I think the one thing that I would say is (Defensive Coordinator) Coach Wade (Phillips) is one of the best coaches there is. Clearly, his resume speaks for itself and I think when you look at that game yesterday, snap in and snap out there were some things that, credit to San Francisco – you look at (49ers QB Brian) Hoyer, you look at (49ers WR Pierre) Garcon, (49ers WR Marquise) Goodwin, some of the things (49ers RB Carlos) Hyde did. They had some great individual efforts. They hit (49ers FB Kyle) Juszczyk down the seam on that play-action pass, so there was a lot of things that I thought that they did, that you have to say credit to the offense for great execution. The one thing that we were most proud of was that in crunch time, when you’ve got to be your best, (CB) Troy Hill makes a huge play on the two-point (conversion attempt) to stop them. Then they end up recovering the onside kick and what our defense does is find a way to get them off (the field). (DT) Aaron (Donald) finishes off the game with a sack to close it out and then really you look at the second down play, we were in a man coverage and (LB) Mark Barron makes an unbelievable tackle on a screen. They were their best when they had to be. There’s always going to be a couple things, but I also think it’s important to give credit to some of those offenses that they’ve faced the last couple weeks and some of the things they were able to do. Like I was saying about the special teams, I think we’ll move forward in the right way and continue to just try to improve one day at a time.”

(On if he used CB Troy Hill more than he expected to)
“I thought he did a great job because when Lamarcus went down when you know he’s playing your nickel spot, then it bumps (CB Nickell) Robey (-Coleman) inside, so now Troy’s playing a lot more in some of those dime situations. I thought Troy got more comfortable as the game progressed. Clearly, you really look at it, there was a 4th and one, same type of route that he made the stop on the two-point conversion, got beat on that earlier and then he got it fixed. That’s what we always talk about, ‘What’s next? What’s the next play?’ I loved the way that a couple guys responded. I think when you look at Nickell Robey, the previous week there were some things, some plays that I know he’d want back – what does he do? First play of the game he makes a huge play for us, ends up recovering a fumble later. Those are the types of things you like to see from your players, is not necessarily when the mistakes occur, but what is the response going to be and I think those two guys are a great example of what we want to see in terms of when things don’t go our way.”

(On C Austin Blythe’s performance)
“Austin Blythe did excellent. He did a great job. I think there were a couple things that we can always clean up, just from some of the procedural things, just with the pre-snap. But, in terms of taking command, controlling some of the calls that are required up front because we do put a lot on our center. I’m very pleased with Austin. He got a game ball and I thought our offense was able to continue to operate pretty seamlessly when you lose a very important part of what you’re trying to get done with the amount of stuff we put on John Sullivan and what a good job he’s done. But for Austin to come in there, credit to him and also (Offensive Line) Coach (Aaron) Kromer having him ready to go and he did a nice job delivering.”

(On QB Jared Goff’s performance)
“I think it felt pretty similar. I think he did a lot of really good things. I thought he distributed the ball well. I thought in crunch time, some of the third down conversions he made were really exciting. You look at the one where he gets to (RB Todd) Gurley on the third down and long, works across the board, gets to him as his late outlet. I thought the third and one touchdown down in the tight red area to Sammy on kind of the run alert was a big play and then it was a great throw on the deep ball where Sammy made an outstanding catch down the field. I thought he was able to change the launch point. We were able to create a lot of explosives (plays) off the play-action and movement game and that’s a credit to our offense as a whole, but certainly starts with Jared’s ability to be able to execute. Anytime that you go 22-for-28 you feel pretty good, taking care of the football and then again, no sacks, huge credit to the offensive line, so can’t say enough about what those guys did yesterday as well.”

(On WR Robert Woods long reception on the left side of the field for a 21-yard gain)
“That was a great job. We were kind of trying to – it was a play action, kind of an illusion off some of the different things we had shown in the run game. And I was watching the back end to see if the nickel had triggered like we had hoped and Robert did a good job selling it. I’m thinking, ‘Get the ball up and down, where is it?’ So, my eyes were kind of in a different spot to be able to see it and those guys ended up making the play and it was a good one for us.”

(On the difficulty of an over the shoulder catch)
“Unbelievable. Great body control. I heard the announcers say, ‘Willie Mays type catch’. Where you’re tracking it over your inside and then over your outside shoulder, kind of like a deep centerfielder. But, those are the types of plays that make Sammy a special player. That’s why he is who he is. I think it was exciting to see a handful of plays he made. Any time you’re targeted seven times, you come away with six catches, a couple touchdowns, 100-plus (receiving yards) that’s going to be a big deal. But, to be able to make that big play down the field, I thought was a huge spark for our offense at the time. Really, being fortunate to be around a guy like (Buccaneers WR) De’Sean Jackson in Washington, his ability to track the ball down the field is rare and elite and I thought it was similar to some of those types of catches that I had seen De’Sean make. He made a big one against Philly last year kind of over his shoulder and that kind of reminded me of it – that type of catch. But, really huge respect for Sammy being able to make that play. And it was really well defended actually too. I mean, it had to be thrown in a perfect spot and those are the types of throws and catches you’ve got to be able to make against a good defense like San Fran is.”

(On what the impact of the defense playing so many snaps for a second week in a row)
“It’s tough. You’d like to be able to sustain some continuity. I think this week was a little bit different than the previous week. That was a result of us not being very productive offensively. Like I said at the Washington game, some of the spots I put us in still bother me, but I think when you’re able to create some explosives, have some drives, you feel good about that offensively. You always want to try to keep your defense off, you know that possession is a very important stat you want to try to look at to keep those guys fresh, but at the same time, credit to San Francisco. I thought (49ers Head Coach) Kyle (Shanahan) did an excellent job mixing things up with the run and the pass and they sustained some drives, made some plays on some third downs. You look at – we had a couple fourth down plays in the red zone. So, I think there’s kind of always two side to that story, but in a perfect world, you would prefer to not have your defense play as many snaps as they have the last couple weeks.

(On if he still checks in with DT Aaron Donald mentally regarding contract negotiations now that he’s back with the team)
“I think the thing you really like about him is that when he’s here, he’s all about football. I haven’t sensed that’s been a distraction. You try to be in constant communication with all your players. It’s not like something every day where we’re checking up, but I just want to make sure, and I know he knows this, that while he’s here that doesn’t mean we’re still not trying to proactively pursue a solution so that everybody can feel good about it. That’s one of our priorities. That doesn’t change, whether he’s been here or not here. But the thing I love about Aaron is, I don’t sense that that’s affected him at all. He was more focused on after the Washington game, let me see how I can prepare myself to be a better factor in this game. I thought you saw him show up and he ends up closing out the game – he gets a 1-on-1 on their right guard and he ends up making a sack on the fourth and 20, which is why he’s a special player, because he delivered in crunch time like that.”

(On how he gets a young quarterback to balance when to stay in the pocket and when to scramble)
“I think it’s certain guys have just a good feel. I think when you go back and you look at some of the things he’s been able to do throughout the course of his career, even going back to ‘Cal’ (University of California: Berkley). You get a nice feel for…you always want to try to, from a coaching standpoint, operate within the timing and rhythm of a play. But if a rush dictates it or if things kind of go off schedule, certain guys have a feel. Then I think it’s really important for the eligibles, the receivers, the tight ends, the backs to work with urgency, too, and distribute the field accordingly. You look at the one play that he made to (WR) Robert Woods when we were kind of in an up-tempo situation – little bit of an inside rush on his right side, he gets flushed, big eyes down the field and those two are able to connect for a 30-plus yard play. He did the same thing against Washington the week before with (TE) Gerald Everett. Those are the kind of things that when maybe the play-call or some of the situations I put our guys in isn’t perfect, the good players end up making it right. Fortunately, that’s what (QB) Jared (Goff) has been able to do the last couple of weeks.”

(On if he addresses his players before off days in terms of staying out of trouble)
“You do. You say, ‘Hey, continue to protect the team, always be mindful of that. Be smart. Enjoy yourself. Let yourself get away and get your mind refreshed and recuperated for when we come back on Monday. Be smart.’ We’ve got the right guys in this locker room. We do believe that. But I think when you talk about trying to establish some of the things with the culture, the identity those things – that’s kind of understood. The thing that you do feel good about is up to this point everything that we’ve seen is, we’ve got the right leaders in place. They understand what’s to be expected. They’re setting the standards themselves. I think that’s when you have that chance to really see it sustain over time, but you certainly want to make them aware of it. But we’ve got mature players that we expect to handle themselves in the right way. So to answer your question – yes.

.@RamsNFL SEAN McVay is a young master of deception when he designs his plays only on #baldybreakdowns pic.twitter.com/UGIhK73MHS

— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) September 22, 2017

ramBRO wrote:

Just caught Rob Ryan on Colin Cowherd’s show. He brought up an interesting tidbit about the on-field relationship involving Austin and Rams’ rushing attack that I hadn’t really put much thought into.

He said that, in Buffalo, one of the main reasons that Shady McCoy has enjoyed success there is because defenses have to respect Tyrod Taylor’s running ability on the read-option. Taylor’s ability to give weak-side rushers “pause” really helps their rushing attack even if he keeps the ball once or twice a game for no gain.

Ryan said that the same situation exists for the Rams and Tavon Austin. But instead of running the read-option, Tavon is doing the jet sweep. And Tavon’s speed and open-field ability forces defenders to pause in the same manner.

Kinda an expensive decoy, but Austin definitely has a role out there.

Ryan also took a parting shot at the Bills organization for letting both Woods and Watkins go. He said that they’ve decided to part ways with several good players – and coaches too.

The Truth About Jared Goff, Continued

Goff’s bounce-back performance in the victory over the 49ers reveals a player in an ideal system, growing into his role as a franchise QB

By ANDY BENOIT

https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/09/22/jared-goff-sean-mcvay-rams-49ers-thursday-night-football?utm_campaign=themmqb&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social

On Monday morning earlier this week, we were talking about Jared Goff’s ugly, baffling loss-sealing interception to linebacker Mason Foster at the end of the Rams-Washington game. Now, after Thursday’s win over the 49ers, we’re talking about Goff looking every bit like the star you expect a No. 1 overall pick to be. Goff torched a tired but talented 49ers defense for 292 yards and three touchdowns, completing 22 passes on 28 dropbacks. He took no sacks and had no turnovers.

So which one is the real Jared Goff? Both … but only in the sense that it’s unrealistic to think a 22-year-old quarterback with 10 starts is going to function at an All-Pro level every game. There will be other blunders in the near future—hopefully none as bad as the interception to Foster, but unenjoyable learning experiences nonetheless.

Still, Rams fans—and fans of good quarterbacking—can comfortably bask in the glory of a rising franchise QB. Goff is for real. A big reason is his coach and the system he runs. Sean McVay is fast gaining a reputation as a quarterbacks savant. His offense is a deliberate amalgamation of the Patriots, Saints and Falcons. The Patriots for their pre-snap motion and receivers’ off-the-line release concepts, the Saints for their downfield route combinations, and the Falcons for the way they marry their passing and outside zone running games.

All of this makes life easier on Goff. The nuance of the formations and the clarity of the play designs create defined reads for the quarterback. Goff has a very nice arm, but not a cannon. He’s built more to be a rhythmic passer. He needs an offense that helps establish that rhythm. A system that successfully blends the Patriots, Saints and Falcons can do that. And a play-caller who knows how to build an offensive attack within the game by calling plays that set up later plays also helps. And so does that play-caller’s willingness to throw deep on first down, usually off of play-action. On first down, defenses are simple and predictable. The pass rush is less of a factor, which is big for Goff, as his footwork and poise under pressure remain a work in progress.

McVay did all of this for Kirk Cousins in Washington. Goff is a more talented version of Cousins. Though he’s not as big a risk-taker as Cousins, he’ll have ups and downs like Cousins does. We still have to see how Goff performs when his pass-blockers struggle. Against San Francisco, the Rams’ blockers were facing a defensive line that, just five days earlier, had endured 82 snaps at Seattle. Before the Rams’ Week 8 bye, they’ll face the Seahawks, Jaguars and Cardinals. Bigger challenges await. But we can expect Goff to be up for it.

Rams’ Jared Goff impresses in Bay Area homecoming

By Michael Silver

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000849148/article/rams-jared-goff-impresses-in-bay-area-homecoming

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — She had a skinny margarita in her hand and a knot in her stomach, a familiar feeling intensified by the circumstances. As Nancy Goff sat at a Mexican restaurant near Levi’s Stadium on Thursday afternoon and stole a quiet moment with her husband, Jerry, as they entertained a group of fellow Northern Californians, the mother of the Los Angeles Rams’ starting quarterback was conspicuously nervous about his nationally televised Bay Area homecoming.

“I’m always bad on game day, and this might be a little worse than usual,” Nancy said. “Night game, playing the 49ers, all these people we know here to see him… I mean, I think Jared will do great… but it’s always stressful.”

Three hours later, Jared Goff went out and summoned a tour de force performance that put his parents at ease — and did the same for Rams fans everywhere, and for the legions of skeptics who dogged him after a trying rookie season.

Goff, the first overall pick in the 2016 draft, showed a Thursday Night Football audience exactly why the Rams gave up so much to get him. The second-year quarterback from nearby Cal completed 22-of-28 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns and led the Rams (2-1) to a thrilling, 41-39 victory over the 49ers, an outcome that wasn’t secure until star defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s fourth-down sack of San Francisco quarterback Brian Hoyer to extinguish a furious Niners comeback with 1:44 to go.

“That was scary,” Goff said afterward in a private conversation at his locker. “But man was it fun. There’s something about being back in the Bay Area that gets me going. Honestly, it felt like we were in Berkeley — scoring all the time and needing to score some more. They kept coming at us. I thought I was gonna have to go out and score one more time to win it.”

That wasn’t necessary, thanks to a squelched two-point conversion with 2:17 to go and the subsequent defensive stand following a successful San Francisco onside kick. What Goff did do was continue to win over many of the cynics who wrote him off during his miserable rookie season, when he struggled behind an ineffective offensive line and in an oft-criticized scheme that helped provoke head coach Jeff Fisher’s dismissal.

The Rams proceeded to hire the youngest head coach in modern NFL history, then-30-year-old Sean McVay. And the former Washington offensive coordinator has made an immediate and emphatic impact in L.A., with Goff as the most obvious beneficiary.

“Sean is so good,” Goff said. “I love this offense. We had 78 plays sent in, I think, and there was maybe one of his calls I didn’t like. He gives me so many answers. I’m loving it.”

After Goff’s near-flawless effort in front of 70,178 fans at Levi’s — and after two throws in particular — the affection was decidedly mutual.

“This was his best performance yet,” McVay told me as he sat in the coaches’ dressing area of the visitors’ locker room. “Especially after last week (a 27-20 defeat to Washington), when he threw that late interception — he just bounced back and came up huge in crunch time. You know what I like about him? In games, he does not f—- flinch. He’s mentally tough, in good times and bad, and that’s exactly what you want your quarterback to be like. Because it’s an occupational hazard: Bad things are gonna happen when you play this position.”

The first of the two plays that blew away McVay was a gorgeous 47-yard pass to Sammy Watkins on the first drive of the second half, which ended with a Greg Zuerlein field goal that pushed the Rams’ lead to 27-13. Goff, after selling a nice play-fake to halfback Todd Gurley (28 carries, 113 yards, two touchdowns; five receptions, 36 yards, one TD), lofted a rainbow toward the left sideline that fell into Watkins’ arms, eluding Niners defensive backs Dontae Johnson and Jimmie Ward.

“It was a run-pass option,” McVay said. “It takes stones to throw the ball there.”

The second play, a third-and-10 checkdown to Gurley with 10:57 left in the game, was a testament to Goff’s brains.

“He got all the way through the progression and found Todd on the backside,” McVay said of Goff. “It was basically his fifth read. That’s impressive.”

After getting the first down, Gurley broke a tackle and ended up with a 27-yard gain, putting the ball at the San Francisco 19. Two plays later, Goff found Watkins (six catches, 106 yards, two TDs) underneath for a 13-yard score, increasing the Rams’ lead to 41-26.

“Great night for Jared,” McVay said. “and I think he’s only gonna get better and better.”

And on this night, as she and Jerry drove 75 miles north to their home in nearby Novato, Nancy Goff felt much better than she had in the hours before the game.

Rams’ offense for real with Jared Goff, but bad D will slow NFC roll

Jared Goff is playing like a franchise QB who has tons of weapons in a new offense, but it’s going to be tough for his unit to outscore teams every week.

Vinnie Iyer

http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/news/rams-offense-jared-goff-todd-gurley-aaron-donald-are-they-for-real-nfc-contenders/1n6x4tr8n8pud1uljyf5dzjzg2?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

The Rams are 2-1 and they’ve scored 40-plus points in their two wins with Jared Goff dealing and Todd Gurley popping. After holding off the rival 49ers 41-39 in Thursday night’s thrilling shootout in Santa Clara, the next logical question is: Are the Rams for real? Yes, but to keep it really real, their ceiling is a .500 record.

First, the impressive. They’ve done a complete 180 on offense from the end of the stodgy Jeff Fisher era, thanks to the diverse play-calling of wunderkind new coach Sean McVay. Goff and Gurley are suddenly a dangerous duo looking worthy of being first-round picks.

Given Goff was handed three legitimate receivers for speed, possession and slot (Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp) and a stud left tackle (Andrew Whitworth) on top of McVay in the offseason, the leap in his development shouldn’t be too surprising. The improvement has, in turn, created a trickle-down effect in the running game and sparked a big rebound by Gurley. His three first-half TDs vs. the 49ers (two rushing, one receiving) allowed him to match his sophomore-slump TD total (six) of 2016.

Goff, off and winless as a rookie, posted the type of nearly perfect performance that’s associated with the game’s elite QBs (22-of-28 passing, 292 yards, three TDs, 145.8 rating). He’s looking the part of franchise quarterback he was expected to be when LA drafted him No. 1 overall last year.

All that said, neither Goff or Gurley is close to being the Rams’ best player. That’s Aaron Donald, the most dominant defensive player in the league, who finished off the Niners’ furious comeback with a ferocious takedown of 49ers QB Brian Hoyer. Unfortunately for Donald, he hasn’t received the type of newfound support Goff and Gurley got, and that will dash any high hopes LA has for making the NFC playoffs.

Donald’s dominance aside, LA made Hoyer look like he was back with the Patriots and channeling Tom Brady. The 49ers had zero touchdowns in their first two games against Carolina and Seattle, two recent NFC powers with top defenses. They had five TDs against the Rams, and had game flow been different, Carlos Hyde would have gashed their run defense a lot more — similar to how the Redskins powered through it in Week 2.

Everyone is excited to see whether Goff and Gurley can keep things up at Dallas in Week 4, and then to see if the Rams can cause a changing of the guard in the NFC West when Seattle comes to Los Angeles in Week 5.

Neither the Cowboys nor Seahawks are in sync offensively, but everyone knows where Dak Prescott can go and where Russell Wilson has gone. It’s good that Goff was able to find his best self on the field against the Colts and 49ers when he was awful against everyone last season, but doing it in shootouts against much better teams is the next level. The rest of a tough NFC East and an underrated AFC South remain, where the Rams will also face much tougher defenses than will their opponents.

The offensive creativity and explosiveness are here to stay with McVay, but so will the defensive breakdowns under Wade Phillips and around Donald. The Rams aren’t exactly the second coming of The Greatest Show on Turf, so it doesn’t have enough to overcome just having the Fearsome Onesome.

But inconsistent consistency is a big change from absolute cluelessness. Consider if the Rams are able to get from four wins to 8-8 in McVay’s first season — that would still represent a higher floor than any of the five years with Fisher.

Crashing the NFC postseason party is hard when the Cowboys, Seahawks, Falcons, Packers and, yes, the Lions all look like they have staying power. The Rams are learning to walk again, but they are still season away from a run at the playoffs

Happy homecoming: Jared Goff put on a show in Rams’ win over 49ers

Alden Gonzalez

http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/35480/jared-goff-todd-gurley-shine-in-wild-rams-win-over-49ers

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Jared Goff never got a chance to play here last year. The Los Angeles Rams opened their 2016 season at Levi’s Stadium, and Goff, the No. 1 overall pick earlier that spring, was inactive, confined to street clothes with a plethora of family and friends watching from the stands. Goff was asked about that earlier this week and shook his head. He announced that he was “done” talking about last year.

“Last year was a whole different deal,” Goff said, “and this year is exciting.”

Is it ever.

Goff played the best game of his NFL career on Thursday, 11 days after playing the best game of his NFL career. He carved up the same San Francisco 49ers team he grew up rooting for, going 22-of-28 for 292 yards, three touchdowns and zero turnovers in a thrilling 41-39 win that went down as one of the most exciting Thursday night games ever. The Rams scored 40 points for the second time this season after managing only two 40-point games in their previous 10 seasons combined.

And they almost gave it up.

defense allowed a winless 49ers team that didn’t score a touchdown in its first two games to amass 421 yards. And their special teams fumbled three times — on a punt, on a kickoff and on an onside kick. It wasn’t until Aaron Donald wrapped up Brian Hoyer for his first sack of the season that the Rams cemented their second win in three games. But if defense and special teams are your biggest concern about this team at this point, it’s a very good sign.

The Rams’ offense — last in the NFL in yards each of the past two years and among the NFL’s worst for about a decade — continues to look very good.

“It feels good, man,” Rams running back Todd Gurley said with a big smile on his face. “It feels good. We haven’t been able to put up points like that since Marshall [Faulk] and them left.”

Gurley scored three touchdowns in the first half, giving him six in his first three games — the same amount he had through 16 games last season. Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods had the breakout games they had been waiting on, combining on 12 catches for 214 yards and two touchdowns, both by Watkins. And the Rams’ offense surpassed 100 points for the season, marking the first time this franchise has reached triple digits through the first three games since 2000.

Gurley gained 113 yards on 28 carries and added another 36 yards on five catches. Before halftime, he became the first player with six touchdowns in the first three games of a season since Calvin Johnson in 2011 — and it was all set up by Goff moving the ball so efficiently and effectively.

Sean McVay, the mastermind behind Goff’s turnaround, said he was “really pleased” with his quarterback.

“I thought he made really great decisions with the football,” McVay said.

It wasn’t just the numbers Goff put up; it was the throws he made. On one play, he rolled to his right, threw on the run and fired a dart to Woods in a very tight window for a 31-yard gain. He threw a perfect pass to Tyler Higbee on a post near the end zone that was dropped. He went over the top to Woods on the left sideline, setting up a tiptoe catch that went for 21 yards. He threw another dime to Cooper Kupp’s back shoulder, but it was knocked away. He rolled to his left, opted against throwing to Kupp deep, let the play develop, changed his arm angle and hit Woods short, allowing him to run for what became a 25-yard gain.

And he connected with Watkins for 47 yards downfield on a ball that looked as if it were dropped into his receiver’s hands by a drone. It went down as the longest completion of Goff’s career, but that wasn’t even the most encouraging stat from the night. This was: Goff completed 13 straight passes at one point, including his first 11 of the second half — for a combined 155 yards and two touchdowns.

What a difference a year makes.

“Every week, I see confidence,” veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth said of Goff. “Really, his feeling in the huddle is just that he’s getting comfortable, and that he feels safe, and that he feels like, ‘Hey, you know what, I can succeed in this environment, in this scenario.’ You can just feel that confidence coming out of him.”

Goff went 18-of-22 with all three touchdowns from the pocket Thursday, but he was also 4-of-6 for 82 yards outside the pocket, according to ESPN Stats & Information. In three games, Goff has twice as many completions on passes 20 or more yards (eight) than he did in seven games last season. He is 58-of-82 for 822 yards, five touchdowns and only one interception in three games, after sporting the NFL’s lowest Total QBR as a rookie.

He was asked if he ever thinks about where he was at this point last year, and how far he has come since then.

“Looking forward,” Goff said, plainly. “It was exciting to be here today and be in Levi’s Stadium, and obviously coming out with the win is the most important thing.”

I like how Goff is doing, and you can see virtually every quarter where he makes an amazing throw of one kind or another. Strong enough arm, quick release, throws of every kind, including ones that start out as smoking line drives and end up falling into the target like soft touch passes. We don;t know yet about his comeback in the clutch and win when behind in a close one capacities, but for me that’s all that;s left to find out.

The Rams team strength is the 11-25 yard medium/deep medium range big gainers and his accuracy on those is just ludicrously good. Before this game he completed 7 of 9 of those. If anything after this game the percentage might be better. If he keeps that up or anything like it, that’s unreal. Right now the Rams have a top-notch 9.04 yards per attempt.

Kind of Blue/Gold wrote:

Eisen noted last time they scored 40+ TWICE in a season was 2006. They have already done that.

Differences this season.

1) OL more talent, experience and playing better.
2) Goff* playing with vastly more confidence.
3) Gurley looks more explosive, playing with the kind of burst we saw as a rookie, 6 TDs already matches 2016 total (and at Auburn, making him top 10 pick DESPITE torn ACL).
4) Ridiculously better play calling.
5) Watkins trade, Woods in free agency.

* If Goff the real deal and turns franchise around, that couldbe Fisher’s most enduring legacy (also added Donald and Gurley on his watch).

Obviously early, but if McVay can keep this up he will have to be in contention for HC of the year. That would be a nice, if somewhat unexpected confluence for Rams fans, if the youngest HC in league and huge question mark going into the season emerges as a HC/play calling guru.