Tag: rams dolphins

Jared Goff vows to improve after he was ‘not even close to good enough’ vs. Dolphins

Jared Goff said he was “not even close to good enough” against Miami.

No one in the Rams locker room would say they played well enough on Sunday against the Dolphins. Even the defense came away disappointed with the result after Los Angeles lost to Miami, 28-17.

In a game where the Rams held the Dolphins to just 145 total yards, the offense simply was not good enough – and Jared Goff knew it. After the loss, Goff vowed to be better moving forward, saying he was “not even close to good enough” on Sunday afternoon.

“Throughout the whole game, just need to be better, gotta be better, I will be. I’ve got to learn from some things and be a lot better. I will be. But they did a good job applying some pressure. That’s kind of how they’re built and we did not respond quickly enough or well enough and it starts with me and I’ve got to be better.”

Goff finished the game with 61 pass attempts, of which he only completed 35. He lost two fumbles and threw two interceptions, though he could’ve had at least two or three more picks on top of that.

The Rams had a chance to move to 6-2 and claw closer to the top of the division with a win, but instead they’re now sitting at 5-3 heading into their bye. Goff knows how disappointing the result was against Miami, but he and the Rams plan to be ready for some tough games coming up in the second half.

“This is going to hurt,” he said. “This is one where we missed an opportunity here and like I said, it starts with me. I’ve got to be a whole lot better for us. The defense played really well and gave us all the opportunities we needed.

“Looking at us right now, we have a bye, some time to reflect, get away from it, come back. We’re 5-3, we’re right in it. We’ve got to win some games, though. It’s going to be some critical games coming up and we’ll be ready.”

The season is by no means over for the Rams, and like Goff said, they’re right in the hunt – especially with an extra playoff berth available this year. But if they play the way they did against Miami, they’re going to fall even further behind in the postseason race.

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The Dolphins dared Jared Goff to beat them and the Rams had no answer

Brian Flores drew up the perfect game plan to beat Jared Goff and the Rams on Sunday.

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On paper, the Rams looked like the better team than the Dolphins. They boast stars such as Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey, with the offense featuring an outstanding trio of Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods and Darrell Henderson.

But as they always say, games aren’t won and lost on paper. That’s why they play them on the field – and it’s also why coaching matters.

On Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium, the Rams were outplayed and outcoached. Arguably their most important people, Jared Goff and Sean McVay, laid an egg against the Dolphins and it cost the team a win.

Essentially, the Dolphins dared Goff to beat them and neither the quarterback nor the coach had any answer. Brian Flores, who was on the Patriots’ sideline calling their defensive plays in Super Bowl LIII, once again stymied McVay’s offense and made Goff look like he was a rookie seeing ghosts.

The Dolphins’ plan was fairly simple, too: attack Goff and make him beat us.

Spoiler alert: He couldn’t.

Miami was relentless with its pressure on Goff. A staple of Flores’ defense on Sunday was zero blitzes. He would essentially send five-plus rushers at Goff from all angles and leave his cornerbacks on an island against the Rams’ receivers. Oftentimes, there was no safety in the middle.

The Dolphins forced Goff to make quick decisions and release the ball earlier than he wanted, and the Rams had no answer. There were no screens, no draws and very few route combinations to take advantage of the single coverage outside.

Miami could afford to test Goff like this because of its talented cornerbacks. Xavien Howard and Byron Jones are two of the best in the league and they showed why on Sunday. Very rarely were they beat in coverage and they allowed almost nothing deep down the field.

This game primarily falls on the shoulders of Goff, McVay and the offensive line. None of them executed the way they’re expected to, and as a result, the offense stalled all game long. But to the Dolphins’ credit, they came up with a game plan that the Rams weren’t ready for.

Michael Brockers, for instance, said after the loss that he’s never seen a defense use zero blitzes as much as the Dolphins did.

McVay is one of the best coaches in the NFL, but similarly to the way he coached in the Super Bowl, he failed to adapt on Sunday. He couldn’t come up with plays to beat what the Dolphins were doing over and over.

It’s like a player in “Madden” who uses the same play repeatedly. At some point, you have to counter and find a way to beat it. But McVay had no answer for Flores’ attack, and neither did Goff.

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Only one other team in NFL history has lost the way the Rams did in Week 8

The Rams are just the second team to lose after gaining 450-plus yards and allowing less than 150 yards.

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If you didn’t watch the Rams-Dolphins game on Sunday and just glanced at the box score, there’s no way you’d think Miami won the game – let alone, won it by 11 points. The Rams dominated every statistical category over the Dolphins, from total yards to first downs to time of possession.

They outgained the Dolphins 471 to 145, had 31 first downs to Miami’s eight, averaged 5.1 yards per play compared to only 3.0 for the Dolphins, and converted on seven of their 17 third-down attempts. The Dolphins, on the other hand, were 3-for-12 on third down.

The one area where the Rams lost – besides the scoreboard, of course – was the turnover battle. Los Angeles gave the ball away four times and only created two turnovers, which was the difference in the game.

Incredibly, only one other team in NFL history has lost a game where they gained 450-plus yards on offense and held their opponent to less than 150 yards. That team is the 2000 Jets, who lost to the Ravens 34-20 in Week 17. The Jets had 524 yards and held the Ravens to only 142 yards, but like the Rams, they had too many turnovers (six).

It’s hard to fathom how Los Angeles lost this game, but it’s also hard to win when you give the ball away four times and allow an 88-yard punt return for a touchdown. Things went south quickly after Jared Goff fumbled the ball deep in Miami’s territory, which was scooped up and returned 78 yards for a touchdown. Less than two minutes later, Jakeem Grant brought a punt back for a touchdown to put the Dolphins up 21-7.

It’s a tough pill to swallow for Los Angeles, especially given the way the defense played, but Sean McVay and his players will have plenty of time to mull it over during their Week 9 bye.

Studs and duds from Rams’ 28-17 loss to Dolphins

The best and worst performers from Sunday’s disappointing loss to the Dolphins.

The Rams were in search of their sixth win of the season Sunday, hoping to capture it against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. But Miami had the perfect game plan for Sean McVay’s offense and completely shut down Jared Goff in this one.

The result was a 28-17 win by the Dolphins, sending the Rams back home and into their bye at 5-3. There wasn’t much to be encouraged about with L.A.’s offense, but the defense continues to play at an extremely high level.

Here are this week’s studs and duds, highlighting the best and worst performances by Rams players in Week 8.

Rams flattened by Dolphins, 28-17: Everything we know from L.A.’s ugly loss

The Rams are headed into their Week 9 bye with a 5-3 record.

The Rams were expected to beat the Dolphins. They were only 3.5-point favorites, but just about everyone thought they’d head into their bye week with a 6-2 record.

Brian Flores and the Dolphins had other plans, however. Miami stymied the Rams offense on Sunday afternoon, creating an NFL-high four turnovers in the first half, jumping out to a 28-7 lead.

The Rams defense pitched a shutout again in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a huge 21-point deficit in the first half. L.A. heads into the break at 5-3 after its 28-17 loss to Miami.

Here’s everything you need to know about the forgettable game for the Rams, who dominated the stat sheet but lost badly on the scoreboard.

Twitter rips Rams for disastrous first half vs. Dolphins

It was one of the worst first halves of Sean McVay’s tenure in L.A.

If you glanced at the scoreboard in the first half of Rams-Dolphins on Sunday afternoon, you’d never know Los Angeles was 5-2 and 3.5-point a favorite. The Rams had one of the worst first halves of Sean McVay’s coaching career against Miami, absolutely laying an egg on offense and special teams.

Jared Goff threw two interceptions and fumbled it twice, as he was also sacked two times by the Dolphins. He completed 15 of 32 passes for 136 yards – a lot of which came on the final drive of the half – with no touchdowns and four turnovers.

The Dolphins converted each of the Rams’ four turnovers into touchdowns, jumping out to a 28-7 lead in the first half. L.A.’s four turnovers are the most in a single half by any team in the NFL this season, just to put into perspective how poorly the offense played.

The defense came to play, limiting the Dolphins to just 56 yards on offense in the first half.

On special teams, the Rams allowed an 88-yard punt return for a touchdown by Jakeem Grant, which came just 76 seconds after Andrew Van Ginkel returned a fumble 78 yards for six points.

Sean McVay’s play calling also came under fire from fans and analysts, questioning why he constantly abandoned the run despite Darrell Henderson rushing for 49 yards on his first seven carries of the afternoon.

Twitter laid into Goff, McVay and the Rams as a whole for looking like a complete mess against the Dolphins, going into halftime down 28-10.

Watch: Aaron Donald welcomes Tua to NFL with strip-sack on 2nd snap

Aaron Donald introduced himself to Tua Tagovailoa on the rookie’s second play of the game.

It didn’t take long for Aaron Donald to introduce himself to Tua Tagovailoa on Sunday in the rookie’s first career start. On the Dolphins’ second offensive play of the game, Donald knocked the ball out of Tagovailoa’s hand for the strip-sack.

It was recovered by Sebastian Joseph-Day at the Dolphins’ 15-yard line, giving the Rams excellent field position.

The Rams turned the takeaway into a touchdown not long after Donald knocked the ball out. Robert Woods ran it in from 4 yards out on a jet sweep handoff from Jared Goff.

How to watch Rams at Dolphins: Time, TV channel and streaming info

Everything you need to know about watching Rams-Dolphins on TV today.

The Los Angeles Rams are back on the East Coast this weekend and are set to take on the Miami Dolphins – their second of four AFC East opponents on the 2020 schedule. The Rams come in having just beaten the Bears on Monday Night Football, but they have a new test this week: Tua Tagovailoa.

The rookie is making his first NFL start and the oddsmakers aren’t sure how to approach the game from a betting perspective. The spread is set at only 3.5 points in favor of the Rams, despite L.A. looking like the much stronger team this season.

Here’s everything you need to know about watching Rams-Dolphins on TV this Sunday.

Los Angeles Rams at Miami Dolphins – Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m. ET

TV channel: FOX

Live stream: fuboTV (try it free)

Radio: ESPN LA 710 AM

Location: Hard Rock Stadium

Forecast: Partly cloudy, 86 degrees, 11 mph winds

Referee: John Hussey

Odds: Rams -3.5, O/U 45.5

Rams reveal uniform combination for matchup with Dolphins

The Rams are sticking with their royal and yellow combination this week.

Uniforms have been a hot topic for the Rams this season after the team revealed its new threads earlier this year. They have three different combinations to choose from each week, and for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins, they’ll be wearing arguably the most popular set.

The team announced it will stick with its royal jerseys and yellow pants in Miami, the second straight week the Rams will wear that combination. They’re undefeated in that look this season, so why mess with a good thing, right?

Conversely, they’re 0-2 in their all-royal uniform set, losing to both the Bills and 49ers while wearing royal pants.

The Rams said this offseason that they don’t plan to mix-and-match their bone uniforms with the royal or yellow, which is disappointing. But as long as they make the all-royal look their least-worn one, few people will complain. The royal-on-yellow combination is a classic one that is reminiscent of the team’s throwbacks, which were beloved by fans everywhere.

Here’s the Rams’ record in each uniform this season.

  • Bone: 3-0
  • All-blue: 0-2
  • Blue and yellow: 2-0

On the other side, the Dolphins will wear their white jerseys with white pants on Sunday.

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Watch: Rams share hype video for showdown with Tua and the Dolphins

It’s hard not to be excited about this matchup.

The Rams just have one game to go before reaching their mid-season bye, with only the Miami Dolphins standing between them and a 6-2 start. Surprisingly, the Rams are only 3.5-point favorites over the Dolphins despite having two more wins and one fewer loss this season.

It’ll likely be a close matchup between two talented teams, led by two young quarterbacks. The Dolphins are starting Tua Tagovailoa against the Rams on Sunday afternoon, surprisingly benching Ryan Fitzpatrick for the rookie.

Tagovailoa is the first lefty starter at quarterback since Kellen Moore in 2015, and the Rams are geared up to sack him and create turnovers in his debut this weekend. As it does every week, Los Angeles released a hype video for Rams-Dolphins, narrated by J.B. Long.

It’s hard not to be excited about this cross-conference showdown in Miami Gardens.