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znModeratorExcited about our new #RamsRadio digs. Here’s hoping tonight is the first of 10 @RamsNFL home games left in this historic house before making the move to Inglewood.
1 preseason + 7 regular + 2 playoff games. pic.twitter.com/PjQyrp4exV
— J.B. Long (@JB_Long) August 24, 2019
znModerator
znModeratorWe had to put down two dogs within a couple years. My wife and I told ourselves that our current dog, Fritz, would be the last. We’ll never get another dog after this one.
The pain of having to put a beloved pet down is too much to bear.
At the same time, it’s hard to imagine our lives without this big furry goofball. He brings us such joy.
So I guess the take home of all this is ‘never say never.’
Dogs are amazing and in fact all the evidence suggests that people n dogs are intertwined evolutionarily and linked species. That sounds more obvious than I meant it to. I guess I am trying to say people n dogs are REALLY REALLY intertwined evolutionarily. Like, a lot.
Plus I like dogs, I always have.
Losing them is hard though as you say.
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znModeratorfrom PFF: 32 stats to know after Week 2 of the 2019 NFL preseason
…
Los Angeles Rams:
Rookie edge defender Natrez Patrick has played only 58 defensive snaps this preseason, but he’s still managed to tally six pressures and five defensive stops. His impact-play percentage (pressures+stops+batted passes/defensive snaps) of 19.0% ranks third among all edge defenders so far this preseason, behind only Chase Winovich (21.6%) and Damontre Moore (20.3%).
znModeratorLos Angeles Rams vs. Denver Broncos: What to watch for
Six things to look for in Week 3
znModeratorI dunno H. They went through the same things with NB and Allen last year and the times they had to sub in as rookies, they did just fine.
I really think the way they approach coaching linemen in the pre-season makes it look like they are further behind than they actually are.
znModeratorSo for that reason I’d prefer the GE chestnut trees be kept in orchards.
This is one of those odd things.
The american wilds are not what they would have been if Euros had not come over.
Interesting article on that:
American Forests Look Nothing Like They Did 400 Years Ago: https://www.businessinsider.com/northeastern-us-forest-transformation-2013-9
znModeratorAre you going to get another dog?
Not right away. The way our schedules work, most dog care and training falls on me. That’s just a product of having a partner that works nights. Because Bondi was on chemo for nearly a year, a lot extra fell on me. At some points he needed 24/7 care. As a result of all that—I need a break. I can’t just leap into taking care of a new dog right away. So, probably next summer. This time I think we will get a shelter dog. I love pure bred aussies, they are great dogs. But, it’s a luxury to get a pure bred pup when there are so many shelter dogs that need homes.
znModeratorHe goes on to write about the ‘TCI’ or temperament and character inventory which measures among other things ‘self-transcendence.’ Self-transcendence being defined as composed of
(1)’trans-personal identification’ (Big Empathy – empathy with animals, plants, humans, etc)
(2) ‘mysticism’ – interest in ‘beyond-logic’ stuff
(3) ‘self-forgetfulness’ –penchant for getting lost in the moment, being in the ‘zone’ of art, sports, whatever.Blah, blah
I buy the idea that ego reducing, more tranquil and planet-connected living can overall increase a lifespan. In fact, in spite of mysticism…it’s logical.
znModeratorI’m not concerned.
First, Kromer has an eye for finding and developing OL talent. In fact his hit rate for picking linemen is phenomenal–and this goes way back.
Second, you cannot take what is happening in pre-season games as any indication of what the Rams have in terms of OL depth.
Here’s why.
First, no young lineman is going to look good if you line him up with exclusively OTHER young linemen in pre-season games. They do not have the experience or cohesion as a unit and as a direct result of that, pretty much each individual lineman is not going to look good. That’s just inescapable.
Second, they ask them to move around and play different positions on top of it. That just compounds the entire thing–they are REALLY not going to look good as a result.
Third, Kromer insists on them using new techniques he has taught them but which they have not mastered yet (and are in the process of mastering). Because of that, he doesn’t care if they don’t look that good at first. In fact he says so. This is from an article which is the August 23, 2019 at 10:04 pm post in this thread: http://theramshuddle.com/topic/ol-talk-august/#post-104226. Kromer tells the young guys,
“You’re going to stink for a couple of months. You’re not going to be good,” Kromer said when asked to explain his initial message to his young linemen to The Athletic. “But don’t worry about getting beat. Just worry about trying the technique. Work the technique. Work the play. Understand the play. And do that more than worrying about how many you won or lost right now because that’s not what it’s all about. It’s about getting better.”
That is–they use the pre-season games to coach these guys up with the aim being longterm gain in spite of short term growing pains.
What about during the season?
During the season no new lineman is going to line up with 4 other new linemen and then switch positions while mastering new techniques. They’re going to be added to an established and cohesive line, set at one position, and with experience behind them getting up to speed on Rams techniques (which is how the Rams use pre-season games…live reps, gaining experience, investing in the Rams way with longterm not shortterm goals).
So whoever their keepers are among the young linemen, they will have been coached up under fire.
You just cannot judge them by how they look in the pre-season. The way it’s set up for them, there is NO WAY they CAN look good in the pre-season. But they gain from it.
On top of it, in spite of all the growing pains, one player is way ahead–Edwards. And THAT is just golden. It means that the Rams found 2 LOT prospects in 2 years, both lower than the 2nd round. Do you know what the odds are of a team doing that? They’re not very good odds…and the Rams (so far anyway) seem to be defying those odds.
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znModeratoraeneas1
great interview with goff (altho you have to muscle through “mike stud” trying to form thoughts), he talks about his approach to the game, his relationship with mcvay and much more… here’s a small 5 minute excerpt, the full interview is an hour and a half long
znModerator12 Rams players to watch in preseason Week 3 vs. Broncos https://t.co/apzAuehmYx
— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) August 24, 2019
znModerator3 keys to victory for Rams against Broncos on Saturday https://t.co/snjIhUaSsR
— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) August 24, 2019
znModeratorFile this in the, “Wait, Cooper Kupp had reconstructive knee surgery almost 9 months ago, seriously?” category. Kupp has looked sharp. pic.twitter.com/SRpmnTkeWM
— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) August 7, 2019
znModerator*Saints get ball first in OT*
Drew Brees: pic.twitter.com/zB53rJIdxq
— Aged Matt Ryan (@JacobDyches) August 14, 2019
znModeratorThe brutal honesty of the Rams’ offensive line training
Vincent Bonsignore
Right off the bat, Aaron Kromer gives his young apprentices on their first day of work a heads-up that sounds like a bit of a warning bell. After all, it’s not often one of the first things you hear from your new boss is “Oh by the way, there’s a good chance you’re going to stink at this.”
Naturally, the players’ initial reaction is one of confusion. They wonder what they’ve gotten themselves into. What the Rams offensive line coach tells his new pupils next makes all the difference.
“Don’t worry about it.”
Kromer shares those reassuring words to the handful of prospects as they step into his laboratory and immerse themselves in an intense development program designed to push their physical and mental stress levels as far as possible. It requires cross-training at multiple positions along the offensive line and, in some cases, lining up at as many as three different positions during preseason games.
Second-year lineman Jamil Demby and rookie draft picks David Edwards and Bobby Evans have played this game of offensive-line music chairs throughout training camp and the Rams’ first two exhibition games. Edwards and Evans have shuffled between both tackle and guard spots, and Demby has rotated from guard to center to tackle.
To put that in perspective, Edwards and Evans played exclusively at tackle during their careers at Wisconsin and Oklahoma, respectively. And the first time Demby ever executed a shotgun or under-center snap was last spring during OTAs when Kromer told him the Rams wanted to get a look at him at center. Before that, Demby had only played tackle and some guard during his career at Maine and his one season in the NFL.
The shuffling has led to some difficult moments during the preseason, particularly as Demby masters both snap techniques. His shotgun snaps haven’t always been crisp or perfectly on target.
“I think we expect a lot better from him than that, especially when he is playing that center spot,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said of Demby. “Those are things that we know, by design, stress those guys and that is kind of the approach.”
It is all part of the learning curve from trying to master multiple positions.
“Things like that are going to happen,” Demby said. “I’m just going to continue to work and get extra time after practice with the QBs. The consistency is going to come. But the growing pains are going to come along, too.”
There is sound reasoning for the madness. The primary goal is to create as much versatility as possible among the backups since the Rams typically only dress seven linemen on game day. That leaves just two reserves who must be capable of covering five different line positions.
“So they have to be versatile,” Kromer said. “If you’re not Andrew Whitworth, lock-down left tackle — he’s our left tackle and he’s not moving — then the backups have to learn to move.”
Kromer also wants his young linemen to see plays from as many different vantage points as possible in order to understand the objectives of each play as thoroughly as possible.
When a tackle understands the guard’s responsibility on any given play — as well as technique, fundamentals and goals — he’s going to have a better grasp of the actual play itself.
“You have a much better understanding of what’s going on in these plays, and why we’re running them if they’re moving around and playing different spots,” Kromer said. “Because they have to learn more than just, on this play I block the guy to my left and on that play I block the guy to my right.”
“And if you understand one position well, you’ll understand how other positions work,” said Evans, a third-round pick who played right and left tackle with the Sooners but is now cross-training at both guard spots with the Rams.
“I was a little awkward at first because I’d never played it, so I didn’t really understand certain aspects of the guard life,” he added. “But it’s been a pretty smooth transition.”
It can make a guy’s head swim, to be sure, given the tightrope one must walk trying to learn a new position. And it’s not enough just to know the fluctuating responsibilities of each play depending on where you happen to be lined up. It’s executing that responsibility and technique in a way that hopefully prevents your running back from getting blown up behind the line of scrimmage.
The fear and anxiety can be real and potentially debilitating for a young player trying to make an NFL team. And the minute you surrender a tenth of a percent of yourself to that uneasiness, the closer you are to turning one bad play into three or four more awful ones and completely sabotaging your chances of getting better.
Hence, the brutally blunt words from “Professor Kromer” upon plunging the players headfirst into the pressure cooker that is his classroom.
“You’re going to stink for a couple of months. You’re not going to be good,” Kromer said when asked to explain his initial message to his young linemen to The Athletic. “But don’t worry about getting beat. Just worry about trying the technique. Work the technique. Work the play. Understand the play. And do that more than worrying about how many you won or lost right now because that’s not what it’s all about.”
“It’s about getting better,” he added. “And you’re not going to get better by playing it safe.”
For the young offensive linemen, some of whom might get called upon this year to provide coverage in case of injury, Kromer’s words go a long way. And the thankful sigh of relief it induces allows them to play much more free and easy knowing the big-picture goals are much more important than the errors that invariably occur in the short-term.
“What’s great about that is coach Kromer is allowing you to make mistakes, as long as you’re trying the techniques he’s asking you to do, and that’s comforting,” said Edwards, who profiles long-term at tackle but might be needed to play guard if, say, starters Joe Noteboom or Austin Blythe get hurt.
Given the fact that Edwards had played zero snaps at guard prior to getting drafted by the Rams, it was inevitable there would be a major learning curve while cross-training at that position. The most drastic of which is the different pass blocking fundamentals between tackle and guard.
At guard, your blocking assignment is typically lined up right in front of you or shaded slightly to your right or left. Your footwork and aggressiveness reflect the directness of your opponent. At tackle, there is much more space to manipulate with your feet in order to deal with a defensive end or outside linebacker that might be positioned upright or with his hand in the ground and either right on top of you or shaded far wide of you. The technique needed to deal with all those possibilities is much more varied.
The communication with your teammates also fluctuates from tackle to guard, as the tackle has to account for the presence of a tight end while making sure you’re on the same page with him in terms of who to block.
“And even if you have a tight end (alongside) you, if you have a nine technique or whatever, the communication based on the coverage or look or whatever it is, you have to be on, otherwise plays can get blown up,” Edwards said. “And what’s also different is you may get a different front and a different look on back-to-back plays, so the communication has to be perfect and crisp on everything we’re doing.”
Edwards has more than held his own during camp and the preseason, but by no means has he been perfect. Ironically, it’s the mistakes he makes that end up rendering the most useful instruction. Rather than fretting about them — as Kromer warns his students not to do — he learns from them.
And at the NFL level, the teaching is instantaneous.
“The difference between college and pros is you come off the field to the sideline, you have the tablets to immediately see things,” Edwards said. “And it’s four snapshots of a play, so you can get whatever you want. And coach Kromer can look at it and say, ‘Hey, you turned on this.’ Or ‘On your pass set you’re going back, you need to go more at him.’ So it’s real-time feedback as opposed to ‘Here’s what I saw, here’s what happened, I’m explaining it to you.’ We’re able to actually see it in real-time.”
The point is, there will be mistakes. Maybe a lot of them for the time being. But the end usually justifies the means.
“If you played it straight and played a guy at left guard all game, the whole preseason well, he’d be good at left guard. But what if we need him at right guard or center or tackle?” Kromer said. “And many times you move these guys around, it gives them a chance to show they might be better at a position other than the one they’ve been playing their whole lives. You never know until you do it.
“Eventually, we’ll start honing it down. That’s what preseason and practice is for, and then you try to put them in their best spot.”
znModeratorThe Athletic@TheAthleticLA
“You’re going to stink for a couple of months.”It sounds harsh but Rams offensive line coach Aaron Kromer is just being honest with his young prospects.
znModeratorI know his post-apocalyptic novel, The Scarlet Plague.
London is disappointing because he buys into racist pseudo-science.
znModeratorfrom Do Religious People Really Live Longer?
…the apparent health benefits of religion are not found in some other developed countries. In states like Denmark and the Netherlands, where religiously active individuals are in the minority, any health advantages of religion shrink to vanishing point as illustrated by research on clinical depression . (Depression is strongly related to heart disease and hence to mortality.)
In the U.S. some health researchers are fond of giving religion the credit for boosting life expectancy. Yet despite being a nation with a large religious majority, Americans have much lower life expectancy than is enjoyed by secular countries at a similar level of economic development such as Japan and Sweden.
If religion really promoted longevity, how could people have such short life expectancy in sub-Saharan Africa where virtually everyone is deeply religious?
znModeratorD’Marco Farr@DMarcoFarr1
Because of similarities in the Denver defensive alignment to what they see everyday, I bet the Rams O-line performs a bit better than last week v Oak irregardless of personnel combinations. Also per report Miller and Chubb and other Broncos starters may be shut down for Saturday.Cameron DaSilva@camdasilva
If Cam Newton can’t play Week 1, it’ll be the 3rd straight year the Rams’ first opponent is without their top playerDan Orlovsky@danorlovsky7
I once had a coach of mine in the NFL, while discussing #NFLPreseason and my playing time say “honestly, don’t care about the preseason and it’s games, there’s no value in them to me/us”…seems like the whole league thinks this way now. It’s in many ways, a mockery now..\For context in the #preseason conversation:
-when you do joint practices, it’s over a 3-4 day period & your starters will get 80+ good reps, in ALL situations, versus other starters.
-in a game, they get 8? 10?Joe Thomas@joethomas73
Throughout the course of NFL history, if you are the best player at your position (or clearly one of the best) when you re-sign a second contract with the team that drafted you, you usually beat the highest paid current contract at your position by 15 to 20%.znModeratorIf you haven’t looked at this one, it’s loaded.
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August 23, 2019 at 11:37 am in reply to: Aaron Donald says 'this should be my best year yet' #104215znModeratorCould Aaron Donald be the best defensive tackle ever?
Pro Football Focus
Though Pro Football Focus wasn’t around in the days of “Mean” Joe Greene or Merlin Olsen, we have been grading games since 2006, and have 13 seasons worth of play-by-play grading in our database. All of that data indicates that it would be difficult for any pass-rusher to scale higher peaks than the ones Donald is ascending right now.
We can’t definitively put Donald in the context of the older all-time greats, but we can quantify how much better Donald is than any defensive tackle we have seen over the last decade-plus of action. In doing that, we can put into focus the enormity of what he’s doing and the difficulty of anyone surpassing him.
Donald isn’t just the league’s best interior pass-rusher …
When focusing only on interior pass-rushers, the gap between him and the field is quite wide. Donald leads Geno Atkins and Fletcher Cox, the second- and third-most productive interior pass-rushers since 2014, by 79 and 83 pressures, respectively. To provide context, those figures would lead the league more often than not in a single season.
Donald has out-graded every interior defensive lineman by a comfortable margin in every season since 2015. That includes league-high overall grades of 93.0 in 2015, 92.6 in 2016, 94.4 in 2017 and a career-high 95.0 a season ago. He has also posted the best pass-rushing grade among all interior D-linemen in those seasons, as well.
But that’s not where his dominance ends.
… he is leaps and bounds above all pass-rushers
Donald is the entire league’s best pass-rushing force, dominating an era in which pass-rushing is as important as ever.
Outproducing the best interior rushers since entering the NFL in 2014 is one thing; outperforming edge rushers is another. Since joining the league, Donald has 20 more total pressures (combined sacks, hits and hurries) than any other pass-rusher. He has done that on fewer pass rushes than any of the other top defenders, which also gives him the highest win rate in the league, despite being an interior pass-rusher.
Edge rushers usually generate significantly more pressure than interior players thanks to having more space to operate, plus the difficulty for the offense to execute double-teams in that space, but Donald generates more pressure than any edge rusher. The second- and third-most pressures over that period belong to Von Miller and Khalil Mack, arguably the two best edge rushers over the past several seasons, but neither can touch Donald.
Donald’s PFF grade — which factors in speed and decisiveness of pressure as well how often it happens — puts him even farther ahead of the pack. His career grade rushing the passer is 95.4, 3.0 points ahead of Miller and even farther ahead of Mack.
He hasn’t reached his ceiling yet
Perhaps the most amazing thing about Donald is that he’s still getting better. The 2018 season marked the best PFF grade of his career, as well as the highest pressure total he has amassed, and he has 50 more total pressures than any other player over the past two seasons. Over those last two years, Donald leads the NFL by more total pressures than Ndamukong Suh was able to tally alongside him in 2018. Again, Donald’s pass-rush win rate was on another level. Only four other players had a win percentage higher than 20% over the season, but Donald was the only player in the NFL above 25% (25.9%).
When you start talking about all-time greats, the concept of affecting the game in ways besides raw production quickly surfaces. Sure, Donald has more sacks than Cortez Kennedy, but Kennedy was always double-teamed, that’s why his production is lower. Or so the argument typically goes.
Well, PFF can quantify that, and Donald was double-teamed on 61.4% of his pass rushes in 2018. That’s a huge figure, yet Donald still won more often than any other pass-rusher.
His value shows no signs of slowing down
His level of dominance unmatched, Donald has actually improved his grade in each of the past two seasons with are no signs of slowing down anytime soon. No defensive player at any position has put forth the start to a career that Donald has in the PFF era and as scary as it may sound for the rest of the NFL, at just 28 years of age, Donald’s best football is likely still ahead of him.
PFF is beginning to quantify the value of players that goes beyond the production they generate. Using PFF’s WAR (wins above replacement) metric over the past three seasons, Donald has generated roughly two full wins in the regular season for the Rams, tops among defensive linemen.
While he had a statistical breakout in 2018 on paper, recording 20.5 sacks — 8.5 more than his previous career high — it was a continuation of the steady improvement he’s shown throughout his career. Pressure is generally a lurking variable when it comes to projecting outlier seasons for pass-rushers, and Donald has been a terror in that department since the Rams drafted him. He generated 113 total pressures in 2018 in 703 pass-rushing snaps, where in 2017 he had 102 in 558 snaps, both off-the-charts numbers for defensive players not named J.J. Watt.
Ultimately, until PFF goes back and grades the older all-time greats, we won’t be able to directly compare them to Donald. But based on more than a decade of watching and analyzing every player on every snap, it is getting harder to imagine that anybody has ever topped the level that Donald is currently at. All that remains for Donald to cement his legacy is maintaining longevity at the top.
znModeratorRams position battles to watch Saturday vs. Broncos
Cameron DaSilva
August 23, 2019 at 3:37 am in reply to: tweets & other bits … 8/21 & 8/22 … w/ Holt on NFL | FIRST THINGS FIRST #104210znModeratorBig fan of @robertwoods highlights.
17 days til we’re back at it! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/jtTdgXLh37
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) August 23, 2019
August 23, 2019 at 2:01 am in reply to: tweets & other bits … 8/21 & 8/22 … w/ Holt on NFL | FIRST THINGS FIRST #104209znModeratorIan Rapoport@RapSheet
The early word on #Panthers QB Cam Newton, who left the preseason game with a foot injury: It doesn’t appear to be serious, source said. Newton left in a walking boot, which can be used as a precaution. He may get tests tomorrow, regardless.More on Cam Newton: X-Rays were negative. It’s characterized as just a sprain right now, I’m told. Tests coming tomorrow.
August 22, 2019 at 10:54 pm in reply to: tweets & other bits … 8/21 & 8/22 … w/ Holt on NFL | FIRST THINGS FIRST #104207znModeratorPanthers QB Cam Newton in walking boot after leaving game with left foot injuryhttps://t.co/KEMwJLQsuV pic.twitter.com/DjlUbLOMps
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) August 23, 2019
August 22, 2019 at 9:28 pm in reply to: tweets & other bits … 8/21 & 8/22 … w/ Holt on NFL | FIRST THINGS FIRST #104206znModeratorPanthers quarterback (foot) hurt in first game back from shoulder surgery
This is less than ideal for Cam Newton and the Panthers.
The quarterback was removed from the Panthers’ matchup with the Patriots on Thursday with a foot injury, the team announced.
Frank Schwab@YahooSchwab
If Cam Newton’s injury is even a little serious, it will be the new example for why teams shouldn’t play starters in the preseason. And the teams that sit their guys are right.==
Daniel Jeremiah@MoveTheSticks
Checklist for building a championship foundation in today’s NFL
Role/Number of players
QB (1)
Pass rusher (2)
Off Playmaker (3)
Def Playmaker (3)
Quality OL (3)Which teams hit every mark?
J.B. Long@JB_Long
✔️QB: Jean McGoff
✔️Pass Rusher: Donald, Fowler, Matthews
✔️Off Playmaker: Gurley + 3 WRs + Everett
✔️Def Playmaker: All 5 DBs, Littleton
✔️Quality OL: Whit, Havenstein, Blythe + 2 promising redshirt freshmen.This really drives home the caliber of #LARams roster.
August 22, 2019 at 8:07 pm in reply to: Faulk on Eisen (2 vids, ie 2 parter) & another (long) Faulk interview vid #104205znModeratorI don’t know how “Rams interesting” this is. It’s mostly about Eliot’s hold out.
Marshall does discuss Gurley in part 2, about 11:35 in.
Marshall is kind of savvy at poking Eisen’s much more corporatized ideas of how power works in the league.
…
znModeratorLos Angeles Rams HC Sean McVay August 22 press conference
(On what took place during today’s practice)
“It was just a scrimmage. We tried to simulate what would be equivalent to a game where we ended up getting about 60 plays for offense and defense. Had some normal stoppages that would occur where you did some stuff for some of the younger guys with the Denver cards. It was good. We got a bunch of different stuff and really tried to kind of take us through where we simulated halftime and kind of an inter-squad scrimmage, if you will, that really is very similar to how we play games for those guys that haven’t participated.”
(On if it was for the starters)
“Yeah.”
(On what has been WR Josh Reynold’s biggest jump from last season)
“I just think the confidence. I think he’s getting better, really, in all phases. He’s got great body control for a player of his size, he’s got excellent hands, he’s got a great catch radius just because of the length that he has and I think he’s getting more and more comfortable as he continues to play. I thought last year was great where you could see no moment is too big for him. Making big time plays – the catch that he had in the two-minute drive where I called a bad play in a quarters coverage where he’s running an in-breaking route and he aggressively crosses face and steps through it, goes basically through a gauntlet of guys aggressively trying to rip at the ball and gets extra yardage. That play was instrumental in us getting into scoring position and continue to extend that game and ultimately end up winning it. He’s gotten better and better and I think (QB) Jared (Goff) mentioned the other day, we look at him as a starting player and he’s going to continue to play a lot for us.”
(On RB Todd Gurley II’s progress)
“He’s feeling good. He’s right on the track that we’ve had. We’ve kind of kept consistent with that every other day format as far as he’s concerned and he’s feeling good.”
(On QB Blake Bortles and if he feels confident with Bortles should he need to play during the regular season)
“He (QB Blake Bortles) does a great job. He’s gotten better and better. He’s played a lot of football in this league so he’s an experienced player. I think he sees the field really well and he’s got a comfort level with a lot of the things that we’re asking of him just because he’s run a lot of very similar, if not the same concepts in a lot of the same situations. He’s done a really good job. Certainly, we feel great about where (QB) Jared (Goff) is at right now and god forbid if something were to happen, that’s why you go get Blake Bortles because you do have confidence that if he had to, he could step in and lead the team and guys have confidence and belief in him. I think he’s demonstrated that over the course of his career and like you’ve heard us say, he’s got a great way about him, I think he’s picked things up really well and he really solidifies that backup quarterback spot for us. Especially with how well Jared’s playing, the comfort that those two have with one another, we’re in a good place there.”
(On WR Robert Woods)
“I think just like any other player that you’ve been around that’s great, there’s no complacency that sets in. I think what (WR) Robert (Woods) has done such a great job of is he’s demonstrated that he’s a true, versatile, complete receiver. You joke with him, but when you watch the way he competes without the ball, it’s almost as impressive as some of the stuff he’s doing whether it’s carrying the football, route in the route tree whether it be short, intermediate, down the field, he’s a big-time competitor. He’s got a great demeanor about himself, too. He’s an elite competitor and when he steps in between those lines, for such a nice, even-keeled guy off the field, he’s an elite competitor and he’s gotten better and better. He was able to stay healthy for the entire year last year. I think everybody saw the production and he’s only gotten better this offseason. We expect big things from Robert again leading the way.”
(On if Gurley participated in Thursday’s scrimmage)
“Not today, no. It was part of the format that we had set out and that was kind of the plan going into today.”
(On how confident he feels about the linebacker position and who steps in with Kiser’s injury)
“I think it’s to be determined. I think you feel good about (LB) Bryce (Hager) stepping into that role because he and (LB) Micah (Kiser) were competing for that. Bryce is a guy that’s played a lot of football and he’s done a nice job for us. He’s got some familiarity with our system having played in it now for the last couple years. He’s a great communicator, so I think he’s done a really good job. Then, you look at the production when he’s gotten his opportunities – you feel his presence. I think he’s going to do a nice job. You hate it for Micah, but both those guys were players that we had a lot of confidence in. Unfortunately, as a result of the injury that occurred to Micah, it kind of naturally brings Bryce into that role. But, those guys were competing for that role as is and now Bryce will have that role because of the injury.”
(On if there is a play or moment with LB Clay Matthews that illustrates what he hopes to see from Matthews this season)
“He’s (LB Clay Matthews) made a lot of plays. If you’re talking over the course of his career, there’s a handful. Even just since he’s been with us, in a lot of the crunch time situations that you try and create in these practice settings, he’s got a knack for the ball. The other day, it was a fourth-down situation, we tried a certain play and he bats the ball down. Whether it’s coming clean on a rush, he’s got a great feel for some of the different things movement-wise and he’s one of those moveable pieces on the defense. I don’t know how many guys have ever been an outside linebacker rusher All-Pro and then also an inside linebacker All-Pro, which I think is a credit to his versatility. He looks healthy, he’s moving around great and then I just think the accumulation of experience when you’re a smart, conscientious player like Clay is, that accumulation of reps you just put them in the memory bank. Then, in a lot of ways, you’re just seeing repeated scenarios and situations that play out. I’ve heard (Defensive Coordinator) Wade (Phillips) say this and other people say it, ‘Smart players get better.’ Clay is the epitome of one of those guys and he’s been doing it for a long time and we’re glad that he’s here with us.”
(On returning to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday)
“It’ll be great. We’re looking forward to it. Excited to see the upgrades that they’ve made. The last time we were there, it was a really positive night being able to play the Cowboys in the divisional round. We’re looking forward to getting back there at the Coliseum and hopefully having a lot of good memories that we can create this season and Denver starts that process for us.”
(On how the young offensive linemen are performing)
“I think they’ve done a good job. The games end up being a good chance to truly evaluate those guys. Some of the settings that they’re in, it’s hard to look good blocking (DT) Aaron Donald. I don’t care who you are. Sometimes they’re in some pressure situations, but they’ve continued to get more and more comfortable with the fundamentals, the techniques, some of the things that (Run Game Coordinator) Coach (Aaron) Kromer, (Offensive Quality Control Coach) Zak (Kromer) and (Assistant Offensive Line Coach) Andy (Dickerson) are coaching in that room. Like we’ve said, been really pleased with (T) David Edwards. I think he’s done a nice job continuing to ascend and hopefully those other guys will continue to follow that lead.”
(On C Brian Allen and T Joe Noteboom)
“(C) Brian (Allen) and (OL) Joe (Noteboom) have been great. I’ve been really pleased with them. I was more alluding to the rookies and those younger guys but when you talk about Brian and Joe, I’m kind of looking at those guys – even though they’re second-year players – as veterans with how youthful we can be outside those starting guys. Brian and Joe have really done well. I think they’re continuing to get more comfortable, really, in a similar manner to what I was saying with David Edwards. I’ve just been really impressed with the rapport that exists right now between Brian and Jared. Their ability to communicate, Brian’s ability to confidently get out the calls, whether it be running it or if we’re throwing the football and some of the protections. I think there’s been some settings where you try and create some stressful looks for him that we really hadn’t really been able to do in years past. I think as a result of some of the things that we’re doing on both sides of the ball, it’s great work for both our guys. I think Brian’s really benefitted from all the different things he’s seeing from our defensive structures. Then Joe, in the same manner, has done a nice job being able to play next to (T) Andrew Whitworth, with that communication that’s a great guy to be able to learn from. I think both those guys are in a good position and we’re very confident in them.”
(On Brian Allen’s confidence and the importance of that in his position)
“I think it’s vital. Really, other than the quarterback, you could argue that the quarterback and the center are naturally thrust into roles where the communication is vital. It’s got to occur and you’re got to be great at it to be able to be efficient at that spot. Especially when you look at how we’re structurally set up from an offensive standpoint. You can’t emphasize enough how important that communication is. I think the rapport between the center and the quarterback, their ownership, whether it be the cadence, the calls and protections, the targets in the run game, all the different nuances that occur with what we want to try to present to defenses, the different tempos, all that kind of stuff. You can’t do it unless you have really smart players at the center and quarterback spot. Fortunately for us, we do and both those guys have a command and a presence about themselves, where you’re naturally thrust into that role of communication. You can’t play if you don’t do it and those guys have done a really nice job.”
(On DT Sebastian Joseph-Day’s development and what he wants to see in the final preseason game)
“You just want to see him continue to improve. You want to see him make plays, do what he’s asked to do based on whatever that call is that we’re running defensively. He’s getting more and more comfortable and I think it’s a credit to (Defensive Line) Coach (Eric) Henderson, he’s done an excellent job with these guys. You really see some of these younger players continuing to develop and Sebastian is definitely one that stood out. I think you just want to see him play good, productive football. What does that look like? Depends on what the defensive call is. He’s played good, efficient football to this point. We expect a lot of the same as we finish up the preseason.”
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