I was listening to two talking heads from PFF. They concluded that the Ram win was an aberration and they made the comment that they saw no evidence that the OL was any good and basically saying the win had more to do with Seattle not being good than the Rams kicking butt. This is exactly why I don't see PFF as being credible and simply proves what I keep saying about them. PFF is clueless about what they are seeing and color everything with their own bias. They are not impartial. Anyone who gives them credence knows less than they do which is zero.

I hate the 9ers, their fans, family, every one they ever associated with. Wishing nothing but cold hatred toward every member of that team. GO RAMS.

Not sure if this has been posted but he was admitted to the hospital on Sunday for a "medical situation" and was released today .

On the latest nfl.com power ranking, Rams are in at #26.


Any posters with restrained, refined, reasoned thoughts on this matter?

"Ah, I must beg to differ...."

The OL will be tested in this game. The Niners will often play a base nickel and expecting the Rams 11 personnel I think they will be in a base nickel. But the Niners play their base nickel differently than most. They play with a MIKE and a WIL and that WIL has SS traits, i.e. he has safety speed and agility and will often drop into coverage essentially playing their nickel like a dime.

The Niner DL also will align differently, in that their NT Hargrave will frequently align more as a second 3T. Hargrave is big, strong and quick and he's going to really test Avila. Avila at LG is no accident. The Rams wanted a big strong mobile LG to face up to Hargrave twice this year. It's why the Rams aligned Donald over Avila to prep him for this game. Javon Hargrave is much like Donald, at 6'2" 305lbs and is quick and strong. Hargrave has been in the NFL since 2016 and has 38 sacks as a DT.

Both the Niner's edges favor wide 9 alignments. It's why it's an absolute requirement for Higbee to give a chip assist to Havenstein. Jackson will be really tested against Bosa coming at him from a wide 9. Shelton needs to be on top of his game because if he moves to help the OGs too quickly, their MIKE will delay blitz that open gap. On passing plays the Rams absolutely will need to keep someone in the backfield to pick up those blitzes.

The 49ers like playing a single high safety though they will drop into quarters on occasion. If given time Stafford will have deep strike opportunities.

One area of emphasis will need to be ball security. The 49ers are coached that the first tackler holds the RB, or WR up allowing for the following guy to rip at the ball. That is a standard thing the Niners coach.

Most of all Stafford can't expect to make a living forcing the ball against the Niners. Turning the ball over is a component of their defense. If it's not there Stafford must remain disciplined, something he often has difficulty in doing. Turnovers and penalties will absolutely kill the Rams playing a team like the 49ers. They need to play a disciplined, clean game and if they do I honestly believe they can beat the Niners. The Niners aren't some mythical boogie man. Stafford stabbing them in the heart will kill them.

When the Rams beat the Niners the NFL will know the Rams are back.

Let’s be honest: everything in between was shite.

And that includes all the AVP nonsense.

When the link is available I'll post this idiocrasy, but some fool on Get Up is saying the best option for the Jets is to trade for Matt Stafford now. He actually thinks we would consider taking picks and tanking for Caleb Williams, even after our week 1 victory

The Rams couldn’t have asked for a much better start to the 2023 season, coming out and crushing the Seahawks in the opener on Sunday, 30-13. They were dominant on both sides of the ball, outgaining the Seahawks, 426-180, in terms of yardage.

There were several players who put together standout performances against Seattle, some on each side of the ball. Matthew Stafford was sharp, Puka Nacua was a stud and Russ Yeast shined at safety.


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Pro Football Focus released player grades on Monday and we’ve broken them down by offense and defense, looking at the best and worst performers in the Rams’ win.

Top 5 offense​

• QB Matthew Stafford: 91.1
• WR Puka Nacua: 81.3
• WR Tutu Atwell: 80.6
• TE Brycen Hopkins: 78.1
• C Coleman Shelton: 71.9

It was a fantastic day for the passing offense on Sunday, largely thanks to Stafford, Nacua and Atwell. Stafford was incredibly accurate all afternoon, throwing for 334 yards on just 38 attempts. Nacua and Atwell each had 119 yards receiving, Nacua on 10 catches and Atwell on six.
Hopkins had a 21-yard reception in the game and while Tyler Higbee got most of the snaps at tight end, Hopkins made the most of his opportunities.
Shelton allowed two pressures but he was the Rams’ best run blocker, earning a grade of 69.5 in that department.

Top 5 defense​

• S Russ Yeast: 79.0
• S Jordan Fuller: 73.5
• DT Kobie Turner: 70.5
• DT Aaron Donald: 67.1
• OLB Byron Young: 67.1

Yeast surprisingly got the start over John Johnson III, who didn’t play at all, and was on the field for every snap. He didn’t allow a reception on his only target and in coverage, and he finished with two tackles in the win.
Fuller was also quite good, making eight total tackles with two solo stops and no targets in coverage.
Up front, Turner and Donald led the defensive line. Turner had two pressures and Donald had five, with Turner making two solo stops against the run. Each player had a half-sack.
Young tied for the team-high with five pressures and a half-sack, standing out in his NFL debut for the Rams.

Bottom 5 offense​

• RB Cam Akers: 64.3
• LT Alaric Jackson: 62.9
• RG Joe Noteboom: 60.7
• WR Ben Skowronek: 54.2
• WR Van Jefferson: 50.9

Akers was highly inefficient in this one, rushing for 29 yards on 22 attempts. He also didn’t catch a pass and wasn’t targeted.
Jackson may have been graded low on PFF’s scale overall but his 88.5 pass-blocking grade was the best on the team and ranks third among all players in Week 1.
Noteboom allowed one pressure and had a pass-blocking grade of 55.5.
Skowronek didn’t catch either of his two targets and Jefferson caught four passes for 24 yards, dropping one pass – a deep shot that may have gone for a touchdown.

Bottom 5 defense​

• DT Larrell Murchison: 57.2
• NT Bobby Brown III: 41.3
• LB Christian Rozeboom: 31.8
• OLB Michael Hoecht: 31.0
• OLB Zach VanValkenburg: 26.0

Murchison didn’t play much against the Seahawks so his low grade isn’t surprising. However, Brown was on the field for 19 snaps and didn’t record a single pressure or tackle.
Rozeboom allowed four catches on four targets for 31 yards and missed three tackles, struggling both against the run and in coverage.
Hoecht had three pressures but he missed two tackles and gave up two catches in coverage, also failing to set the edge a couple of times against the run.
VanValkenburg had one pressure in the 11 snaps he played.

Other notables​

• RB Kyren Williams: 68.1
• LB Ernest Jones: 66.3
• LG Steve Avila: 64.4
• CB Cobie Durant: 62.9
• CB Derion Kendrick: 57.6

Williams didn’t have an eye-popping performance but he did score twice and had 52 yards on 15 attempts.
Jones had nine tackles and missed one tackle attempt, also giving up three catches on four targets; however, those three catches totaled 9 yards.
Avila didn’t allow a single pressure in the game, the only Rams lineman that can say that. His 79.8 pass-blocking grade was 11th-best of any guard with at least 30 snaps in Week 1.
Durant and Kendrick had solid days, though Durant’s pass interference penalty early and Kendrick’s touchdown allowed to DK Metcalf were two blemishes. Durant wasn’t targeted in coverage other than that penalty, while Kendrick only gave up two catches on five targets for a total of 11 yards.

Here’s a few things that I hadn’t noticed on the first viewing…

Obviously, a lot of things went well for Rams overall, but here are a few pros and cons.

Stafford had a better game than I had realized. He missed 2 passing TD’s, for example. One was a drop by a wide open Jefferson early on and later in the game another was a pass to Nacua that was too long by 6 inches. He also managed the game craftily taking full advantage of the young Atwell and Nacua.

I had focused heavily on Boom in my first watch, but this time I tried to watch Jackson, Avila, and Shelton. I thought Shelton was pretty good but I think our left side will really become dominant as Avila and Jackson gel. I’m kinda excited about that.

Hopefully, our OL can get their run blocking prowess up to the stellar level of their pass pro, and soon. The 49er game would be a great time to make a statement.

Akers ypc was not good but we’ve gotta remember that he was running into an 8 man box in that 4th quarter. That does make a big difference compared to a ‘normal’ D set.

Jefferson seems to have something missing. He certainly hasn’t stepped up in Kupp’s absence. Nothing like Nacua and Atwell have. I doubt if VJ gets extended. He just hasn’t earned it.

Young definitely has a future but he’s currently being schooled on contain and run D. He could be special one day but today is not that day.

Hoecht is a liability at edge. We simply must upgrade from him.

Jones is already a beast, imo.

Rozeboom is another liability. Need an upgrade there desperately or a new scheme.

Secondary played great, considering their youth and little experience together. Morris needs to bite the bullet and start Tomlinson. That kid is our future.

The Fuller/Yeast combo exceeded my expectations for a first game. I think they frustrated Smith, too.

Couldn’t be happier with our coaching staff. The results speak for themselves in this very first game. Makes me wonder how good these players might look by November.

That’s about it. Thoughts?

Seriously I can’t even post all the dumb ass things these fucks are saying.

Here’s the link.


Do yourself a favor and get a good laugh and get heated up with these morons.

Fantastic job in pass pro. Stafford had clean pockets and throwing lanes all day. Run blocking could have been better but we added Jackson at LT, Avila at LG, Shelton at C and Noteboom at RG that is 4 new starters only Jackson and Shelton started some last season.

Great gel - solid protection all day and most of all gave Stafford the confidence and the worst the confidence to go that extra yard.

They all deserve the game ball along with Stafford, Puka and Tutu just all around fantastic job. Very proud of the job the players and coaches did yesterday

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What a dumbass punk.

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Just fantastic pass sets from everyone.

Though as one very knowledgable poster here has pointed out, Havenstein can't pass block at all when uncovered. And that guy watches film. He says so.

Offense


Defense


ST

Is the best Monday.

Call up Nick Hampton or Ochaun Mathis to replace Heocht and give Kelwchi Anyalebechi or DeAndre Square a chance to replace Rosenboom. I remember Square at Kentucky he was pretty dominant.

My wife and I were at the game in Seattle yesterday and I'm pretty sure we ended up on the LA local broadcast during the pregame. A camera crew with LA media vests on gave us a countdown so we could cheer. I'd love to be able to get ahold of the footage if someone has it recorded or knows where I could find it I'd appreciate it. There is a picture of my wife and I and the flag I had.

Clearly, any team with a QB like Stafford, an HC like McVay, with players like AD, Kupp, and Jones should NEVER be overlooked. And yet that is exactly what most pundits and many fans have been doing for 6 months.

Stafford is one crafty and deadly effective QB, in case anybody around the league still has any doubts. He’s seldom played better. Any team with such a QB and a HC like McVay is inherently dangerous. He’s at least top 10, and probably better, tbh.

I expected more from Akers but Kyren Williams certainly did not disappoint. Rams running game needs to improve and I think it will as it gels.

What can I say about this Rams OL? I was sure that it would be vastly improved but I assumed that it would require more time before it could dominate. Turns out that even I underestimated them.

I focused on Boom at RG on virtually every snap because I considered him the weakest link and was unconvinced that he was best possible RG. He had his struggles in the first half while missing a couple of second level blocks completely and several times being bent backwards by Seahawk pass rush. But he rapidly improved and I thought had a nice 2nd half. Jury still out for me but I can’t complain, either.

Avila seemed to have a nice game. I’m unaware of any glaring mistakes by him.

I now think that this OL is gonna enable our O to be all it can be, ultimately including a good running attack. This OL seems clearly more physical and today I’m an even bigger fan of coach Wendy. Brilliant hire.

It was great to see McVay utilizing his TE’s more, something we all had hoped for after that draft and camp reports. Jourdan certainly had plenty of hints for us.

About our WR room. It’s deep with high quality players, isn’t it? When Kupp finally gets back it’s gonna be a nightmare to defend. Been saying for a long time that our WR has been underrated.

It was wonderful to see Nacua and Atwell blossom right before our eyes when we needed them the very most. Nacua seems to be a fast learning player, huh? Reminds me a lot of the rookie Kupp in many ways. Could Rams have gotten that lucky? Hot Damn!

It is high time that Ernest Jones should be mentioned in conversations about studs such as the usual suspects. He’s earned it. Rams are gonna be just fine this year at ILB without Bobby Wagner, thank you.

Young and Turner had a few splash plays in their opening debut. Perhaps we’re better off there than I had feared? Wouldn’t surprise me though if Snead makes a move to bring in a tier 2 vet at either position now that 1st game is over and guaranteed salaries are no longer an issue with such signings. This could morph into a playoff worthy team if they keep improving and shoring up weak positions makes a ton of sense to me.

Hoecht is a try hard player and he will give you his best but he is too often a liability in contain and pass D. That position might not get fixed until next year, though. Sigh…

Rozeboom is a weak link. Can Hummel be that much worse?

I had had high hopes for our secondary and they did not disappoint. Especially considering it was opening day and with so many new faces that had not played together in the preseason? Wow! I’m still not sold on Kendrick although he recovered pretty nicely after that Metcalf TD embarrassment. I’m still of the opinion that Tomlinson has the higher ceiling and will become a starter at some point this season.

Maher looks like he will be an adequate PK this year

Ethan Evans has all the potential in the world but he’s still a work in progress. Once he fine tunes his hang time and directional skills he will be a big weapon for us. Frankly, I don’t think that the needed fine tuning will take all that long, either.

Coverage teams need to be improved asap. Biggest weakness on ST right now, don’t you think?

Okay, let’s talk about our coaches. We now see why McVay seemed relatively relaxed all last week, huh? He knew what he had under the hood and was feeling sorta confident, and with good reason.

I can’t say enough about the marvelous job that so many Ram assistants have done already.

LaFleur
Morris (yes, Morris). What a turnaround in aggressiveness after losing so many good players in the offseason.j
Caley
Coniglio
Gould
Coach Henny
Lake
Pleasant
Coach Wendy (one of my new personal favorites, btw)
Yarber

Oh hell, and every other unsung hero among our coaching staff. Quite a collection, don’t you think? And the results from going from ground zero to yesterday’s magnificent effort speaks for itself. I had already been high on these guys but yesterday sealed the deal for me. We are in good hands with these various coaches.

Know what’s exciting? This team is still taking those first baby steps at many positions. Imagine where they might be by mid season.

I see no reason, barring catastrophic injuries, that this team can’t finish with at least a 9 win season. There. I said it.

Thoughts?

That is all....

I rarely participate in the off season banter about our team. Why? Well yesterday is a prime example. I do read the board and listen to the talking heads. And as far as I could tell from all the information out there. We the Rams were total trash as a team. I heard it and read it everywhere. We were an after thought. Now my non comments in the off season stems from the St. Louis years where each year of Fisher we were always the team to watch, the team you don't wanna play early on. Mostly wasn't true. So I prefer to set back and see what we put on the field. And I am not an expert or talking head. I don't know how far we will go. But from what I saw yesterday, my opinion is we will be in every game we play. (without injuries) And that's fine with me. So to all the talking heads and experts and predictors.(even on this board sadly)
Kiss my ass! In the nicest possible way of course.

Monday, September 11, 2023:

Buffalo Bills at New York Jets, 8:15 p.m. (ESPN/ABC)

ROD Sportsbook:

Kinda shocking to see this dude get so many touches.

Who saw this coming?

KW probably went undrafted in nearly all fantasy drafts. Akers was touted as the starter by the experts. I doubt many thought KW would quickly emerge as the lead back in our offense.

He had a nice game vs Seattle but when I re-watched the game film I noticed a few things. He is excellent in pass pro and runs with great vision.

I went back and read several scouting reports about him, when he came out in the draft. They all mention the same thing.

He was touted as an excellent pass pro blocking RB. He was also recognized for his quickness, vision, agility and his ability to catch passes out of the backfield.

Only real negatives noted was him lacking next level explosiveness (though he has quickness), lack of long speed and lacking power (5'9 195).

Watching the film vs Seattle, you can really see how quick he is to pick up the blitzer and use excellent technique to stonewall the rusher.

You also see his vision on the runs.

One thing we haven't see yet is his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. Some draft scouts think he has Austin Ekeler ability as a WR out of the backfield.

With a healthy O-line, a top notch pass blocking RB who can also catch passes, and an emerging WR's in Puka and Tutu with Kupp coming back, we might see the best passing offense in Mcvays tenure, which is saying alot. Effective RB pass pro can heavily impact a pass game in ways people often don't notice.

I am excited to see how Williams impacts this offense. I really think offers more then Akers does as sort of an all-purpose RB.

I like Akers as a backup and to help spell KW, but I think Akers days as the lead back are in the rear view mirror.

Sean Peyton cut Bret Maher at Denver because he picked up Will Lutz from New Orleans. We got a decent kicker added to the roster and Will Lutz missed an extra point which resulted in Denver losing 17-16 to the Raiders.

I think that's cool and ironic for Sean Peyton, aka "a-hole face"

Best place to watch\stream a full replay of today's Rams?