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10 Observations from Day 9 of Training Camp
Myles Simmons
https://www.therams.com/news/10-observations-from-day-9-of-training-camp
1) The Rams were not in pads for the first time since the fourth day of training camp. Coming off Thursday’s game, L.A. got back to business on a lighter note. Being back in Southern California, it was considerably less humid for Saturday’s session than it was throughout the time in Baltimore.
2) Los Angeles began with a special teams walk thru, then separated by field for both offensive and defensive walk thrus. This is one of the first times L.A. has done a walk thru to start a public practice, which also made it one of the first times inside linebacker Mark Barron has participated in a session. Head coach Sean McVay has previously said that Barron receives the walk-thru reps beside signal-caller Cory Littleton, while Ramik Wilson takes the practice reps.3) During offensive individual drills, the Rams used multiple quarterbacks to have each skill player catch a pass in the rhythm and timing of the play. All the running backs, wideouts, and tight ends were involved, as were all four quarterbacks. At one point, punter Johnny Hekker was even involved when the Rams used three wideouts, a tight end, and a running back as eligible receivers. Hekker does have to keep his fake-punt arm ready, after all.
4) The Rams quarterbacks, wide receivers, and cornerbacks also went through one-on-one drills. Notably from the period…
Wide receivers Brandin Cooks and Robert Woods began the session with completions on a comeback route and a fly route down the right sideline, respectively.
Cornerback Troy Hill did a nice job to break up a pass in the middle of the field between quarterback Jared Goff and wideout Cooper Kupp. The Eastern Washington product tried to shake Hill with a move in the middle of the field, but the cornerback stayed with Kupp nicely.
Later, though, Kupp got Hill back by shaking him with a nice move to catch a pass in the middle of the field. He drew some “ooos” from the crowd with that one.5) In 11-on-11 — with the first-team offense competing against the first-team defense — Goff made solid completions to Cooks and Kupp. The signal-caller connected with Cooks on the first pass of the period, hitting him on the left side of the field. Then Goff hit Kupp on the left side, making the completion through a tight window just out of safety Lamarcus Joyner’s reach.
6) Joyner, however, would get his during a later period. On another pass intended for Kupp, Joyner undercut the wideout’s route on the defense’s right and picked off the pass with a leaping interception. His defensive teammates were pumped on the sideline.
7) Later in 11-on-11, tight end Tyler Higbee made a particularly impressive catch. The play may have been a sack in real life, but Goff was able to get a red-zone pass off to Higbee. The tight end showed off his vertical, secured the catch, then got two feet in at the back line of the end zone for a score.8) With the offense backed up to nearly its own goal line in a move-the-ball drill, Goff got the unit down the field quickly with consecutive completions to Woods and wide receiver Mike Thomas. Both receptions came on deep crossing routes.
9) Kupp made the last catch of practice for the fist-team offense, snagging a low pass over the middle. Not a surprise when it comes from him, but he did have a few nice catches on Saturday.
10) At the end of practice, McVay pulled the team together and was fairly animated in the huddle. He would tell reporters that at the time, he was explaining to players why he wasn’t quite pleased with the way practice unfolded.
“I think all the guys would agree, we’ve got to have better urgency from the start,” McVay said. “That’s just the bottom line. We can say what we want about when we got back, but however you want to cut it, we’ve got to be better than that.”Myles Simmons@MylesASimmons
On a conference call, #LARams HC Sean McVay says WR Josh Reynolds (ankle) and CB Kevin Peterson (knee) are undergoing further evaluation for injuries sustained in last night’s game.
While McVay said he “wouldn’t go that far yet,” he noted it’s not entirely out of the realm of possibility that some key #LARams starters may not see playing time for the duration of the preseason.
That’s especially because there’s kind of a unique situation with LA facing Oakland this week and also in Week 1 of the regular season. But McVay reiterated they’ll take it one day at a time, and see where things go.
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Lindsey Thiry@LindseyThiry
Just wrapped up a conference call with Sean McVay. It sounds like we will see a little bit of Goff, Gurley and starters in the preseason. But it will be a VERY limited amount. (And probably won’t happen this week).
from PFF: ReFocused, NFL Preseason Week 1: Baltimore Ravens 33, Los Angeles Rams 7
https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-refocused-2018-ravens-33-rams-7
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ANALYST TAKEAWAYS
Rams QB Sean Mannion had a game to forget. He struggled to complete any passes as he went just 3-of-13 with an interception through the first half. He also had quite a few passes batted at the line of scrimmage, as well as a fumble. The offensive line did not help much, but Mannion did not look comfortable at all.
John Kelly should see more touches next week as he made the most of his opportunities in his professional debut. He turned a pitch play to the right side into a huge gain for a Rams offsense that had been struggling all night. He also showed good vision and good cut ability as he made the most of his chances.
The Rams struggled on defense, in particular the secondary as Baltimore rolled up 403 yards including 263 yards passing. Edge defender Samson Ebakum was a bright spot as he was nearly unblockable rushing the passer. His athleticism and quickness with his hands give him an array of moves to use on blockers
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KEY TO THE GAME
Baltimore: Ravens’ quarterbacks made plays most of the night even when things broke down. Jackson flashed his athletic ability with scrambes and Flacco looked as sharp as he has in a long time. The Rams defense seemed to be a step behind most of the night.
Los Angeles: While the offense struggled overall, Kelly was the lone bright spot. He averaged 5.9 yards per carry and had nice plays in both the running and passing game, proving his worth on the roster.
