Great video find on YouTube:

Login to view embedded media View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXjjqHF4hJA

A few players & units spring to mind for me :
The progress of our OL should make for an interesting watch. Ealy was cut, so will we get to see more of Pircher and less of Evans ? Will Bruss have a better start this time around ?
With Bobby Brown injured, who steps up on the interior DL to stop the rush ?
Will Tutu get a few targets now that Wolford will be playing the first half, ... and will McCutcheon prove to be more Superman & not a fluke ?
Will our 2'nd & 3'rd team DB's boost 1 player higher than the competition ?

Will Perkins switch jersey's with Henderson and take a few snaps at RB ?

Whatever happens, continued observable development will be great.
jmo.

Jalen Ramsey will get his first career sack in the NFL this year.

You guys got some?

Are we reviving Lightening Rods this year? I want to defend my title.

This is a message to the "future me" that will exist on a few Mondays this year after the Rams lose a game.

What did you expect?

Did you think the Rams would cruise to a 17-0 regular season record and then sweep through the playoffs to a repeat championship?

A noble aspiration, no doubt, but that was never realistic.

No... this should have been expected. You should have expected the Rams to have some bumps, some ups and downs, and some setbacks. That's just the nature of the beast.

Your job is to weather the storm and to avoid overreacting. Don't forget... during last year's championship run, the Rams were 0 for November!

Focus on what's important. If the Rams can (1) enter the playoffs with its key players healthy (perhaps with Les Snead adding some veteran help during the season), and (2) get a decent seed that provides a path to the Super Bowl that has at least one stop at SoFi, we'll be fine. Better than fine, really. If those things happen, we'll be an extremely tough "out," and will be poised for a shot at repeating.

So, take a breath. Whatever happened yesterday.... its probably something we can overcome.

Its a long season. Strap yourself in and enjoy the ride!

Packers become first NFL team to use 'Seeker,' a dynamic football launching machine​

Green Bay Packers' quarterback Aaron Rodgers will soon be able to pass on a good part of his practice responsibilities to someone -- or rather something -- else. Green Bay is set to be the first team in the NFL to try "Seeker," a high-tech JUGS machine that can be programmed to do the job of a quarterback, kicker or punter.

The Packers have eight of the machines, which can be programmed to change the ball's velocity, distance location and arc. Each robot has a six-ball magazine and can do 500 throws per hour.

The velocity it gets on the ball is quite impressive, as it can "punt" and "kick" a ball up to 75 MPH.

Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/robdemovsky/status/1559208811742765057?s=21&t=BxtFFIr9L39NE1I6QPvQ2A


During Monday's training camp, a spokesperson for the company explained how players like safety Adrian Amos -- who had his own personal Seeker before the Packers acquired theirs -- would go about using the machine by wearing a sensor.

"He can watch film on Kirk Cousins and say, when Kirk throws a 30-yard corner ball he has it out in 44 MPH in 3.1 seconds," the spokesperson said. "He can go back in the safety spot with [a sensor] on his hip... and now that ball is out to him in exact Kirk Cousins settings. Turns pass break-ups into picks, essentially prepares you for whatever quarterback you're going to play."

This is excellent timing for the Packers, as earlier this month head coach Matt LaFleur talked about the team's need of a new JUGS machine because he was frustrated with the one his team was using, calling its performance "ridiculous."

"It was awful. You couldn't get the ball to turn over. It was damn near impossible to catch," LaFleur said on Aug. 3.

Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/brandonkinnard/status/1554849143348236288?s=21&t=lM2enxiWG5zkkVuE0HAszQ


Seeker was originally developed by Monac Sports, a Dallas-based sports robotics company, as a tool that players could use during the COVID-19 pandemic when social distancing was essential. A few college football teams have already started using this technology, including Auburn, Tennessee and Kansas.

Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/247sports/status/1532012058430128131?s=21&t=bAGRxlwBQpwjvNmFM6BQKg

Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/seattlerams_nfl/status/1559675143663677440?s=20&t=f8rkFguO7VmKBQ63Oax4qA


Notice anything....?

Both are being held out from practice until they heal up. If I'm reading correctly, both aren't even at 50%. What's up with these two running backs?


Next year, Snead definitely have to draft a running back as their first pick.

For as long as I remember, NFL commentators have asserted that the defending champions become "the hunted" with a "target on their back" every week and facing opponents' best efforts to knock them off the top of the mountain.

Truth, or myth?

In my opinion, this is a bunch of hyperbolic cliched horse hockey.

I think that NFL teams give their best effort every week. Are there rivalries? Sure... but that is more of a question of familiarity breeding contempt, rather than added effort.

The Rams will, no doubt, face a tough gauntlet as they strive to repeat. And, for opposing fans, a date with the World Champs may be worthy of extra attention.

But this is the friggin' NFL. Any given Sunday, any given team can take down any given opponent - whether they're a defending champ or not.

Folks outside of St.Louis most likely will not know him. But for those in their 20-50ish....probably know him well. He was a main stay on St.Louis Radio. 105.7 The Point. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year and he passed yesterday. He will be missed by this guy, for sure!

If you care about such things... take em how you'd like. That Logan Bruss pass protection grade of 7.6 though.

PFF grades and notes from Rams’ preseason win over Chargers​

No surprise - Lance McCutcheon and Bryce Perkins were LA’s highest graded offensive players
By JB Scott Aug 15, 2022, 1:05pm CDT

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Rams won their preseason opener on Saturday night - defeating the cross-town rival Los Angeles Chargers in the battle between the SoFi Stadium tenants.
Receiver Lance McCutcheon and quarterback Bryce Perkins played the entire game and carried the offense to victory. The Rams’ offensive line struggled to create much room in the running game, which made it difficult to judge the performance of running backs Jake Funk, Raymond Calais, AJ Rose, and Trey Ragas.
While Robert Rochell, Decobie Durant, and Derion Kendrick have played well in training camp, we only saw them for the first quarter Saturday evening. Jalen Ramsey, David Long, Jr., and Troy Hill are the veteran starters at cornerback, but the young trio will play an important role for LA at times this season.
Here’s how PFF graded the individual performances from the first preseason contest:

Offensive notes:​

Top 5 graded players:​

1 - Lance McCutcheon, WR: 88.8​

2 - Bryce Perkins, QB: 78.9​

3 - Tremayne Anchrum, OL: 71.4​

4 - Jeremiah Kolone, IOL: 70.4​

5 - Jake Funk, RB: 70.4​

McCutcheon is making a strong argument to be included on the team’s initial 53-man roster ahead of the regular season, though the receiver room is deep and the numbers game shifts the odds against him.

Perkins recorded an elite 90.0 running grade, but PFF graded his passing at 64.6. In the same ball park for the passing grade last season were Trevor Siemian, Andy Dalton, Baker Mayfield, and Tyler Huntley - which perhaps builds Perkins’ case as a capable backup in the NFL.

It’s not surprising to see Anchrum as the top-graded OL from Saturday night - he’s in his third year with the team and has been highly regarded since being drafted in 2020. It is surprising to see Jeremiah Kolone ahead of players like Logan Bruss, Bobby Evans, and AJ Jackson. Kolone is somewhat of an afterthought when discussing the OL depth chart, but maybe it’s time we take his candidacy for the 53-man roster more seriously.

Jake Funk graded out higher in the pass game (72.3) than the run game (67.6) after taking a screen pass ten yard, but the offensive line didn’t create much room on the ground. Hopefully that won’t be the case in the remaining two preseason games and we can start to see separation in the running back depth competition.

Other Notes:​

Perkins often had defenders in his face just after the ball was snapped - and it seemed he was running for his life at times.
That’s because the Rams reserve lineman didn’t hold up in pass protection, and Jackson (27.0), Bruss (7.6), Evans (31.4), and AJ Arcuri (25.7) all received failing grades in pass protection.

Defensive notes:​

Top 5 graded players:​

1 - Michael Hoecht, DT: 77.0​

2 - Jake Hummel, MLB: 70.9​

3 - Jake Gervase, MLB: 70.5​

4 - Russ Yeast, DB: 69.3​

5 - Keir Thomas, EDGE: 67.6​

Hoecht received a promising pass rushing grade of 80.5.
Hummel performed well in the tackling front - recording 8 tackles and 3 assists for a grade of 83.0. He also allowed 4 receptions on the same number of targets for 26 yards. Gervase, a converted safety, and Hummel are likely competing for the same roster spot at middle linebacker.
Hoecht, Hummel, and Gervase would be staples on special teams should they make the regular season roster - Hoecht played a ton of special teams reps in the playoffs and Super Bowl a year ago.
Thomas was disruptive rushing the passer - recording 4 total pressures on 15 rushes and earning him a grade of 70.0. PFF has his pass rush win rate at 33.3%, which was the highest figure on the Rams defense.

Other Notes:​

Robert Rochell was only on the field for 15 snaps, and Derion Kendrick and Decobie Durant only played 16. Rochell was targeted twice but did not give up a completion. Kendrick gave up a 4-yard completion on 3 targets. Durant surrendered an 11-yard completion on his only target, and he was also credited for a missed tackle which could be a concern due to his lack of size.

Safety Terrell Burgess, who has been in the coaches’ dog house for the better part of the last year and a half, was credited with the 41-yard touchdown catch and was graded at 41.0 accordingly. This was his only target in pass defense.

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Just bought my single ticket sec 300 Row 1 Seat 1.

Should be flying in from Vancouver BC on game day. Looking to meet up w/ you guys

What time should one get their for pre game fun? 5:15pm kick off

The dude looked pretty solid in the run game last night. But but I will say this for facts: Rams old faithful Morgan Fox gave him all he could handle and then some. Seemed like the worst matchup Bruss could end up with in a guy like Fox who has longer arms, strong upper body, tall, and finesse. Although Bruss got beat a few times in pass pro, and didn’t switch when they did a stunt, I like what he showed and that he played a ton. I can easily see what that Rams see in this guy. Thoughts on game one?

I was getting lost in 60’s and 70’s era commercials on YouTube and I ran across a toy I had not thought of in years: The SSP Racer car called the Black Widow. This little car had a rip cord that you fed into the teeth of a friction(?) type motor wheel in the center of it.You pulled it hard and that center wheel would make that toy car go like hell!. There were several versions of the SSP car besides the Black Widow, but I Always thought it was the fastest and the coolest looking one.

Another favorite, of course, was the Big Wheel. I mst have worn out two to three of those in my youth, before I could ride a bike.

Hot Wheels and track were fun to set up, seeing how high of a ramp you could make to run the cars down.

Green Army men and Lincoln Logs in war. We’d spend a half hour setting up fortifications in the back yard, making fortresses out of dirt and logs, placing the men where we thought they could survive incoming dirt clods that we’d throw at each others Army.

Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Robots!

Football and baseball were common too. Home video games didn’t exist and aside from “Pong” they didn’t exist outside anywhere, either.

Anyone know why c. Dicker was kicking p.a.t's. And punting? Kinda cool if he actually had a field goal leg. Do both.

Ernest Jones Is Tomorrow’s Linebacker TODAY​

The Rams finally found an inside linebacker they can rely on. Ernest Jones proved to be a good addition to the defense. A look at what he brings​

Even the smartest football minds have blindspots. Bill Belichick can’t draft a wide receiver to save his life, anyone that’s ever worked for the Browns can’t draft a quarterback, and Les Snead struggles to draft quality linebackers. It’s true, the linebacker position used to be held together by duct tape, inanimate carbon rods, converted DBs, and the bones of former stars.

Now, it appears he’s finally found a homegrown stud in Ernest Jones, and as Snead does he found him outside the first round and received a large amount of skepticism in the beginning. Ernest Jones had a solid rookie season before injuries derailed him and then he came back to make plays in the Super Bowl including a sack late in the third quarter. Now, Jones is a starter playing alongside newly acquired veteran Bobby Wagner. All signs point to Ernest Jones being a cornerstone of the Rams’ defense and based on his reviews in camp, that’s a problem for the rest of the league.

Ernest Jones was the 104th pick in the 2021 draft out of South Carolina and the evaluations on him both by analysts from the studio and couch weren’t totally kind. Even the compliments felt a TAD backhanded, as he was praised for his high football IQ, consistency, great instincts, aggressive mentality, etc, but it’s all undercut by the idea that he wasn’t athletic.

Athleticism is obviously important but it shouldn’t be the only thing and despite what Kenny Powers would say fundamentals aren’t just a crutch for the untalented. If athleticism were everything Les Snead would’ve hit a home run with Alec Ogletree and Jones’ fellow Gamecock Jadeveon Clowney wouldn’t be dining out on the same highlight for over a decade.

Still, Jones came into camp with a large amount of skepticism and turned heads but he came into the season behind Kenny Young on the depth chart (reasonable), Justin Hollins (understandable), and Troy Reeder (ALARMING). Young of course went to Denver for what seemed like a washing machine but turned out to be for Von Miller and now it was Ernest Jones’ time to shine.

Jones started seven games amassing 36 tackles, one sack, and two interceptions most famously on Monday Night Football against the Cardinals. He made a major impact on defense specifically in run defense an area that of course led to the successful fan campaign to fire Raheem Morris. Sadly, on December 28th the Rams put him on IR due to an ankle surgery that came against the Vikings. Fortunately, he was able to return for the NFC Championship game where he only had two assisted tackles but in the Super Bowl, he had seven tackles, three QB hits, and of course a sack on Joe Burrow.

The Rams signed Bobby Wagner to start alongside Jones and that might wind up being the best thing in the world for Jones. Not only does Wagner generate a bit more attention from offensive coordinators but Wagner has taken Jones under his wing. Aaron Donald has remarked about their partnership after seeing the two in the weight room in the early morn “He’s attached to his hip right now, learning everything he can,”.

Jones learning from one of the generation’s best inside linebackers can only lead to good things. One of the biggest lessons Wagner has taught Jones and the rest of the defense is how to not worry about making the fastest play but the right play. Meaning utilizing energy so that it’s not about being FASTER than the other guy but knowing where they’re going to be.

When the Sean McVay era began the Rams’ interior linebackers featured a rotation of Cory Littleton, Mark Barron (converted safety), and Alec Ogletree. A year later, they drafted Micah Kiser. In 2019, they tried to integrate Troy Reeder and Kenny Young (not bad) and it wasn’t enough.

The Rams never really invested in their linebacking corps until last season because they realized they needed at least one stud at that spot. Ernest Jones has already solved so many issues the Rams had defensively and given how much they’re pushing Jones to absorb all the knowledge as he can from Bobby Wagner, he’s clearly part of their future. He’s already made big plays on the biggest of stages and with more time to develop, he could be the Bobby Wagner of his generation or close to it.

If only he were athletic.

Game Day Thread

The GDT is a live thread tradition here at ROD.

While we all get fired up watching the game, please remember our core principles;we always show respect for our team and each other.

Despite the emotional highs and lows watching a game, we will moderate this thread with that in mind, however please refrain from name calling. This applies to players, the Rams organization, and others.

This is the core rule of the GDT. Moderators are tasked to issue thread bans, at a minimum, to maintain this standard.

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This was rather unexpected ...
and I loved her work as an actress.

It's preseason for the refs too.

So, Tom Brady is leaving Bucs camp for a couple of weeks for a 2 week hiatus for "personal reasons." The team claims this was the plan all along.

I'll just say its... weird.

Related to his retirement/unretirement?
Related to his involvement in the Dolphins' tampering issue?
Family problems?
Merely due to his age?

While I'm not going to make a prediction, I will say that if, in two weeks or so, he suddenly re-retires, I'd be only somewhat shocked (and, yes... I fully acknowledge that this is a sentiment born from wishful thinking).

Just weird.