Tag: Aaron Donald

Eagles 2020 schedule: Home and away opponents revealed

Eagles 2020 schedule: Home and away opponents revealed

The Philadelphia Eagles are set to embark on a playoff run to finish off the 2019 NFL season, but it’s never too late for a peek into the future and next year’s schedule.

With the 2019 NFL regular season wrapped up, the Philadelphia now know who there home and away opponents will be for next season.

Home: Cowboys, Giants, Redskins, Rams, Seahawks, Ravens, Bengals and Saints Away: Redskins, 49ers, Packers, Steelers, Giants, Browns, Cowboys, and Cardinals

The specific dates and times for each contest until the NFL schedule reveal happens on NFL Network in mid-to-late April. For now, Eagles fans can start preparing to purchase those home tickets to see the NFL MVP, Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens at the Linc. Drew Brees and Jared Goff will be visiting next season as well.

The Eagles travel better than most teams in the NFL, so away trips to Green Bay, Cleveland San Francisco and Arizona should be fun.

The schedule is developed a fears years in advance by the NFL, using a formula where teams play one NFC and one AFC division, rotating annually. They play their division opponents twice per season, which accounts for six contests.

Rams hand out 2019 awards: Donald wins MVP, Kupp and Rapp honored

Aaron Donald was named the Rams’ most valuable player of 2019.

As deflating as it was for the Los Angeles Rams to miss the playoffs, there’s still plenty the team can be proud of and hang its hat on. There were breakout performances by a few players, while others established themselves as starters in 2020 and beyond.

To honor the best players from 2019, the Rams announced individual awards to four individuals before their season finale.

Aaron Donald won MVP, Taylor Rapp was named the team’s best rookie, Eric Weddle was selected for the Spirit of the Game Award and Cooper Kupp earned the Ed Block Courage Award for sportsmanship and courage.

Donald leads the team with 12.5 sacks and is No. 1 in the NFL with 20 tackles for loss, once again dominating from the interior. Without him, the defense would look vastly different. He impacts the game in ways no other player does, consistently wreaking havoc in the backfield.

Rapp has been a stud since taking over for John Johnson as a starting safety, recording 93 tackles, seven passes defensed and one interception, which he returned for a touchdown. He still has room to grow, but he showed why the Rams were so high on him in the draft.

His mentor, Weddle, had an up-and-down season. He started out strong, but hasn’t made much of an impact in recent weeks. That being said, he’s still a leader on defense, not only helping Rapp but everyone else from Jalen Ramsey to Troy Hill.

And finally, Kupp earns the Ed Block Courage Award, “which is given to a player who is a role model of inspiration, sportsmanship, and courage.” He bounced back after tearing his ACL last season, catching 87 passes for 1,062 yards and nine touchdowns in 15 games so far this season.

Rams-Cardinals carries huge Defensive Player of the Year implications

Aaron Donald and Chandler Jones are both vying for Defensive Player of the Year, and Sunday’s matchup could decide it.

Neither the Los Angeles Rams nor the Arizona Cardinals will be playing for a postseason berth on Sunday afternoon when they square off at the Coliseum, but the game will carry some meaning for two players, in particular.

Aaron Donald and Chandler Jones are both chasing NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors, which they both have a chance to win. Stephon Gilmore has leapfrogged to the top of the contenders list recently, picking off two passes with one pick-six against the Bengals in Week 15, but both Donald and Jones are in the running.

Jones has made a late push for the award, sacking Russell Wilson four times last week to give him a league-high 19 sacks on the year. He also tops the NFL with eight forced fumbles and made his third career Pro Bowl.

According to the odds at Bovada, Gilmore is the odds-on favorite to win, followed by Jones and Donald. Needless to say, Sunday’s game between the Rams and Cardinals will play a huge role in the winner of the NFL’s most coveted defensive award.

If Jones goes out and sacks Jared Goff four times to set the single-season sacks record with 23, he’ll have a good chance to jump Gilmore as the favorite – depending on what the Patriots corner does against Miami. If Donald has a huge performance against the Cardinals offensive line and stuffs the stat sheet with multiple sacks, a few tackles for loss and a turnover or two forced, he’ll also improve his chances of winning.

So in actuality, Donald may need help from his offensive line in order to win Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season. Go figure.

Jones has gone seven straight games with at least a half-sack and only has three games of the 15 he’s played without a sack. It’s a good bet that he’ll have at least one, but the Rams offensive line has to prevent him from breaking Strahan’s record with a second straight four-sack performance.

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How to Watch Rams vs. 49ers, NFL Week 16 Live Stream, Schedule, TV Channel, Start Time

Watch Rams vs. 49ers Live Online.

The Los Angeles Rams (8-6) square-off against the San Francisco 49ers (11-3) in an NFC West showdown with playoff implications on the line. L.A. is looking to keep its postseason dreams alive, while the 49ers have another major test. San Francisco won the last matchup 20-7. 

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Rams vs. 49ers

  • When: Saturday, December 21
  • Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
  • TV: NFL Network
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

Following a 28-12 victory two weeks ago against the Seahawks, the defending NFC Champion Rams fell 44-21 in Dallas last weekend. Jared Goff threw the ball 51 times for 248 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Tyler Higbee was his leading target with 12 catches for 112 yards, his third straight 100+ yard performance. The story was the lack of running game and the ability of the Dallas defense to stop Todd Gurley. Gurley had 11 carries for just 20 yards and one touchdown. The Rams will have to get him going against the 49ers defense, which is one of the best in the NFL. Last time these two teams met the Rams were 0-for-9 on third down and had possession for only 21 of the game’s 60 minutes.

Defensively, can the Rams stop the 49ers rushing attack? It wasn’t Dak Prescott or Amari Cooper who was a thorn in their side, but the Dallas running backs. The Cowboys rushed 45 times with Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott combining for 248 yards and three touchdowns. Los Angeles is ranked 23rd against the run with teams averaging 115.6 YPG.

The 49ers have had a difficult four-game stretch with games against the Packers, Ravens, Saints, and a Falcons team that turned the second half of their season around. San Francisco has also picked up two losses in that span, including a 29-22 defeat to Atlanta last weekend. In a game that came down to a wild ending, which included and a Matt Ryan touchdown drive in the final seconds of the game. Jimmy Garoppolo completed 22 of 34 passes for 200 yards and one touchdown. Raheem Mostert led the team with a modest 54 yards rushing and one score. George Kittle continued his fantastic season with 13 catches for 134 yards to bring his total to 888 for the season. San Francisco’s offensive plan has been to pound the rock and it shouldn’t stop Saturday night with three running backs who all have over 500 yards this year.

Championship teams have their ups and downs and the loss against the Falcons may have been a wake-up call for the 49ers. Julio Jones picked up over 100 yards receiving and two touchdowns for the Falcons. If San Francisco wants that coveted No. 1 seed, it will have to win the next two games. The key to the 49ers success all season has been their defense, where they are second in total defense with opponents averaging 269 YPG and first in passing defense (154 YPG). Fred Warner had nine tackles last week and leads the team with 104, while San Francisco boasts one of the nastiest defensive lines in all of football. Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead, DeForest Buckner, and Dee Ford have a combined 32 sacks on the year.

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Three Rams make PFF’s Pro Bowl team, including one former backup

Troy Hill and Tyler Higbee were selected to PFF’s Pro Bowl roster in the NFC.

The Rams only had two players selected to the Pro Bowl when the rosters were announced on Tuesday night, both coming on defense. Aaron Donald was an obvious choice, but more surprisingly, Jalen Ramsey was also voted in despite a relatively average season.

Cory Littleton was the Rams’ biggest snub, and Cooper Kupp also had a case to be a Pro Bowler, but Pro Football Focus didn’t have either of them on their Pro Bowl rosters.

PFF released its own set of NFC and AFC Pro Bowlers based on its grading system, and three Rams players were selected. Donald, of course, was one of them, but the other two were under-the-radar picks.

Troy Hill and Tyler Higbee made it at cornerback and tight end, respectively, thanks to their solid overall grades. Hill has been the Rams’ best cornerback and one of the top corners in football since taking over as a starter in Week 7, earning an overall grade of 76.4.

Higbee has three straight 100-yard games, becoming the first tight end in franchise history to achieve that feat. His overall grade of 83.0 ranks among the best tight ends in the league this season, largely thanks to his emergence in recent weeks.

Donald leads all interior defenders with a grade of 93.1 and has 11 sacks on the year. He’s a no-brainer for not only the Pro Bowl, but also as a first-team All-Pro.

Rams’ Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey selected to 2020 Pro Bowl

The Rams had two players selected to the Pro Bowl.

The Los Angeles Rams aren’t sending as many players to the 2020 Pro Bowl as they have in the past few years when they were well-represented in Orlando. This year, they’ll only have two representatives: Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey.

On Tuesday night, the NFL announced rosters for the AFC and NFC squad and those two were the lone Rams players selected. With it being a disappointing season for the Rams that has seen many of their top players struggle, it’s not exactly surprising to see so few players voted into the Pro Bowl.

This season, Donald has 11 sacks and an NFL-high 19 tackles for loss. Although his sack numbers are down from last year, he’s still one of the best defenders in the league and commands more double teams than just about every other pass rusher.

He’s currently the betting favorite to win his third straight Defensive Player of the Year award, which would make him the first  player ever to accomplish that feat.

Ramsey came over in a mid-season trade with the Jaguars and has played relatively well since then. In eight games with the Rams, he has 29 tackles, two passes defensed and one forced fumble. In 11 total games this year, he has 46 tackles, three passes defensed and two forced fumbles. He does not have an interception yet.

This is Donald’s sixth straight year being selected to the Pro Bowl, making it every year he’s been in the NFL. Ramsey has now made it three years in a row, giving him three in his career.

Which Rams players should be selected to 2020 Pro Bowl?

(Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) The NFL will reveal its Pro Bowl rosters on Tuesday night, announcing which players will take part in the star-studded game in January. The Rams have sent several players to the Pro Bowl in each of the last two …

(Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)

The NFL will reveal its Pro Bowl rosters on Tuesday night, announcing which players will take part in the star-studded game in January. The Rams have sent several players to the Pro Bowl in each of the last two years, ranging from Aaron Donald to Todd Gurley to Jared Goff, but they may not be as well-represented this season.

In the midst of a down year, here are three players who are deserving of being named to the 2020 Pro Bowl.

DT Aaron Donald

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Donald surprisingly isn’t the top vote-getter at defensive tackle anymore, being overtaken by DeForest Buckner of the 49ers. Still, Donald is a lock to make the Pro Bowl, given the way he’s played this season. He won’t come close to the 20.5 sacks he had last year, sitting at 11.0 with two games remaining, but he leads the league with 19 tackles for loss and has 28 hurries – only two fewer than last year.

He’s arguably the best defensive player in the league and is the favorite to win his third straight Defensive Player of the Year award, so how could he not make the Pro Bowl?

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Aaron Donald on loss to Cowboys: ‘We got embarrassed’

Aaron Donald was brutally honest after the Rams’ loss to the Cowboys on Sunday.

There’s no way to put lightly how terrible the Rams looked on Sunday in Dallas. They were run over by the Cowboys 44-21, and the final score wasn’t indicative of how lopsided the actual game was. With just under seven minutes left in the game, the Rams trailed 37-7 before scoring two touchdowns in garbage time to draw the score closer.

Whether it was the offense or defense, Los Angeles looked uninspired and flat out of the gates, missing tackles and allowing Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard to run wild from start to finish, while simultaneously failing to get anything going on offense.

Aaron Donald knows how poorly the Rams played against Dallas, calling it an embarrassing loss.

While the execution was poor on the Rams’ part, so was the preparation. For a team that took it to the Cardinals and Seahawks in the last two weeks, Los Angeles sure didn’t look like the same squad on Sunday.

The defense, in particular, was outmatched against the Cowboys. The line got no push, the outside linebackers generated very little pressure and Dallas took advantage of the Rams’ lapses.

Look: Aaron Donald is in another world on this pass-rush chart

Aaron Donald is clearly the best pass-rushing defensive tackle in the league.

There haven’t been many defensive tackles in NFL history who can rush the passer the way Aaron Donald does. He set the all-time record for a player at his position last season by recording 20.5 sacks, which also led the league.

His power and quickness are unmatched for a player on the interior of the defensive line, which is why he’s the reigning two-time Defensive Player of the Year. He’s the favorite to win his third straight, too, currently sitting at 11 sacks.

Seth Walder of ESPN shared a chart showing how often a pass rusher is double-teamed and how often he wins his pass-rush rep (beating a blocker in under 2.5 seconds). Most of the defensive tackles are in the same area on the graph, but Donald is in another world by himself.

As you can see, Donald wins more than 24% of his pass-rush reps despite being doubled more than 68% of the time. That’s an incredible ratio, which is why he’s by himself at the top right of the chart.

On the edge rusher graph, Dante Fowler Jr. is near the middle. He’s doubled about 19% of the time and wins about 25% of his reps, which is still an impressive rate.