Tag: Rams

Why the Jets’ predictable offense should be easy for the Rams to defend

The Jets’ tendencies on offense make them predictable, something the Rams must capitalize on today

The New York Jets run a simple offense that gives QB Aaron Rodgers full control of everything. Rodgers, like many players, falls into the same tendencies, especially now that he is reunited with Davante Adams.

When Rodgers looks to pass, look at his eyes. He’ll give Adams a quick look while walking towards the line of scrimmage, and once the ball is snapped, Adams is his first read every. single. time.

When in shotgun, watch when the running back lines up on the strong side. If the Rams have a light box (six or fewer defenders in the box), the running back is getting the ball on an inside zone.

If the box is stacked, Rodgers will run either play-action with a quick pass to an outbreaking receiver or an RPO with a slant over the middle to Adams. On any passing play, Garrett Wilson is the No. 2 read. If the Rams are in zone, Wilson will try to find a soft spot somewhere in the middle so a safety needs to be aware of him at all times. It would be a miracle if Rodgers looked at Allen Lazard before Wilson.

When Rodgers is under center and Adams is in the slot, oth men are looking for a seam throw between the safety and linebacker to Adams.

When Adams and Wilson are on the same side, whoever is the outside receiver will get a deep ball thrown their way on a streak. Rodgers uses the slot receiver to hold the safety while targeting the corner left on the island.

Rookie left tackle Olu Fashanu tends to have a massive back kick in pass protection, leaving the interior open to exploit on pass rushes. Also, he’s a clear tell on whether a play is a run or play action.

Several things the Rams can do to ensure defensive success is to use Jaylen McCollough an an extra defender on Adams. Adams loves inside routes so jumping them will come second nature for a pick artist like McCollough. Have Darious Williams cover Garrett Wilson as he is the Rams’ best pass defender.

Use Kam Curl as a blitzer and attack from Rodgers’ blind side. Fashanu is struggling to keep up with his responsibilities. Lastly, watch for the goal line fade when Braelon Allen is on the field. If it’s a goal line scenario when Breece Hall is in the game, the Jets are running the football.

With all these tells, despite how strong they look on paper, the Rams should have no issues dispatching the Jets.

Sean McVay gives definitive answer on potential Odell Beckham Jr. reunion

Sean McVay made it pretty clear that the Rams won’t be signing Odell Beckham Jr. right now

Sean McVay wasted no time shutting down rumors of a potential reunification between the Los Angeles Rams and veteran wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

On Wednesday, McVay told reporters that the Rams aren’t “looking at” bringing in Beckham right now, making a pretty definitive statement that Los Angeles won’t be bringing Beckham back.

Beckham cleared waivers Monday and is now available to be signed by any team.

The Rams currently have seven wide receivers on their active roster and with the return of Tyler Higbee, it looks like McVay has all the pass catchers he needs.

While it looks unlikely that Beckham will link up with the Rams this season, he remains a free agent and the list of teams interested in his services continues to dwindle with every passing day.

If the Rams are playoff-bound, don’t shut the door yet on another potential OBJ playoff masterclass performance in blue and yellow.

Cardinals get help they need in NFC West race in Week 15

They pulled within a game of the Rams and Seahawks in Week 15.

The Arizona Cardinals, following three consecutive losses after their bye week, did what they needed to stay alive in the race for the NFC West division title. They also needed help.

They got the help they needed.

They beat the New England Patriots 30-17 to even their record to 7-7.

The Seattle Seahawks lost at home to the Green Bay Packers 30-13 on Sunday night, dropping them to 8-6.

With the L.A. Rams’ 12-6 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday, improving to 8-6, they actually took over the NFC West lead, as they hold a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Seahawks.

So the Rams and Seahawks are 8-6, while the Cardinals are 7-7 and a game behind with three games remaining in the season.

The 49ers are in last place at 6-8.

The Cardinals will face the Rams in Week 17 on the road and the Niners at home in Week 18. They have the 3-11 Carolina Panthers this coming Sunday.

The Seahawks host the 11-2 Minnesota Vikings this weekend and wrap up the season on the road against the Chicago Bears and Rams.

The Rams face the New York Jets on the road this weekend and then host the Cardinals and Seahawks to close out the season.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Sean McVay details how screen passes have been extension of Rams’ run game

Sean McVay gave a great breakdown of how screen passes have become a staple of the Rams offense in recent weeks

The use of the screen pass has been a point of emphasis in Sean McVay’s offense since the return of Puka Nacua. In fact, one could say the screen jumpstarted the Rams’ season when Sean McVay used it to expose Minnesota’s defense in Week 8.

Since the 30-20 victory over the Vikings, the Rams have won five of their last seven games and are have a great shot to win the NFC West.

Nacua is such a dangerous weapon with the ball in his hands due to his shifty feet and desire to initiate contact. The use of the screen allows offensive linemen to explode out of their stance as if the Rams are running the ball but instead of blocking big defensive linemen, they can bypass them, hunting for linebackers and defensive backs in the secondary.

Rather than trying to create holes in a standard run play, the screen uses misdirection to create natural vacancies, while offensive linemen are able to attack the second level of defenses before defenders get a chance to stop the linemen at the point of attack.

Sean McVay broke down how his use of screens operates within the structure of his offense.

“I think because there’s some relief on the offensive line and in some instances, you don’t take for granted how difficult some of the arm slot changes are for the quarterback, there’s not as much mental toll,” he said. “I think it has a lot of benefits to be able to slow the rush. You can make it look like a lot of different things depending upon what type of screen you’re talking about. The ones that we had yesterday with Puka I thought were critical plays to be able to get good, efficient ones. Some of them are on early downs, the one that we’re talking about was kind of in a second down-and-10-plus situation. They’re really important to be able to get that off. I think fully functional offenses have different parts of their pass game and run game that they can efficiently activate based on what is needed within that game. I thought that was reflected yesterday with some good execution on a couple of those screens in particular.”

However, the screen doesn’t just automatically work out of nowhere. It requires offensive linemen to have certain athletic skill sets that allow them to maintain balance while simultaneously displaying explosiveness.

McVay spoke about how Steve Avila and Kevin Dotson display those qualities.

“I think that’s the benefit of having really functional, athletic guards that have an incredible ability to be able to move and accelerate in space and be able to have close-quarters contact with people,” he said. “When you do have guys like that, that’s a real benefit where you’re saying, ‘What can’t they do?’ I think you’ve seen it and you’ve mentioned it a little bit. We’ve been able to get some of our outside zone hitting run plays going. You can’t get those plays going if you don’t have guys that have the ability to be able to reach, cut off, and then be able to finish on second-level angles of departure. Both ‘K-Dot’ and Steve can do that in the run game with different ways of being fully functional. In the screen game, I think you’ve seen their athleticism displayed. ‘K-Dot’ had two, but Steve had a key block on that play as well that went viral for Puka on the screen.”

With Tyler Higbee set to make his season debut next week and the Rams’ rushing attack finally starting to hit it’s peak, we could see more screen passes that do not involve Nacua in the future. However if the Rams need to call a “gotta have it” play, the ball is going to Nacua and he’ll have some of the NFL’s best protectors escorting him through traffic.

Rams should bring back Odell Beckham Jr. following Dolphins release

As he was in 2021, Odell Beckham Jr. may once again be the answer to helping the Rams win another championship.

Odell Beckham Jr., also known as OBJ, may be a divisive figure in the media but in reality, his resume speaks for itself. While Beckham may not be the explosive 1,000-yard receiver from years past, he played a critical role in the Rams’ 2022 playoff run that culminated in victory in Super Bowl LVI and was an underrated piece in a Baltimore offense that propelled the Ravens to the AFC championship game last season.

Beckham spent nine games with the Dolphins this season and while his production looks to be non-existent, several factors contributed to his poor stat line, including an injury that kept Tua Tagovailoa out for several games and his small role in the offense.

Beckham and the Dolphins have parted ways and the Rams should be the first team to give him a call if he clears waivers this week. Beckham, despite what the media has said, is a team player. Just because he expects high-caliber QB play, it does not make him a bad teammate and with a QB like Matthew Stafford, that won’t be an issue.

It’s clear that Stafford isn’t comfortable consistently going to targets outside of Puka Nacua, and OBJ has the rapport with Stafford to make him an effective WR3. Not only do they have past chemistry, but OBJ also has an excellent relationship with Sean McVay.

McVay said about Beckham this week when asked if the Rams were interested in his services.

“I don’t know. The love I have for Odell, you know that,” he said. “Just waking up, kind of getting ready for what’s next for us and focusing on this. I’m not really sure about him. I’ve had a lot of other things that we’re kind of focused on right now.”

While McVay won’t openly express interest, OBJ is the perfect fit for the Rams come playoff time. He exploits zone coverage at an extremely high level, his football IQ is through the roof and while he may not put up ungodly stats, he makes critical catches at critical times.

With a roster spot vacated by Nick Hampton’s season-ending injury, the path to bringing Beckham back to Los Angeles is clear and both parties should come to an agreement if either wants to win a Super Bowl this year.

Breaking down Chris Shula’s perfect approach to defending the Hail Mary

Chris Shula’s usage of personnel and the blitz sealed victory for the Rams in what was perhaps the perfect way to defend a Hail Mary

At the end of the Rams-49ers game, Los Angeles led 12-6 and San Francisco had the ball at the 50-yard line with 6 seconds remaining in the ballgame. With no timeouts remaining, the 49ers called a classic Hail Mary play.

The standard operating procedure for the defense is to line up three defensive linemen and drop eight defenders in coverage. The theory is that once the ball is in the air, the likelihood of a catch is nonexistent due to the amount of bodies going for the ball once it comes down.

In years past, several teams have attempted to sway from the norm by blitzing the quarterback, hoping to get a rushed throw or a sack. While it has worked in the past, it has also failed as in the case of the Aaron Rodgers Hail Mary against Arizona in the 2015-2016 playoffs.

Shula decided to change up how defenses cover Hail Mary plays by rushing five instead of three. That’s not a revolutionary concept, but the big difference was in the Rams’ personnel. Usually, teams like to blitz with more physical linebackers in this scenario. Shula went with a dime look that replaced Omar Speights with Kam Curl.

Shula had Jared Verse and Byron Young attack from the outside to force Brock Purdy to step up in the pocket. He then used Kobie Turner to draw the double-team. The 49ers called six-man protection so at this point, both tackles for the 49ers, along with their left guard and center, were being occupied by pass rushers. This left the right guard and running back as San Francisco’s only remaining blockers.

The guard took on Christian Rozeboom, leaving the speedy and physical Curl one-on-one with the running back. Rozeboom and Curl would bring Purdy down for the game-ending sack.

It takes receivers at least 4.5 seconds to reach the endzone from the 50-yard line. Purdy was wrapped up in 3 seconds.

By deploying Curl as a linebacker, it forced the 49ers to use their running back to block him as the guard could easily get run past. Rozeboom, on the other hand, is also too quick for the guard to handle so no matter what, the QB doesn’t have enough time to get the ball off.

In terms of numbers and time, it’s better to rush five players instead of three in Hail Mary situations from 50 yards and beyond. A proper pass rush will get the QB on the ground before his receivers even reach the endzone. Expect more teams to deploy “hybrid linebackers” in the future like Curl in order to stop last-minute heaves before they can happen.

De’Vondre Campbell quitting on 49ers played big part in Rams’ win

De’Vondre Campbell’s decision not to play midway through Rams-49ers left a hole that Sean McVay and LA exploited.

In an inexplicable move, San Francisco 49ers linebacker De’Vondre Campbell refused to go into the game against the Los Angeles Rams in the third quarter of Thursday’s game, walking off toward the locker room.

While Campbell’s refusal to play remains a story without an ending, his decision may have not only ended the 49ers’ season, but possibly propelled the Rams into the playoffs.

Before Campbell was called into service, the 49ers were operating with a linebacker rotation of Fred Warner, Dre Greenlaw, and Dee Winters. The trio, along with the rest of the defense, held the Rams to just three points and just three first downs midway through the third quarter.

It was at that point that Greenlaw would exit the game with 7:12 remaining after helping to bring down Blake Corum. He would not return. Dee Winters was also hurt and was unable to go back in.

Campbell was the next man up but his defiance forced the 49ers to deploy a banged-up Demetrius Flanagan-Fowles during a critical drive for the Rams. Not only was Flanagan-Fowles hurt, but he’s a rotational player who hasn’t seen a whole lot of defensive snaps this season compared to Campbell. Before the game, Flanagan-Fowles had 11 total tackles on the season.

With Campbell having thrown in the towel, the Niners had to step out of their base nickel defense and go into a single-high safety look that brought Talanoa Hufanga into the box. As a result of these unforeseen defensive adjustments, the Rams would proceed to score nine unanswered points, entering the red zone on three straight drives.

The Rams also targeted the interior via Puka Nacua. With an already injured Flanagan-Fowles and Warner, the Niners had no chance. Campbell was already playing at a poor level but his absence doomed what was a winning effort by San Francisco.

While an incredibly lucky sequence of events for the Rams may have gifted them the path to victory, perhaps it’s Los Angeles’ emphasis on bringing in players that fit their culture that has propelled them to a Super Bowl victory, while the 49ers – despite their consistent success – have failed to win a title since 1995.

If Campbell’s departure wasn’t evidence enough of his character, the vocal outcries of teammates Charvarius Ward and George Kittle calling for his removal from the team have sealed Campbell’s future in the bay.

The Rams took advantage of a tough situation for the 49ers and are now in the driver’s seat in the NFC West.

Kyren Williams and Blake Corum: The NFL’s next great rushing duo

Kyren Williams and Blake Corum may be in the infancy of their partnership but the numbers are pointing to potential long-term success.

The NFL has been defined by great running back duos. Harris and Bleier, Czonka and Morris, Brown and Williams. Even the modern NFL is being dictated by lighting-and-thunder rushing duos such as in the case of Detroit’s David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, Seattle’s Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet, Pittsburgh’s Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren and Baltimore’s Derrick Henry and Justice Hill.

In Los Angeles, a new tandem is slowly forming between Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. Corum, sidelined for most of the season due to a coaching decision, has finally been allowed to shine, breaking open the once-stalled Rams’ rushing attack. In back-to-back weeks, Corum has been fed eight carries for a total of 76 yards. That comes out to 4.7 yards per carry.

As a result, Williams put up a season-high 104 yards against the Saints and 87 yards against the Bills. The Bills, thanks to the success of Corum and Williams’, had to dedicate more resources to stop the run. Matthew Stafford then gashed the Bills for 320 yards through the air.

Once Corum becomes a better pass blocker, he’ll see more snaps but his carries need to go up. The Rams have found an effective formula for their run game: use Corum on the second drive to give Williams the energy to put the game away in the fourth quarter.

While Williams is a straight one-cut running back, Corum likes to weave his way in between defenders. Those rushing methods when paired together exhaust defenders as it keeps them on their toes. Williams and Corum tire out the defenders’ bodies, then their minds, then their spirits. Once you take their spirit, it’s all over. And that ideology has contributed to the Rams’ two-game winning streak.

This is the beginning of a terrific tandem and with both players signed through at least 2025, expect Williams and Corum’s numbers to balloon, especially with Stafford getting older. A QB’s best friend is a solid rushing attack and that’s exactly what Williams and Corum provide.

Bills’ offensive coordinator Joe Brady explains late QB sneak vs. Rams

Bills’ offensive coordinator Joe Brady explains late QB sneak vs. Rams

The Buffalo Bills lost to the Los Angeles Rams 42-44 on Sunday in Inglewood, CA.

The Rams came out swinging, competing in all three phases early to take a sizable lead.

Their offense never took their foot off the pedal, and while the Bills offense kept pace in a scoring shootout their defense and special teams were not able to get meaningful stops.

Near the end of the contest, some questionable playcalling caused a domino effect sequence that has raised game and clock management questions similar to the team’s loss to the Houston Texans earlier this season.

And it started with a failed quarterback sneak attempt at the goal line.

Head coach Sean McDermott would call a timeout after a failed QB sneak and before their last touchdown, which then led to an onside kick the Bills didn’t recover. The Buffalo defense was able to force a punt but needed to attempt a block to have the best chance, but there was no punt rush on the play.

“The highest percentage play at that point was just doing a QB sneak,” OC Joe Brady said about the play call. “At the same time, the cost of not getting it essentially, potentially, and kind of did cost us the game. So I have to do a better job in that situation. At the end of the day, we can’t burn a timeout there.”

Josh Allen rushing is as good a play as any in the red zone. After all, he has more rushing touchdowns at age 28 than some Hall of Fame running backs had in their entire careers. Still, on this attempt, the unsuccessful play proved costly.

“If we’re going to call it, we have to make sure that we know 100% that we can get it. I felt confident in it and felt confident in doing it. But that doesn’t make it right,” he said.

The sequence garnered a strong response from long-time Bills divisional nemesis and UGG spokesman turned FOX Sports analyst, Tom Brady.

“To me, take three shots throwing it—don’t use a timeout. Then you can kick it deep, use your three timeouts to still get the football with good time. That changes the entire complexity of the last 1:02 of the game. I did not like that one bit. That could’ve just cost them the game right there.”

While these statements all ring true, the Bills defense also had some explaining to do after failing to stop much less slow down the Rams offense.

DC Bobby Babich spoke about the grouping of issues that compounded throughout the game after his unit gave up a season-high 44 points.

“When you look at it and you really watch the tape, it’s, and I used this word earlier today, it’s a conglomeration, and I’m including myself, of people not doing their jobs at a high level,” he said. “The recipe to lose a football game is what we did yesterday, and it starts with me, first and foremost, what I did yesterday, and we just got to learn from it. Move on and not let it happen again.”

They’ll face a Lions team next week that has the No. 1 ranked scoring offense in the NFL, and Babich knows they will need to be at their best in the matchup.

“I believe our guys are up to the challenge, and they’re ready to respond.”

Scott Frost’s new job could provide Rams with scouting advantage

With Scott Frost returning to UCF, here’s why his new job could help the Rams win in the long run.

Former Rams consultant Scott Frost’s time in Los Angeles ended when he was recently announced as the new head coach at the University of Central Florida. It was always a probability that Frost would return to the collegiate ranks and for UCF, they get back the coach that led them to an undefeated season in 2017.

While Frost may not work for the Rams anymore, the relationship between the coach and the organization may provide the Rams’ front office with unmatched access to players within the organization and in the Big 12 conference.

While Frost himself would be able to provide insight into players within his program, which is important as UCF has become a hotbed for high school and transfer portal talent since their jump to the Big 12, the Rams would also have an affiliated coaching staff that would most likely be willing to share their perspectives on the NFL-caliber players that they have to scheme against.

In his introductory press conference, Frost heaped praise on the Rams organization for being a first-class group, so it sounds like he built strong connections within the building.

For Frost, his coaching staff, and UCF, the prospect of forming/strengthening connections inside the NFL is more than enough for them to provide such information, especially when UCF can use its relationship with the Rams as a recruiting tool.

When it comes to pro football, it’s more who you know instead of what you know and with a known man leading one of the top football programs in the state of Florida, there’s reason to believe Frost’s short stint with the Rams can lead to long-term benefit for both parties.