Andrew Whitworth of the Rams has been nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.
For the second year in a row, Andrew Whitworth has been nominated for the NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. He didn’t wind up winning last year as a member of the Rams, but simply being nominated is an honor in itself.
The award is given to the player who displays leadership and strong character both in the community and on the field. Whitworth is an active member of the Los Angeles community, as evidenced by his work last season in wake of the tragic shooting in Thousand Oaks and the wildfires that impacted the area around the Rams’ facility.
“Every day, in cities and towns across America, NFL players give of themselves to make our communities better,” Roger Goodell said in a press release. “The 32 nominees for this year’s award are the best of the best and truly embody the spirit of Walter and his legacy of leaving the world better than he found it.”
Whitworth is in his 14th NFL season and is undoubtedly a leader in the Rams locker room. As the eldest player on the team, he’s taken younger teammates under his wing – especially the rookie offensive linemen.
The winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award will be announced on Feb. 1 at the NFL Honors show, one night before the Super Bowl. He will receive a $250,000 donation to the charity of his choice, while each player nominated will receive a $50,000 donation to charity, as well.
Check the map to see if Rams-Cowboys will be on FOX in your area on Sunday afternoon.
Despite being in different divisions, the Rams and Cowboys have grown accustomed to playing against each other. They’ve already met twice since Sean McVay took over in L.A. two years ago, including last season’s divisional round in the playoffs.
They’ll play again on Sunday afternoon in Dallas with both teams fighting for their playoff lives. Despite being a game below .500, the Cowboys are in better shape postseason-wise because of how bad the NFC East is, while the Rams may need to finish 11-5 to have a chance.
This is a marquee matchup between two explosive teams, and it’s surely one fans will want to tune in for. Check the map from 506 Sports below to find out if you’ll get the game in your area.
Safe to say, unless you’re in Northern California, the Pacific Northwest or the Atlanta area, Rams-Cowboys will be on FOX in the late window for you. Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. ET from AT&T Stadium.
The Rams come in on a two-game winning streak, while the Cowboys have lost three in a row. Under McVay, the Rams are 5-0 against teams entering on a three-game losing skid, which is bad news for Dallas.
Rob Havenstein was a full participant, while Gerald Everett missed practice again.
It’s no coincidence that the Rams’ offense found a rhythm when the offensive line began playing better as a cohesive unit. After making several changes due to injuries to starters, the Rams have settled in on a starting five of Andrew Whitworth, Austin Corbett, Austin Blythe, David Edwards and Bobby Evans.
Rob Havenstein has missed the last four games with a knee injury, but he’s progressing and could be on track to return Sunday against the Cowboys. Only, he may not take back his regular starting spot at right tackle.
“These guys have done a good job and we’re going to monitor that as the week progresses,” Sean McVay said Wednesday. “It’s something that we feel good about if he is able to go, getting another really good football player back. In terms of what capacity he’s utilized, we have not made that decision.”
Havenstein was a full participant in Wednesday’s walkthrough, indicating he’s making good progress ahead of Sunday’s game against Dallas. Evans has done a great job in his place at right tackle, however, which is why the Rams are hesitant to plug Havenstein back in as the starter.
It wouldn’t be the least bit surprising if the Rams try to stick with the status quo and keep Evans as the starter over their $32.5 million man.
As for other injuries, Gerald Everett remains sidelined with a knee injury. He was a non-participant in the walkthrough and McVay said simply he’s not ready to practice yet. Nsimba Webster injured his hip on Sunday against the Seahawks and is considered day-to-day. He was limited in practice.
The Cowboys’ side of the injury report was much longer. Several starters were either limited or absent from practice on Wednesday, including La’el Collins, Byron Jones, Sean Lee, Zack Martin and Leighton Vander Esch, who is unlikely to play Sunday.
Dak Prescott was a full participant and is expected to be fine for this weekend after injuring his hand in Week 14.
Aaron Donald will make NFL history if he wins Defensive Player of the Year in 2020.
Aaron Donald hasn’t put up gaudy numbers or set any records this season, but that doesn’t mean he’s having a down year. He remains one of the very best players in the league regardless of position, and arguably the top defender anywhere in the NFL.
He ranks seventh in sacks (11.0), first in tackles for loss (18) and eighth in quarterback hits (22). According to Pro Football Reference, he has the second-most pressures (49) in the league, too, only one behind T.J. Watt for the most in football. His 28 hurries are tied with Khalil Mack for first, as well.
After looking at his stats, it’s no surprise that he’s the favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year again – which would be his third straight season taking home the award. Bovada has him at 13/5 to win the award, ahead of Stephon Gilmore (9/2) and Nick Bosa (6/1). T.J. Watt is 9/1, which is the fourth-highest.
Odds to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year (Bovada):
If Donald does go on to win Defensive Player of the Year, he’ll make NFL history in doing so. He’ll become the first player ever to win it three years in a row, breaking a tie with Lawrence Taylor and J.J. Watt, who both won it in back-to-back seasons.
Donald has once again caught fire after a relatively slow start, recording at least one sack in seven of his last eight games and 10 total since Week 6. In the first five games of the season, he only had one sack.
If he keeps up this pace, he’ll be holding that trophy once again come Februrary.
Under Sean McVay, the Rams have never lost to a team on a three-game losing streak.
The Rams and Cowboys will meet for the third time in the last three years on Sunday, and for the second time since January. Los Angeles has won the last two meetings between these teams, including a divisional round matchup at the Coliseum.
This isn’t a playoff game like the last one was, but it does have huge postseason implications for both teams. A loss by the Rams could put them two games back of the Vikings with two games to play, while a Cowboys loss will put further emphasis on Week 16’s showdown with the Eagles.
Here are five things to know about this matchup entering Sunday.
McVay’s Rams have never lost to team on 3-game losing streak
The Rams don’t often lose to bad teams under Sean McVay. Yes, they should have beaten the Buccaneers in Week 4 and probably the Steelers in Week 10, but losses to teams on losing skids never happens on McVay’s watch.
According to Gil Brandt, the Rams are 5-0 under McVay against teams currently on a three-game losing streak. They’ve won those games by an average of 20 points per game, and it just so happens the Cowboys have lost three in a row.
In the Sean McVay era (since 2017), the Rams are 5-0 against teams that entered their matchup on a losing streak of 3+ games, and have won those 5 games by an average margin of 20 points. Not great news for Cowboys.
The Rams were in attendance for the Kings’ 3-1 win over the Rangers on Tuesday night.
The Los Angeles Rams were busy on their day off Tuesday, doing a number of different things in the local area. Aqib Talib and John Johnson took the Watts Rams on a shopping spree, while Michael Brockers, Sebastian Joseph-Day and Tanzel Smart did the same for the Boys & Girls Club, as well.
Several other Rams players supported the Los Angeles Kings against the Rangers at the Staples Center, being brought out before the puck drop. Tyler Higbee, Taylor Rapp and Johnny Hekker were among the players in attendance.
The Kings beat the Rangers 3-1, moving their record to 12-18-2 on the year. Not quite the success the Lakers are having in the same building, but the season is still young.
Andrew Whitworth isn’t convinced the Patriots are innocent: “Why does it always seem to be that they’re involved in something?”
The Patriots have once again found themselves in the middle of a scandal involving the videotaping of another team’s sideline. The NFL is investigating the Patriots’ in-house video crew filming the Bengals’ sideline against the Browns on Sunday, which New England maintains is for a digital documentary series called “Do Your Job.”
Andrew Whitworth of the Rams isn’t as convinced. Given the Patriots’ history of Spygate and Deflategate, he’s not so sure they’re completely innocent of any wrongdoing in this situation.
He was on the “Rich Eisen Show” Wednesday and shared his thoughts on the incident, admitting it’s a different feeling when it’s the Patriots who are involved.
“I think it’s tough. Obviously, it’s one of those that’s going to send up everybody’s alerts across the league. Obviously, it’s one of those things when you keep being involved in a topic or something and it just centers around one team, it makes it tough because it’s one of those things where you go, yeah, it sounds like a harmless situation, but why is it always this team that’s involved in these harmless situations?” Whitworth said. “I think that’s one of the things that as players across the league in general, that’s really the thought most guys have, just because it’s tough that it always seems to be them involved in something like this.
“And also, it’s just funny – the whole situation. Like, we’re filming an advanced scouting documentary or something? I don’t know.”
Whitworth has been in the NFL for more than a decade, coming into the league in 2006 with the Bengals. He was in Cincinnati when the Spygate scandal happened and was obviously around for Deflategate, still as a member of the Bengals. So he knows how players feel about these types of situations and what the reaction will be, having been in NFL locker rooms for 14 years.
He believes this latest videotaping scandal is going to raise some red flags among players across the league.
“I think it creates a lot of skepticism,” he said. “It’s like, hey, why does it always seem to be that they’re involved in something? But at the end of the day, it sounds like it’s something that’s pretty harmless. But it’s also very strange that you’re just filming the Bengals sideline.”
Given the Patriots’ history, players and coaches are always on alert when playing them – especially in Foxborough. Whitworth has played there three times in his career and each time, it was treated differently than any other game.
“I think, in particular, when it comes to them, a lot,” Whitworth said of how paranoid teams are about the Patriots. “I know every time you play them or have gone there – when I was in Cincinnati, it was always like it was a different week when it came to that kind of stuff. ‘Hey, let’s be careful with papers that we’re handing out,’ or ‘let’s be careful about certain places.’”
He elaborated, saying players are always cracking jokes about the Patriots potentially spying.
“If you’re there in a hotel somewhere, like, who knows?” he said. “It’s always a joke, it’s a running joke – like ‘What person on the staff out here at the hotel might be talking to the Patriots?’ Most of the time, it’s kind of just being facetious and you’re just making a joke of it, but at the same time, you are thinking about that while you’re there.
“They’ve been a part of it, so it is what it is. They’re also a tremendous organization, they’ve had a lot of success. But they’ve also been involved in some things that raise the antennas a little bit.”
The Rams obviously played the Patriots in Super Bowl LIII, losing 13-3. Given the things Whitworth said about New England, it wouldn’t be shocking if the Rams took extra precautions in the week leading up to the game.
He’s certainly skeptical of the Patriots’ intentions in this situation, as are many others.
Aqib Talib returned to Los Angeles to make good on his holiday promise.
Aqib Talib is no longer a member of the Rams after the team traded him to the Dolphins in October, but he hasn’t completely abandoned Southern California. He previously made a commitment to take the Watts Rams football team on a shopping spree in Inglewood this holiday season and on Tuesday, he kept his word.
He flew back out to Los Angeles to make good on his promise to take them shopping, with John Johnson joining him.
Talib is on injured reserve and won’t play for the Dolphins this season, so he didn’t see a reason why he couldn’t fly out to the West Coast for a little while to support the community after making a commitment earlier.
Aqib Talib was traded by Rams in October but he kept commitment with Holiday Huddle of Hope charity events in Southern California. pic.twitter.com/w2y68dCd6Y
Very cool of Aqib Talib to keep his commitment to these kids and this holiday shopping spree in LA, even though he was traded at the deadline to Miami. pic.twitter.com/fdAl5axKxI
Talib and Johnson weren’t the only ones doing good in the community on their days off, either. Michael Brockers, Sebastian Joseph-Day and Tanzel Smart also took a group of kids from the Boys & Girls Club shopping at Target.
Rams defensive linemen Michael Brockers, Sebastian Joseph-Day and Tanzel Smart are the Target in Newbury Park providing a Holiday Shopping Spree for members of the Boys and Girls Club of the Conejo Valley @MichaelBrockers@bgcconejopic.twitter.com/x1hbm3Dgvp
The Rams are projected to have between $22.8 and $27.2 million in cap space next year.
The Los Angeles Rams (and the other 31 teams) will have some extra spending money next year thanks to the ever-rising salary cap. According to Ian Rapoport, the NFL has informed every team that the salary cap is projected to be between $196.8 million and $201.2 million.
That’s a rise from the current cap of $188.2 million, meaning it will increase by $8-13 million next year. As Rapoport points out, the cap has risen by 40% since 2015 when it was just $143.3 million.
The NFL informed clubs today that projections for the 2020 salary cap are in the range of $196.8 million to $201.2 million. This marks a 40% increase from five years ago in the 2015 season ($143.3 million).
Over The Cap projects the Rams to have $26 million in cap space next year, which is the ninth-fewest in the NFL. That’s with the cap projected at $200 million, so based on the new information released by the league, the Rams will have between $22.8 million and $27.2 million in cap space next year.
Obviously, that’s not much in comparison to the Colts, who are projected to have more than $105 million in cap space. The Dolphins are also expected to have over $100 million to spend next year. The Rams have players they need to pay, too, led by Cory Littleton.
He’ll be a free agent in 2020, and after seeing the contract Carolina gave Shaq Thompson – four years, $54 million – it’s reasonable to think Littleton’s deal will surpass that. Then there’s Jalen Ramsey, who’s undoubtedly seeking a contract extension, as well as Dante Fowler Jr., who will hit free agency after this season.
The Rams don’t have much money to work with, but with the cap rising and money rolling over after trading away Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib, the team has some added flexibility.
Eric Weddle was wired for sound in Week 14 and he calls everyone “babe.”
Eric Weddle has only been with the Rams for one season but he’s already become a leader on defense. He’s as vocal as anyone on the field, getting his teammates aligned properly and diagnosing plays before the snap.
If you’ve ever wondered what it sounds like to be on the field with Weddle, the Rams gave fans a glimpse with a mic’d up video on Tuesday. He was wearing a mic for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks and as you’d expect, Weddle was in constant communication with players and coaches on the sideline and between the white lines.
His relationship with Sean McVay is evident. He and the coach shared a hug on the sideline before kickoff, and Weddle told him, “Be you today. Be you” before giving McVay a friendly push.
Weddle has made a big difference in the secondary this season, and is a big reason the Rams rank 8th in total defense and 10th against the pass.
