Special teams ending the game with a 💥!@troyreeder9 forces it, @Dee_Willl2 recovers it! pic.twitter.com/OYyffRMaJ6

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) October 21, 2019

Papatrey

Jalen Ramsey’s First Game

Was at the game today and on most plays Jalen was in, I just watched him during the live action, then watched the re-play action on the screen. A couple of observations.

First, even though he was up on the line for more than half the plays, he doesn’t actually jam the receiver at the line. Allows a free release and then trails in tight coverage.

Julio Jones did beat him on a few times, but then again, that’s Julio Jones.

The forced fumble was a thing of beauty. No El Matador run support like Marcus Peters.

You could easily see the big difference he makes in Wade’s defense. That was the most aggressive play calling Wade has done this year. Particularly in regard to blitzes.

Surprisingly quite a few Ram jerseys on display. Many of them being the Georgia boy Gurley, but plenty of others also.

By the 3rd Quarter we had to temper our cheers because we felt so sorry for the Falcon fans. The Falcons played very poorly today.

When Freeman got into the scuffle with Aaron Donald a fan close by shouted, “Put him on defense. At least he hits someone.”

HIT THE LINK TO SEE THE VID

…

Watch Jalen Ramsey's top plays from first game with Rams https://t.co/J44iCznNDu

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) October 20, 2019

Fire up the guitars.@dantefowler coming through! 🎸🤘 pic.twitter.com/5m1XvvXPVh

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) October 20, 2019

Stu Jackson@StuJRams
The Rams defense’s five sacks today marked a season-high and matched their combined total across Weeks 4-6.

Work of Rams CBs Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, Darious Williams, Nickell Robey-Coleman, etc. against one of NFL’s top passing offenses was a key part of that.

from PFF ReFocused: Los Angeles Rams 37, Atlanta Falcons 10
https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-week-7-pff-refocused-los-angeles-rams-37-atlanta-falcons-10

LOS ANGELES RAMS

Jared Goff’s accuracy was impressive against the Falcons. He picked them apart methodically, using a mixture of screens, pick routes and intermediate crossers to march the Rams on several long drives. Although Goff narrowly missed a couple of deeper throws, he put up a beauty on a deep touchdown to Todd Gurley to highlight an impressive day. The Rams’ quarterback thrived on play-action, continually keeping the offense ahead of the chains and opening up some running lanes for the Rams’ quality rushing attack.

The Rams’ defense dominated in the trenches, with the standout performer being none other than Aaron Donald. The play of the game came early in the fourth quarter when Donald strip-sacked quarterback Matt Ryan and recovered the fumble in the process. The game was essentially over at that point, and Ryan left the game injured and did not return.

Star cornerback Jalen Ramsey had an up-and-down debut with the team. He made a great play to force a fumble on a Devota Freeman carry in the first half and was solid for the most part in coverage, although he did get beat by Julio Jones on a route that should have ended in a touchdown.

How did Jalen Ramsey play in his debut with the Rams? https://t.co/CU0OAu16ge

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) October 20, 2019

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001067633/article/what-we-learned-from-sundays-week-7-games?campaign=Twitter_atn

Los Angeles Rams 37, Atlanta Falcons 10

1. Playing a dying Falcons squad is the panacea the Rams needed after three straight losses. The offense, after an anemic Week 6, looked more like the unit we are used to seeing under Sean McVay. Jared Goff looked comfortable in the pocket against a Falcons pass rush that couldn’t take advantage of a struggling Rams O-line. Goff tossed several dimes en route to two TDs on 22-of-37 passing for 268 yards, including a picture-perfect throw that Todd Gurley marvelously hauled in for the first touchdown of the game — the RB’s first receiving score since Week 8, 2018. After being stupefied last week, L.A. converted 8-of-16 third downs and punted just once on its first five possessions of the game. The run-game continues to come and go behind some mediocre blocking but was able to churn out yards late in the blowout. When Goff isn’t under heavy pressure, he can dice up secondaries. Facing Atlanta was the perfect opponent for the QB and the rest of the offense to right the ship, moving to 4-3 before a game against the winless Bengals next Sunday.

2. The Rams’ midweek blockbuster trade for Jalen Ramsey pitted the star corner against all-world receiver Julio Jones for the first time. While the Rams suggested they would bring Ramsey along slowly, DC Wade Phillips deployed Ramsey liberally early in the contest against Jones. Jalen Ramsey played 26 of 31 snaps (83.9%) in the first half, per Next Gen Stats. Ramsey lined up against Julio Jones on 17 of his 26 snaps (65%) through two quarters allowing three receptions for 69 yards, per NGS. With the second-half blowout, L.A. was able to rest Ramsey late. He played 36 of 52 snaps on the game — 30 of the first 36. Julio still made several plays against Ramsey downfield, but it was easy to see how the Rams plan to use the corner to help boost the pass defense. Phillips brought heat on Matt Ryan and rolled coverage elsewhere with Ramsey mostly one-on-one against Jones. Dante Fowler had a monster game, compiling three sacks, three tackles for loss, a pass defended and a forced fumble and wrecking several other plays. Aaron Donald was again in the middle of everything, including a strip-sack of Ryan, during which the QB was injured. Shutting down an Atlanta offense that came in putting up big numbers is exactly what McVay and Co. wanted to see after acquiring Ramsey for a hefty price tag.

3. The Falcons are a hot mess. Ryan hobbled off with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter and was ruled out. Running back Devonta Freeman got ejected for throwing a punch at Aaron Donald. Who tries to fight Aaron freaking Donald? Before all that, it was another listless performance from Dan Quinn’s team, who dropped their fifth straight to fall to 1-6. The defensive front couldn’t find pressure if it was sitting at the bottom of the ocean. The secondary allows pass-catchers to gallop wide open. The offensive line has more turnstiles than an amusement park. The offense converted a sad 3-of-12 third downs and netted just 224 total yards. Matt Schaub led the only TD drive of the game in garbage time. The final Rams punt summed up the mess, with Russell Gage fumbling and L.A. recovering in the end zone to cap a laughable blowout in Atlanta. By all reports, the Falcons hoped to avoid an in-season coaching change. The on-field performances might not allow that desire to ride much longer. Quinn feels like a dead man walking a plank that is getting shorter by the week.

Not just a runner.@TG3II's first receiving TD of the season! pic.twitter.com/ffRiqAG2bJ

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) October 20, 2019

#LARams at #RiseUp: Report card. @LARamsRamsRams has the grades after a big game in Atlanta and it looks like the guys made the honor roll! https://t.co/DDrgtgmebq

— TurfShowTimes (@TurfShowTimes) October 20, 2019

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Of the many things I’ll be keeping an eye on today is first-down success. Last year #Rams averaged 6.8 yards per play on first downs. They are averaging 5.4 yards per first down plays this year.

TurfShowTimes@TurfShowTimes
Things to keep in mind today:

– Troy Hill and Jalen Ramsey are likely to start at boundary CB
– Rookie David Edwards to start first NFL game at LG, replaces Demby/Noteboom
– Todd Gurley will be active
– Darrell Hendo to receive more work (Malc inactive)

Sosa K@QBsMVP
All active:

– Jalen Ramsey
– Todd Gurley
– David Long Jr. (first time)
– Bobby Evans (yikes)

New additions in Kenny Young + Austin Corbett are inactive

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
#Rams rookie CB David Long Jr. also active for the first time this year. #Rams going heavy with their DB’s while not dressing LB Hager and DL Gaines

It also means OL Bobby Evans is up for the first time in his career

TurfShowTimes@TurfShowTimes
Rams really shaking it up after a 3-game losing skid. Rookies beginning to see activity on gameday.

Rams’ Kevin Demoff: Jalen Ramsey one of best in game

Ian Rapoport

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001066997/article/rams-kevin-demoff-jalen-ramsey-one-of-best-in-game

A storyline that dominated the NFL landscape for the past month exploded on Tuesday night, as Jalen Ramsey was traded to the Los Angeles Rams for the two first-round picks that the Jaguars wanted, plus an additional fourth-rounder. Ramsey’s back was healed, Jacksonville had wiped the slate clean and Los Angeles had a shutdown corner.

“It’s a long-term move for one of the best players in the game,” Rams COO Kevin Demoff said during a break from the league meetings.

One of the biggest trades in a league suddenly full of them transpired, leaving all sides with new beginnings. Less than 24 later, Jaguars owner Shad Khan — who had led the charge in telling teams Ramsey wasn’t available for the few weeks prior — reflected on value he couldn’t turn down.

“What I think is basically what I’ve been saying, that we have to respect individual players and do the right thing for the Jags,” Khan told NFL Media, while also mentioning that he’s still not sure how it went sideways with Ramsey. “I think this is definitely the right thing for the Jaguars. I’m really proud of, as a team, how they’ve done and I think this really puts us in a good place moving forward.”

For the Rams, it was textbook. They are seemingly involved in every trade, and are never shy. This was a perfect example. Their massive move led some to wonder if, at 3-3, they were trying to save their season.

“If we were trying to save our season, then wouldn’t we have kept Marcus Peters?” Demoff asked. “If this was panic or desperation, we would’ve kept both.”

Instead, Peters went to Baltimore in a whirlwind day, while the Rams got Ramsey. They will gameplan to his strengths — play more man-to-man defense — and watch as he goes toe-to-toe with Julio Jones today.

For the Jags, Khan notes that the onus is on those making the picks to chose wisely with their new bounty.

Khan called the deal “fair for all parties” and said of the All-Pro Ramsey, “I think we knew what we had in the value.” It took a certain amount of patience to deal with everything, including Ramsey sitting out games with an injury.

“Somebody has to step in and say, ‘We got to balance the right thing for the team and deal with some of the drama and long-term to do the right thing,’ ” Khan explained.

For the Rams, meanwhile, it was the opposite side of the spectrum. They’ve had the huge haul of picks before, dealing the selection that turned into Robert Griffin III to the Redskins in 2012. It turned into eight players, notably Janoris Jenkins, Michael Brockers, Alec Ogletree and Greg Robinson. Only Brockers is still with the team. Over the last few years, GM Les Snead and Demoff have been far more comfortable trading draft picks for proven pieces.

And as usual, the Rams went for it.

“We haven’t figured out something that other people haven’t, we’re just more aggressive and willing to do it than others,” Demoff said. “And then we’re willing to move around in the draft and replenish draft capital. … Time will tell whether we’re better off drafting more assets, but we are not where we were when we did the RGIII trade. It’s harder to develop guys with the new CBA. And first rounders are good players, but the hit rate is 50 percent.”

Current players are more certain, but also more expensive. It’s a give-and-take. Demoff acknowledged the team pays a premium for top, young talent such that they’ve acquired via trade. And yes, his team’s thinking is slightly different than some.

“We don’t value late first-rounders as much as we do proven players,” Demoff said. It’s true, the Rams traded their first-round picks in 2017-2021. But Demoff explains that each was for a different reason.

In 2017, it was simply the price of moving up for Jared Goff. In 2018, it was for Brandin Cooks, who has impressed and still was in his early 20s when they traded for him. Last year, they traded out of the first round and still got a player in Taylor Rapp at No. 61 that they would’ve taken in the first round. And then there are the Ramsey picks.

“It is a further crapshoot when you get to that point in the round,” Demoff said. His team also, by the way, dealt Peters to Baltimore that same day, a deal that Demoff said was somewhat linked to Ramsey but not done together. When they did Peters, they knew there was a chance at Ramsey. But they would have executed the Peters deal without finishing off the Ramsey deal.

Of the trade of Peters, who the team was not going to make one of the highest-paid CBs this offseason, Demoff said, “We liked Marcus and wanted to send him to a place where he’d thrive.”

Meanwhile, an added beneficiary, oddly, was Rams CB Troy Hill, who became a rare NFL player to sell his jersey number not once but twice. He got $32K for the No. 32 that Eric Weddle now wears, then $20K for the No. 20 that currently belongs to Ramsey. Plus, he’s playing well, which allowed the team to even consider the Peters deal in the first place.

As for Ramsey and a possible new contract, this deal was not contingent on making him the highest-paid corner. The team did broach the topic before trading for Ramsey, but the expectation is it’ll be handled in the offseason. Ramsey is due to make $13.7 million in 2020.

“There’s nothing that binds either side, but we assume he’ll like it here and we’ll start a conversation,” Demoff said.