What to watch for against the Raiders? Start with the Rams’ ‘crazy’ defense

Vincent Bonsignore

https://theathletic.com/513215/2018/09/09/what-to-watch-for-against-the-raiders-start-with-the-rams-crazy-defense/

Reality​ hit Michael Brockers​ almost immediately this​ week.
What​ had been​ talked​ about in​ theory​ had​ finally​ come to fruition​ when the​​ Rams and Aaron Donald came to terms on a record-breaking contract extension. And in doing so, the Rams completed a defensive makeover in which they added dominant defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh and press corners Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib to an already-sturdy foundation.
“The last piece of the puzzle,” said Brockers of the addition of Donald after his lengthy training camp holdout.
But it really wasn’t until the Rams went through an 11-on-11 drill during practice that the devastating possibilities of this revamped defense truly dawned on Brockers. While Suh, Donald and Brockers create havoc up front, Peters and Talib will do their thing on the perimeter.
“Just backing out of the huddle and looking at all the talent we have is kind of surreal,” Brockers said. “I look back and I’m like, ‘Bro, we can be so crazy on this field.’ ”
“Everything where we were at, it just picked up a lot more,” Peters said. “We know we have an extra dog here. He’s the defensive MVP of the league, so who ain’t going to be excited to have him back.”
The Rams can finally put all of their defensive stars on display on Monday night when they open the 2018 regular season against the Raiders in Oakland.
The Rams’ potentially dominant defense goes hand-in-hand with an offense that returns 10 of 11 starters from a 2017 club that led the NFL in scoring and is operating in Year 2 under head coach Sean McVay. The only new starter is wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who has produced more than 1,000 yards receiving over the last three seasons and was a coveted target of McVay and the Rams for more than a year.
Through the offseason and training camp, Cooks and Rams third-year quarterback Jared Goff developed an obvious chemistry that — should it carry over to the regular season — would add another explosive dimension to an already lethal attack led by reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Todd Gurley and dependable receivers Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods.
The Rams are not a perfect team. But on paper, it’s hard to find a more complete group on offense, defense and coaching sideline. By every measure, this is a squad that deserves to be discussed as a Super Bowl contender.
“It’s on paper first,” warned Brockers, applying the brakes to any hype train that already puts the Rams in Atlanta for Super Bowl LIII. “So we have to go out there and prove why we are so talented, why we are so great.”
The Rams can start to make their case Monday night in Oakland.

Here are the things to watch against the Raiders (7:20 p.m. PT on ESPN).

How quickly can the Rams offense shake off the rust?

The Rams did not intend to sit their first-team offense during the preseason. But the schedule maker dealt them a curveball with the opener being against the Raiders, who the Rams saw in Week 2 of the preseason. And then an injury to right tackle Rob Havenstein a few days before their Week 3 dress rehearsal in New Orleans convinced McVay to put Goff and his fellow starters in bubble wrap until the opener.
The situation was not ideal, but certainly understandable.
“In an ideal world, you would like to be able to have him get that experience and things like that,” McVay said of Goff. “But, at the risk for what we thought could potentially occur, that was a decision that we made and I totally respect and understand that people might disagree with that. It wasn’t just my decision — we make decisions as an organization, in terms of what we feel like is best with all things considered.
“We stand behind our decision. I stand behind that decision because everything that we try to do — and what I’ll always try to do — is make decisions that are for the best interest of our football team.”

The question now is whether the inactivity will have any effect on how Goff and the Rams offense performs.
As much as McVay structured practice to replicate game-like situations, the intensity and nuance against an actual opponent under real game conditions — such as pass rushers taking down the quarterback and wide receivers absorbing full-body hits on catches over the middle of the field — can’t be fully duplicated on a practice field in Thousand Oaks.
Or, as Suh put it while talking in general terms about practice compared to games: “It’s one thing that I disagree with any coach that says, ‘Practice like you play’ because it’s always an uptick especially when you go into a big game like Monday night.”
Getting adjusted to those game elements have to happen in real time. The Rams offense was not afforded any transition period.
“No matter how long a team has been together, you always feel there’s going to be some nuances,” wide receiver Brandin Cooks said. “So we’re practicing, doing what we do, and when we get to the game, we’ll see what happens.”
“Obviously, that first game, it’s going to be the first game for a lot of people,” Gurley said, “so hopefully we can just go out there and play each snap hard and just keep working.”
You get the feeling too much is being made of this, especially after Philadelphia and Atlanta struggled to move the ball in their season opener last Thursday despite starters getting playing time in the preseason. The Rams have too much talent and experience for it to have more than a minimal effect.
But we’ll see.

How much of a factor will Aaron Donald missing training camp be?

The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year missed all of training camp in a contract dispute. When he takes the field on Monday, he will have practiced just six times.
In spite of the limited preparation, Donald is under no snap restrictions against the Raiders. And he doesn’t seem the least bit concerned he is pushing too far too soon. When game time arrives, he’ll be in “go” mode.
“I feel good. In shape,” he said. “The rust is getting knocked off just right. I feel good.”
It also helps that Donald went through a similar experience last year, when he sat out all of training camp to secure a new contract only to come back in time for the second regular-season game and produce the best all-around defensive season in the league. He’ll draw on what happened in 2017.
“You kind of know what to expect,” Donald said, “but coming back and getting six practices under my belt before the first game, I think that’s going to be a big help to me as far as getting adjusted out there playing football again.”

Can Ramik Wilson step up if Mark Barron can’t play?

Barron, the Rams’ lone returning linebacker starter, was a non-participant in on-field workouts through most of training camp and practiced only once while working his way back from two offseason injuries. The expectation was he would play in the opener, but that plan hit a major bump this week when Barron showed up on the Rams’ injury report as “doubtful” for Monday night and never got on the field to practice.
McVay said Barron was dealing with an Achilles issue — the same problem that cost him a game last year against the Titans — and indicated the Rams would take it all the way to Monday night before making a final determination on whether Barron will play. If he can’t, Ramik Wilson will replace him in the starting lineup — much as he’s done throughout camp and preseason — alongside Cory Littleton.

Ideally, the Rams want Barron out there. He’s a valuable, sideline-to-sideline defender who has improved in run support while providing excellent pass coverage.
Wilson started 17 games over three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs (playing in 29 overall) and accumulated 88 career tackles. The Rams signed him last offseason for linebacker depth, but it looks like they’ll have to lean on him a bit more than expected to start the season if Barron is ruled out.
“He’s a smart player,” Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said of Wilson. “He’s started before in the league and he’s played well when he’s been in there. And he knows what to do. He’s a real smart player, so I have confidence in him.”
For all the Rams’ experience and firepower defensively, the linebacker unit will remain a question mark until proven otherwise. The Rams were counting on Barron being a steadying influence around new starters Littleton, Samson Ebukam and Matt Longacre. But that is starting to look doubtful for the opener.

Gruden on Goff.

==

from: https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/09/05/nfl-rams-raiders-jared-goff-jon-gruden-cal/

…

The Raiders coach credits Goff for being as tough as he is, which is part of what makes him such a “great” quarterback.

“One thing that always impressed me about Goff was how tough he was. If you go back and watch him play as a true freshman at Cal, you would be surprised that he’s even still playing football. He got destroyed. He got beat up repeatedly. I don’t even know if they won a game,” Gruden said on a conference call Wednesday.

As a true freshman, Goff and the Golden Bears went 1-11. The following season, they were 5-7. The year after that, they finished 8-5 and made and won their first bowl game since 2011.

Cal regressed once again in 2016 after Goff left, finishing the season 5-7 behind Davis Webb. His impact on the program can’t be overstated and Gruden knows it.

“He helped bring that team to respectability and put them in a bowl game with great toughness. He has an incredible pocket presence,” the coach said. “I mean this kid can stand in there and make great throws under serious pressure. I think he’s earned the respect of his teammates and they’ve surrounded him with quite a system of football and some really talented players.”

…

Rich Hammond@Rich_Hammond
Jamil Demby wouldn’t have been among my top 5 guesses as the waived player. I guess they feel pretty confident in those invincibility pills they gave Whitworth and Sullivan.

Jared Goff returns to Bay Area, this time as a Super Bowl favorite

Lindsey Thiry

http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/38864/jared-goff-returns-to-bay-area-for-another-season-opener

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — For Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff, the first game of his professional career sometimes seems like a distant memory.

Goff stood on the sideline at Levi’s Stadium — 70 miles from where he grew up in Northern California and 40 miles from where he starred at Cal — and watched as the San Francisco 49ers, his childhood team, shutout the Rams in a season opener.

The rookie and No. 1 overall pick did not dress for the game, which aired on Monday Night Football. He was inactive and buried on the depth chart behind Case Keenum and Sean Mannion.

“It does feel like a long time ago,” Goff said this week. “I guess it was two years ago now. It feels like forever ago and it is kind of ironic.”

The Rams finished that 2016 season 4-12, coach Jeff Fisher was fired and Goff was winless in seven starts.

Two years later, the Rams return to the Bay Area for a season opener — this time against the Oakland Raiders — but again on a Monday night. And Goff is squarely in place as the franchise quarterback for a team considered to be among Super Bowl contenders.

For Goff, 23, two years have made all of the difference.

“I’ve grown up a lot,” Goff said. “You mature, you learn a lot. You learn a lot about yourself, a lot about the NFL and how to prepare, how to go about your daily business, how you get ready for a game.”

In 2016, the Rams’ offense struggled under Fisher, and Goff was no exception. With the season off to a 4-5 start, Goff replaced Keenum and passed for 1,089 yards and five touchdowns, with seven interceptions. He was sacked 26 times.

Last season, playing for offensive-minded coach Sean McVay, Goff flourished. He helped the Rams to a historic turnaround, catapulting them from the lowest-scoring team in the NFL to the highest, averaging 29.9 points per game.

Goff passed for 3,804 yards and 28 touchdowns, with seven interceptions, as the Rams clinched the NFC West for the first time since 2003.

Throughout training camp, Goff demonstrated a newfound confidence and ownership of the offense. He directed players to positions and re-hashed routes. He even anticipated some playcalls before McVay had a chance to relay them.

Teammates noticed.

“He can hear the play, the mic will cut off in his ear and he knows what McVay is thinking or the whole game plan and the flow of the game and how he wants it,” Robert Woods said. “I think that’s pretty much the biggest difference is just confidence and knowing what McVay wants.”

Said Todd Gurley: “You just see his progression. Just going through his routes, going through the first receiver all the way down to his check down and to me. Doesn’t like when he’s out there messing up and that’s what you love in a quarterback.”

The Rams return 10 of 11 offensive starters, including Woods — who last season caught 56 passes for 781 yards and five touchdowns, and Gurley, the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year who amassed more than 2,000 all-purpose yards and scored a league-high 19 touchdowns. And they’ve added receiver Brandin Cooks who is expected to stretch the field and provide Goff with a deep threat.

Goff appeared comfortable throwing to each of his targets during training camp. And his connection with Cooks seemed established beyond a single offseason of work.

McVay said Goff’s growth and continued maturation was apparent.

“Feel really good about Jared knowing how difficult that position is in the entirety of what we ask of the quarterback position,” McVay said. “He’s definitely improving and I think you definitely see him having a total command of what’s going on.”

The Rams’ offense has remained mostly a mystery throughout the preseason, as McVay opted to keep starters on the sideline for various reasons, including injury prevention and strategizing.

But Goff has made sure that plenty of family and friends — he has secured nearly 40 tickets — will be on hand Monday at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum when the Rams’ reveal the new wrinkles added to the offense.

“There’s a bunch of stuff we’ve been working on this offseason that we’re ready to display,” Goff said. “A lot of the stuff is from last season as well that we’re going to continue to do and then there’s a lot of new stuff we’re doing.”

At least by the way it’s setting up, this season opener in the Bay Area has a chance to be much more memorable for Goff than the last.

]

Agamemnon wrote:

We have only 7 offensive linemen on the roster.

But as of right now, that also corresponds with the actives list. So even if they had more OL, on Monday, there would still be only 7 active. That just means they have time to add a lineman after Monday. But then who gets cut?

Rams trying to sneak Demby onto the practice squad. Tough to carry three rookie OLs on active roster. https://t.co/xAQU55hs89

— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) September 8, 2018

Examining Rams’ biggest offseason moves: How they landed Brandin Cooks

Gary Klein

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-brandin-cooks-20180908-htmlstory.html

After a flurry of offseason moves, the Rams begin the season with a remade roster that features newcomers in cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib, defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh and receiver Brandin Cooks. Here is the behind-the-scenes story of how each was acquired, in the voices of the people involved. Part 4: Cooks.

April 3, Rams acquire Brandin Cooks and a 2018 fourth-round draft pick from the New England Patriots for a first-round pick and a sixth-round pick.

Coach Sean McVay: Your interest in potentially acquiring him goes back to last year [2017], when you realize the Saints, I don’t know if they were shopping him, but you knew that you could potentially acquire him.

General manager Les Snead: It started at the [2017 NFL scouting] combine [in Indianapolis]. It was Sean’s first combine and we were at this point where we were flirting with New Orleans about [Rams cornerback] Trumaine [Johnson]. And it started with us trying to grab Cooks. Then New England beat us for Cooks.

VP of football and business administration Tony Pastoors: It was someone we explored prior to [trading with the Buffalo Bills for receiver] Sammy [Watkins].

Executive VP of football operations Kevin Demoff: Sammy was a big piece of our division championship team.

Pastoors: When we found out that he was going to leave in free agency [to sign a $48-million contract with the Kansas City Chiefs], it was “OK, let’s go on to what’s next.” First, in this draft, is there someone we can get at No. 23? Is there anyone in free agency?

Snead: I called the Patriots about Cooks probably the night that Sammy agreed to go to Kansas City [March 13].

McVay: When you end up losing Sammy, you’ve got some other avenues. You feel good about the guys in-house. But then when a player like [Cooks] is potentially available, and you look at the production he’s had playing in two different systems, and hearing the things you hear about the way he goes about his business, it was something we really felt good about if we were able to get it done.

Snead: It was really the only call I made because we needed a vertical threat. There’s a lot of good receivers out there. But in Sean’s orchestra we needed a certain instrument, and he fit. … With it being on his last year [in his contract] it might be viable.

Pastoors: You knew that number [$8.5 million] and how it would fit.

Snead: From [the Patriots’] standpoint, I don’t think it was something they were going to do right away. It probably kept us knocking on the door a little bit.

Demoff: After [receivers] Mike Evans [$82.5 million], Sammy Watkins [$48 million] and Allen Robinson [$42 million] signed [extensions or contracts with other teams], I think the Patriots’ calculus changed from “absolutely not” to “maybe” — based on some of those deals that came down and projecting what the price tag would be for Brandon if they were going to re-sign him.

Snead: When Sean went to Georgia for a clinic [that Patriots coach Bill Belichick also would be attending] it had tipped to where, “OK, maybe something could get done.” It had tipped to the stage of, “OK, this is a possibility.”

McVay: [At the clinic] it was really more of an exchange with coach Belichick of, “How you doing?” It was very quick because he was going somewhere after he finished speaking.

Snead: I had told Sean, “Y’all don’t just go talk football at the clinic. Make sure you get this thing pushed over the edge.”

McVay: We [McVay and Belichick] got a chance to connect and really talk on the phone and then we were able to kind of just go back and forth. It was pretty fun because you have so much respect and admiration for him as a coach.

Brandin Cooks: It’s one of those things until it gets serious, real serious, like a huge possibility, typically you don’t know about it because it might fall through.

Snead: The parameters of the deal were stuck between [Patriots director of player personnel] Nick [Caserio] and I. The closing of it, because Sean and Bill had struck up a relationship, I thought it was fitting they go close that deal. Let Sean get a little taste.

Demoff: The only fear you had, with Sean being the negotiator over a player he coveted, was that the Patriots were going to walk away with your next four first-round picks [laughing]. … That was our fear. We didn’t tell Sean that he could sign the trade papers. He could negotiate the deal but he couldn’t sign the trade papers.

McVay: I wouldn’t say it was nerve-wracking. It was exciting.

Snead: He really just walked down the hall [to make the final call]. I told him, “OK, you’re going to talk to coach Belichick. We’d like to get it done for this but we know it’s going to take this.” The only thing we laughed about was the sixth-rounder we threw in there. There’s no way we’re telling coach Belichick we’re not [getting this done] because of a sixth-round pick, so just go ahead and give it to him.

McVay: It’s one of those moments where I think you feel so fortunate and blessed to be in this role. I am a fan of coaching, so when you get a chance to interact with coach Belichick, it was a pretty cool experience.

Cooks: It’s not like I found out on Twitter or something, which, you know, is huge. It seems so small but a lot of guys find out different ways. But such respect for coach Belichick for calling me. He didn’t have to do that, so I would say it was a couple hours, a little more than that, before it actually broke.

Snead: As soon as you get Cooks done, there is an element of relief. … Getting the veteran we initially sought, it takes a little bit of pressure off of the draft.

Pastoors: To complicate things, we were simultaneously working on finalizing Ndamukong Suh. So we had a lot of cap space and we suddenly have no cap space. You never want to say you can’t make it work because you can always make it work. It’s just, “OK, what are we willing to do? How do we actually do it?” For us that was parting ways with [cornerback] Kayvon [Webster].

Snead: The NFL’s a business … you don’t want to go through that. You have to do it sometimes and that’s what we had to do.

McVay: These are always tough decisions but ones that sometimes you have to be able to make.

Pastoors: That cleared some space. And then, the other thing to give us a little bit of breathing room … was going to the guy with the longest contract in the building, [punter] Johnny Hekker. He’s a captain for a reason. Just a call to his agent, “Hey I think we might be in a position where we might need to create some cap space. Would Johnny be willing to work with us and convert salary to signing bonus?” He said, “I’ll call Johnny, but I think we both know the answer to this if that helps you guys.”

Punter Johnny Hekker: I was at home and I got a call from my agent at about 8 o’clock at night. It sent me into a little bit of panic, but as soon as I picked up he reassured me it was for a good reason. He kind of told me what the intentions of the team were with the money freed up. It was really kind of a no-brainer.

Pastoors: It created enough space to get us to where we need to be to make all the corresponding moves and get everybody in and under the cap.

Snead: When [the offseason] was all said and done, we were like, “OK, we accomplished what we set out to do.” The sketch was, “Here’s what we need to do at certain positions,” but at no point were all of those names [on the list]. Because Brandin Cooks was a New England Patriot, Marcus Peters was a Kansas City Chief, Aqib Talib was a Denver Bronco, Ndamukong Suh was a Miami Dolphin. When you look back, I don’t think we could have ever predicted we’d end up with these players.

Demoff: With Sean and Les and Tony and, certainly [owner] Stan [Kroenke’s] mind-set, we’re never done. … You’re always looking at the big picture. As long as we keep doing that, you’re going to throw yourself into lots of different situations. I don’t think this team is ever done.

Pick Six: Who steps up on the defensive line?

https://www.raiders.com/news/pick-six-who-steps-up-on-the-defensive-line

Kicking off the season Monday night under the lights – it doesn’t get much better than that.
Nine months after Jon Gruden was re-introduced as head coach of the Oakland Raiders, his team will finally play a meaningful game, and after wandering in the long football desert that is the offseason, the return of the regular season is cause for celebration.
Week 1 sets the tone, it always does, so let’s take a look at six things you need to be watching for Monday night at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

1. The environment
There’s nothing better than primetime, nothing.
The lights, the crowd, the energy – it’s hard to replicate that kind of thing anywhere else besides at a primetime football game.
Throw in Jon Gruden’s official return to the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, and Monday night is going to be a fun one, I promise you that.
It’s Week 1, so I’m sure both teams will be all fired up at kickoff; keep an eye out on which team can harness that energy and come out of the gates fast at the OACC.

2. Who controls the line of scrimmage?
The battle for the line of scrimmage is paramount for success each week, but with the Raiders trio of gladiators in the middle going against Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh, you’re going to want to keep an eye on the big fellas up front Monday night.
I’ve said time and time again – and I’ll say it once more – that the Raiders have the best interior offensive line the NFL, and they’ll certainly have a chance to prove it Monday night when they square up with Donald and Suh.
The big guys up front are so crucial to the Raiders offense as a whole – both on the ground and through the air – and I’m fired up to see how they handle this huge challenge to start off 2018.
Put your seat belt on Monday night, it’s going to be nasty down there in the trenches.

3. Donald Penn working at right tackle
Speaking of that Raiders offensive line, Donald Penn is poised to make his first career start at right tackle Monday night against the Rams.
Monday will be Penn’s 171st career start, but all of the previous 170 came on the left side.
The veteran tackle’s move right has been one of the more discussed storylines of the offseason, and we’ll finally get to see what he looks like in his new spot against the Rams.
The Raiders allowed just 24 sacks last year – good for the third fewest in the NFL, and the play of big No. 72 was a big reason why.
Let’s see how he fares on this new adventure.

4. Who steps up on the defensive line?
Well, we’re going to get our first look at a Raiders defensive line without Khalil Mack for the first time since 2013.
The Silver and Black sent the All-Pro defensive end to the Chicago Bears last week in exchange for two first-round picks, and while the trade admittedly sent shockwaves through the league and the locker room, at the end of the day, Khalil Mack isn’t showing up again at 1220 Harbor Bay Parkway.
That said, Mack’s departure creates a ton of opportunities for other guys on the defensive line, and I’m excited to see which ones step up and make the most of their chances.
When you’re talking about guys who will be looked at to step up in 2018, Bruce Irvin is the first guy that comes to mind, and while there will indeed be more asked of No. 51, don’t sleep on the rookies along the interior of the defensive line either.
Oh, and we haven’t even talked about Arden Key, Tank Carradine, or Fadol Brown either.
The Raiders have the players to get after the quarterback, let’s see how they impact what Jared Goff wants to do Monday night.

5. Will Marshawn and friends get rolling?
Look, I know it’s a brand new season, and that it’s not entirely fair to categorize a team by what they did – or didn’t do – a year before, but if you look at the 2017 iteration of the Rams, as good as they were, they did struggle to stop the run.
Now, will that issue rear its head again in 2018? That’s to be determined, but with Marshawn Lynch, Doug Martin, and the rest of the Raiders running backs gassed up and ready to roll, I’ll be keeping a keen eye on how they establish an identity on the ground against the Rams.
Head Coach Jon Gruden has made no bones about it, he wants to pound the rock, and control the line of scrimmage, and I have a feeling if the Raiders can do just that Monday night, they’ll drive back home with a “W.”

6. Teacher vs. Student
It’s a tale as old as time that we’ve seen play out in movies, book, television shows – everything – and we’ll see the battle between teacher and student manifest itself once again Friday night at the OACC.
Not only did Jon Gruden give Sean McVay his start in the NFL, but the two families – the Grudens and McVays – go way back too.
“Two families that are extremely close,” McVay explained. “The common things are that they love their family and they love football. That’s been something that’s really kept us close over the years and what the Gruden family has done for me specifically, Jon and Jay, I can’t really can’t say enough about how fortunate and blessed I feel that I have gotten the chance to work with Jon, but then also have the relationship that we do where he kind of puts his arm around you, really teaches you what you know about the game from a foundational standpoint. Certainly wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today or even have had the opportunity that I’ve been so lucky to have if it wasn’t for what Jon and Jay Gruden have done for me, specifically in coaching.”
Who comes out on top Monday night, Gruden or McVay? It’s going to be the Raiders vs. the Rams at the OACC, but make no mistake about it, all eyes will be on the team’s respective head coaches.

More Raiders fan comments

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collected by Hacksaw

Lol rams were gunna get mack

So they were ready to drop another fat contract

But i think Rams are gonna struggle this year like the eagles did in 2011 when they signed all those players. This FA shopping spree has yet to work in the NFL for some reason and teams never learn.

Rams are gonna blow us out

Why cant we beat the rams?, The rams FFS. We are going to kick their asses up and down the field on both offense and defense, until they surrender and rename their team the ramcucks

The rams will be our toughest game of the year, if we can beat them, we are sitting pretty in New York City.

If we dont, so what, they are favored to win the superbowl, its a win-win situation no matter what happens

Shit makes me laugh. Rams are tough but id run straight up the gut at Wades D. Same thing we did to them a few years ago in Oak

Wades D was exposed when we used Kirkland as a TE and just grinded them down

Put our tight ends in there with an I formation, (if thats even a play) and destroy them up the middle, rip their teams heart out

Suh is playing Nose Tackle in a 3-4. Hudson will handle him along with KO and Gabe with K. Smith leading the way and Lynch pounding the ball

Rams have no Linebackers or Edge rushers of importance and most of those guys have very little time together on the field

Once they are softend up we go to lynch, then richard and washington for more speed

We are going to kick the rams asses, feels pretty good

I agree, just brutalize them with power runs. Suh isnt a good run defender

Rams also wanted Khali Mack in addition to resigned Donald

Suh is way overpaid, a fat pig

Rams are going all in this year, lets make them depressed on monday night

Break aaron donalds leg off and beat him with it.

Peters and Talib dont tackle for shit on the edges

Rams have mortgaged their future for this season

Rams are my pick for the Superbowl

InvaderRam wrote:

the important thing is that the rams will need to draft well in order to sustain success. gonna need some cheap but talented players.

stating the obvious i know.

One thing is that we can reasonably expect them to be picking low in the 1st round. I expect this crew to NAIL low 1st rounders. Thing about those guys is, they avg. around 2.3 M to 2.7 M or so a year. That puts them in the 40%, not the 60% that goes to the high contracts. By 2021 they will have had 3 1st round picks.

Another encouraging thing is that since 2012 the Rams have been absolutely golden with 3rd round picks. If anything it got even better since 2017. They have 3 3rd rounders and scored way beyond normal expectations on all 3 of them (Kupp, Johnson–who gets praise from Talib and Peters–and Noteboom, who at a minimum is a guard or right OT).

Well in 2019 they have 3 3rd round picks.

So there’s reason to be fairly confident on that front.

Plus look at the “reanimated castoffs” (RCs) the team makes good use of in various roles. Sullivan, Ramik Wilson, Easley, Blythe. The odd here and there guy like that. I trust these coaches to find a few of those in the next 3 years.

And UDFAs.

You can populate a team with a nice lower middle class using all that, and if you also have Goff (and I assume he keeps improving), Gurley, and Cooks, you have the basis of a good offense, and a defense with both Donald and Peters is always going to be promising.

So that’s the Candy Mountain, homer high on crack take.

“I’m just ready to go, ready to execute.” – @iamjohnthethird pic.twitter.com/VVsmt4b8Hu

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 8, 2018

"I know the system. I’m ready to go. Just ready to play." – @WilsonRamik pic.twitter.com/DIRnatapEm

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 8, 2018

It’s a little eerie how this write-up matches what Kromer says:

10. Joseph Noteboom, TCU
An all Big 12 Honorable Mention; Joseph Noteboom came into the combine with little fanfare and left with a lot of people’s eyes open. The 6’5”, 309 pounder showed up with a great NFL frame and tested exceptionally well in Indianapolis. His athleticism is evident on tape, but a lack of power and technique will certainly put a steep learning curve on his NFL adjustment. Noteboom will be a mid round project player who could be a huge “boom” (sorry) for the team that can develop him.

Now here’s Kromer:

“Joe really was productive in the preseason and it started from Day 1. He has the talent, the size, the strength to play early in this league. What he did was adjust some of the techniques he was using, and it made him a lot better as opposed to just a little bit. And it enabled him to play a lot stronger. And that showed up on tape.”

And the difference between the online draft guru guy (ODGG) and Kromer is fun too.

ODGG says: “a lack of power and technique will certainly put a steep learning curve on his NFL adjustment.”

Kromer says: “Joe really was productive in the preseason and it started from Day 1. …What he did was adjust some of the techniques he was using, and it made him a lot better as opposed to just a little bit. ”

In Kromer math, the ODGG’s “steep learning curve” turned out to be not so steep. 😎