Downtown Rams@DowntownRams
Rookie center and now missing their starting right tackle? #Rams DL about to eat.

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Albert Breer@AlbertBreer
Marcus Peters: “I remember when @LarryFitzgerald was going crazy on NCAA, he was unstoppable.” I remember that, also. All you had to do was throw it up.

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Rob Demovsky@RobDemovsky
Aaron Rodgers practiced Saturday for the first time since he sprained his knee, increasing the Packers’ chances of having their starting quarterback on Sunday vs. the Vikings. A significant step but doesn’t guarantee Rodgers’ return.

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Andrew Siciliano@AndrewSiciliano
“gingerly” –
A word used exclusively by sportscasters to describe injured athletes. Rarely, if ever, used in everyday conversation.

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#Rams defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant is one of #NFL’s best up-and-coming young coaches. As ⁦@marcuspeters⁩ told me. “You gotta see his preparation for the week. It’s outta this world.” My column for ⁦@TheAthletic⁩ https://t.co/yXJL6UVd0S

— Vincent Bonsignore (@VinnyBonsignore) September 15, 2018

Rams take a run at using receivers as ballcarriers. What’s next trick up coach Sean McVay’s sleeve?

Gary Klein

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-offense-20180914-story.html#nt=oft-Single%20Chain~Feed-Driven%20Flex%20Feature~~sub-topic-feed-0~~1~yes-art~automated~automatedpage

Brandin Cooks took a handoff and dashed off the left side for six yards.
Cooper Kupp took a handoff and ran right for 12 yards. Robert Woods ran left for six.

Across the NFL, defensive coordinators casually watching “Monday Night Football” had to be scratching their heads.
During a season-opening victory over the Oakland Raiders, Rams coach Sean McVay showed he was not going to stand pat with what had been one of the NFL’s most productive offenses in 2017.
McVay deployed receivers Cooks, Woods and Kupp not as decoys but as ballcarriers on fly sweeps. He also put running back Todd Gurley in motion, and instructed quarterback Jared Goff to deliver a shovel pass that the reigning NFL offensive player of the year turned into a touchdown.
Those were only a few of the new wrinkles that McVay, the reigning NFL coach of the year, has added for a team that averaged a league-best 29.9 points a game last season.
“It’s nothing that’s predictable,” Gurley said. “You might think you know the play, but one week it can be this, the next week it can be something else.
“It doesn’t matter if you know it or not.”
McVay might unveil more twists Sunday when the Rams play the Arizona Cardinals in their home opener at the Coliseum. It’s the first NFC West matchup for the Rams, the defending division champion.

“Sean will continue to come up with new, fun, cool things,” Goff said.
That’s good news for Rams fans, but potentially worrisome for opponents who spent the offseason dissecting McVay’s scheme and play-calling.
McVay also self-scouted his team after the Rams finished 11-5 and lost to the Atlanta Falcons in a wild-card playoff game.
Gurley had scored a league-leading 19 touchdowns and became a dual-threat back by turning screen passes and wheel routes into long gains.
How could McVay improve on that?
“There were plays last year we practiced all year that we didn’t use, but we just know we always have them,” Gurley said Thursday. “So, that’s what makes him such a great coach. He’s always thinking of new ideas.
“I’m pretty sure when we come in [Friday] he’s going to have five more plays. So, that’s why you love playing with the guy.”
McVay has acknowledged that the Rams staff has “stolen” ideas from other teams, including colleges when coaches are reviewing tape of draft prospects.
The Kansas City Chiefs ran a similar shovel-pass play that Gurley scored with against the Raiders, McVay said.
“I can’t remember specifically when I saw it for the first time, but there’s always when you’re just watching the game and you’re saying, ‘OK, this is a certain scheme. Does it fit within the framework of our offense?’ ” McVay said.
That framework is evolving as the roster changes.

Last season, McVay deployed receiver Tavon Austin as a decoy on fly sweeps. Austin is no longer on the team, but the Rams added the speedy Cooks.
Deploying Cooks, Woods and Kupp as ballcarriers, with Gurley lined up in the backfield, presents a new look.
“It’s definitely a valuable weapon,” McVay said, adding, “It might be something that some weeks we like, some weeks we don’t.”
Kupp caught five passes for 52 yards and a touchdown against the Raiders. He also rushed for 16 yards in two carries. Woods and Cooks each rushed for six yards.
“I don’t think we think of it as a special thing,” Kupp said. “We all see it that way: How can we do something that maybe some teams think is exotic, but is a staple for us?
“It just seems like another play.”
One that helps set up others.
“It’s making the defense stretch out horizontally,” Woods said. “And when that happens [Gurley] will definitely run right down the middle.
“So we’re just trying to stretch the defense. Make them play every blade of grass sideline to sideline and end zone to end zone.”
In the opener, McVay also showed a willingness to fully exploit Cooks’ and Woods’ deep-threat capability.
Goff just missed connecting on several long throws to each receiver, but Cooks drew two pass-interference penalties that accounted for 87 yards and kept alive drives.
“Just keep taking those shots,” Woods said.
Another element of the offense has yet to be unveiled: Tight ends as pass-catchers.
Tyler Higbee, Gerald Everett and Johnny Mundt played against the Raiders but none were targeted for passes.
McVay and Goff said it was not by design.
“There were plays that the tight end was an option that just didn’t get the ball just based on the coverage, or the look, or whatever it was,” Goff said. “I don’t think we want to make a habit out of that by any means.”
But receivers as ballcarriers could become a staple.
Goff, Gurley and the receivers are confident that McVay will find ways to maximize their talents. And he apparently won’t be limited by pregame planning.
“Our coach is very creative,” Woods said. “He’ll draw up something on the sideline if he likes it.”

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams: Scouting report, prediction

Arizona Republic

https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/nfl/cardinals/2018/09/14/arizona-cardinals-los-angeles-rams-scouting-report-predictions/1295334002/

Who has the edge?

Cardinals on offense

Coach Steve Wilks and quarterback Sam Bradford each said the Cardinals must do a better job of getting more out of their wide receivers involved in passing situations. Rookie Christian Kirk was the only wide receiver other than Larry Fitzgerald to catch a pass in last week’s season-opening loss to Washington, and he only caught one for four yards. The receivers could have a problem getting open against the Rams’ secondary, specifically their two talented cornerbacks, Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters. That’s not the only place where the Cardinals could run into trouble. The Rams’ defense starts up front with three tremendous disruptors in Michael Brockers, Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh. As one member of the Cardinals’ offensive line said, those three aren’t elite pass rushers, but they do cause confusion, clog up the middle and make you double-team them. That might make it difficult for running backs David Johnson and Chase Edmonds. They may have to get more outside looks to be effective if the offensive line can’t get a push against the Rams’ defensive front. However they decide to attack, the play-calling on offense has to be a little more adventurous and far less predictable. Getting veteran tight end Jermaine Gresham back from an Achilles’ injury will help, if he’s able to play. The Cardinals also weren’t sure about the status of starting right tackle Andre Smith, who’s dealing with a sore elbow.

Edge: Rams

Cardinals on defense

Coordinator Al Holcomb has to make stopping running back Todd Gurley priority No. 1 and then bring whatever he has left to try and knock quarterback Jared Goff around and make him uncomfortable in the pocket. That’s probably easier said than done, but it’s the only way the Cardinals will avoid falling to 0-2. Any chance at all of an Arizona victory will depend on being able to slow down the Rams’ offense. They’ve silenced Gurley before, but he’s playing at an incredibly high level and has the blockers in front of him to open holes and allow him to get some separation and speed. The Cardinals’ defensive line has to be better than it was last week against Washington. Ditto with the linebackers. Neither unit tackled very well. Chandler Jones needs to have an outstanding game at both rushing the passer and sealing the edge against the run. Deone Bucannon, meanwhile, needs a bounce-back game in the biggest of ways. As for the secondary, they’ll have their hands full with covering receivers Brandin Cooks, Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods. This is a game where the Cardinals likely are going to have to force a few turnovers to help them win, so keep an eye on cornerback Patrick Peterson and safeties Budda Baker, Tre Boston and Antoine Bethea.

Edge: Rams

More: Larry Fitzgerald, Mike McCoy, Al Holcomb know about resilience

Special teams

One of the lone bright spots from last week’s game was punter Andy Lee, who had a 52.6-yard average on five kicks and downed three of them inside the 20-yard line. For the Cardinals to have any chance on Sunday, Lee will need another strong game, kicker Phil Dawson will have to be near-perfect and returners Kirk, T.J. Logan and J.J. Nelson must help flip field position with some hefty returns. The Rams have two of the best legs in the business in punter Johnny Hekker, who posted the third-best net average (44.3) in NFL history last season, and kicker Greg Zuerlein, who was 38 of 40 a year ago on field-goal attempts before landing on injured reserve. The bad news for the Rams is their primary returner, Pharoh Cooper, just landed on IR with an ankle injury. But Kupp and Michael Thomas are very capable replacements.

Edge: Rams

Bottom line

Add it all up and this one just smells like a loss for the Cardinals. They’d have to really buckle down on defense in all three areas, show some creativity and splash-play ability on offense, and definitely win the turnover battle to have any shot at all against a very good Rams team that is the favorite to win the NFC West for a second straight year. Could they pull off an upset? Certainly, but only if last week’s season-opening loss was a fluke and not an accurate portrayal of what kind of team they really are in 2018. Until they prove otherwise, I’m guessing it’s the latter.

Prediction: Rams 30, Cardinals 17

Joe Curley@vcsjoecurley
Why wait? Draft a qb now so McVay can develop him as Goff is playing. I asked someone in the organization about this hypothetical before the draft earlier this year, thinking there may be a QB they liked. Didn’t laugh but may have been suppressing the laughter.

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“I just love what I do. I have fun doing it.” – @marcuspeters pic.twitter.com/2RAxFGdlAG

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 14, 2018

from PFF: https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-pff-press-pass-nfl-previews-for-every-matchup-during-week-2

ARIZONA CARDINALS @ LOS ANGELES RAMS

Plenty of targets for David Johnson

In their first game of the season against Washington, the Cardinals targeted running back David Johnson eight times. The Cardinals would be wise to increase Johnson’s targets against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2, as the Rams allowed the Raiders running backs to catch 13 of their 15 targets on Monday night. Johnson last faced the Rams in the season finale in 2016 and earned his second highest receiving grade ever in the NFL (90.7) and his highest graded game overall (80.0).

Rams wide receiver distribution

Rams’ quarterback Jared Goff has three excellent wide receivers to throw to in Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, and newly acquired Brandin Cooks. Cooks is among the league’s top deep threats and while it did not show up in the box score, Cooks’ presence was felt on offense as he racked up 87 receiving yards in Week 1. Woods often lines up on the outside opposite of Cooks, and he is also a reliable downfield threat as he drew three targets on passes of 20 or more yards downfield last week. Kupp is known for his ability in the slot and was able to haul in five catches for 52 receiving yards and a touchdown from the slot in Week 1. Goff had a near even target distribution last week as Cooks saw eight targets, while Woods and Kupp both had nine. It will be interesting to see if the even distribution trend continues against the Cardinals, due to the fact that the Rams will be going up against all-pro cornerback Patrick Peterson.

Goodness, on the 3rd play of the game Aaron Donald stands up, stacks, and resets the LOS vs. KO: pic.twitter.com/54YZ3yZDae

— Brandon Thorn (@VeteranScout) September 12, 2018

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Donald making light work of Kolton Miller. Stack/sheds with ease. #LeverageMonster @BenFennell_NFL pic.twitter.com/qOpbyvRm4s

— Brandon Thorn (@VeteranScout) September 12, 2018

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Aaron Donald vs. a top 2-3 LG in the game..however good you think Donald is, he's probably better: pic.twitter.com/ex2sz6kcVZ

— Brandon Thorn (@VeteranScout) September 12, 2018

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Former huge draft crush of mine Austin Blythe got the start at RG and looks really good so far. Anchor & finish here: pic.twitter.com/7eQe57mTKO

— Brandon Thorn (@VeteranScout) September 12, 2018

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Never seen KO beaten to this degree before..Donald is working him. First wasn't called holding but probably should have been, second one was called: pic.twitter.com/BTT1XPlGd8

— Brandon Thorn (@VeteranScout) September 12, 2018

“I’m not satisfied, never gonna be satisfied. Just gonna keep working and get better.” – @AaronDonald97 pic.twitter.com/enae6U5vnG

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 14, 2018

“We’re gonna focus on the game plan and execute.”

Hear from @MichaelBrockers as the #LARams prepare for the Arizona Cardinals. pic.twitter.com/qWZTA2Y7TO

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 14, 2018

😂😂 pic.twitter.com/1esQ8KxnLO

— Dave Chappelle (@ChappeIIeShow) September 13, 2018

AvengerRam

ONE OF MY FAVORITE RAM STATS FROM WEEK 1

4 for 28

4 jet sweeps, 28 yards (7.0 average)

I’m a fan of the jet sweep. Not only because it seems to work (gaining at least 4-5 yards) in most cases, but because the threat creates openings both for Gurley and in the passing game.

This year, as we saw on Monday, any of our three starting WRs can run the jet sweep (Kupp ran 2, Woods and Cooks each ran 1). And, unlike Tavon Austin last year, each of them is also a big part of the passing game.

I expect to see more of these plays (and fake jets) in coming weeks, and I predict that at some point, Cooks will bust one for a long TD.

All-22: Breaking down 22's first pick-6 with the #LARams. pic.twitter.com/Nsj7Qlzzpe

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 13, 2018

#LARams Report: Talking Gurley, red zone performance + more from Week 1. pic.twitter.com/HtOM5e6Bmp

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 12, 2018

CORY LITTLETON

OVERVIEW

Littleton’s career at “U-Dub” was a bit up and down, moving positions and moving in and out of the starting lineup. But as they say, it’s not about how you start, but where you finish. Littleton’s final year on campus saw him receive honorable mention All-Pac-12 notice as a Sam linebacker, racking up 65 stops, 11 for loss, and six sacks. He had started all 13 games at defensive end as a sophomore, contributing 62 tackles, 10 for loss and five sacks for the Huskies, but found himself playing less in his junior campaign as a part-time starter (37 tackles, 3.5 for loss, one sack). Even Littleton’s first year in Seattle was a bit inconsistent, as coaches inserted him into the starting line-up against Oregon after not playing him at all in the first four games of the year. He made six tackles against the Ducks (one for loss), and finished the year with 14 stops, 1.5 for loss.

PRO DAY RESULTS
40-yard dash: 4.73 seconds
Vertical: 32 1/2 inches
Broad jump: 9 feet, 11 inches
Short shuttle: 4.39 seconds
3-cone: 7.01 seconds
Bench: 17 reps of 225 pounds

ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS Athletic with long arms and big hands. Has decent closing speed. Sinks hips and accelerates out of his change of direction. Moderate tackle production, but reduced his broken tackles and misses from a year ago. As edge rusher, has some edge bend with flexible ankles, effective shoulder dip and cat­-quick spin move. Credited with 35 pressures and six sacks on the season. Consistent special teams performer with 19 career tackles.

WEAKNESSES Play strength dips well below NFL norm for the position. Plays upright and blockers get under his pads. Allows both tight ends and fullbacks to derail his edge-­setting attempts. Can’t hold the edge and is a liability when teams run downhill at him. Shows some passivity. Needs to be more physical and use his hands to clear himself from blocks.

BOTTOM LINE Long-limbed, stand-up pass rusher who is built more like a wide receiver than a running back. Littleton showed some pass rush ability this season and his special teams ability may be his best attribute on the next level. However, his thin frame and poor play strength could make him a long ­shot to stick on the 53.

http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/cory-littleton?id=2555524

Five Takeaways: Rams Start Season 1-0, Outscoring Raiders 23-0 in Second Half

Myles Simmons

https://www.therams.com/news/five-takeaways-rams-start-season-1-0-outscoring-raiders-23-0-in-second-half

Los Angeles began its season well on Monday night with a 33-13 victory over Oakland. While the Rams were down by three at halftime, they came back to score 23 unanswered points in the second half to come away with the victory.
Here are five takeaways from the first week of the regular season.
5takenew
1) DEFENSIVE ADJUSTMENTS WORK WELL
One of the key storylines heading into the game was how would the Raiders elect to attack the Rams’ defense? That was unclear a number of standpoints — particularly because Raiders head coach and offensive play caller Jon Gruden had not coached a game since 2008.
As it turned out, Oakland deployed former Rams tight end Jared Cook with strong results in the first half. Cook caught six passes for 113 yards in opening 30 minutes and finished with nine receptions for 180 yards. But, 35 of those yards came on Oakland’s final two possessions, when the game had largely been decided.
Cornerback Aqib Talib described the first half as a “freestyle game,” but then defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and the rest of the staff made necessary adjustments.
“Our coaches came in and they broke it down good,” Talib said. “Our coaches gave us great information and we did a good job taking it to the field and stopping a lot of what they were trying to do.”
That’s where having Phillips creates a significant advantage.
“He’s the GOAT. He’s the GOAT, man. His daddy was the GOAT — it’s in his blood. They’ve got GOAT blood,” Talib said, referring to Phillips’ father, longtime NFL coach Bum Phillips. “They’re the best, man. You try to attack him one way, he’s going to come out in the second half — he’s going to have something for you. So that’s one of the main reasons I’m here. I love playing for him.”
2) A NEW WRINKLE FOR THE OFFENSE
Running back Todd Gurley’s first touchdown displayed something new from head coach Sean McVay’s offense.
On 1st-and-10 from the Oakland 19-yard line, Gurley lined up wide on the outside on the left with quarterback Jared Goff in shotgun. Goff signaled for Gurley to come in motion to the right, then raised his leg to indicate for center John Sullivan to snap the ball. At that point, Gurley started running full speed, Goff shoveled the ball forward to Gurley, and with good blocking in front of him went all 19 yards to the end zone.
It was a creative play to get Gurley in space. And both quarterback and running back had a feeling it would end up in the box.
“Yeah, I knew they weren’t going to be ready for that,” Gurley said with a smile postgame. “I told coach I was going to be the first one to score on that.”
“Yeah, that was a good one,” Goff said. “That was one we’ve been practicing. And it came down the pipe in the headset and I go, ‘Oh, this might score.’ And sure enough, it did.”
3) FLIPPING THE SCRIPT IN THE SECOND HALF
A significant part of the reason Los Angeles was down by three at halftime was because Oakland dominated time of possession in the first half. The Raiders ran 39 plays to the Rams’ 20, holding the ball for 21:31 to the visitors’ 8:29.
L.A. was 0-3 on third down as well, which didn’t allow L.A. to get into a rhythm.
Quarterback (16) Jared Goff of the Los Angeles Rams speaks to head coach Sean McVay during a timeout against the Arizona Cardinals during the Rams 32-16 victory over the Cardinals in a Week 13 NFL football game, Sunday, December 3, 2017, in Glendale, AZ. (Jeff Lewis/Rams)
“They did a good job keeping the ball away from us. Teams are going to do that, and we’ve just got to respond accordingly,” I think we only ran 20 plays or so in the first half. And whenever that happens, it’s hard to get in a little bit of a rhythm. We scored quick and then we went three-and-out — couldn’t really sustain long drives, I guess. And that can hurt. But in the second half, we were able to do that and responded well.”
The Rams did respond well, largely flipping the time of possession and the number of plays run. L.A. had 40 plays in the second half to Oakland’s 25, converted 4-of-8 third-down opportunities, and ended up possessing the ball for 28:29. That led to the 23-0 final 30 minutes.
“I don’t think we played up to our standards in the first half,” Goff said. “And the second half, we came out and we did.”
4) NEW DEFENSIVE PIECES SEEM TO FIT
The Rams are integrating seven new starters into their defense, and they all seemed to fit pretty well on Monday night.
Two of them — inside linebacker Cory Littleton and cornerback Marcus Peters — had key interceptions during the game. And defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh recorded four tackles and a quarterback hit.
“Ah, that [stuff] was fun,” Peters said of playing extended minutes for the first time as a unit. “We just getting started though — you feel me? You see how we looked. We looked pretty cool.”
“It was fun,” Suh said. “It was fun. I enjoyed it — to say the least. But I think there’s a lot of things that we’ll learn on film, things that we’ve got to correct and go from there.”
5) ROOM FOR RED ZONE IMPROVEMENT
Los Angeles was only 2-of-5 in red-zone efficiency, scoring two touchdowns but kicking three field goals. Gurley’s 19-yard touchdown and wide receiver Cooper Kupp’s eight-yard touchdown reception were successful trips inside the 20-yard line.
But even though kicker Greg Zuerlein was able to win NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for kicking four field goals through the uprights — including a 55 yarder, two from 20-yards out, and another from 28-yards out — McVay and the Rams would like to improve in the red zone.
McVay was particularly self critical on Tuesday when discussing that aspect of Los Angeles’ offensive performance from Monday night.
“I thought I really hurt our football team in the red zone, with just some of the play selections, putting us in some tough spots,” McVay said. “I can’t remember a time that I’ve ever been a part of a team where you end up having three 1st-and-goals from the nine. That ends up being a tough area — that first play and then that second play ends up being instrumental to try to avoid some of those tough situations where you’re 3rd-and-7 from the seven. But, I thought in terms of the play selection, especially in the red zone, third down as a whole — I’ve got to be much better for our football team and those are things you have to look at yourself critically and be better for them.”