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October 12, 2015 at 6:19 pm in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32257
znModerator
Ten Takeaways from the Rams’ 24-10 Loss at Green BayRandy Karraker
http://www.101sports.com/2015/10/12/ten-takeaways-from-the-rams-24-10-loss-at-green-bay/
A weekend bereft of wins for St. Louis sports fans provided few positives. The Cardinals didn’t get the expected performance from Jaime Garcia and their defense in a Saturday loss to the Cubs, Drew Lock was proven to be an eighteen year old human in Mizzou’s loss to Florida, and the Blues couldn’t get the equalizer against the Wild.
nick foles-2Foles threw four interceptions in the Rams’ loss at Green Bay.
Even though the Rams lost to the Packers, it wasn’t all bad. Here are ten takeaways…
1) This was not a bad loss. The Packers have now won their last twelve home games, and in their last ten regular season home games before Sunday had averaged 38.3 points per game. For the Rams to go to Lambeau and have a chance in the fourth quarter is actually an accomplishment.
2) We wondered when the Rams acquired Nick Foles whether he was the 27 touchdown, two interception quarterback of 2013, or the thirteen TD, ten interception thrower of last season. So far, it appears to be the latter.
With his TD pass and four interceptions (two inside the Packer ten yard line), Foles has six TD’s and five picks. Granted, he was under duress, but you just can’t throw the ball to the other team. And when you get to the red zone, as a quarterback you have to give your team a chance to score points. The two red zone picks didn’t give the kicking game a chance.
3) Todd Gurley looks like a potential star, with 305 yards in his first two NFL starts. I do wonder if, coming off an ACL injury, he can carry the burden of thirty carries a game. He had thirty on Sunday, and had 21 touches against Arizona. It’ll be interesting to see how much of a workload the Rams give him after the bye.
4) The offensive line is the opening big enough holes for Gurley, but the Packers were all over Foles in the passing game. Of course, Green Bay came into the game leading the league in sacks per pass attempt. No pressure, but this group must get better in a hurry. It will help that the Rams next four opponents; Cleveland, San Francisco, Chicago and Minnesota are in the bottom half of the league rankings in sacks.
5) Over the long haul, the Rams need a healthy Chris Long on their line. He makes everyone better, and is a spiritual leader of the entire defense. He suffered a second quarter knee injury and didn’t return. Hopefully this injury won’t be one that knocks him out for the Cleveland game. With Alec Ogletree already out, this defense can’t afford to lose any more starters.
6) Speaking of Ogletree, he was averaging about eleven tackles per game over the last three games before breaking his leg. The outside linebacker position didn’t pick up for him, with Akeem Ayers failing to register a tackle according to press box stats, and Mark Barron tallying five. But Lamarcus Joyner had seven tackles and T.J. McDonald had six, so the safeties coming up and making plays made up somewhat for the loss of the Rams leading tackler.
james laurinaitis-3Laurinaitis’ interception ended Rodgers’ streak of 492 regular-season passes without an interception.
7) Both interceptions of Aaron Rodgers…his first at home since December 2, 2012, a span of 492 passes…were great plays. James Laurinaitis was exceptionally alert and caught Barron’s tip for the first pick, and then Trumaine Johnson made a great play for the second. Johnson has developed outstanding anticipation to go with technique and athletic ability. He’s turned the corner and looks like a premier corner in the league.
8) Greg Zuerlein missed three field goals, a 50 yarder that was blocked, the other two from 53 and 63 yards. It’s hard to blame the kicker when that happens. Granted, we’d like to have those nine points, but with a wind blowing on the field at Lambeau, it’s hard to expect Zuerlein to hit from that distance.
9) Once again, the defense was good enough. The group allowed Green Bay to score seventeen points. If the defense allows just two touchdowns and a field goal in Green Bay, you have to feel good about it. I would guess Jeff Fisher and his staff thought they’d need at least 25 to win this game, and as previously mentioned they couldn’t convert.
If Foles doesn’t throw the pick-six and is able to complete one touchdown pass inside the ten, it’s a tie game. The Packers had 322 yards, were 4-of-13 on third down (31%) and had one trip into the red zone, which was unsuccessful. That’s great Rams defense.
10) After a bye week that gives the offensive line more of a chance to mesh, the schedule opens up a bit. Keep in mind that the Rams flip-flopped guards Jamon Brown and Rodger Saffold just before the last pre-season game, so those two don’t have a ton of time at their spots and with their partners at tackle. The next five games, against Cleveland, San Francisco, at Minnesota, Chicago and at Baltimore are all very winnable games. Especially with the ascent of Gurley and the effectiveness of the Rams defense, if they don’t turn the ball over, they can beat a lot of teams. They’ve nearly reached the point that if Gurley is what we think he is, the Rams can only beat themselves.
znModeratorWagoner gets an interesting insight from Robinson.
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October 12, 2015 at 4:40 pm in reply to: Proud of the defense. Offense? Not so much… (game reaction thread) #32238znModeratorthe rams should be a much different team those last 6 games.
Barring injury, I bet that’s likely.
znModeratorSacks are good but unless they come with a fumble recovery it will be a lost cause for the Rams. What we really need to see is our secondary get multiple INTs which is not easy there. Foles needs to string some time consuming drives together.
Well you got 3 out of 3. Though, you probably should have added “and get points out of it” to #3.
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znModerator
Rams’ offense exactly what was expected, and that’s not good enoughNick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra…y-what-was-expected-and-thats-not-good-enough
GREEN BAY, Wis. — A small survey of the St. Louis Rams locker room after yet another loss in which the offense failed to provide support for a playoff-ready defense revealed plenty of confidence that the offense will improve.
That’s to be expected, especially after Todd Gurley rushed for 159 yards.
What’s alarming were the qualifiers attached to those beliefs.
“Things are going to take a little bit of time,” tight end Lance Kendricks said Sunday after a 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers. “It’s a great time for us to have the bye week to calm down and get everything together. I think we’ll be all right.”
“We’re real close,” left tackle Greg Robinson said. “We’ll just keep chipping and fix those little things. I feel like eventually we will be where we want to be.”
Take a little bit of time.
Eventually.
Great. But by the time the Rams (2-3) put all the pieces together on offense, it could be too late to keep this from becoming yet another lost season under fourth-year coach Jeff Fisher.
It was Fisher who finally committed this offseason to the ground-based ethos he developed in Tennessee. He used the draft to rebuild the offensive line and select a dynamic running back, Gurley, who was coming off a torn ACL.
That it’s taking time for such young group to come together is no surprise. It was to be expected, in fact. And it’s a situation Fisher created by waiting so long to build an offensive identity — never mind that the one he chosen skews far from what’s working elsewhere in the pass-first NFL.
In three of their five games, the Rams scored 10 points or fewer. They lost all three. Their scoring troubles are the result of myriad, though not hard to predict, problems from week to week.
In the first three weeks, they had no running game. Gurley fixed that by rushing for 305 yards over the next two games. Then the offensive line’s pass-protection issues became conspicuous.
The Rams gave up three sacks Sunday, and the protection problems kept quarterback Nick Foles from getting comfortable, which brought about a whole new problem: turnovers. Entering the game, the Rams had just four. They matched that total Sunday as Foles threw four interceptions.
“In those situations, I have got to step up and make a play or get the ball out,” Foles said. “If it’s not there, it’s sometimes good just to get it away and don’t put the ball in harm’s way.”
The Packers pressured Foles on 44 percent of his dropbacks Sunday. Foles, who has been inconsistent in the face of pressure this season, was 1-of-11 with no touchdowns and two interceptions against Green Bay pressure. His other two interceptions came in the red zone, where Foles had thrown just two interceptions in his previous 107 career attempts.
On a day when the Rams offense sustained drives and even managed to win time of possession by more than six minutes, those turnovers canceled out the good work they were doing in the running game. The wide receivers again struggled to gain separation or, you know, catch the ball on a regular basis. Stedman Bailey’s 68-yard catch in the waning moments was the only thing keeping running back Benny Cunningham and safety Cody Davis from leading the team in receiving yards.
Despite all those issues, Rams defenders continue to voice support that the offense will be able to put it all together.
“I still feel good about our offense,” end William Hayes said. “I know as crazy as that sounds, I feel like when we come back from the bye, we are going to go on this run.
“At the end of the day, I see a bigger picture. I’m not just looking at the moment. I know six, seven games from now you will come back to me and say, ‘You know what, William? You were right with what you said.’ As frustrating as it is right now, I know deep in my heart things are going to turn themselves around.”
In six or seven weeks, won’t it be too late?
“No, it won’t be too late,” Hayes said. “We’ll be fine. I’m not saying that just to say it. I really feel this team is something special, and we’re going to surprise the world eventually.”
There’s that word again.
znModeratorFoles had a terrible game but he did not get much help.
I don’t think anyone sees it differently.
But as I said, not giving the qb much help is an old old Rams story.
Yet nobody, not even Null or Boller, threw for 11 of 30 and 4 INTs.
So “no help for the qb” is like I said an old Rams story, but this one was especially bad by the qb on top of it.
And still I am not giving up on Foles. He can do it, we’ve seen it.
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znModeratorThat’s a pretty good analysis IMO.
October 12, 2015 at 11:57 am in reply to: Proud of the defense. Offense? Not so much… (game reaction thread) #32220znModeratorMod note
This thread is for our reactions to the game. That is, the huddle community and any other poster who wanders through with 2 cents to add.
There is a separate thread for posts about the game from off the net, and our reactions to those posts —>http://theramshuddle.com/topic/reactions-from-around-the-net-to-the-packers-game/#post-32215
It causes some issues with threads to move posts so please respect the difference between the 2 threads.
October 12, 2015 at 11:48 am in reply to: reactions around the net to the Packers game (if you see one you like add it) #32215znModeratorThis thread is for posts from around the net and our reactions to those posts.
The “huddle board posters react to the game” thread is here—>
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/proud-of-the-defense-offense-not-so-much/
It causes some issues with threads to move posts so please respect the difference between the 2 threads.
znModeratorI know people are going to bash him and such, but lets remember, we have two rookies starting on the OLine. Another, not really a rookie, but it feels like Barrett Jones is one. Both Rob Havenstein and Jamon Brown are not considered strong pass blockers, which they are learning on the fly. We need to let it time to jell. Just wanted to throw in my two sense, or cents, or however it is.
Jack—that was the worst performance by a Rams qb in years. Name the last time a Rams qb completed 33-something % of his passes and had 4 INTs in one game. Not even Boller, Null, Davis, or Hill managed THAT. And they all had bad OLs to work with too.
And don’t tell me about the OL. I have been saying for years that bad OL play brings the qb down with it. It’s just that usually the culprit has not been inexperience, like this year; in the past it was massive extensive injuries. That covers 2007-2009, 2011, the first half of 2012, and 2014.
So were you making the same argument you are now when the qb was Bulger? Or Bradford? Yet they had to play with struggling offensive lines.
I am not going to whitewash how poorly Foles played, though yeah he was stuck behind a struggling line. Yet as I said that is an old, old story for Rams qbs.
I am also not giving up on Foles. He obviously can be better than he was yesterday…we’ve seen it.
But I would feel better about your argument if you were saying the exact same things in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, and 2012.
And I don;t know why you mention Barrett Jones. Last I looked he was on the Steelers practice squad.
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October 12, 2015 at 2:52 am in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32193znModeratorRams notebook: Big plays sink Rams secondary
Jim Thomas
GREEN BAY, WIS. • Trumaine Johnson made no excuses for a 31-yard touchdown pass he allowed in the first quarter. Neither did fellow cornerback Lamarcus Joyner on a 65-yard TD pass he allowed in third.
“Those two explosive plays, that’s 14 points,” Johnson said following the Rams’ 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers. “Take those away, it’s a different outcome.”
Johnson was victimized on quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ first completion of the day, on Green Bay’s first offensive series of the day. On the play, Green Bay lined up two receivers next to each other on the right, with Johnson and safety T.J. McDonald lining up opposite in tight coverage.
But Johnson got hung up in that cluster of players once the ball was snapped. Green Bay wide receiver Ty Montgomery escaped into the clear over the middle and was wide open for the TD.
“Busted coverage,” Johnson said. “Technique error. I should’ve stayed inside. I let that get away from me. I take fully 100 percent of it. That was my man and I let him score.”
That gave Green Bay a 7-0 lead with 12 minutes, 9 seconds left in the opening quarter. At the start of the third quarter, Green Bay was up 14-10 before Jones got loose for what was the Packers’ longest pass play of the season.
Jones’ route took him over the middle; Joyner lost his footing and fell attempting to intercept the pass. Once that happened and Jones made the catch, it was a footrace to the end zone between Jones and safety Rodney McLeod. Originally, referee Brad Allen’s crew ruled that McLeod had dropped Jones just short of the end zone.
Green Bay challenged the ruling, and after a replay review the call was reversed, giving the Packers a touchdown and a 21-10 lead just 2 minutes, 19 seconds into the second half.
“I tried to make a play on the ball,” Joyner said. “You’ve got a guy like Aaron Rodgers, who’s probably the No. 1 quarterback in this league. He made a tightrope throw, guy made a great catch, and there you go. Can’t make a mistake like that against a good team.”
RODGERS’ STREAK ENDS
Rodgers’ amazing home streak of regular-season and postseason passes without an interception ended at 586 passes Sunday. On third-and-2 from the St. Louis 42 with 4:07 left in the first quarter, safety Mark Barron tipped a Rodgers pass intended for tight end Richard Rodgers.
Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis grabbed the ball before it hit the ground for his 10th career interception.
Late in the second quarter, the Rams did it again when Johnson made a diving interception of a short sideline throw intended for Jones.
“Hitch route. I was reading the quarterback the whole time and was glad I was able to make a play,” Johnson said.
It was Johnson’s 10th career INT as well.
Green Bay had committed only one turnover all season before Sunday, but the Rams got a third takeaway late in the third quarter when defensive end Robert Quinn’s sack and forced fumble against Rodgers was recovered by Joyner.
INJURY UPDATE
The Rams lost right guard Rodger Saffold to a shoulder injury late in the first quarter, on the same play in which Packers cornerback Quentin Rollins returned an interception 45 yards for a touchdown.
In the second quarter, on the play in which Johnson grabbed his interception, defensive end Chris Long left with a knee injury. Neither player returned and coach Jeff Fisher said he had no details on either injury after the game.Wide receiver Kenny Britt left with a shoulder injury with 1:50 left in the first half but returned.
LINEUP CHANGES
Running back Chase Reynolds and defensive Eugene Sims were back on the field for the Rams after both players missed three games with knee injuries suffered in the season opener against Seattle.
But linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar did not dress after re-signing with the team Tuesday. Joining Dunbar on the pregame inactive list were QB Sean Mannion, S Maurice Alexander (groin), LB Alec Ogletree (knee), OT Darrell Williams, OG Cody Wichmann and DE Eugene Westbrooks
October 12, 2015 at 2:49 am in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32192znModeratorRams Offense Trashes a Chance to Win in Green Bay
Bernie Miklasz
http://www.101sports.com/2015/10/11/rams-offense-trashes-a-chance-to-win-in-green-bay/
Really, the Rams defense did about as well as anyone could have realistically hoped for. It obviously wasn’t a perfect performance — Gregg Williams’ unit didn’t pitch a shut out — but consider the mission at hand Sunday. Go into Green Bay, where the Packers rarely lose, and put the clampdown on prolific quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
With Rodgers as their starter in regular-season games, the Packers are 45-9 at Lambeau Field and average 31.6 points per game. They’ve been even more unstoppable since Rodgers got his first season as the starter (2008) out of the way. In his last 42 regular-season home starts Rodgers is 39-3, his offense has averaged 33 .3 points, and he has a passer rating of 116.5. No NFL quarterback — not even Tom Brady in New England — has been more unstoppable at home since the start of the ’09 season.
The Williams defense put up considerable resistance on Sunday, slowing and disrupting Rodgers in a way that few visiting teams have in recent years. The Rams took the ball away from Rodgers three times, with two interceptions and a fumble. Before Sunday, since replacing Brett Favre at the outset of 2008, Rodgers had never lost three turnovers in a regular-season home game.
We’re talking about a QB who, in his previous 16 home games, had zipped 44 touchdown passes with zero interceptions. Rodgers finished Sunday’s game with an 82.8 passer rating, his third-worst figure in a regular-season game at Lambeau. The Packers converted only four of 13 third downs, were suppressed on the ground (86 yards rushing) and scored on only three possessions.
By giving up only 17 points to the GB offense, the Rams defense certainly did its share to steal a win in the the NFL’s most venerated venue. The 24-10 loss to the Packers can be put at the feet of the Rams offensive line, at the right leg of kicker Greg Zuerlein, and on the right arm of QB Nick Foles. We could also put some blame in the hands of Rams’ receivers … but hell, they’d end up dropping it. The usual foolish pre-snap penalties were an issue again. And as is the case most of the time, the coaching on the Rams’ offensive side was puzzling.
Zuerlein missed three field goals; one was blocked when Jason Smith — uh, I mean, Greg Robinson — whiffed on impeding his man inside. Foles was sacked three times, but that was just a partial accounting of the punishment he absorbed behind a line that crumbled more easily than the award-winning Wisconsin Blue Montford cheese.
You would need HBO’s boxing crew to keep score on all of the punch-stat damage done to Foles; unofficially he took 12 pass-rush hits in addition to the three sacks. Robinson had a horrible game at left tackle. When is this guy going to play to the anticipated level of the second overall pick in the 2014 draft? And I don’t want to hear about the O-line’s inexperience. This collection of talent was scouted and procured by GM Les Snead and head coach Jeff Fisher. This is what they wanted.
Foles completed 11 of 30 passes and hanging four interceptions and held up about as well as Jaime Garcia in NLDS Game 2. Foles’ passer rating (23.8) was the fifth-worst by a Rams quarterback in a single game (minimum 20 passing attempts) since the franchise moved to STL in 1995. Now Foles stands in a five-QB group photo that includes Chris Miller, Tony Banks, and Marc Bulger — the only four Rams’ quarterbacks to have a poorer passer rating in a game. (Banks had two of the four worst games.) Let’s hope Foles has a happier ending than those fellows. Foles had one triumph Sunday: he walked out of Lambeau on his own power, with no gurney required to wheel him to the team bus.
As for the coaching: where were the quick routes, the checkdowns, the outlet passes? Remember how an under-fire Foles flipped the ball to running back Benny Cunningham to escape sacks and harm in the season-opening win over Seattle? Hello? Did offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti and his aides forget to watch the DVD of that Seahawks’ game? Or was Foles too disoriented to spot his hot-read receivers or safe-outlet targets?
The plan with the passing offense seemingly ignored a predictable reality: Green Bay would be unleashing the hounds, determined to bark and snap their way past the overwhelmed Rams’ line to maul Foles. This group — assistant coaches and linemen — inexplicably declined to account for Green Bay pass rusher Clay Matthews, who has 65.5 sacks and 139 QB hits in his 90-game NFL career. The lax protection and the inability to make effective adjustments was appalling and incompetent.
The Rams offense was basically a +3 on Sunday; the unit scored only 10 points but gave up seven back on Foles’ wildly undisciplined, back-foot, pick-six INT for a touchdown. The Rams couldn’t take advantage of the three GB turnovers, managing to cash in for one field goal. The other two takeaways were squandered by a Foles interception and a Zuerlein miss.
The Rams were inside Green Bay territory eight times Sunday — including seven times in their final eight possessions — and came away with a lot more frustration and futility than points.
Since Fisher became Rams coach in 2012, NFL teams have scored an average of 23 points per game.The Rams have been held under 23 points in 40 percent of Coach Fisher’s 53 games.
We’re not asking for the “Greatest Show on Turf II” here. If the Rams could merely put a league-average offense on the field with higher frequency, their record would be dramatically better.
Here’s why I say that:When the Fisher-coached Rams score 23+ points in a game, they’re 15-6-1.
When they fail to reach 23 points in a contest, the record is 7-24.
The Rams just finished a three-game stretch against Pittsburgh, Arizona and Green Bay. Their defense had to play very well to give the team a chance to win — and did exactly that for the most part. They limited three productive offensives to an average of 17 points per game, forced seven turnovers, bagged 11 sacks, limited quarterbacks to an 85.5 rating, and made 24 stops on 36 third-down plays. But with the misfiring Rams offense flopping around, the team lost two of three winnable contests,
Staging an upset win in Green Bay was a long shot for the Rams, but they had much of the defensive formula in place to pull it off.
Since the start of the 2009 season, when Rodgers starts at home, the Packers are 9-4 when scoring 24 points or fewer in a game. That’s a good record — but the Packers are certainly more beatable when putting up no more than 24 points via offense, defensive return, or special teams. And when Rodgers has a passer rating under 90, the Packers are 6-2. Again, a good record — but short of invincible.
While imperfect, the Rams defense did enough Sunday to make a victory possible at Lambeau.
The sensational Rams rookie running back Todd Gurley (159 yards rushing) added the sizzle to make a victory possible.
The problem: the Rams’ horrendous passing game, turnstile offensive line and the unreliable field-goal unit made victory impossible.The Rams are 2-3 through five games, and now drift into the bye week knowing they should be taking a winning record into vacation. Foles could use a break — it will prevent him from being broken. Perhaps the offensive line should attend a special mini-camp instead.
October 12, 2015 at 1:56 am in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32190znModeratorTodd Gurley up, Nick Foles, Jeff Fisher down for Rams
Nick Wagoner
GREEN BAY, Wis. — A look at St. Louis Rams players who were “up” and those who were “down” in Sunday’s 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
UP
RB Todd Gurley: He didn’t get a whole lot of help, but Gurley continued to find small creases in the defense and find a way to fall forward for extra yards on almost every carry. He also got a full workload, carrying a career-high 30 times for 159 yards. It wasn’t pretty, but he was about all the Rams had offensively in this one.
CB Trumaine Johnson: Although he busted a coverage for a Green Bay touchdown early in the game, Johnson provided another highlight-reel interception to make up for it, picking off quarterback Aaron Rodgers on a diving play in the first half. He added five tackles and a pass defensed as Rodgers managed 241 passing yards, 65 of which came on one play that wasn’t at Johnson’s expense.
DOWN
LT Greg Robinson: It was an ugly day all the way around for the offensive line, but Robinson seemed to have the biggest issues. Robinson clearly has the physical tools to be a good left tackle in this league, but picking up blitzes, stunts and the mental aspects of the position has been too slow going in his first two years. Simply put, the Rams need more from the 2014 No. 2 overall pick.
QB Nick Foles: To be fair, Foles was under pressure a lot behind that once-again leaky offensive line. But Foles has showed the ability to stand in the pocket and deliver in the face of pressure multiple times this season and appeared more panicked on Sunday. Perhaps the early hit in which Clay Matthews appeared to lead with the crown of his helmet left Foles a bit gun-shy. His four interceptions more than nullified the three takeaways the defense provided.
Head coach Jeff Fisher: Heading into the bye week, the Rams are 2-3 with a defense that looks playoff-ready and an offense lagging far behind. It’s a formula that anyone paying attention could have predicted. That’s the problem. Fisher and the Rams waited four years to commit to an offensive identity and did so with an inexperienced and unproven offensive line. Gurley gives them hope and things could still come together in the final 11 games, but it’s also possible that by the time they do, it will be too little, too late.
October 12, 2015 at 1:55 am in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32189znModeratorGordon: Gurley makes Rams dangerous
Jeff Gordon
GREEN BAY, WIS. • This may see like an odd time to bring it up, but here goes: The Rams are more formidable now and running back Todd Gurley makes it so.
They carry a 2-3 record into their bye week after falling to the unbeaten Packers 24-10 Sunday afternoon. But, as coach Jeff Fisher noted after the game, “We’re 1-1 since Todd got his opportunity.”
And since that 1-1 came on the road against the NFC’s top two teams, the Rams can live with that split heading into their much-needed schedule break.
Gurley rushed for 159 yards on 30 carries against the Packers. He repeatedly pounded the ball into scoring range, most notably with a 55-yard run in the fourth quarter.
“I felt like we did a great job today,” Gurley said. “We were definitely on the field a lot more than last week, but we need to be more consistent and finish by putting some points on the board.”
He has gained 305 yards on 49 carries in his first two NFL starts after recovering from major knee surgery. His development completes the Rams’ transformation from bullied weakling into respected mouth-smashers.
Along with the playmaking Rams defense — which forced three Aaron Rogers turnovers, an unheard total at Lambeau Field — Gurley will make the Rams dangerous in their final 11 games if he stays healthy.
“We’re running the football right now, so the formula is there,” Fisher said. “We just have to keep improving.”
Sunday’s loss was no shocker. This has been a “L” on their schedule since the NFL posted it. The Packers carried an 11-game home winning streak into this game, playoffs included. Their explosive offense scored 383 points during their last 10 home games.
Rodgers earned a 100-plus rating in 10 straight regular season home games. He had thrown 586 consecutive passes at Lambeau without an interception, playoffs included, and completed 49 TD passes during that span.
But the aggressive Rams defense and their persistent ground game turned this game competitive. Gurley helped the Rams maintain ball control and sustain drives despite the epic collapse of their passing game.
Quarterback Nick Foles threw four interceptions, including one resulting in a Packers touchdown, one in the Green Bay end zone and one at the Packers 7-yard line.
He suffered three sacks and absorbed 12 hits, according to the press box statistics. He also fumbled once (recovered by the Rams) and threw away several passes under duress.
And when he did have time to throw, he didn’t see much separation from his targets. Foles completed just 11 of 30 passes for 141 yards, with 68 yards coming on a garbage time bomb to Stedman Bailey.
This aerial futility turned the Rams into a one-dimensional offense, yet Gurley still made some headway against a stout defense expecting him to get the ball on every play.
“In the second half he broke out and got one big run that boosted his stats up,” Packers linebacker Julius Peppers said. “But like I said, he grinded today, did a good job.”
The 30 carries impressed Packers coach Mike McCarthy as much as the 159 yards. That explained how the Rams controlled the ball for 34 minutes without a viable passing attack.
“That tells the story more than anything,” McCarthy said. “I thought he did a heck of a job. They had the big run there, but 30 touches, that says a lot.”
Yes, the young offensive linemen remain a concern. Rodger Saffold’s latest shoulder injury makes them even more vulnerable to elite defenses. The aggressive Packers kept their heads spinning with assorted shifts, stunts, twists and blitzes.
Yes, Foles must regroup during the bye week and refocus on ball security. When the walls close in, he must discard the ball safely and not create such hazardous offensive waste. The most effective Rams passer Sunday was punter Johnny Hekker, who scrambled and found a secondary target while completing a 20-yard fake punt throw.
Yes, injuries are becoming a concern. The Rams really missed outside linebacker Alec Ogletree (broken leg bone) in this game, and the losses of Saffold and defensive end Chris Long (knee injury) are worrisome.
Yes, place kicker Greg Zuerlein must earn back his “Legatron” designation. His 50-yard field goal attempt was tipped, and he missed wide from 53 and 63 yards out. A team built on defense and power running must cash in those long kicks.
Yes, the defense must prevent the huge, game-changing plays. Cornerback Trumaine Johnson lost coverage on Rodgers’ 31-yard touchdown pass to Ty Montgomery and Lamarcus Joyner stumbled on James Jones’ 65-yard TD reception. Such lapses offset all the terrific defensive plays the Rams made to force turnovers and earn critical stops.
There is still plenty of work to do, starting in about two weeks against the Cleveland Browns at home. But Gurley makes things different. He just does.
There aren’t many running backs of his caliber in the NFL. He is a quantum leap forward from Tre Mason, Zac Stacy and the twilight era Steven Jackson.
“These guys believe in me,” Gurley said. “We’re running the ball. We’re doing a great job. We have to put stuff together and finish.”
Gurley’s ability to turn nothing plays into something creates more favorable down-and-distance situations. As the Rams showed last week while winning at Arizona, that can makes a huge difference.
“Once he hits that hole, he’s hitting it,” Foles said. “That is going to open up a lot of things.
“A lot of good things will happen going forward. We’ll keep working to be a complete offense. Our running game, that’s the start of it. You have a great running game in the NFL because the clock keeps moving and it wears down the defense. We’ll build off that for sure.”
October 11, 2015 at 11:40 pm in reply to: reactions around the net to the Packers game (if you see one you like add it) #32188znModeratorfrom off the net
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Mafioso
What a Packer Fan told me about the Rams
Have an acquaintance who is a die-hard Packer fan. Does not live near me, nor do I talk to him much. This is the text he sent me after the game FWIW:
” Damn, dude. The Rams defense created hell for the Packers. I don’t understand this score. Tough game. Just a couple of plays that blew it for you guys. If the Rams get a better QB, they will be a complete team. Defense is really good. They just need that QB to seal the deal. Just wait till their offense bulks up. Rams will be hard to beat.”
Just remember this is coming from someone who doesn’t watch the Rams like we do. His comments are based solely on todays game. Thought others might be interested in what a non-Ram fan had to say….
October 11, 2015 at 11:26 pm in reply to: reactions around the net to the Packers game (if you see one you like add it) #32183znModeratorfrom off the net
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Blue and Gold
4 turnovers is bad especially when you get two off Rodgers.
taking the sacks on first two would have been better.
on the 1st INT, the smart play is take the sack, punt, play defense, but he wound up and threw it into three guys. Now, this has worked a couple of times this year, but it’s definately a “feast and famine” style. This one, game the Packs 7 points. And with 3 misseg FGs, it seems Rams hung in there, and giving this on up. If he can try and play a bit more disciplined
on the last one in red zone, cannot tell if it was good or bad decision, but he never saw inside defender and even if that guys is not there not sure Tavon has a shot at it, so poor choice and poor throw,.
Foles was playing like Rams were down by 2 TDs with 4 minutes to go in game, rather than in a close dogfight. Trying to make things happen, as Roeth does or other QBs, but on 3rd and long and your line gets whipped, maybe taking the sack is better than a pick-6 and a pick. Someone needs to show files a reel of interceptions and see how many come when you have big-time pressure.
He was under pressure all day, and it seemed that in first half he was playing the same as he did in last of 2nd half, just like he was a basketball player who needed to do everything. There is a time and place and you can say someone needed to do something in 4th Q, but he played that way in first half.
It’s like he was trying to be Michael Jordan when he’s really Kiki Vandeweghe…the protection was poor and Foles tried hard, just does not have skills to play behind a poor line.
With Hekker, you punt and you can count on 40 net yards.
My guess is Foles will not try to do “too much” so early from now on.
October 11, 2015 at 10:38 pm in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32178znModeratorRams’ hopes picked off by Packers
Jim ThomasGREEN BAY, Wis. • Three takeaways by the St. Louis defense, including two interceptions of the guy who never throws interceptions, Aaron Rodgers.
Now toss into the mix a 159-yard rushing performance by rookie phenom Todd Gurley. That’s a victory equation on just about any given Sunday for the visiting team at Lambeau Field.
“You’d think with stats like that, you’d win a game,” defensive end Robert Quinn said.
Not this time.
That’s because the Rams couldn’t pass block, not consistently enough anyway to keep quarterback Nick Foles in any kind of comfort zone in the pocket. And Foles couldn’t throw straight. His favorite targets on a sun-splashed October afternoon were Green Bay defenders.
He threw a career-high four interceptions, one of which was returned for a Green Bay touchdown.
A busted coverage by cornerback Trumaine Johnson resulted in one Rodgers TD pass to a wide-open receiver; a play in which nickel back Lamarcus Joyner stumbled and fell in coverage, resulted in another long scoring play.
Put it all together and it spelled a 24-10 victory for unbeaten Green Bay (5-0), and another frustrating defeat for a Rams team that enters its bye week at 2-3.
“It’s a tough day. We gave ourselves chances time and time again,” said Robert Quinn, who caused one of those Rodgers turnovers with a sack and forced fumble. “They’ve got (No.) 12 over there (Rodgers), who made some great plays. And their defense made some incredible plays, also.”
The game couldn’t have started worse for the Rams, who couldn’t run early and couldn’t pass protect. And on the other side of the ball, they gave the great Rodgers a free seven points to start things off.
On Green Bay’s sixth play of the game, Rodgers completed his first pass of the day to a wide open Ty Montgomery over the middle for a 31-yard touchdown. Johnson got caught up in coverage near the line of scrimmage, in a grouping of players that included safety T.J. McDonald and two Green Bay receivers. In any event, Montgomery broke free past that group for an easy TD and a 7-0 lead.
It became 14-0 Packers near the end of the first quarter when cornerback Quinten Rollins stepped in front of an errant pass thrown by a scrambling Foles and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown.
“I’ve got to make better decisions to give my teammates the opportunity to make the play,” Foles said, speaking of all four interceptions in general. “I didn’t do that during those throws.”
Foles was under pressure on Rollins’ “pick 6,” and he was under pressure much of the day by a Green Bay pass rush that entered the game with 17 sacks, tied for second-most in the league with the Rams.
Be it Rob Havenstein, Rodger Saffold, Tim Barnes, or Greg Robinson, Rams offensive linemen took turns letting pass-rushers through on Foles. Making matters worse for the Rams on the Rollins “pick 6” was that Saffold suffered a shoulder injury on the play and was done for the day.
“You can’t turn it over four times, especially turn it over to (Rodgers) like we did,” Fisher said. “Yes, we have a run game going and our defense played OK, but no, our defense gave up two touchdown passes, so that’s not OK by me.
“Just disappointed we couldn’t stay in it. We missed three field goals for whatever reason. You’re down 21-10 and you miss three field goals. . . .The odds of pulling a game out like that aren’t very good.”
After making his seventh consecutive field goal of the season in the second quarter, kicker Greg Zuerlein had a 50-yard field goal blocked with 4 minutes 15 seconds to play in the third quarter. He had a 53-yarder sail wide left later in the quarter, and a 63-yarder — yes, a 63-yard attempt — go wide left in the fourth.
The Rams failed to take advantage of opportunities throughout the game. Their three takeaways, for example, resulted in only three points.
Linebacker James Laurinaitis ended Rodgers’ amazing streak of passes without an interception at 586 when he grabbed a ball tipped by safety Mark Barron. The Rams took over at their 43 with 4:07 left in the first quarter, but three plays later Green Bay had the ball back when Micah Hyde picked off a high Foles pass intended for Kenny Britt.
There was no harm done, however, because Green Bay went for it on fourth-and-1 from the St. Louis 41 with McDonald tripping up running back Eddie Lacy for no gain. But four plays after that defensive stop, Rollins had his INT return for a touchdown against Foles, with 53 seconds left in the opening quarter.
The Rams regrouped, mounting an 80-yard drive culminating in a five-yard TD pass from Foles to Tavon Austin, and then the Zuerlein field goal following a diving interception by Johnson.
The first seven plays on the 80-yard TD drive were runs, with six of those runs by Gurley, who had 17 carries by halftime and 30 in the game. But the big play was a 32-yard pass interference call against Packers free safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who grabbed tight end Jared Cook’s jersey in coverage.
Green Bay led 14-10 at the half, but restored its lead to double digits four plays into the third quarter when Rodgers connected over the middle to James Jones. Joyner, going for the interception, lost his feet on the play. Otherwise he might have made the tackle after a relatively modest gain.
But with Joyner on the ground, Jones rambled 64 yards before safety Rodney McLeod ran him down inside the 1. Green Bay challenged the play via instant replay, and the call was reversed, giving Jones a 65-yard TD and the Packers a 21-10 lead.
From that point out, five of the Rams’ final six possessions reached Green Bay territory. In fact, two reached the Green Bay 7. But the Rams had zero points to show for all that — as a result of the three missed field goals and two red zone interceptions thrown by Foles.
Wasted on those red zone “picks” were a 55-yard run by Gurley early in the fourth quarter, and a 68-yard reception by Stedman Bailey later in the quarter.
“You look at it, what you could’ve done, the decision-making with the ball — stuff like that and you move forward,” Foles said. “This is the tough part of the business, but I’m thankful to be in this position where I play, and you have to handle the good with the bad. I didn’t play well today, didn’t give us the opportunity to win, and that’s on me.”
October 11, 2015 at 10:36 pm in reply to: reporters on the Packers game ("forget it Nick it's Lambeau town") #32177znModeratorRams’ offense fails to capitalize on another strong defensive effort
Nick Wagoner
GREEN BAY, Wis. — The St. Louis Rams’ defense did what had never been done to Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers at Lambeau Field, forcing him to commit three turnovers.
But the offense couldn’t do what it did just a week ago: turn those takeaways into points. Making matters worse, the offense matched the Packers turnover for turnover (plus one) as quarterback Nick Foles threw four interceptions, including one in the end zone after a late drive had them in position to make it a one-score game.
The inability to convert, along with the giveaways, left the Rams with a 24-10 loss to the Packers.
In the Rams’ 24-22 upset win against Arizona in Week 4, they had three takeaways — which they converted into 17 points — and no turnovers of their own. It was the right formula against a high-powered offense.
Facing a similarly high-octane offense, the Rams’ defense again came up with several big plays to give the offense a chance. For the first time in his career, Rodgers committed three turnovers at home, throwing two interceptions and coughing up a fumble.
The Rams’ offense again simply couldn’t find any consistency, squandering Todd Gurley’s 30-carry, 159-yard day. Another rough outing from the offensive line, especially in pass protection, led to some poor decisions and throws by Foles. Even when Foles was on target, he didn’t get much help from his receivers, who yet again struggled with drops. Things were so bad in the passing game that safety Cody Davis was third on the team in receiving yards (20) after making a grab on a fake punt.
Until the offense can regularly put together drives, strong defensive efforts will continue to go by the wayside.
What it means: The Rams enter the bye week at 2-3 or worse for the third consecutive year. If you believe in historical trends, that’s an ominous sign. The last time the Rams went to the postseason after a 2-3 or worse start was 1952. The schedule lightens a bit after the bye, but the Rams have yet to prove that anything will come easily.
What were they thinking? After all their talk about preparing to handle the small details this week with the music and the air horns, the Rams had an excess of silly pre-snap penalties. They finished with a combined eight penalties for delay of game, false start and offside. The Rams also burned two timeouts just before another pair of delay penalties.
One reason to get excited: The Rams slowly worked Gurley into the mix in his first game against Pittsburgh and ramped it up last week against Arizona. Any remaining caution about his workload vanished Sunday. The rookie running back clearly was the centerpiece of the offense.
One reason to panic: Five games into the season, the offensive line continues to struggle mightily for large chunks of time. The pass protection for most of the game was nowhere to be found and the run blocking was inconsistent.
Fantasy watch: Wide receiver Tavon Austin scored just three touchdowns in 2014 — none of them on receptions (two rushing, one punt return). But he scored the Rams’ lone touchdown against the Packers and now has three in the past two weeks and five in five games. The yards weren’t nearly as abundant as last week, but Austin is starting to find the end zone on a regular basis.
Ouch: It was a rough first half for the Rams on the injury front as they lost right guard Rodger Saffold (shoulder), end Chris Long (right knee) and receiver Kenny Britt (shoulder) in the span of about a quarter. Britt returned to the game; Long and Saffold did not. The Rams have a bye week next week, which buys the trio some time to get healthy.
October 11, 2015 at 8:14 pm in reply to: Proud of the defense. Offense? Not so much… (game reaction thread) #32167znModeratorSo many strengths on this team,
but the OLine is dragging everything down. So far.At any rate, losing to GB in GB is to be expected.
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vWell I am flowing the same direction you are. Last off-season if someone said “the Rams will start an inexperienced OL this season and in game 5 they will play GB in Lambeau plus the Packers D will be better than it has been for years, and I bet the Rams OL does well under those conditions,” would you bet against whoever said that?
if foles takes care of the ball better. if cooks is not on this team. if the oline was more sound. rams win this game.
and just for good measure try to upgrade the receiver corps. i don’t like britt. i don’t like quick. maybe i change my mind. probably not.
I don’t even think it’s that extreme. I think it’s just if Foles doesn’t throw the endzone TD and Zuerelein hits the FGs.
I look at it this way. They had all sorts of opportunities to win that game, and they beat themselves.
I don’t think anyone expected even that much out of them in this game.
Granted the line has to gel but we knew that much last May.
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October 11, 2015 at 8:05 pm in reply to: Proud of the defense. Offense? Not so much… (game reaction thread) #32165znModeratorOn that last sack of Foles, Reynolds didn’t put a finger on Matthews who lined up on his left shoulder. I hope Saffold is back after the bye, and I hope Wichmann or someone gets it together soon because Reynolds is awful.
IMO that’s just ordinary miscommunication. A play like that does not mean the lineman in question is forever doomed to awfulness. It’s a big mistake but it’s the kind that can be straightened out.
October 11, 2015 at 11:00 am in reply to: hey ag or anyone, is there anyway to copy these gifs to here? #32139znModeratorx
znModeratorIt could lead to some errant snaps.
I just wanted to say that Erran Snaps was my favorite bass player from the 70s funk era.
znModerator
znModeratorOctober 11, 2015 at 10:20 am in reply to: hey ag or anyone, is there anyway to copy these gifs to here? #32128znModeratorThank you!
October 11, 2015 at 10:17 am in reply to: week 5 stats, including "Rams have played 3 top 5 defenses" #32124znModeratorGB’s opponent OLs are ranked 1st, 2nd, 3rd(tie), and 13th(tie) for most sacks allowed.
Sometimes it’s not clear if that kind of number is good or bad. So, does 1st for the most sacked allowed mean they allowed the most sacks, make them 1st in a bad category, or does it mean they allowed the least?
So I looked it up.
It means worst. GB played Seattle, KC, and SF which allowed a lot of sacks each (they are in fact 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the bad category of getting sacked a lot. They are 3 of the 4 most sacked teams.
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znModeratorctually I see your point. Can they now stay focused coming off a big victory? Based on the Washington game I’d say NO. But maybe they’ve begun to mature.
I think what happened in Washington was a unique event. IMO Washington ambushed them with summer-long game-planning, exactly the way the Rams pre-gameplanned Seattle. Washington was motivated by last year, including the coin flip stunt and being shut out at home. Plus I doubt the Rams fail to take Green Bay seriously.
znModeratorI have a feeling blitzing could be limited this week due to Rodgers quick release and mastery of the field.
A guess: we will see a combination of blitzes, fake blitzes, and disguised coverages. Plus an exotic front or 2.
The issue will be run defense. If the Rams can limit Lacy the way they limited Bell, then all those combined head games will have a better chance.
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znModeratorI say we OSK all day long.
Hear me out.
If we get the ball, great … that’s the idea. But, if the Packers get the ball, that means they’ll have less time with the ball since they’ll have a shorter field. And, the Rams’ D, which will bend all day until the Packers get in FG range anyway, will have much less time on the field.
And, without irony …. ———>
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znModeratorfrom off the net
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Youngblood_HOF
My brother and I decided to make a bucket list trip to Lambeau! (as if the Harley Davidson purchase two weeks ago wasn’t evidence enough of my mid-life crisis)
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Interesting note: being identified as Rams fans all weekend because of our apparel, we’ve had lots of football talk with Packer fans, who are really nice and hospitable…and pretty knowledgeable football fans. Almost all of them have said the Rams are a solid, up and coming team with a defense to be respected. They say Fisher has them primed for contention. Having said that, they don’t expect to lose.
For the golfers out there, Whistling Straits is more extraordinary and spectacular than advertised.
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