Sunday Night Football: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys

The Philadelphia Eagles will face the Dallas Cowboys in A&T Stadium on "Sunday Night Football" in an NFC East matchup that could prove to be critical in determining the eventual winner of the division.

At this point, both teams have shown ups and downs while sitting with a 3-3 record. The Cowboys are riding a three-game losing streak after starting the season 3-0. Meanwhile, the Eagles have won two of their last three, but a 38-20 road loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 6 has created some concern.

While Dallas and Philadelphia were considered the class of the NFC East entering this season it should be pointed out that the New York Giants, who have a rookie starting quarterback and have been without their best player for the past three games, are just a game behind at 2-4.

Sunday is the perfect opportunity for either the Eagles or Cowboys to make a statement and show that they are still a team to be feared in the NFC.

Philadelphia at Dallas

Kickoff: Sunday, Oct. 20 at 8:20 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
Spread: Dallas -2.5

Three Things to Watch

1. Can the Cowboys bounce back?

Yes, Philadelphia's Week 6 loss is rather concerning, but that three-game skid by Dallas is showing that this team cannot seem to get its feet under them.

Granted, the Cowboys have lost two of those three games by two points, so one has to wonder if it's simply figuring out a way to get over the hump. Either way, there may not be a more important weekend for them to right the ship. Dallas has its bye after this game and still has games with New England, the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago, Buffalo, and Minnesota on the schedule, as well as three more NFC East matchups.

2. Doug Pederson's win guarantee

Interestingly enough, Pederson went on Sports Radio WIP in Philadelphia on Monday and all but guaranteed a victory over the Cowboys. The Eagles head coach did try to backtrack later on, but we will let you read his quote:

“We're going down to Dallas, and our guys are gonna be ready to play. And we're gonna win that football game, and when we do, we're in first place in the NFC East."

Much like Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott, Minnesota's Kirk Cousins had really struggled prior to the game against Philadelphia last week. He had only thrown for five touchdowns through five games and had been sacked times in the last two contests alone.

Against the Eagles, Cousins had his breakout performance, completing 76 percent of passes for 333 yards and four touchdowns with just one interception. Cousins added to Philadelphia's defensive woes, as the Eagles are 29th in the NFL against the pass this season, allowing 280.2 passing yards per game. They have given up 13 touchdown passes although they do have seven interceptions through six games.

Can Prescott follow in Cousins' footsteps and treat Sunday night as a get-right game? If that does happen then it will only add to the scrutiny Pederson has already gotten for his seemingly ill-advised (and definitely ill-timed) comments.

3. Dallas WRs vs. Eagles CBs

One reason Cousins was able to have his way against Philadelphia was the injuries in the secondary. Cornerback Ronald Darby suffered a hamstring injury while running mate Avonte Maddox got a concussion. Maddox has already been ruled out for Sunday's game while Darby is expected to play barring a setback in warm-ups.

While that may sound exploitable for the Cowboys, they are dealing with injuries as well. Amari Cooper (quadricep/ankle) and Randall Cobb (back) didn't practice much at all this week but both are expected to play. Michael Gallup also has been dealing with a nagging knee injury.

Final Analysis

At some point, the Cowboys have to get back on track. They are too talented on both sides of the football to be on a three-game losing streak right now. But the same can be said of the Eagles, whose inconsistency in the early going can be somewhat attributed to injuries.

This game should be close, but we will go ahead and take the home team. Do not expect it to be any sort of blowout, however. That 2.5-point line seems like it is in the right spot, so make sure to keep that in mind.

Also make sure to monitor the health of the Dallas offensive tackles, Tyron Smith (ankle) and La'el Collins (knee). Both are expected to play, but it will be worth keeping an eye on them to see how they hold up throughout their game. Their importance to the success of the Cowboys' offense can't be overlooked.

Prediction: Cowboys 23, Eagles 20

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.

This is our team. Win or lose. Good days and bad.

A more loosely moderated atmosphere can be found in the chat room.

Go Rams!

———

Game Day Chat Room:

GAME DAY CHAT

"The Fermi paradox is a conflict between the argument that scale and probability seem to favor intelligent life being common in the universe, and the total lack of evidence of intelligent life having ever arisen anywhere other than on the Earth. "

I like to think of myself as a wanna be UFO/Alien believer, but I can't quite get there. I am intrigued by recent testimony from Air Fore Pilots about objects doing manuevers that are impossible according to technology that we possess now. I also am intrigued by Bob Lazar and his supposed job at Area 51 on examining propulsion systems of a particular UFO in the 80's (he said there were several of different shaped UFO's in the hangers nearby "his" UFO, but never got close to them). Being a military guy who worked at a research and development institution called NOSC on Point Loma (San Diego) during approximately the same timeframe, I recognize similarities in security procedures that ring true to me. But, these similarities might be masking a total BS story.

There are different arguments than the one I'm making, so please give me evidence that refutes my thoughts. Please do not offer personal anecdotes about UFO's or second or third hand ones.

The earth is approximately 4.5 billions years old and life started evolving about 3.5 billion years ago. As far as we know, modern humans have existed for about 44,000 years. Ours is a young system, as the oldest systems are over 13 billion years old. Just examining our geological history, there have been several extinction events. The latest one was the asteroid that struck the Yucatan area 66 million years ago, which was basically a biological reset. This allowed smaller mammals to become dominant and eliminated the Dinos (by and large).

Mankind is 44,000 years old, and the massive upgrade in knowledge has happened in the last 120 years or so? Sure there were discoveries before this of great worth, but mankind has ramped up the most in this period over any time in the last 44,000 years as far as we know.

That is the base for me.
1. Other species may have arisen on Earth and became just as advanced as we are now, but one of the several extinction events utterly destroyed any evidence of them if so. The same is most likely true for any planet in any galaxy in existence.
2. Some planets, which includes Earth, may have had intelligent life arise that were not quite advanced before getting destroyed, or destroying themselves.
3. What if an Alien civilization arose and spread throughout the Universe, and then died out 7 billion years ago (2.5 billion years before the Earth was formed). Remember, we may not exist 100 years from now with all of the nukes on Earth. A 44,000 year window in 13 + billion years, means that the rarity of an Alien race being intelligent enough to overcome the physics of space travel AND to contact us at the right geological time has got to be astronomically against that possibility.

Reason with me.

I love the way Malcolm Brown runs...always downhill. After the first game, I think many of us felt that we really had a good one two punch. But I’m beginning to believe that Malcolm can’t stay healthy enough to eventually be a relied upon back in this league. Do any of you feel the same way?

What a joke, criticize the Refs for poor performances and pay the price.. I can't recall any other player that has been fined over a tweet but correct me if I'm wrong. This makes the league look like a dictatorship when you can't criticize such an important aspect of the game without getting in trouble with the league, utter bullshit.

What is the zip code for Los Angelos?


I recently switched to YouTube TV and it I had to eneter my zip code for TV coverages. I am going to try to change the zip code to LA to see if it gives me the Rams game here in PA.

I may get it without changing it. It is advertised as a game of the week. And here in PA we don’t usually get a game like that.

I have had Sunday Ticket since 95 when the Rams moved. I had been getting it the last 2 weeks before the season starts by asking for it and getting it. I called in Aug about my bill and was told I had already had Sunday Ticket for the season so I was pleased.
Had it the first week but everyone else did too. It seems the guy did not know what he was talking about when he told me that and now since the season started it was not available as a comp.
This is the first week in 24 years I have not had the game in my house. The games have been on local TV, until now.
Help !!! How do I stream ? Where ?
Thanks for any help.

Mackeyser had a really good post and point in #418 or so of the Ramsey thread in regards to the manner in which frustrated players are standing up for themselves. Here is is:



Nope, this is a result of Seattle doing Earl Thomas the way they did.
Many teams and the NFL in general has a sordid history of doing players dirty. Players are realizing that they have to be creative in order to make things happen.
Look at Earl Thomas. He ended his holdout and shut up and play like ownership and fans like. And...he got injured and lost MILLIONS (his 4 year 55M deal is very good, but the competition for him coming out on a broken leg diminished likely pushing his salary down a bit).
So those days are over.
Thanks Seattle.



It used to be if a player was unhappy/dissatisfied enough, they would hold-out and simply not be paid. Now it appears the direction has changed....let the front office know you want out, make the choice as to whether you want (or need) to hit social media and/or disrupt the team or not, and then fake an injury. Essentially, cause disruption while still getting paid until the team has no other choice but to work with you. It worked for Antonio Brown and Ramsey as two recent examples.

I think we'll see fewer and fewer players willing to play through the final year of their contract without an extension as a result. And I don't foresee "holdouts" going up in number, either. With this new tactic, it almost seems as though the only way to get what you want is to throw the fit and fake the injury.

I wonder, for example, if L. Bell would have handled it differently, he would have had to sit out a prime year of his career with no salary? If he had to do it over again, could he have simply been a jerk (and demonstrate "poor character") to get what he wanted? I wonder if he had become a locker room disturbance, went off on coaches/players in social media, AND faked an injury (thus getting paid by the club) if it would had led to the club being more willing to work with him? At minimum, he would have gotten his service time in and collected on the millions he left on the table for "doing it the right way."

I wonder, for example, if Melvin Gordon wishes he wouldn't have been so classy about how he simply held out while not getting paid, essentially succumbing to the power the team had over him. Would he be in his current spot, lighter in the wallet and still playing/risking his health in his contract year, had he been more of a pain in the ass and faked injury?

I can't help but wonder if A.J. Green is silently doing the same and that we just have yet to see it hit the media? I honestly have no idea. I wonder if he's let the Bengals know he's not happy with team and/or direction as he enters his early 30's in the last year of a contract, would like to be moved, but will remain silent until they can get something done. Doing so would keep his reputation in tact, his legend in Cincy would remain, and the Bengals would retain leverage in trade talks.

It doesn't really apply to the Rams as I had no intention to spark A.J. Green interest. If anything, I do think he would be a great fit for the Niners or 'Hawks and that would really suck. And I can't help but wonder if as fans we sometimes buy into the whole "diva/bad character" thing of guys like Ramsey or Peters at the time of these transactions.

Mackeyser's reference to Thomas really made me look at the big picture from the players side, that's all. And it's easy to see the best way to keep the negotiation with a club is to keep them on the line for paying your salary while you talk, otherwise it's entirely up to them as to whether they want to.

And a final note, especially for the over 40 crowd that read this and cringe; I am old-school, too, when it comes to contracts. I appreciate it when guys play out what they signed up for. In the NFL's case, I just think there is an imbalance that is being self-corrected in the only way possible. The clubs don't have to honor that contract/can drop it anytime. And they don't "take care of the player" in the event of an Early Thomas-like injury occurs, either. I can see why the players are doing it.

Wisconsinram
(and a big Badger fan!)

This Supercut of Sean McVay Ending Press Conferences is Mesmerizing

Sean McVay is a young, exciting football coach who is also extremely talkative. The Los Angeles Rams' leader actually says things in his press conferences and can unleash a lot of knowledge. He also finishes them in almost the exact same way every time.

On Friday Cameron DaSilva from Rams Wire posted a supercut of McVay ending his press conferences. There are three elements almost always in play: he thanks the assembled media, taps the podium and slides off in one direction or the other. It's amazing.

Check this out:

Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/camdasilva/status/1184981799249821696


It's almost always, "Alright, thanks guys" but he mixes in, "OK, thanks guys" here and there, probably for effect. I mean, he has to see if they're actually paying attention, right?

I'll be honest, it's a really slow Friday and I was digging for things to write. I had no idea I was going to come across this gem. It's a video I didn't know I needed to see.

NFL week 7 Injury Report

Week Seven of the 2019 NFL season kicked off on Thursday with a win by the Chiefs and it continues with 12 more games on Sunday, which means that the 24 teams in those games submitted their final injury reports of the week on Friday.

The teams playing on Monday night won’t release their final injury reports until Saturday and are not listed here.

With that housekeeping out of the way, here are all the injury reports for Sunday.

Saints at Bears

The Saints ruled out QB Drew Brees (right thumb), TE Jared Cook (ankle), DE Trey Hendrickson (neck), RB Alvin Kamara (ankle, knee), and WR Tre'Quan Smith (ankle) for Sunday’s game.

Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky (left shoulder) is questionable after a week of full practices. G Ted Larsen (knee) and DT Bilal Nichols (hand, knee) drew the same designation.

Rams at Falcons

The Rams are set to have RB Todd Gurley (quad) back in the lineup, but RB Malcolm Brown (ankle) is listed as doubtful. LB Clay Matthews (jaw) will miss another game.

CB Desmond Trufant (toe) will miss a second straight game for the Falcons, but they’re otherwise healthy for Sunday.

Dolphins at Bills

Dolphins S Reshad Jones (chest), C Daniel Kilgore (knee) and DE Avery Moss(ankle) are out this weekend. WR Jakeem Grant (hamstring) and CB Xavien Howard (knee) are listed as questionable.

CB Taron Johnson (hamstring), LB Matt Milano (hamstring) and LB Corey Thompson (ankle) got questionable tags for the Bills.

Jaguars at Bengals

Jaguars WR Dede Westbrook (shoulder) is listed as questionable. WR Marqise Lee (ankle) and TE Geoff Swaim (concussion, ankle) have been ruled out.

The Bengals ruled out WR A.J. Green (ankle), CB William Jackson (shoulder), CB Dre Kirkpatrick (knee), DE Carl Lawson (hamstring), G John Miller (groin), and T Andre Smith (ankle). T Cordy Glenn will also miss the game after being suspended for conduct detrimental to the team. DE Carlos Dunlap (knee) is listed as doubtful, so there will be a lot of missing pieces for the home team.

Vikings at Lions

Vikings LB Ben Gedeon (concussion) is out this weekend and LB Kentrell Brothers (hamstring) is listed as questionable.

The Lions will be without DT Mike Daniels (foot) and CB Amani Oruwariye(knee). RB Nick Bawden (back), S Quandre Diggs (hamstring), DE Da'shawn Hand (elbow), CB Darius Slay (hamstring), and T Rick Wagner (knee) are listed as questionable.

Raiders at Packers

DE Arden Key (knee) and WR Tyrell Williams (foot) were ruled out by the Raiders. T Trent Brown (calf) is expected to miss the game after being listed as doubtful while WR Dwayne Harris (ankle) and G Gabe Jackson (knee) are listed as questionable.

WR Davante Adams (toe) and S Darnell Savage (ankle) are out for the Packers with WR Geronimo Allison (concussion, chest) and TE Robert Tonyan (hip) likely to join them after drawing doubtful tags. CB Tony Brown (hamstring), DT Kenny Clark (calf, back) and WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (ankle, knee) are listed as questionable.

Texans at Colts

Texans T Tytus Howard (knee) and C Greg Mancz (concussion) are out for Sunday. S Tashaun Gipson (hip, wrist), CB Johnathan Joseph (hamstring) and CB Bradley Roby (hamstring) are considered questionable for the game.

The Colts ruled out WR Parris Campbell (abdomen), DT Tyquan Lewis (ankle) and CB Kenny Moore (knee). S Malik Hooker (knee) will likely miss another game after being listed as doubtful. CB Pierre Desir (hamstring), DE Justin Houston (calf) and G Quenton Nelson (hip) are listed as questionable.

Cardinals at Giants

The Cardinals said that RB David Johnson (ankle, knee) and WR Christian Kirk(ankle) will be game-time decisions. They ruled out DE Zach Allen (neck), RB D.J. Foster (hamstring) and T Brett Toth (illness). LB Dennis Gardeck (ankle), DE Zach Kerr (ankle), P Andy Lee (right hip), T Joshua Miles (illness), LB Ezekiel Turner (hamstring), S Charles Washington (shoulder), and TE Maxx Williams(ankle) have been listed as questionable.

RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) is off the Giants’ injury report, but CB Corey Ballentine and WR Sterling Shepard have been ruled out with concussions.

49ers at Washington

49ers DT D.J. Jones (hamstring), RB Kyle Juszczyk (knee), T Mike McGlinchey(knee), WR Deebo Samuel (groin), T Joe Staley (fibula), and CB Ahkello Witherspoon (foot) are all out this weekend. RB Raheem Mostert (knee) is the lone player listed as questionable.

Washington also has one questionable player. CB Josh Norman (thigh, hand) got that tag while TE Vernon Davis (concussion), S Deshazor Everett (ankle), LB Josh Harvey-Clemons (hamstring), G Wes Martin (chest), and RB Chris Thompson (toe) have been ruled out.

Chargers at Titans

S Nasir Adderley (hamstring), RB Justin Jackson (calf), DT Justin Jones(shoulder) and DT Brandon Mebane (knee) will not be in the Chargers lineup. DE Melvin Ingram (hamstring) will likely be out after being listed as doubtful and K Michael Badgley (right groin) is listed as questionable.

The Titans ruled out LB Sharif Finch (shoulder) and CB Chris Milton (calf). LB Jayon Brown (groin) is listed as doubtful, so he’ll likely miss the game as well. DE Reggie Gilbert (knee), LB Cameron Wake (hamstring) and TE Delanie Walker(ankle) were all tagged as questionable.

Ravens at Seahawks

WR Marquise Brown (ankle) and LB Patrick Onwuasor (ankle) didn’t practice for the Ravens this week and they didn’t play last week, but they’re listed as questionable for Sunday. CB Anthony Averett (ankle), CB Maurice Canady (thigh) and T Ronnie Stanley (knee) are also questionable while CB Jimmy Smith(knee) is listed as doubtful.

TE Will Dissly (Achilles) is out for the Seahawks and S Delano Hill (elbow) is set to miss the game after being listed as doubtful. DE Ziggy Ansah (ankle), T Duane Brown (biceps), G D.J. Fluker (hamstring), DT Quinton Jefferson(oblique), S Bradley McDougald (back) make up Seattle’s questionable contingent.

Eagles at Cowboys

The Eagles will face their NFC East rivals without LB Nigel Bradham (ankle), WR DeSean Jackson (abdomen), DT Timmy Jernigan (foot), CB Avonte Maddox(concussion, neck), T Jason Peters (knee) and RB Darren Sproles (quadricep). CB Ronald Darby (hamstring) is listed as questionable after missing the last three games.

The Cowboys have a long list of questionable players for Sunday’s game. DE Dorance Armstrong (neck), WR Randall Cobb (back), T La'el Collins (knee), WR Amari Cooper (ankle, quadricep), CB Byron Jones (hamstring), C Joe Looney(back), G Zack Martin (back, ankle), and T Tyron Smith (ankle) all drew that designation. CB Anthony Brown (hamstring) is the only player who has been ruled out.

Game Preview: Rams, Falcons seek to end lengthy skids

The Rams (3-3) face the Falcons (1-5) in Los Angeles' final 2019 regular season contest against an NFC South opponent. Kickoff from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is set for 10 a.m. pacific time.

Both teams are looking to snap extended losing streaks, as the Rams are in the middle of a 3-game skid compared to a 4-game stretch for the Falcons.

To get you ready for the contest, theRams.com compiled a quick preview featuring who to watch, what to watch for on offense and defense for both the Rams and the Falcons and three keys to victory for L.A.

Five players to watch

• Rams LG David Edwards: After going to Jamil Demby initially when Joe Noteboom was knocked out of the 49ers game due to a season-ending ACL and MCL injury, Los Angeles will give Edwards a shot at the starting left guard spot.
• Rams CB Darious Williams: He's the next man up if Jalen Ramsey is unable to play.
• Falcons QB Matt Ryan: His sixth-straight 300-yard passing performance last week tied an NFL record tied an NFL record for 300-yard passing games held by Kurt Warner (2000) and Steve Young (1998), according to ESPN Stats and Info, but Ryan has played at a high level for a long time.
• Falcons TE Austin Hooper: The former Stanford standout leads the team in receptions (42) and receiving yards (480) .this season.
• Rams S Marqui Christian: He's the next man up for John Johnson III, who was placed on injured reserve this week.

What to watch for…

On offense for the Rams

How the offensive line looks with another change.

Chemistry was always going to be a work in progress, but Edwards is going to be making his first career start. Even with the reps in practice this week and the preseason, it will likely still take some adjusting.

On offense for the Falcons

Hooper has been Matt Ryan's top target statistically, or at least he's made the most of the opportunities that have come his way, so he should have the attention of the Rams' secondary.

RB Devonta Freeman will also be worth watching, as he's coming off arguably his best performance of the season.

On defense for the Rams

Jalen Ramsey vs. Julio Jones. Ramsey, an elite player in his own right, called Jones an elite receiver Thursday.

For the defense as a unit, the difference Ramsey makes in the secondary, and whether that impact carries over into the pass rush the Rams are able to generate on Sunday.

Here's what Jones had to say about the matchup.

On defense for the Falcons

How a banged-up secondary looks. Starting safety Ricardo Allen (knee) and backup CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson were limited in Atlanta's first two practices before logging full participation Friday, but starting CB Desmond Trufant (toe) has already been ruled out.

Three keys to victory

1. Keep the pocket clean: The Rams can only take advantage of the Falcons allowing the sixth-most passing yards per game if QB Jared Goff has ample time to throw.
2. Choose secondary battles carefully: Jones remains one of the league's top five receivers, but Hooper has been productive for the first six weeks. L.A. can't afford to pay too much attention to one at the cost of diverting it from another. That doesn't account for Freeman, either, who had three catches for 30 yards and two touchdowns last week.
3. Capitalize on red zone chances: The Falcons surrender the second most points per game, but the 391.3 yards per game (seventh in the NFL) produced by their offense shows they don't have much trouble getting into opponent territory. The Rams can't afford to settle for field goals in a game that will likely be a shootout.

Let me just say I've been a Rams fan since the Roman Gabriel days. The Rams were a powerhouse in the 70's but could never win a SB. It seems as if either the Vi-queens or Cowgirls killed us every year in the playoffs. If we beat one, we lost to the other. . Thanks goodness for Kurt Warner and Dick Vermeil finally getting us a championship in the 1999-2000 season. I can die happy even if we don't win another, although I am really hoping for more titles.

Fast forward to now. The Rams started 3-0, although looking shaky. But now we are 0-3 since then. The front office made some serious moves to improve the roster. Can we right the ship? Truth be told, I think the Rams can right the ship, and depending on who returns from IR, we can still be a factor in the playoffs.

My only fear is that we will be like the Phoenix rising from the fire only to fizzle out. I really hope I'm wrong but you can't blame me based on team history. Until then I bleed blue and white. I believe in McVay and think we can turn the corner and get back into the NFC West race.

Win against the 1-5 Falcons (revenge for the playoffs 2 years ago) then the 0-6 Bengals and we can go 5-3 with the bye up next. Thoughts from other Rams faithful?

Not sure if you guys watch Brian Baldinger's film studies every week, but they're pretty great. He looked at some of our miscues from last game and yea the 49ers front is elite, but man our o-line needs to be a lot better. I hope Edwards comes in and makes a difference this week, but it will take more than him to get it fixed. Because our line is currently total SHIT, we couldn't get one damn yard when we needed it. Corbett needs to get up to speed quickly too and make an impact , would be great if he found his way into the game this week. If we never see Demby in game again I'll be a happy man. But really we should try to get Cordy Glenn somehow, that would be huge. The pressure explains some of Goff's off-target throws but my god some of his reads, or not going through his progressions is alarming.

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Believe it or not, that is a viable sentence.

RIP, Bill Macy...
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bah neve rmind. delete please. Can't figure out how to do it with this new setup

congrats to @Elmgrovegnome for correctly predicting the Rams would get their asses handed to them last week

On to this weeks contest. Can the Rams put an end to this dreadful 3 game skid, or come Monday morning will we find ourselves talking fellow Rams fans off the bridge?

same rules apply as every other week.

Kenny Young returns to his "backyard" after trade from Ravens to Rams
Stu Jackson
https://www.therams.com/video/one-on-one-kenny-young

New Rams LB Kenny Young is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, though he could almost count Los Angeles as a second home.A trade from the Ravens to Rams on Tuesday brought him to a new team, but one with many recognizable faces and sights."Back home, UCLA's right down the street, so it really feels like I'm in my backyard," Young told Rams team reporter Sarina Morales after practice Wednesday.

Indeed, Young's former college campus is less than an hour from the Rams' training facility. It turns out the proximity played a role in his eventual path to the Rams, too.Young got on Los Angeles' radar during his Bruins career, which was highlighted by two highly seasons as an upperclassman. He posted 90 tackles, five sacks, three pass breakups and three fumble recoveries en route to All-Pac 12 second team honors as a junior, then followed it up with a team-high 110 tackles, one sack and three pass breakups in a first-team all-conference senior season.

"We knew he was a really talented athlete," Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. "He can run, he can change direction and has speed. He has some real good assets (for a defense)."

Ultimately, he ended up getting chosen No. 122 overall by the Ravens in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft, posting 64 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, one pass breakup and two forced fumbles across 21 career games in Baltimore. The Rams never lost sight of him, though.

"We had some affinity for what he could do in college because he was right down the road," Rams GM Les Snead said. "I knew he had started a good bit of games, so we call it ‘blue man.’ I can punch blue man and filter out his plays and I got (Director, Pro Scouting) Ray Agnew, ‘Hey, run down and see if (Special Teams Coordinator) Coach (John) Fassel would appreciate him.’ Again, because of the (LB) Bryce Hager injury a couple of weeks ago, we had been talking about, ‘What if he can’t go, do we need to get a linebacker?’ It was nice timing on Kenny as well."

During his rookie season in Baltimore, he teamed up with veteran safety Eric Weddle, who signed with the Rams earlier this offseason. Young views Weddle as a role model."He was the guy on the defense," Young said about his interactions with Weddle last season. "He's always the guy, man. He's an intelligent guy, and he knows the game very, very well from all aspects. I strive to be in that position one day very, very early. With him being here, it's cool."

So far, he's acclimating to his new linebacker room well. Rams ILB Cory Littleton said Young is doing everything he can to be ready whenever his number is called. He's a smart dude," LB Cory Littleton said. "Willing to pick anything up. He's really loving the system that's here in place, and he said he's picking it up pretty well. A guy that's just devoting himself to everything that we've already got going on, just to make sure he'll be ready for us 100 percent whenever that will be, is always a great guy in my book."

While Young's role is still to be determined – understandable, as he has completed two practices and a walkthrough as of Thursday evening – he already has a strong understanding of what's expected of him within his own position group "I think it's just simple – come in and be an enforcer, run sideline to sideline, make plays, communicate, have fun and win, cause turnovers," Young said. "It's the right fit for me and I'm excited."

Part 1

Login to view embedded media View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAjGQKsDxfk&feature=youtu.be

Gonna try to get through some of this game now that I can open it up without puking. Got some time today to at least put up some stuff that stands out.

First one up is the third down of the 9ers initial 3 'n out to start the game. This is on the heels of two nice run stops by the defense.

Situation:


Pre-snap Wade's got the defense in a 2 DL front with AD out wide (left side image) and Fox on the nose. I love AD on the edge btw:


At the snap Littleton & Fowler start a stunt the 9ers pick up nicely. Fox is picked up. Ebu comes on the rush and 26 has to step up for him meaning no help for the LT where AD is already into the backfield and ready to eat the LT:


Coverage looks good at the snap:


At the drop the LT has already lost with poor position and the outside arm. AD gettin ready to feast:


Coverage at the drop. This is what a short passing down should look like, well played by the secondary:


Coverage a beat later. JJ doing nice job on Kittle top screen:


Om nom nom:

Unprecedented movement detected on California earthquake fault capable of 8.0 temblor

A major California fault capable of producing a magnitude 8 earthquake has begun moving for the first time on record, a result of this year’s Ridgecrest earthquake sequence destabilizing nearby faults, Caltech scientists say in a new study released in the journal Science on Thursday.

In the modern historical record, the 160-mile-long Garlock fault on the northern edge of the Mojave Desert has never been observed to produce either a strong earthquake or even to creep.

But new satellite radar images now show that the fault has started to move, causing a bulging of land that can be viewed from space.

“This is surprising, because we’ve never seen the Garlock fault do anything. Here, all of a sudden, it changed its behavior,” said the lead author of the study, Zachary Ross, assistant professor of geophysics at Caltech. “We don’t know what it means.”

The creeping illustrates how the Ridgecrest quakes — the largest in Southern California in two decades — have destabilized this remote desert region of California between the state’s greatest mountain range, the Sierra Nevada, and its lowest point, Death Valley.

It also punctures a persistent myth that circulates in California and beyond — that quakes like the Ridgecrest temblors are somehow a good thing that makes future quakes less likely. In fact, earthquakes make future earthquakes more likely. Most of the time, the follow-up quakes are smaller. But occasionally, they’re bigger.

Not only has the Garlock fault begun to creep in one section, but there’s also been a substantial swarm of small earthquakes in another section of the fault, and two additional clusters of earthquakes elsewhere — one south of Owens Lake and the other in the Panamint Valley just west of Death Valley.

Whether the destabilization will result in a major quake soon cannot be predicted. In September, the U.S. Geological Survey said the most likely scenario is that the Ridgecrest quakes probably won’t trigger a larger earthquake. Nevertheless, the USGS said that the July quakes have raised the chances of an earthquake of magnitude 7.5 or more on the nearby Garlock, Owens Valley, Blackwater and Panamint Valley faults over the next year.

A large quake on the Garlock fault has the potential to send strong shaking to the San Fernando Valley, Santa Clarita, Lancaster, Palmdale, Ventura, Oxnard, Bakersfield and Kern County, one of the nation’s most productive regions for agriculture and oil.

Important military installations could also get strong shaking, such as Edwards Air Force Base, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and Fort Irwin National Training Center. The fault is crossed by two of Southern California’s most important supplies of imported water — the California and Los Angeles aqueducts — and critical roads like Interstate 5, state routes 14 and 58 and U.S. 395.

A major quake on the Garlock fault could then, in turn, destabilize the San Andreas. A powerful earthquake on a stretch of the roughly 300-mile-long southern San Andreas fault could cause the worst shaking the Southern California region has felt since 1857, and send destructive tremors through Los Angeles and beyond.

A creeping fault triggered by a nearby quake doesn’t necessarily mean a big quake is coming. The southernmost tip of the San Andreas fault has traditionally crept in response to distant quakes, including the magnitude 8.2 quake off the coast of southern Mexico in 2017, nearly 2,000 miles away. “But that doesn’t mean the San Andreas went off,” said USGS research geologist Kate Scharer, who was not part of the study.

What’s unusual now, Ross said, is that the Garlock fault has been seismically quiet in the historical record until now. And while it’s unclear what the creeping and aftershocks might mean for the near future, the newly recorded movement highlights how much of a potential risk the Garlock fault is to California, should it rupture in a big way.

The research was authored by some of the nation’s leading experts in earthquake science at Caltech in Pasadena and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge — which is operated by Caltech.

The findings confirm what some scientists expected from the Ridgecrest quakes. The largest quake of the sequence, the magnitude 7.1 event on July 5, ruptured along 35 miles over a series of previously unidentified faults over 22 seconds. Its southeastern ends terminated just a few miles away from the Garlock fault.

The Garlock fault accumulates seismic strain at among one of the faster rates in California. According to USGS research geophysicist Morgan Page, who was not involved with the study, the average time between earthquakes of at least magnitude 7 on the central part of the fault is about every 1,200 years. But there’s huge variation; sometimes, only 200 years might pass between major quakes on the fault; then, however, it could be 2,000 years before an encore. The last time a big quake is believed to have hit the Garlock fault is about 465 years ago, give or take a century.

To some scientists, the physics of the magnitude 7.1 quake on July 5 immediately suggested that the Garlock fault would be more likely to rupture as a result. Here’s one possible explanation: The southwestern side of the fault that ruptured on July 5 lurched northwest. This had the effect of moving a block of land away from the Garlock fault, unclamping it and making it easier for blocks of land accumulating seismic strain on both sides of the Garlock fault to move — as if a bicyclist had decided to loosen brakes that had been gripping the tire tightly.

Satellite radar imagery shows that the part of the Garlock fault that has begun to creep is about 20 miles long, with the land on the northern side of the fault moving west, while the other side moves east. The radar images show one side of the fault has moved at its largest extent about four-fifths of an inch relative to the other.

Helping scientists have been state-of-the-art observations with incredible high-resolution details that haven’t been possible in any previous major California earthquake.

The Ridgecrest earthquakes struck in an area that has a particularly extensive network of earthquake sensors near the seismically active Coso Volcanic Field of Inyo County, which uses heat from magma to fuel a power plant. More seismic stations have been installed since the last big Southern California quake in 1999, and there is now frequent satellite radar imagery taken of the Earth’s surface.

Besides the Garlock fault, there is also reason to focus on risks from other nearby faults.

There is a line of potentially ripening fault zones along the so-called Eastern California Shear Zone, one of the state’s most significant seismic zones, which carries a good chunk of the earthquake burden needed to accommodate tectonic plate movement as the Pacific plate slides northwest past the North American plate.

They include, generally speaking, an unruptured segment about 30 miles long between faults that ruptured in the 1872 Owens Valley quake and the Ridgecrest quakes, and a 75-mile gap along the Blackwater fault system between the faults the caused the Ridgecrest quakes and the magnitude 7.3 Landers quake of 1992. Some day, those fault segments will eventually need to rupture to catch up with the movement of the tectonic plates, but it’s not known if that will happen in our lifetime.

Earthquake scientists not affiliated with the study called the discovery of the triggered creep on the Garlock fault scientifically interesting that should be understood better, but emphasize that its implications are not clear. Although the Garlock hasn’t been observed to creep before in response to big quakes, other faults that have crept haven’t been seen to rupture in major quakes.

“It’s actually probably pretty common, and if that’s the case ... that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s portending something terrible,” said Page of the USGS.

Also, the creep observed was probably only in a relatively shallow area. “What we’re really interested in is what happens at the depths of where earthquakes occur,” said USGS seismologist Elizabeth Cochran, who was not involved with the study. Earthquakes typically occur between one mile and 10 miles deep; the creep calculated probably occurred in the shallowest hundreds of feet below the surface.

More research needs to be done on whether the releasing of seismic energy in the form of a creeping fault near the surface advances or slows a subsequent earthquake, said Scharer of the USGS. In this particular case, the amount of creep and its shallowness would do little to affect the timing of when the next earthquake strikes the Garlock fault, Scharer said.

Sometimes, big quakes can lead to other ones; a classic example was in 1992, when the magnitude 6.1 Joshua Tree temblor in April was followed up two months later by the magnitude 7.3 Landers earthquake, which in turn triggered just hours later the magnitude 6.3 Big Bear earthquake; seven years later, a magnitude 7.1 quake hit Hector Mine. But other times, a single big earthquake and its associated aftershocks can lead to decades of seismic quiet, like the magnitude 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989.

Despite the uncertainty, what’s happening in this region bears close scrutiny, given how the Garlock fault is an important major fault for Southern California. There are few big earthquakes that have been observed in California in modern times, and just because something hasn’t been observed in the past doesn’t mean it can’t happen.

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Stay tuned Friday baby!

I've been trying to come to a resolution on what was making me feel so uncomfortable about this trade. On one hand, I love the idea of having a shutdown corner. On the other hand, it felt strangely unnerving that we may have violated the "don't mortgage the future" rule in a way never before seen.

Up until now, up until the Ramsey trade, the Rams hadn’t done anything that out of the ordinary. They traded a bunch of high picks for a QB. Well, that’s not unusual. They added a bunch of high priced FAs while their QB was on a rookie contract. Well, that’s been the norm for a while now. But then, they paid their QB big money and all the big deals were supposed to stop. All the trading away of high picks was supposed to stop. They were supposed to conform to the norm that once you pay your QB big money, you needed to keep all your high picks so you could add cheap quality labor.

It’s been thought that you couldn’t be successful tying up all your salary cap in a handful of players and not have many quality players on cheap contracts. I’m not a cap expert, but I suspect once the Rams sign Ramsey to a big contract either this year or next, they will have more money tied up in fewer players than any other team. On top of that they will also have fewer quality players on rookie contracts than any other team, and no first round picks to help them abate that situation.

I don't believe this has never been done successfully in the cap era. No one has been this aggressive, some would say crazy, before. Is Snead crazy? Maybe. Is he gambling? Probably. Is he taking a big risk? Almost certainly.

The Rams are all in on Goff. There is no way out now after paying him and then stripping themselves of their next two first round picks. If Goff falls apart, the Rams will be a mess for at least 5 years. They put all their eggs in one basket and killed the goose.

They also have to figure out how they are going to support their handful of super salary players with quality players on cheap contracts without any first round picks, and no room to add any high price FAs.

Now, I’m not saying that it won’t work. What I’m saying is that Snead has some huge balls to try something this risky, something that has never been done before, and on the surface looks scary as hell.