After beating the Broncos, can the Rams beat anyone? ESPN’s Nick Wagoner tells “The Fast Lane”

Ram Bytes: Rams defense pulls off rare feat

Bernie Miklasz

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/bernie-miklasz/ram-bytes-rams-defense-pulls-off-rare-feat/article_6589556f-82e3-5c5a-9f29-7b04a721f455.html

A few observations and opinions the day after the Rams’ stunning 22-7 victory over Peyton Manning and the highfalutin Denver Broncos…

* Here’s why I believe the Rams’ win was the best by the franchise since Jeff Fisher took over as coach in 2012: because we saw something that had never happened before … and that’s always special.

The Rams pulled off something yesterday that no team has done since Manning entered the league in 1998 … they held his offense to fewer than 10 points in a game played indoors, inside a dome.

Understand that holding Manning to 7 points or less under any circumstances is pretty rare; until Sunday it had happened only five times in his 249 regular-season starts.

But Manning’s offense has never scored fewer than 10 inside.

As the Indianapolis QB from 1998 through 2010 (he missed 2011 with a neck injury) Manning played his home games in a domed stadium. And including some road-dome games played in other venues, his offenses had averaged 27.3 points per game. And with Denver, Manning’s Broncos had scored 72 points in two enclosed games, averaging 36 points.

So to hold Manning to 7 points under a roof in a climate-controlled setting with no wind, rain, sleet, snow or cold … well, it’s never happened. Not until Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams released the hounds on Manning to sack him twice and pressure him 15 times overall.

* Williams’ plan was brilliant. He concocted all sorts of ways to repeatedly bring the pressure up the middle, and that’s the best way to get after the immobile Manning. With guys in his face, he can’t see downfield, can’t get away, and can’t release full-stride throws. It keeps him off balance in every conceivable way.

* It’s fun to watch the players get acclimated to Williams’ system and play the kind of defense we envisioned when Fisher hired Williams as DC.

* Manning and the Broncos had 11 meaningful possessions Sunday. I didn’t count the two possessions at the end of each half; time had just about expired and the Broncos weren’t trying to score. But on the 11 possessions when they had the ball and were looking to score, the Rams stopped them on 10 of the 11 … in Manning’s long and distinguished history you haven’t seen that very often.

* That was one of the surprises for me yesterday: that the Rams, led by QB Shaun Hill, scored on six of their 10 meaningful possessions. And that Manning went 1 for 11 in putting points on the board.

* Another surprise: that the Broncos got fewer QB pressures (only seven) on Hill than the Rams got on Manning. Denver’s offensive line has struggled in the running game, but the Broncos usually keep Manning clean. That wasn’t the case yesterday. The Rams have struggled in their pass protection this season but did an effective job against Denver’s tough front four. Right tackle Joe Barksdale, who had been slumping, had a good bounce-back game against the Broncs.

* Or course, a lot of the credit for that goes to Hill, who was calm in the pocket, and very aware of what was happening around him. He got the ball out quickly, and that’s a sure way to counter the pass-rush pressure. That’s the difference between the veteran Hill and the young Austin Davis. Young QBs tend to hold onto the ball. They’re inexperienced and don’t go through their progessions as quickly. Hill’s internal clock was sharp; he knew when to unload the ball to prevent a negative play. And this was one of the main reasons for Fisher’s decision to make the change and go with Hill.

* Kudos to Rams’ offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer who had a smart and effective game plan. First, the Rams didn’t shy away from the run. They made the Broncos account for the run, and that gave Hill a chance to take some shots downfield. The Rams weren’t intimidated by Denver’s top-ranked rushing defense. They calmly fed the ball to rookie RB Tre Mason, who carried 29 times for 113 yards.

* Obviously the Rams were in position to keep running it; that’s the beauty of taking the lead and keeping it. You can avoid panicking and becoming one-dimensional by throwing it all day in an attempt to play catch-up. But Schottenheimer had the right idea going in, and that’s one of the reasons why the Rams won this one. By running it and mixing in a lot of quick-release short passes, they hogged the ball and built up a big edge in possession time. Which was a significant factor in the Broncos turning into a one-dimensional offense that ran the ball only 10 times.

* Rams second-year safety T.J. McDonald continued to excel; he made plays all over the field Sunday. In his last three games McDonald has received “plus” grades from Pro Football Focus for his play, and we’re seeing why the Rams coveted McDonald and used a third-round pick to draft him in 2013. McDonald is playing the way his father used to, and Tim McDonald was one helluva safety.

* Linebacker Alec Ogletree has certainly gotten a lot better … and it happened quickly. He’s really been impressive over the last three games. Pro Football Focus gave Ogletree the highest grade on the Rams’ defense yesterday.

* And then there’s Rams rookie defensive tackle Aaron Donald. This quick and ferocious wildcat is an exceptional player. I bought tickets for yesterday’s game and had a great corner-view angle of the game, which provided a chance to watch the conflicts on the line of scrimmage. This was Donald’s 10th NFL game, and the Broncos hit him with everything, including double-team blocks and uncalled holding penalties. Donald still managed to invade Denver’s comfort zone. Through the first 11 NFL Weeks, Donald has graded out as the NFL’s second-best defensive tackle; according to Pro Football Focus only Detroit’s Ndamukong Suh is rated above Donald.

* You just have to love the way rookie CB E.J. Gaines competes. He’s relentless.

Peter King: MMQB

http://mmqb.si.com/2014/11/17/nfl-week-11-jonas-gray-patriots/

Defensive Players of the Week

Alec Ogletree, linebacker, St. Louis. Roll this around in your head: The St. Louis Rams, who had allowed more than 30 points in six of nine games prior to Sunday, held Peyton Manning and the explosive Broncos to seven at the Edward Jones Dome. In the 22-7 victory, Ogletree was the leader of the pack: 13 tackles, an interception and two passes defensed. Chosen with the Rams’ second first-round pick in 2013, Ogletree is rapidly becoming the kind of pass-rusher and pass-defender every quarterback has to fear. This was his second straight game with a pick.

Rams head coach Jeff Fisher recaps 22-7 victory over Broncos with Farr, Savard

—

Trumaine Johnson Interception – 4th Quarter

—

Kenny Britt 63 Yd Touchdown – 1st Quarter

—

Greg Zuerlein 55 Yd Field Goal – 4th Quarter

Mason runs it up against league’s top run defense

By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/mason-runs-it-up-against-league-s-top-run-defense/article_1d420ca1-54e1-516a-8639-7bde13444bfc.html

Tre Mason never backs down from a challenge, and the rookie running back was more than up to the challenge against the Denver Broncos.

His first 100-yard rushing game in the NFL, 113 yards on 29 carries, just happened to come against the league’s top-ranked rushing defense.

“That’s how you have to beat this team,” coach Jeff Fisher said after his Rams stunned Denver 22-7 before a season-high crowd of 59,401 at the Edward Jones Dome.

So how did Mason do it?

“Prayers go up, blessings come down,” Mason said.

And yards pile up.

Denver (7-3) had been yielding only 67 yards a game on the ground entering Sunday’s game. But Mason said Denver’s credentials only served to motivate him.

“Oh, of course,” he said. “Every time. That’s been me since high school. When they’re ranked No. 1, that’s when I’ve gotta play good. I love to play big in the big games.”

The Denver defense had allowed only 11 runs of 10 yards or more all season, but Mason had four such runs Sunday: two for 10 yards, one for 15 yards, and a 27-yard gain that was the Rams’ second-longest run of the season.

The first 10-yard gain came on the game’s opening possession, which ended in a Greg Zuerlein field goal. The 27-yard carry in the third quarter got the Rams in position for Zuerlein’s third field goal of the day as they took a 16-7 lead.

Mason made sure to praise his offensive line in the locker room.

“I could say this every week, and this should go for every running back,” Mason said. “Without those guys up front, any stat that we have is impossible. I love those guys.”

The feeling is mutual.

“He has a bright future here,” right guard Davin Joseph said. “He should be here for a very, very long time. Along with Greg Robinson, Rodger Saffold, the entire line. Those guys are out there really blocking hard and making things happen.”

Over the course of the game, the Denver defense stopped Mason plenty of times for minimal gains or no gain. But the Rams stayed committed to the run, with a season high 33 carries good for a league-high 131 yards.

“You chip away 1, 2, 3 yards, and then you get one of those 6-, 7-yard runs,” center Scott Wells said.

Or one of those 10-, 15- or 27-yard runs.

“And it opened up plays in the passing game as well,” Wells said. “So it was a good game plan.”

GREG THE LEG

Since kicking four field goals in a 19-17 victory over Tampa Bay in Game 2, Zuerlein has had a quiet season. But the Rams’ place-kicker made his presence felt against Denver, kicking a career-best five field goals. Those 15 points spelled the difference in a 15-point Rams victory.

Zuerlein got his leg warmed up with three shorter kicks in the opening three quarters, making field goals of 37, 29 and 22 yards. Then came two long-range boots in the fourth quarter, from 55 and 53 yards to give the Rams some breathing room.

“It’s just nice getting into a rhythm early on, and then feeling confident throughout the game,” Zuerlein said.

RAM-BLINGS
With Denver in so many three-receiver sets and safety Mark Barron being used in some packages, strong side linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar did not see action Sunday. Dunbar has been bothered by a toe injury.

• After seeing some action on special teams last week in Arizona, running back Zac Stacy did not play. He has not had a carry since Oct. 26 in Kansas City.

Rams’ defense hands out punishment

Joe Strauss

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/joe-strauss/strauss-rams-defense-hands-out-punishment/article_c70dc34f-12c8-56f2-b789-a7503e17991c.html

They acquired a high-profile coordinator and a young defensive backfield with attitude. They rediscovered Sack City earlier this month. Their linebackers finally have found a comfort zone in a scheme that has no time for a second thought.

Sunday afternoon the Rams worked them all into a bad-ass performance against the baddest offense in the league and came away with a 22-7 statement.

The Rams brought the pain, swung the hammer, delivered a spanking and performed virtually every other description of violence the Denver Broncos and gilded quarterback Peyton Manning could imagine.

It’s only a rumor the Rams keep reporters a safe distance from practice to protect virgin ears. Coordinator Gregg Williams offers little forgiveness during the week while demanding fast, faster and fastest from his guys. If the air turns a little blue, tough. It helps the weekend product. Bruised by Sunday’s St. Louis experience, the Broncos can testify to its effectiveness.

“That offense knows if you throw that ball up you’re going to feel it,” said Rams safety T.J. McDonald.

Last month’s Welcome Wagon has turned mean. The Rams prevented an allegedly unstoppable offense from taking a snap inside their 28-yard line while holding it to a lonesome touchdown. They didn’t just contain the Broncos, they punished them.

“You bring a new coach in and things tend to go slow at first,” said second-year linebacker Alec Ogletree, who spiced Sunday’s win with a monster performance. “As you stay with it, things speed up. We’ve got a lot of great athletes on this team. When you have that, you can play fast.”

In three November games the Rams’ defense has surrendered 37 points. The Broncos entered Sunday scoring 31.8 points per tilt. They left town with their lowest regular-season point total in 42 games since Jan. 1, 2012. Tim Tebow quarterbacked that day against Kansas City.

Through September and October the Rams looked at least a half-step slow on defense. They too often failed to keep up with receivers, too often were out of position and too often got plowed by the run.

“What’s important to us is the way we’re playing now, and we’re playing better,” said coach Jeff Fisher, who thought Sunday as complete a game as he’s witnessed as Rams coach. “I think the younger guys are more familiar with what we’re doing. I think … Gregg understands who he’s working with.”

“The scheme is built so that if everyone is on the same page you can play really fast,” explained middle linebacker James Laurinaitis, who sacked Manning on the final play of the third quarter. “Gregg always says, ‘A slow correct decision is still a wrong decision.’ He doesn’t want you to be thinking, ‘Well, technically I’m supposed to be here.’ If you do that slowly he’s still going to grade you down because he wants you playing fast.

“I think the last few weeks we’ve been able to come in, play extremely fast, trust each other and know that we don’t have to be perfect. Let’s just be aggressive and physical. The light bulb is kind of switched on, but we have to keep that thing on. I don’t want it to (burn) out.”

Opponents gashed the Rams for 4.67 yards per rush and 144.3 rushing yards per game during a 2-4 start. Now more stout than stiff, the Rams have since confined three teams that won double-digit games last season to an average 2.57 yards a carry and less than 86 rushing yards a game.

Before the Rams stunned the 49ers on the road they owned the league’s lowest combination of sacks and interceptions (nine). With Sunday’s two sacks and two picks of Manning, a team that dressed up as an easy defensive mark for Halloween has 13 sacks and three interceptions in its last three games. In other words, the Rams are finally playing to their brash coordinator’s reputation.

“Not taking anything away from their offense, you can credit their defense,” assessed Broncos coach John Fox, his reigning AFC champions now 2-3 on the road this season.

“We’re a physical team,” insisted defensive end Eugene Sims. “Most people don’t think that. But when they see our identity on film they know different.”

The Broncos like to run no-huddle, fast-break offense. Manning is the maestro of the audible, gesturing while stepping up and back from his line. The Rams typically employ two or three defensive checks per game. Sunday they brought seven or eight by Laurinaitis’ count. The Broncos took only 66 offensive snaps — the same number the Cardinals ran the previous week, only four more than the 49ers ran two weeks before.

Manning is the greatest regular-season quarterback in league history, but on Sunday in probably his last performance at the Edward Jones Dome, he looked ordinary and frustrated.

A play-changing surgeon who specializes in the unexpected, Manning found himself narrowed to throwing the ball on his team’s final 29 plays. “I don’t feel like I carried my weight today,” he said.

Once Greg Zuerlein, who had 16 points, kicked the Rams to a two-possession lead, the Broncos defined one-dimensional. The Broncos called their final running play with 7:49 left in the third quarter and the Rams ahead 13-7.

Two weeks ago the 49ers admitted after a 13-10 loss that the Rams’ defensive line manhandled them in an eight-sack effort against the mobile Colin Kaepernick. Arizona’s Carson Palmer didn’t last three quarters before suffering a left ACL tear. Sunday at the orange-tinted Edward Jones Dome ended Manning’s NFL record of 15 consecutive games with multiple touchdown passes.

Ogletree has gone from lost in space to a force in the past month. He intercepted a pass for the second straight week, conspired on 13 tackles and knocked down a fourth-down pass to effectively squash any lingering hope for a Broncos comeback.

A team embarrassingly prone to poor discipline and catastrophic mistakes in most of its six losses implemented a perfect game plan Sunday. Cornerback Trumaine Johnson intercepted Manning and defensed three other passes. Rookie cornerback E.J. Gaines proved more than a nuisance with eight tackles and two passes defensed. Free safety Rodney McLeod leveled Broncos wideout Emanuel Sanders with a second-quarter shoulder hit that left Manning’s deep threat with a concussion and McLeod potentially fined. Of the Broncos’ 34 receptions, three went for more than 20 yards, just one for more than 30.

Effective defense is fast, punishing and painful. Ballet is for the other side of the ball. Tough guys don’t dance. The Rams didn’t two-step Sunday.