Tag: Cobie Durant

Sean McVay shares positive injury update on Cobie Durant for Week 16

Cobie Durant missed the Rams’ Week 15 win over the 49ers but he could return this weekend against the Jets

The Los Angeles Rams were forced to face the San Francisco 49ers without their top cornerback in Week 15, losing Cobie Durant to a chest injury the week prior against the Buffalo Bills.

Durant has been outstanding in coverage all year so his absence hurt the secondary, but Ahkello Witherspoon stepped up and played well opposite Darious Williams.

Sean McVay provided an update on Durant’s status for Week 16, telling reporters on Monday that he’s trending in the right direction ahead of the Rams’ game against the Jets this weekend. It sounds like he has a real shot to play against New York, which is big for the Rams considering how talented the Jets’ receiving corps is with Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson.

Assuming Durant returns against the Jets, he’ll be the starter on one side with Williams likely manning the other cornerback spot. Witherspoon played well enough against the 49ers to earn more playing time, but Los Angeles doesn’t exactly have a void in the secondary for him to fill.

Cobie Durant has been the NFL’s best 3rd-down CB based on this key stat

Don’t try Cobie Durant on third down because the Rams CB has allowed a passer rating of 0.0 this season

By no means has it been a perfect season for any of the Los Angeles Rams’ cornerbacks, but Cobie Durant has certainly had his moments of solid play in the secondary. He’s allowed a completion rate of only 61.4%, the second-lowest on the team, and he’s broken up more passes (3) than he’s allowed touchdowns (1).

His best play has come on third down, too, which has helped the Rams defense get off the field. According to Next Gen Stats, Durant has allowed a passer rating of 0.0 on third down this season, the lowest of any cornerback in the NFL this season.

He’s only given up two receptions on nine targets on third down, totaling 18 yards with one interception. He and Derek Stingley of the Texans are the only two cornerbacks in the NFL who have allowed a passer rating below 15.0 on third down.

Durant has mostly been an outside cornerback this season, which is where he’s been at his best. Of his 672 snaps played, 469 have been as an outside corner, according to Pro Football Focus.

When lined up in the slot, he’s allowed 182 yards on only 16 targets compared to the 130 yards he’s given up on 28 targets as an outside corner. The Rams have been forced to play him inside out of necessity but the more they can keep him on the boundary, the better off they’ll be.

After a down year in 2023, Durant has bounced back nicely this season.

We have yet another Player of the Week come out of matchup with Raiders

Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson is the latest to earn Player of the Week honors from teeing off on the Raiders.

It seems like an almost weekly occurrence now. Player who face the Raiders this season having their best games and being named Player of the Week because of it. The latest is this week’s AFC Defensive Player of the Week Trey Hendrickson.

Hendrickson put up a career-high four sacks along with a pass breakup and forced fumble in the Bengals’ 41-24 win over the Raiders on Sunday. He took full advantage of the Raiders’ injury issues at left tackle, getting his first sack while facing primary backup Andrus Peat and the other three while lining up across from third stringer Thayer Munford.

A couple of Hendrickson’s rushes again Munford made the rounds on social media. One in which he was run around flat footed and the other where he was knocked onto his back.

This is the third time in the past five weeks a Player of the Week came out of a matchup with the Raiders.

The first time was Week 5 AFC Defensive Player of the Week CB Patrick Surtain who had two interceptions, including a pick six in the Broncos’ 34-18 win over the Raiders.

The other time was  Week 7 NFC Defensive Player of the Week Cobie Durant who had and interception, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble that was returned for a touchdown in a 20-15 win over the Raiders.

This is getting to be a real theme for the Raiders this season. They’ve often been called the cure for what ails you, but lately they’ve been the gift that keeps on giving.

Raiders help another opponent win Defensive Player of the Week award

For the second time in three games, we have a Defensive Player of the Week winner after facing the Raiders. This time Rams CB Cobie Durant.

It’s long been said that facing the Raiders is the cure for what ails you. In some cases this season, it has led to awards. We are now at two times in the past three weeks it has happened.

This week’s NFC Defensive Player of the Week is Rams CB Cobie Durant.

Two weeks ago it was Broncos’ Pat Surtain who won it after he had two interceptions against the Raiders including a 100-yard pick six.

Just like Surtain, Durant was either responsible or the recipient on two of the Raiders turnovers in Sunday’s loss. On leading to a defensive touchdown.

Durant’s first play was breaking up a pass for Brock Bowers to end the Raiders first scoring drive and they settled for a field goal.

Later in the second quarter, he made the first interception of the game, giving the Rams the ball at the Vegas 47 and leading to the first touchdown.

Not four minutes later, he shot up the middle unblocked on the blitz and hit Gardner Minshew as he attempted to throw, knocking the ball out. It was then picked up by Kam Curl and returned for the second touchdown of the game.

And suddenly what was a 3-0 Raiders lead, was not a 14-3 Rams lead.

Cobie Durant wins NFC Defensive Player of the Week for dominant game vs. Raiders

Cobie Durant had one of his best games ever and was recognized by the NFL for it, earning a weekly award

Cobie Durant only played about half the game on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders, but the third-year cornerback made the most of his opportunities. In the Los Angeles Rams’ 20-15 win, Durant made two tackles, had one sack, forced a fumble, intercepted a pass and had another deflection, stuffing the stat sheet in Week 7.

The NFL recognized his performance and awarded him NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors. It’s the first time he’s won the award and he certainly deserved it this week for the dominance he showed on Sunday afternoon.

Durant’s interception led to a Rams touchdown on the very next possession, and his forced fumble on a blitz off the edge led to a fumble and a recovery by Kam Curl, who returned it 33 yards for a touchdown. Those two plays were the difference in the game, as the Rams may not have won if not for Durant creating the turnovers that he did.

Watch: Cobie Durant and Kam Curl team up for 33-yard fumble return TD

Cobie Durant forced it out on the sack and Kam Curl scooped it up for a 33-yard fumble return TD to pad the Rams’ lead

In the first five games of the season, the Los Angeles Rams only forced four total turnovers on defense, which put them 24th in the NFL. In the first half on Sunday alone, they took the ball away twice from the Raiders, one of which was returned for a touchdown.

In the second quarter, Cobie Durant came on a blitz and knocked the ball out of Gardner Minshew’s hand for a strip-sack. Kam Curl was in perfect position to scoop up the loose ball and return it 33 yards for a touchdown, increasing the Rams’ lead to 14-3.

The two defensive backs came up with the Rams’ best defensive play of the season, Durant’s second takeaway of the game. He also picked off Gardner Minshew on the Raiders’ previous possession.

After Curl got into the end zone, the defense hit the rowboat celebration.

Rams snap counts: LA benches two DBs, Blake Corum rises to RB2

Breaking down the Rams’ snap counts from Sunday’s loss to the Packers, which shows a big shakeup on defense

After starting 1-3 and struggling badly against the pass on defense, the Los Angeles Rams thought it was a good time to shake up the secondary. They made several changes to the defensive backfield on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, including the decision to bench Tre’Davious White by making him a healthy scratch for the first time in his career.

Offensively, the Rams mostly kept the status quo. However, Blake Corum did take over as the No. 2 running back behind Kyren Williams. He replaced Ronnie Rivers in that role, playing a season-high 11 snaps in the 24-19 loss.

We broke down the snap counts below, starting with the offense.

Offense

After playing the third-most snaps of the Rams’ receivers last week, Demarcus Robinson played most of the game on Sunday, only missing two snaps. Jordan Whittington was a close second with a 92% snap share, and that was with missing the end of the game due to a shoulder injury. Tutu Atwell was WR3 again, with Tyler Johnson (11 snaps) and Xavier Smith (8 snaps) operating as the reserves.

At running back, Kyren Williams played 86% of the snaps, which is about his average for the year. Corum, not Ronnie Rivers, was his backup, with the rookie playing a season-high 11 snaps. He touched the ball six times on those 11 plays, rushing for 25 yards on five carries and catching an 8-yard screen pass.

Colby Parkinson remains the No. 1 tight end, playing 79% of the snaps. Hunter Long played 22% and Davis Allen played 4%, so the Rams did mix in some 12 personnel again on Sunday.

All five starting linemen played the entire game again, which is a good sign for their continuity.

Defense

The defense is where the biggest changes were made by the coaching staff, specifically in the secondary. White was benched after four games of being a starter, sitting this game out as a healthy scratch. In his place, the Rams gave Ahkello Witherspoon a prominent role (81%) and Darious Williams played 49% of the snaps in his season debut. Cobie Durant was a major factor in this game, playing all but three snaps.

Josh Wallace was also given a big opportunity as an undrafted rookie, playing 31 snaps, mostly as the nickel corner in the “star” role. That allowed Quentin Lake to be a more traditional safety, once again playing every snap on defense alongside Kamren Curl.

You’ll notice Kamren Kinchens’ name is missing from the list above and that’s because he was the other defensive back benched by Chris Shula. The rookie had been struggling in place of John Johnson III, so the Rams took him out of the lineup and gave him zero defensive snaps. That opened the door for Jaylen McCollough to play more, getting on the field for 15 snaps, coming up with a key pick-six on one of those plays.

At inside linebacker, it was still Troy Reeder and Christian Rozeboom manning the middle, but Reeder played just 86% of the snaps despite being the signal caller with the green dot. Rozeboom played 71% of the game as the No. 2 linebacker.

Byron Young continues to be the top option at edge rusher, playing 80% of the snaps. Jared Verse and Michael Hoecht were almost an even split, with Verse playing 69% and Hoecht plating 64%. They were the only three edge rushers again.

Kobie Turner played 81% of the snaps as the top defensive lineman, with Braden Fiske being the next-closest player at 51%. Bobby Brown, Neville Gallimore and Tyler Davis continue to rotate along the front, with Jonah Williams playing one snap in his debut with the team.

Rams have secondary decisions to make with Darious Williams nearing a return

Darious Williams could return as soon as this weekend but how will the Rams fit him in at CB?

It’s always good when a starter returns from injury but that can sometimes come with difficult decisions, too. That’s going to be the case for the Los Angeles Rams with Darious Williams making his way back from IR as early as this week.

Williams practiced for the first time on Wednesday and has been designated to return already. The Rams will need to activate him before he can take the field on Sunday, but that seems like a good possibility.

If Williams does return to face the Packers this weekend, the Rams will need to figure out a way to fit him into the secondary – a secondary that’s been struggling without him in the first four games of the season.

They have a few different options to consider, none of which is simple.

Bench Tre’Davious White

The first option is to bench the cornerback who’s been playing the poorest this season: Tre’Davious White. He may have all the accolades as a former All-Pro and Pro Bowler, but his play has hurt the Rams’ pass defense. Whether it’s giving up big plays to Jameson Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. in coverage or committing costly penalties that extend drives, White has not played well thus far.

According to Aaron Schatz, White has the worst coverage DVOA of any cornerback this season.

 

The problem with benching him is he’s a high-profile defender who may not be playing well, but he could potentially turn it around as he gets further and further removed from the torn Achilles he suffered last year.

White and Williams are both at their best as outside cornerbacks and there are only two of those spots available each snap. Perhaps a more limited role for White could do him some good.

Bench Cobie Durant

A second option is benching the other starter on the outside, Cobie Durant. He actually has the lowest coverage grade on the team, per Pro Football Focus, but he’s allowed just 82 yards to White’s 151 on three fewer targets. He also hasn’t allowed a touchdown or committed a penalty yet, while White has given up four scores and committed five penalties (one declined).

Like Williams, Durant is slightly undersized for an outside cornerback, which could create some mismatches for offenses with bigger receivers. Therefore, starting both of them may not be the best approach. But Durant’s speed is also beneficial when the Rams are facing faster receivers who can stretch the field vertically.

Durant may not be playing particularly well right now but he has traits that make him valuable.

Move Durant into the slot and Quentin Lake to safety

If the Rams want to get a little bit more creative, there’s a third option that involves making changes at two positions. They could choose to start Williams at outside cornerback, move Durant into the slot and push Lake back to safety where he would replace the struggling rookie Kamren Kinchens.

This could solve two problems for the Rams. It’ll take Durant off the island of being on the boundary, and it’ll also relieve Kinchens of the heavy workload he may not be fully prepared for as a third-round rookie.

It also presents some hurdles. Right now, Lake has been the Rams’ best defender in the secondary. Per PFF, he’s played 120 of his 258 snaps in the slot, with another 60 snaps as a deep safety and 67 in the box. He can line up anywhere in the secondary and also play dime linebacker, making him a chess piece for Shula to deploy.

While he may be needed at safety, moving him further away from the ball could lead to a regression when it comes to stopping the run – something that’s already been a big problem for the Rams.

It’s a difficult choice no matter what the Rams decide to do, but getting a good player back is always a positive for any team. Hopefully Williams can help turn around a secondary that’s been struggling so far this season.

Rams injury report: 2 players ruled out, 3 questionable vs. 49ers

Sean McVay shared injury updates ahead of Sunday’s game, already ruling out two players and listing three as questionable

(This story was updated to add new information.)

The Los Angeles Rams’ injury issues haven’t just been on offense and defense. They’ve now bled into the special teams unit.

Sean McVay said Friday before practice that kicker Joshua Karty is one of three players listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the 49ers. Karty will try to practice today after sitting out the first two days of work, and that will determine whether he’s able to play on Sunday.

If not, it’ll be Tanner Brown kicking for the Rams this weekend. He was recently signed to the practice squad as a precaution with Karty battling a groin injury.

Additionally, Cobie Durant and Bobby Brown III are both considered questionable, per McVay. Cooper Kupp has been ruled out, as expected, and Davis Allen is also out for the second straight week with a back injury.

The good news is Kevin Dotson appears to be off the injury report and good to go despite a lingering foot injury.

The Rams and 49ers will both release their final injury reports of the week after practice on Friday, at which point this post will be updated to reflect official designations for this weekend’s game.

Update: The full injury report is below, which has updated statuses for 49ers players.

Rams injury report: Cobie Durant held out, Rob Havenstein limited Wednesday

The Rams are dealing with several injuries to starters at the moment, including Cobie Durant and Rob Havenstein

It’s been a busy week for the Los Angeles Rams and it’s only Wednesday. With Puka Nacua, Steve Avila and Joe Noteboom all on injured reserve, the Rams have gotten thin at certain spots on the depth chart.

They began their prep for the Cardinals with their first practice on Wednesday and Sean McVay shared an update on the team’s injuries after their walkthrough. Cobie Durant (toe), Rob Havenstein (ankle) and Kevin Dotson (ankle) are all among those who are on the injury report, as expected.

Durant is not practicing, nor is Dotson. Havenstein and Christian Rozeboom are both going to be limited, which means Jonah Jackson is the only starting lineman who’s practicing in full.

It’s only Week 2 but the Rams are already as banged up as some teams are in Week 12. The good news is that Dotson is expected to play against the Cardinals and there’s still some hope that Havenstein can suit up, too.

Update (5:45 p.m. PT): The Rams released the full injury report, which also lists Davis Allen as a non-participant due to a back injury.

For the Cardinals, Kyler Murray was a full participant, Xavier Weaver was limited and Max Melton was out with a concussion.