10 Observations from OTA No. 1

Myles Simmons

https://www.therams.com/news/10-observations-from-ota-no-1

1) The Rams’ offense and defense were on the field together at the team facility in Thousand Oaks, Calif. for the first tine since back in January — a welcome sight on a sunny day in the mid-60s. With 90 men on the roster, each player had his first initial and last name on both the front and back of his helmet. It’s striking how many more players there are on the offseason roster than during the regular season.

2) Running back Todd Gurley, cornerback Aqib Talib, cornerback Marcus Peters, and outside linebacker Dante Fowler were not in attendance for Monday’s voluntary session. Head coach Sean McVay did say after practice that the team had been in communication with each player, which is all the club wants. McVay noted he expects Fowler will be back later this week. The head coach also said that Gurley has been working with both the Rams trainers and external trainers in preparation for the season, and that all parties are on the same page.

3) After the early special teams period, the Rams held a walk-thru with the first-team offense and first-team defense on the same field. Offensive and defensive reserves were on the second practice field. Going at the slower speed, quarterback Jared Goff was pointing out his reads and progressions in the play instead of actually throwing the ball. Los Angeles also worked in a couple different offensive personnel groupings — not just the standard one running back, one tight end, three wide receiver set we’ve grown so accustomed to seeing on a down-to-down basis.

4) Defensively during that period, second-year linebacker Micah Kiser worked at the second inside linebacker spot next to signal-caller Cory Littleton — where former Ram Mark Barron started in 2018. And though it’s supremely early, it was also apparent how L.A. can use safety Eric Weddle’s versatility in the backend of the defense. He and third-year safety John Johnson sometimes lined up inside the box, sometimes deep. And safety Marqui Christian occasionally was on the field for a three-safety set — something the Rams utilized down the stretch last season.

5) After the walk-thru, Los Angeles’ offense went through a ball-security drill — standard in Rams practices throughout the year, showing how it’s one of the club’s priorities. On a separate field for the defense, L.A. started out with a pursuit drill — again, standard for the team throughout the season.

6) Notably, wide receiver Cooper Kupp — who is recovering from a season-ending ACL tear suffered midseason — participated in some individual drills, catching a few passes from Goff. Kupp said after practice that he’s taking things “one day at a time,” and not looking beyond a week at a time in his rehab. McVay and Goff both noted that the wideout is the kind of player L.A. will likely have to hold back to not do too much too son. And McVay also said that the goal remains to have Kupp ready for “competition and performance” for Week 1 against the Panthers.

7) Goff looked sharp early, both during the individual period and when Los Angeles went to half-field drills for some 7-on-7-style looks, with the top offense going against the top defense. One of Goff’s best passes went down the left seam to wide receiver Josh Reynolds, who snagged the pass over a defender.

8) Tight end Gerald Everett made a nice catch over the middle on a pass from backup quarterback Blake Bortles. No. 5’s pass was perhaps a bit high, but Everett made Bortles right by jumping up and reeling in the intermediate-level pass for a nice gain.

9) Much like Weddle, linebacker Clay Matthews’ versatility stood out during 11-on-11 drills. Matthews lined up on the outside and on the inside, sometimes rushing, sometimes dropping back. Since the team’s not wearing pads, you should probably take this with a grain of salt, but it did look like Matthews was winning reps, too. Headed into his 11th season, Matthews looks like he’s going to be a significant part of Los Angeles’ defense, and can really help improve the unit.

10) Finally, also during 11-on-11 drills, Goff hit Reynolds with another strong throw — this time on an out route to the right sideline. Goff nicely dropped it in No. 83’s hands above beyond the second level of the defense and in front of the third level for an intermediate completion.

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Jared Goff looked really good throwing the ball today. Really, really good.

Sparta@evans5150
Chips on shoulders make for better players

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
More the natural progression of a young, elite #NFL QB. The guy took his team to the Super Bowl in his second year as the starter. There isn’t a chip on his shoulder. Unfinished business? Sure.

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Jason La Canfora@JasonLaCanfora
No one was taking Gerald McCoy in trade at $13M/year on a contract everyone knew Bucs would eventually dump… But on the market there will be no shortage of interested teams

Adam Schefter@AdamSchefter
Former Buccaneers’ DT Gerald McCoy wants to sign with a playoff contender, and of course make money. But he wants to win. Spots that would make sense include the Browns, the Patriots, the Chargers, the Jaguars, and the Cowboys amongst others.

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Warren Sharp@SharpFootball
Eagles defense time on field:
2013 – 32nd
2014 – 32nd
2015 – 32nd
<Chip Kelly fired>
<Doug Pederson hired>
2016 – 1st
2017 – 1st
2018 – 4th

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
I know it’s only OTA’s, but #Rams Sean McVay does as good a job as any coach I’ve seen making 11-on-11 periods competitive. That said, Jared Goff looked really good throwing the ball today. Really, really good.

Ryan Kartje@Ryan_Kartje
Rams OL Joe Noteboom was in a red, no-contact jersey at the first OTA today. Still worked at first team LG. He said the jersey was just a precaution.

Pro Football Rumors@pfrumors
Rams’ Cory Littleton Signs RFA Tender

Joel Corry@corryjoel
The longer a team waits to sign a good to great player, the more money it will cost in the long run. By the way, Russell Wilson is making almost 25% more under his new deal through 2021 than if he went year-to-year by playing out his 2015 extension & getting franchised twice.

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Bill Barnwell: Rams should add D-lineman, extend Marcus Peters https://t.co/4iEwVKwKbb via @theramswire

— RamsNewsNow (@RamsNewsNow) May 20, 2019

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib, Dante Fowler Jr. and Todd Gurley were not present during #Rams OTA today, but each is in communication with Sean McVay and all absences were expected

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Rich Hammond@Rich_Hammond
1) Yes, I know these are optional.
2) Yes, I know players communicate with coaches and there’s a plan for this stuff.
3) Yes, I know it’s May.
4) I’m still a little surprised at how these seem to be becoming, let’s say, more optional for Rams starters.

Michael Mulvihill@mulvihill79
With 13.6 million live viewers, the Game Of Thrones finale would have ranked 71st among all NFL games in live viewership last season.

Lindsey Thiry@LindseyThiry
First day of Rams OTAs, notably absent: RB Todd Gurley, CB Marcus Peters, CB Aqib Talib and OLD Dante Fowler.

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib, Dante Fowler Jr. and Todd Gurley were not present during #Rams OTA today, but each is in communication with Sean McVay and all absences were expected

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Aaron Donald at Rams OTAs, Gurley and Peters among absent players

Cameron DaSilva

Aaron Donald at Rams OTAs, Gurley and Peters among absent players

The next phase of the Los Angeles Rams’ offseason training program kicked off on Monday with the start of organized team activities. This portion of the offseason isn’t required, so players not in attendance for OTAs are not subject to punishment.

That being said, Sean McVay and the coaches would love to see as many players on the field as possible. Aaron Donald has skipped OTAs the last two years because of his contract holdout, but he was in Los Angeles for Day 1 this year.

On the flip side, there were some notable absences. As was the case with voluntary workouts last month, Marcus Peters and Dante Fowler skipped the start of OTAs on Monday, as well. The same goes for Aqib Talib and Todd Gurley.

Gurley has fielded frequent questions about his knee throughout the offseason, so perhaps he’d prefer to avoid any further speculation. Peters, Fowler and Talib haven’t had any reported injuries, so they’re likely absent from OTAs for personal reasons.

Chris Long reflects on time with Rams, ‘carnage’ in St. Louis

Cameron DaSilva

Chris Long reflects on time with Rams, 'carnage' in St. Louis

In 11 NFL seasons, Chris Long experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. He reached the pinnacle of the sport, but also knew what it felt like to miss the playoffs eight years in a row without a single winning record.

The former No. 2 overall pick announced his retirement over the weekend, leaving the game at the age of 34. With two Super Bowl rings and 70 career sacks, he should feel extremely satisfied with what he accomplished in the NFL – particularly off the field, winning the Walter Payton Man of the Year award last season.

In Peter King’s Monday morning column for NBC Sports, Long reflected on his career, including his time in St. Louis. In eight years with the Rams, he never made the playoffs, nor did he ever experience a winning season.

“I learned so much in my career. Getting drafted second overall, and going to St. Louis, and the fact that we were losing, I just thought, I am not gonna fold. I am not a loser. I am gonna be a bright spot. I am gonna give these fans, who I deeply appreciate for their dedication, the respect they deserve. Anyone playing in that era in St. Louis knows how bad it was at times. It was carnage, in so many ways. It was a test of my will. Do I get irritated by the no-Pro Bowl thing, never making a Pro Bowl? Yeah, I do. Fifty sacks in the first six years, with no one watching, on a bad team. I just felt the narrative should be, That kid panned out. But that’s okay—it was a labor of love. I have zero regrets.”

Long had a whopping 54.5 sacks with the Rams, including a career-high 13 in 2011. He was a consistent playmaker on St. Louis’ defense, and excluding his injury-riddled 2014 season, Long was almost always on the field. Surprisingly, he never made the Pro Bowl, but his numbers speak for themselves.

He eventually reached the promised land in New England and Philadelphia, winning back-to-back Super Bowls following the 2016 and ’17 seasons. His time in St. Louis wasn’t filled with glory or winning, but it did teach him a lot, including what it takes to overcome adversity.

LBRamsFan

I was talking to an offensive lineman yesterday for a Pac 12 team. He told me that the team they watched the most film on to learn the outside zone was the LA Rams. The team they watched the second most? Memphis. I thought that was interesting re [Henderson].

InvaderRam wrote:

this is forcing me to readjust my opinion

What is the “this” that did that?

Side note. You know, the Memphis coach watched a lot of tape of the McVay Rams and built a lot of it into his offense there.

Jim Nagy@JimNagy_SB
People often ask who my favorite player I ever scouted is and Chris Long (@JOEL9ONE) is on the short list. Also the best Combine interview I’ve ever sat in on. Can’t wait to see the societal impact that Long and @DougBaldwinJr have on our country in the future. True leaders.

PFF LA Rams@PFF_Rams
Congrats to former #Rams EDGE Chris Long on an illustrious career! In his 8 years with the Rams, he tallied 395 pressures, 56 sacks, 151 tackles, 7 forced fumbles, and 164 stops!

Darrell Henderson: Rams ‘best system I could get in’

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001031229/article/darrell-henderson-rams-best-system-i-could-get-in

In the aftermath of Super Bowl LIII and Todd Gurley’s slowdown at the end of the 2018 season, the Los Angeles Rams opted not to find another backup running back to boost the ground game in free agency. Instead, L.A. waited until the draft, specifically the third round, to grab their next tailback, Darrell Henderson.

An undersized speedster out of Memphis, Henderson already feels at home with the Rams.

“If you go back and watch my college film and you watch the Rams film, it’s the same,” Henderson told the Los Angeles Times this week. “I thought that was the best system I could get in. So everything worked out great. When I was talking to them, everything was clicking and we developed a relationship. The coaches told me they knew they were going to get me so it was the perfect fit.”

What you see on Henderson’s college film is a lot of yards and a lot of house calls. The Memphis running back left college with 3,545 rushing yards on 431 carries and 36 rushing touchdowns (44 in total). Henderson averaged 8.2 yards per carry during his college career and 8.9 YPC during his final two seasons.

While it’s highly unlikely that, over the course of a season, Henderson will be able to keep up that pace against non-AAC defenses, the running back doesn’t expect to carry the load in Los Angeles right out of the gate. Why should he, with a former Offensive Player of the Year in Gurley ahead of him on the depth chart?

“Todd’s a great guy and he’s someone that every running back should want to learn from,” Henderson said. “Getting to be there with him and getting to work with him every day is an unbelievable opportunity. I’m just going to take the knowledge he gives me and watch how he works and learn from it and bring it to my game.”

Henderson, along with Malcolm Brown, might have to spell Gurley more often in 2019 than the star back is used to. Gurley was uncharacteristically unproductive and sometimes absent in Los Angeles’ final two games last season, including the Super Bowl. He and the Rams denied his relative lack of action (16 touches, 47 yards, TD) was due to injury, though Gurley had missed L.A.’s final two regular-season contests with a knee issue.

The Rams’ plans for Henderson were hinted at in a behind-the-scenes clip promoted by the team, in which general manager Les Snead said in the lead-up to drafting Henderson that the back has an “[Alvin] Kamara element.” Rams coach Sean McVay said that Henderson had a “specific skill set” and could do “unique” things for the offense.

While those terms describing Henderson don’t scream “contender for the starting job,” it’s noteworthy that Kamara, also a third-round pick of the Saints and initially third on the depth chart behind Mark Ingram and Adrian Peterson, was a lethal backfield option in his rookie season, averaging 7.7 yards per touch and scoring 13 touchdowns in his first year.

Might Henderson have the same impact on the Rams in 2019?

Eagles' Chris Long announces retirement after 11 NFL seasons https://t.co/ZxAhUUfZ2l

— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) May 19, 2019

InvaderRam wrote:

rams could be relying on up to 3 players to start from that draft class.

and ogbo as a significant contributor.

if the rams pull it off, snead’s reputation goes through the roof.

I just get the impression from various things that 2019 was a much deeper draft. In 2019 they could have hit on 5-6 starters, no joke (counting change of pace back as a starting role or its equivalent).

As for 2018, I just think it would be a big score if it played out like this:

Noteboom, Allen, Kiser: solid starters

Joseph-Day, Franklin-Myers: solid rotational guys & depth in the mold of William Hayes (though obviously not the same position as Hayes).

Obo I have no feel for. I know he’s a favorite among many. But what he needs to be, is hard to come by. For example, there’s already talk of moving Ebukam inside. Being a top or even just good edge rusher is more than physical traits. You have to have a knack for it. Ebukam hits blockers and then nothing happens. He don’t seem to have any “engagement” tools or instincts. In contrast, Kevin Greene did not have half the physical talent Ebukam does but he knew what to do when he needed to and knew it instantly. Maybe Matthews is a teacher and passes some of that on. In other words, Obo looks good on paper but does he have the instincts and the know-how?

Can they hit 3-4 starters in a draft with not 1st round pick? Arguably they already did–2017. That is, if you count Ebukam as a continuing starter. Everett may be moving into the top TE role. Kupp and Johnson are obvious.