Category: Latest Rams news

Aaron Donald named NFC Defensive Player of the Week

It’s the first time Donald has won the award this season.

Aaron Donald has won consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards and is on track to compete for a third straight. Though he’s not stuffing the stat sheet like he usually does, he’s still having an outstanding season.

He was recognized for his play against the Bears on Sunday, being named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. He had two sacks, two tackles for loss, four quarterback hits and a pass deflection in the Rams’ 17-7 win over Chicago.

It’s the first time Donald has been named Defensive Player of the Week this season. He won the award twice last season, once in 2016 and twice in 2015. Surprisingly, he wasn’t named Defensive Player of the Week once in 2017 despite winning Defensive Player of the Year.

This season, Donald has eight sacks, 16 QB hits and a league-high 16 tackles for loss. He’s among the top candidates to win Defensive Player of the Year, but he’ll need to keep up this level of play the rest of the way.

PFF’s highest-graded Rams from Week 11 win over Bears

Josh Reynolds led the way on offense, while Aaron Donald had the highest defensive grade.

Since acquiring Jalen Ramsey, the Rams defense has been lights out. They’ve allowed just 30 points in their last four games, becoming one of the best defenses in the league. That showed once again on Sunday night against the Bears as they held Chicago to only seven points.

The Rams offense wasn’t nearly as great, but it got the job done in the 17-7 win. It was mostly thanks to a strong game by Todd Gurley, who finally touched the ball more than 20 times in a game this season.

Pro Football Focus released its five highest-graded offensive and defensive players for the Rams from Sunday’s win, and Josh Reynolds led the way for the offense.

On defense, it was unsurprisingly Aaron Donald who topped the list, but Sebastian Joseph-Day also put together a great performance in front of his parents; it was their first time watching him in person.

Jared Goff earned a respectable grade of 75.1 despite putting up unimpressive numbers. Mike Thomas did drop one pass which would’ve gone for a 20-plus-yard gain, and a 51-yard touchdown was called back due to a pre-snap infraction, so those plays impacted his stat line.

The Rams got great play out of their cornerbacks, including Jalen Ramsey, who was not listed in the top five on defense.

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Rams call Ravens the best team, Lamar Jackson the best player in NFL

The Rams know just how tough this matchup with the Ravens will be.

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Having played four teams at or below .500 in their last four games, the Los Angeles Rams haven’t exactly been tested in recent weeks. They’ve gone 3-1 in that stretch, but the last playoff contender they faced was the 49ers in Week 6.

If they’re looking for a test – a measuring-stick game, if you will – they’ll get one on Monday night at the Coliseum. The Ravens are coming to town, being viewed by many as the best team in the league. They’ve won each of their last four games by at least 14 points, including victories over the Seahawks, Patriots and Texans.

The Rams know their next game is going to be a challenge, saying as much after their win over the Bears on Sunday. Eric Weddle tweeted his excitement over their Week 11 win, while simultaneously calling the Ravens the best team in the league.

Todd Gurley didn’t praise the Ravens to the extent that Weddle did – he did say “they’re looking like one of the best teams in the league – but he did throw a huge compliment Lamar Jackson’s way. He called the second-year quarterback the best player in the NFL right now and compared him to Michael Vick, who was at the Coliseum on Sunday.

“Best player in the league right now,” he told reporters. “He’s killing it. We had Vick here today and he’s the next thing closest to him. I mean, he’s amazing. Super proud of him.”

Clay Matthews was asked in the locker room if he’s excited to face Jackson on Monday night. His sarcastic response says everything you need to know about how he feels.

“Am I excited?” he said with a smile. “Any time you get to face an elite opponent, it’s not fun when they’re making plays against you, but it’s fun to have that opportunity to go against them, test your prowess and see who comes out on top. They’re playing very well, he’s playing outstanding and you’re right, obviously a front-runner in the MVP race.”

This will undoubtedly be the Rams’ toughest test yet, and they’re well aware of just how difficult an opponent the Ravens will be.

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Watch: Jalen Ramsey mic’d up vs. Bears, talks trash to everyone

Jalen Ramsey talked trash to everyone on Sunday night and was mic’d up for it all.

Jalen Ramsey is not one to ever shy away from a challenge. On Sunday night against the Bears, he was tasked with covering Allen Robinson, who he was teammates with in Jacksonville for several years.

Ramsey put together one of his better performances of the season, helping limit Robinson to just 15 yards on four catches. Ramsey could be seen talking trash after several plays, and thanks to the Rams wiring him for sound, we’re able to hear some of the things he was saying.

Ramsey could be heard yelling to Robinson, “Big stop A-Rob! Just like we used to do in practice, boy!” On another double-move by Robinson, Ramsey threw shade by saying “that double-move was not it, A-Rob.”

He then told one of his teammates on the bench, “it was so weak.”

Later in the video, Ramsey was in coverage against Taylor Gabriel, who’s 5-foot-7. After the pass fell incomplete, Ramsey yelled to Gabriel, “Get your little [expletive] back over there.”

“We’re not playing with these kids,” Ramsey said to another Ram. “We’re not playing with nobody’s children today.”

The highlight of the video was Ramsey muttering to himself, “That would’ve been a pick. Can’t believe he looked this way.”

Rams film room: Why McVay deserves more credit than OL for neutralizing Khalil Mack

The Rams held Khalil Mack in check on Sunday, and it wasn’t just because the offensive line played well.

One of the most surprising performances from Week 11 in the NFL was the one by the Rams’ offensive line. With two new starters up front at left guard and right tackle, and another making his first start of the season at center, the Rams completely neutralized the Bears’ pass rush.

Jared Goff threw the ball 18 times and was only pressured once – a rate of just 6%, which is the lowest of his career. The Rams did a great job shutting down Khalil Mack, who didn’t record a single hit on Goff.

This performance left many wondering how the Rams locked up one of the game’s best edge rushers with a rookie right tackle in Bobby Evans. While he got plenty of praise in his first NFL start, Sean McVay deserves much more credit for drawing up a game plan that limited Mack’s impact.

It all started with the play selection. Goff only attempted 18 passes all game long, which was the lowest total of his career. That immediately limited the number of chances Mack had to wreck the passing attack.

Secondly, when the Rams did throw the ball, they drew up plays to get the ball out of Goff’s hands quickly. It was either screens or quick throws to receivers, giving Mack very little time to get going towards the quarterback. Even wiser, the Rams chipped Mack at the line of scrimmage often and doubled him with an extra blocker.

Here’s how every dropback by Goff broke down for Mack:

  • Drop into coverage: 7 times (two nullified by penalty)
  • Pass rush: 6 times
  • Screen passes: 4
  • Not on field: 4 plays

So of the 19 times Goff dropped back (he scrambled once), Mack only had six true opportunities to rush the passer. The Rams rarely left their blockers on an island, either. He was often double- and triple-teamed, like on this play, for example.

It starts with Tyler Higbee chipping Mack at the line. Andrew Whitworth then makes Mack go way outside, and he’s helped by Austin Corbett on the inside. Mack still almost gets there, but Goff does a good job of eluding the rush.

On this play early in the game, Higbee locks up Mack initially to set up the play-action. Then, Johnny Mundt, who was lined up as a fullback, comes over to help block and keep Goff clean in the pocket.

It’s a well-designed play, and a rare instance where a tight end is left alone to block Mack at the start.

Here’s another example of the Rams using a chip at the line to redirect Mack’s pass rush. Everett knocks him to the outside, which gives Evans some time to get out wide and force Mack to the outside.

By the time Mack first makes contact with Evans, Goff is unloading the pass to Kupp for a huge gain.

The Bears moved Mack inside on this play in an attempt to prevent a tight end from chipping him, and it was one of his best reps of the game. He got a one-on-one opportunity against David Edwards at right guard and nearly got to Goff.

Again, Goff does a good job to step up and avoid the rush, throwing a beautiful pass to Michael Thomas, who dropped it.

When facing an elite pass rusher, one of the best ways to neutralize him is by throwing screen passes. This is an example of the effect that can have, and the Rams threw passes like this one four times when Mack was on the field.

Higbee and Mundt were left alone to Mack, and holding easily could’ve been called on Mundt, but Goff got the pass away to Gurley for a good gain.

In the one instance where Evans was left alone against Mack, he nearly got bull rushed all the way into Goff’s lap for a sack. Mack is one of the strongest edge rushers in the league, so it’s no surprise he walked the rookie backwards with ease, but Goff helped him out by throwing the ball quickly to Gerald Everett for a first down.

The offensive line deserves credit for the job it did against the Bears’ defensive front. However, when it comes to Mack, they were helped by tight ends and conservative play calls.

He had very few opportunities to actually rush the passer, and when he was left alone against one blocker, he nearly got to Goff.

This isn’t to take away from the job the offensive line did – they had a pass-block win rate of 79%, their best of the season – but unless the Rams are going to be this conservative each week, the group up front still has something to prove.

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NFL Week 12 power rankings: Rams slotted lower than four 5-5 teams

The Rams stayed put in this week’s power rankings, slotted below the Steelers and Panthers.

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With their playoff hopes hanging in the balance, the Rams needed a win in the worst way on Sunday night – especially after the Vikings and 49ers had already won earlier in the day. They seized the opportunity and beat the Bears 17-7, improving their record to 6-4.

The Rams entered Week 11 at No. 18 in Doug Farrar’s power rankings for Touchdown Wire, so surely this victory would be enough to push them up at least a few spots, right? Not exactly. They stayed put at No. 18, which is the lowest position for any 6-4 team.

In fact, the Rams are ranked behind four 5-5 teams in the power rankings: the Steelers (17), Panthers (16), Titans (15) and Eagles (14).

Here’s Farrar’s explanation for putting the Rams where he did.

Incredibly, the Rams came into their Sunday night game against the Bears without having scored an offensive touchdown in 19 straight drives. Things didn’t get any better on their first drive, when Todd Gurley fumbled on his team’s first play from scrimmage. Jared Goff ended the Rams’ second drive with a truly awful interception to linebacker Roquan Smith on a sideline throw. Sean McVay’s offense finally broke the streak on their fifth drive of the evening, when Gurley scored on a 1-yard touchdown run. The Rams kept their postseason hopes alive with a 17-7 win, but not all is well with that offense. Per Next Gen Stats, Jared Goff was pressured on just one of his 18 dropbacks, but he was able to complete just 11 passes in 18 attempts for 173 yards, no touchdowns, that really bad pick, and a couple of decent throws called back by penalties. The heat map shows a quarterback who can’t carry the offense on his back, and the dropback total reveals a coaching staff well aware of that fact.

There’s no doubt the Rams are struggling to find their identity on offense, and they certainly aren’t deserving of being ranked inside the top 10. However, putting them behind the Panthers, who were blown out by the Falcons and who the Rams already beat in Week 1, is surprising.

The Steelers beat the Rams, so that makes some sense, but the Titans and Eagles have worse records than Los Angeles and hardly look like playoff contenders.

All the Rams can do is take care of what they can control by winning the games on their schedule. Next up is a big test against the Ravens on Monday Night Football. If they win that game, they’ll definitely make a jump in every analyst’s power rankings.

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Rams ‘feel good’ about Robert Woods situation: ‘He’s in a good place’

Sean McVay said there’s no concern about Robert Woods’ wellbeing as he tends to a personal matter.

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Robert Woods was a surprise scratch from Sunday night’s game against the Bears, being announced as one of the team’s seven inactives just 90 minutes before kickoff. He had to tend to a personal matter and wasn’t at the Coliseum, which created some cause for concern.

Sean McVay didn’t find out about Woods’ situation until a few hours before the game started, which made Sunday’s win even more impressive.

After the game, McVay didn’t have much of an update on Woods, saying he had to talk to the wide receiver before commenting on when he might be back with the team. On Monday, it was much of the same from McVay in terms of Woods’ status, but he did say there’s no concern about Woods’ wellbeing.

“No, we feel good. He’s in a good place,” McVay said. “We feel good about where the situation is at and his wellbeing, and that’s very, very important to us.”

McVay added that Woods is obviously still handling the personal matter and that the team will have “a little bit more of an update on that later on in the week.” Right now, they’re remaining quiet on the situation out of respect for Woods and his family.

The Rams do have an extra day to prepare this week with the Ravens coming to town for a Monday night matchup. If Woods can’t play, the Rams should at least have one of their other starting wide receivers back with Brandin Cooks (concussion) expected to play.

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Rams are home underdogs for first time in 2 years with Ravens visiting

The Ravens enter as 3.5-point road favorites, having won each of their last four games by at least 14 points.

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For just the second time all year, the Los Angeles Rams won’t be the betting favorites over their opponent. And for the first time since Week 17 of the 2017 season when the Rams rested their starters, they’re home underdogs.

That’s what happens when Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens come to town. According to BetMGM, the Ravens are 3.5-point road favorites over the Rams in Week 12, which is a Monday night matchup on Nov. 25.

This comes as no surprise, given the way each team’s season has gone. Yes, they’re only separated by two games in the overall standings, but the Ravens are second in the NFL in scoring margin (plus-14.5), while the Rams are seventh (plus-4.5).

Baltimore also ranks first in points scored, second in yards and first in rushing across the board. The defense is playing extremely well, too, ranking sixth in points against and 14th in yards. The Rams are 10th in points and yards allowed.

Baltimore has been absolutely dominant in its last four games, too. The Ravens have scored at least 30 points in each game, beating the Seahawks by 14 points, the Patriots by 17, the Bengals by 36 and Houston by 34.

The Rams have a fighting chance with the league’s fifth-ranked rush defense, also ranking second in yards per carry allowed. However, they haven’t faced a quarterback with the skill set that Jackson has, which makes this a daunting matchup for the Rams.

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Sean McVay shares injury updates on Brandin Cooks, Rob Havenstein

Sean McVay said Cooks is likely to return on Monday night, while Havenstein is doubtful.

The Rams were without several key players on Sunday night against the Bears, most notably Brandin Cooks, Robert Woods and Rob Havenstein. Cooks has missed two games with a concussion, while Havenstein is dealing with a knee injury that he suffered against the Steelers.

The Rams were still able to beat the Bears 17-7, holding their offense in check behind a great defensive effort. On Monday, McVay shared updates on Cooks and Havenstein, but said there’s nothing new on Woods, who is still “handling that personal matter.”

“We’ll probably have a little bit more of an update on that later on in the week,” McVay said.

Regarding Cooks, the Rams expect to have him back on Monday night against the Ravens as he’s made good progress in the concussion protocol.

“We do [expect him to play]. He’s been in great spirits, he’s been in good shape. The anticipation is that he will be able to play this week,” McVay said.

Havenstein’s outlook isn’t as positive, though. It was originally considered a multi-week injury, and it doesn’t sound like he’ll be on the field against the Ravens. McVay wouldn’t rule him out just yet, though, which does leave the door slightly open for him to play.

“I would say he’s probably going to be doubtful for this week,” the coach said. “He is making good progress. To have a finite answer on exactly when he’ll play a week from today is difficult. I think the anticipation – just originally with that injury – was that it’s probably going to be a couple weeks. That’s why he’ll most likely be doubtful, but you don’t want to rule him out quite yet.”

Bobby Evans did a great job in Havenstein’s place, all but neutralizing Khalil Mack and any other pass rushers that lined up across from him. He got a lot of help from the tight ends chipping at the line, but it was a solid performance by the rookie.

In other injury news, Michael Brockers went down briefly with an elbow injury, but he was able to return to the game. McVay didn’t express any concern on that front.

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Jared Goff raves about how Rams OL played vs. Bears: ‘Couldn’t be prouder’

Bobby Evans was the focus of Jared Goff’s attention on the offensive line Sunday.

Despite only scoring 17 points, and despite only gaining 283 yards of total offense, the Rams still seemed to improve on that side of the ball Sunday night against the Bears. Jared Goff’s numbers don’t tell the whole story of his performance, since a big play was dropped by Michael Thomas and a 51-yard touchdown to Josh Reynolds was called back due to penalty, but he looked more comfortable than he did against the Steelers.

That’s partly because the Rams’ new-look offensive line played well against a formidable front. Goff wasn’t sacked a single time, was only hit once and the Bears pressured him just once on 18 dropbacks. Bobby Evans more than held his own against Khalil Mack at right tackle, and Austin Corbett looked equally good at left guard.

For a quarterback who’s taken a beating this season, Goff was thrilled with the way his big men up front played. He specifically mentioned the job Evans did against Mack on the edge, which was viewed as a favorable matchup for the Bears.

“Huge. Huge. Can’t stress it enough,” Goff said of how well the offensive line played. “You think about Bobby Evans making his first start against Khalil Mack, who’s arguably the best rush-end in the league and it was a non-factor. He did his thing. He stepped up, he did his thing. We were doing different things to help them out, but not that much, to the point where he was just playing well.”

With regards to the rest of the front, Goff liked what he saw from Corbett, David Edwards, Austin Blythe at center and of course, Andrew Whitworth at left tackle.

“David Edwards continues to get better, continues to do his thing. I thought Austin Blythe directed the offense, directed the O-Line like a champ up front, and then Austin Corbett stepped in as well,” Goff continued. “Last week was his first time playing, and this week to just come in there, the way that all of them are just so non-reactive, every single play is just so dialed, so focused, so steely-eyed, and just ready to go. And obviously Whitworth is who he is and we know that, but I just thought those guys just stepped up so well and I couldn’t be prouder. Couldn’t be prouder.”

The Rams showered Evans with praise in the locker room after the game, with Sean McVay singling him out as the one to break down the huddle. For a player making his first start, it went about as well as it could’ve.

This does complicate things for the Rams, though. Rob Havenstein, who he replaced, isn’t out for the year and could be back as early as next week against the Ravens. After seeing the way Evans played – albeit, with plenty of help from the tight ends – will McVay send him to the bench and put Havenstein back in the lineup?

Havenstein has struggled this season after playing extremely well in 2018, but the Rams just gave him a contract extension last year and he’s one of the top-paid right tackles.

It was only one game, but Evans is at least making things interesting up front for a team with very little continuity on the O-line.

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