Jokes on them.

By
Trebor Tracy
-
September 24, 2019







Los Angeles Rams center Brian Allen (55) is seen during the second half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions in Detroit, Michigan USA, on Sunday, December 2, 2018. (Photo by Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The biggest story surrounding the Los Angeles Rams has been and will continue to be the status of Todd Gurley. However, with two veteran departures, the offensive line raised a couple of questions coming into the season. In only their second year in the NFL, Brian Allen and Joseph Noteboom are starting on an offensive line that ranked among the league’s best last season. Having to replace stalwarts like John Sullivan and Rodger Saffold was never going to be an easy task, especially for a team with Super Bowl aspirations. However, the LA Rams can begin to rest assured knowing both Allen and Noteboom have begun to settle in nicely within the front five.

LA Rams’ Brian Allen and Joseph Noteboom Finding Their Stride as First-Year Starters
When watching this Rams front, the first thing that jumps off the screen is the command that Allen has. The center is the extension of the quarterback. It’s his job to call out blitzes, set the protection, call out any audibles and make sure the entire line is on the same page. Most first-year starters struggle under the weight of so much responsibility, but Allen has embraced his new role.
At no moment did this shine through more, than during Sunday night’s win over the Cleveland Browns. With regular starting guard, Austin Blythe, out with injury, Allen made it a point to make sure his replacement, Jamil Demby, was in stride with the rest of the offense. On every audible call, blitz identification, and blocking change, Allen glanced to his right to make sure his fellow second-year starter was keyed in.

Giving Jared Goff the Time
It’s more than just Allen’s ability to communicate that tends to leap off a screen when focusing on trench work. While Allen is a great pass blocker in his own right, with ferocity, and a motor that never finds itself on empty, it’s Noteboom who flashes displays of dominance. While his ability to hold his line and keep most defenders from passing by him, it’s his second-level vision that jumps out. Noteboom doesn’t just want to block the defender in front of him, he wants to block all the defenders.
If you lined up all 11 guys in his gap, chances are high that he would run through them like teeth through wafers. He is that good, and effective at blocking. In addition to manhandling his own defender, he is, literally, expanding his reach. There were several times throughout the Browns game Noteboom not only prevented his man from reaching Goff but assisted Andrew Whitworth in slowing down Myles Garrett. Garrett finished the game with just one sack, his first game this season without multiple sacks.
Jared Goff has hit the ground six times this season, putting him in a six-way tie for 16th most sacked quarterbacks through three games. However, given that this is still a young line with plenty of improvement ahead, continuing to keep Goff one of the safest quarterbacks in the league, is a major win. While some of the struggles the Rams have suffered so far on offense are a result of line play, hardly any trouble has come in the passing game.

Improving on the Ground
The glaring weakness that the first-year starters possess is their ability to block on run plays. On more than 60 percent of their called run plays, Todd Gurley found a defender in his face before, or as he received the handoff. On just under 50 percent of called run plays, Brian Allen found himself being pushed several yards back, or into an oncoming Gurley right at the line of scrimmage. I cannot emphasize just how hard it is to push a human over 300 pounds, for three yards, while they are simultaneously trying to push you back three yards. It’s what made the Dallas Cowboys such a prolific line, their ability to create massive holes for an already talented Ezekiel Elliott, to run through.
The Browns recognized this flaw and exploited it. Knowing they had Allen beat, they forced the run game to the outside where they had extra cornerbacks and safeties lying in wait. Finishing the game with five rushes amassing a total of only 94 yards, it’s safe to say the run game needs some work. While it may be Gurley who bears a lot of the criticism from the general public, it’s the young line that will need to improve if they hope to see their star running back breaking off chunk plays and long touchdowns.

The Future
There’s a reason why the Rams loaded up on offensive linemen in the 2018 draft. It’s the reason why they were willing to let both John Sullivan and Rodger Saffold walk away from a team that had just been to the Super Bowl. Head coach Sean McVay has faith in his young linemen. Brian Allen and Joseph Noteboom may be young and will experience some growing pains. However, they are well on the path to becoming stalwarts in their own right.
This tandem of offensive linemen is not just surviving their early-season tests but thriving. This weekend they will have another huge test with the incoming Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While the Bucs as a team may be underachieving, linebacker Shaquil Barrett has been a one-man wrecking crew. Already tallying four sacks, and countless pressures, containing him will be a challenge. However containing him would be another step towards returning to one of the best lines in the league, and not just for one season, but many to come.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

https://thesportsdaily.com/2019/09/24/sean-mcvay-hints-at-giving-todd-gurley-bigger-workload/
Originally posted on The Sports Daily | By Marcelo Villa | Last updated 9/24/19

Despite having one of the league’s top running backs at their disposal, the Rams have underutilized Todd Gurley through the first three games of the season, but it sounds like that is about to change based off what head coach Sean McVay told reporters this week.
After dismissing the notion that the reason behind Gurley’s diminished workload was due to load management, McVay hinted at possibly getting his running back a bigger workload.
“I have to do better about being able to give him a chance to really get more into a rhythm than what I’ve enabled him to do in these first three games,” McVay said on Monday, per ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry.
The Rams have gone with a more balanced approach at the running back position with backup Malcolm Brown getting about half the carries that Gurley has through three games, and targets in the passing game have been hard to come by as well.

Los Angeles has come out on top in each of those games, but the feeling is the offense could be better, especially if Gurley was more involved.
We’ll see what happens when the Rams host the Buccaneers on Sunday. Tampa Bay has been one of the top defensive units against the run this season, so this might not be the week that we see a rise in Gurley’s production.
This article first appeared on The Sports Daily and was syndicated with permission.

4th and goal at the end of the game.

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OFFENSE
Scoring: 25.7ppg (8th)
Third Down Conversion Rate: 45.45% (12th)
Rushing 1st Downs: 6.3pg (13th)
Yards Per Completion: 10.7 (16th)
QB Sacked Percentage: 5.41% (16th)
Note: Gurley is 4th among all backs in success rate, 5th in DYAR, and 6th in DVOA link.

DEFENSE
Scoring: 16.3ppg (7th)
Third Down Conversion Rate: 37.50% (12th)
Rushing 1st Downs: 4.7 (T-6th)
Opponent Team Passer Rating: 66.2 (3rd)
Sack Percentage: 6.84% (14th) ***Rams' numbers are misleading here (rush is better than it looks) due to opponents dishing ball quickly.

Reading between the lines:
*Offense is mediocre range on many key stats.
*Gurley still among the best backs in this league, which is crazy given his usage.
*Opposing passer rating demonstrates the continued excellence of this secondary, we are certainly an elite unit on the back end.
*Ranking 7th in scoring defense while giving up a mediocre third down conversion rate shows room for improvement/growth. Scoring in top 5 is possible IMO.

Below is my review of every single offensive snap for the Rams in the Browns game.

This is not a group of visuals like Merlins Excellent work with the still photos.

This is a complete play by play review of each snap in the first half with a total count of who or what was the Culprit for Killing drives in the first Half in which we scored only 3 pts.


FIRST HALF DRIVE KILLER TOTALS:
Demby 5
Noteboom 2
Whitworth 2
Goff 1
Mcvay play call 1
Crowd Noise/Helmet Communication 1
Kupp 1
Woods 1
Allen 1
Browns good coverage 1


Play By Play Details:

Possession 1
1st and 10 - Gurley run for 1 yard - Allen and Whitworth beat.
2nd and 9 - Kupp - 5 yard completion - Perfect pass.
3rd and 4 - Woods stumbles coming out of route. Pass thrown behind him. Looked like a slant/out route that Woods commonly runs, but Woods due to the stumble threw the timing off, Woods never cuts back towards the sideline where the ball was thrown. This appears to be on Woods in my book.

DRIVE KILL CULPRITS:
Bad run blocking (Allen and Whit)
WR (Woods) stumble throws timing off


Possession 2
1st and 10 - Perfect PA pass to Cooks for 18 yards.

1st and 10 - Gurley left side for 3 yards. Whit gets rub on DE then try's to block LB but whiffs on the block. LB slows Gurley then Kupps DB and NoteBooms DT come and finish off Gurley.
2nd and 7 - Pass to Woods near right sideline, ball hits Woods perfectly in the hands but Woods drops the ball.
3rd and 7 - Good protection - Goff hits Cooks "On the Money" on the sideline. Perfect pass. 16 yard gain.

1st and 10 - PA pass. Good protection. Pass to Cooks on sideline. Pass hits Cooks in his hands and he cant bring it down. Announcers say off his fingertips but still shots show Cooks arms are not 100 percent extended. Sorry, Hit you in the hands, catch the dam ball.
2nd and 10 - Inside handoff to Gurley on a delay. Demby and Havenstein block down well, Everett clears out LB and Safety has to come make the tackle. Nice Blocking. Gain of 5 yards.
3rd and 5 - Mcvay takes time out. Goff to Kupp on a WR screen for 5 yards, first down.

1st and 10 - Gurley run up the middle. Allen pushed back a yard, Demby pushes DT then tries to block LB but is too late. LB and Allen's man stop Gurley for 1 yard.
2nd and 9 - PA screen to Everett. Setup nice. Everett takes wrong lane to run in. Gain of 4.
3rd and 5 - Quick WR screen to Kupp on right side. Same play just ran last 3rd and 5. No gain. Bad play call in my opinion. Yes it worked last time but now they have seen it. Goff says to Mcvay " Cant hear you", so this may be a play Mcvay didn't call and Goff just called because time was running out on the play clock.

DRIVE KILL CULPRITS:
Bad play call (Mcvay) on third and 5 or possible communication issue due to headset or crowd noise.


Possession 3
1st and 10 - Pitch left to Gurley. Whit kicks out and seals the safety to the sideline. Kupp tries to block LB but gets a little overpowered. Reynolds disregards the CB #38 and goes farther out for the deep safety. Is this by design? Looks like Reynolds missed his block on #38. Noteboom also looses the battle with LB #53 who also destroys the run for NO GAIN.
2nd and 10 - Shotgun. Decent protection vs 4 man rush. Goff throws perfect pass to Woods on the right sideline for 9 yards.
3rd and 1 - PA pass. Perfect pass to wide open Kupp on drag route for 22 yards.

1st and 10 - PA pass. Free Runner LB on an inside move on Whit. Goff steps away from rush perfectly and resets. Goff overthrows Woods under some pressure, good coverage on the play. Goff should have probably dumped down to Kupp on the play if he was a little more patient.
2nd and 10 - Shotgun. Quick pass to Kupp on the right side for 13 yards. Kupp drops the pass, it was a little behind him but catchable. Goff a little rushed by Dembys man who was just about to sack Goff. Kupps only drop the entire game.
3rd and 10 - Shotgun. Browns bringing 7 on an A gap blitz. Excellent Idea pressuring the interior young Olineman. The Disguise was good because the outside defenders eventually drop back in coverage while Noteboom and Demby were confused who to block. Allen blocks his man but the two A gap blitzers Go straight through the Line and Gurley can only block one. Goff spins to his left perfectly but the man Gurley blocked breaks away and forces Goff to get rid of it immediately to Cooks who was blanketed by #35 who breaks it up and nearly forced an interception on the deflection. This is about where people start asking what is wrong with Goff? Nothing. Go back and read this series of downs. We had Goff pressured immediately on two plays and having to throw to Cooks who was covered both times. Both times Goff avoiding Rush but not having the target open. We also had Kupp drop a catchable ball.


DRIVE KILL CULPRITS:
Dropped pass (Kupp).
Oline pass pro breakdowns (Whit, Demby and Boom)
Great coverage by the Browns.
Goff a little impatient under pressure


Possession 4
1st and 10 - End around to Woods to the left side. Kupp seals off CB perfectly. Whitworth seals LB Vernon well, Notboom cant get out quick enough to put a block on LB #53 who blows up the play. Whits man Vernon comes back in and finsihes Woods. gain of 1 yard.
2nd and 9 - PA pass. Goff Perfect pass to Everett down the middle for 15 yards. Everett dances around losing 4 yards. Gain of 11.

1st and 10 - Goff threads a bullet to Woods for 18 yards. Nice catch by Woods!

1st and 10 - PA student body left, roll to the right, perfect throw to wide open Kupp for 7 yards. Route Higbee usually runs.
2nd and 3 - Goff drops back is sacked almost immediately by #65. Oline breakdown between Allen and Demby. Allen blocks 65 (Ogunjobi) for a second expecting Demby to take over. Demby is standing around with no dance partner wondering what happened. This is where Blythe is missed. Blythe is not as stout as other guards but is almost always assignment sound at least slowing down the defender by being in the right spot.
3rd and 11 - Mcvay goes to the safe WR screen yet again. That same play that you know, didnt work on 3rd and 5 back on possession 2. Cooks goes no where. Whit and Kupp block their man perfectly. Noteboom needs work on these. Boom's man number 98 blows it up. Kupps man disengages to clean it up as well. Plus no one blocking the safety.


DRIVE KILL CULPRITS:
Oline Breakdown (Demby)
Bad Play Call (Mcvay)
Oline missed block (Noteboom)


Possession 5
(2 minute offense at end of first half)
1st and 10 - Shotgun - Quick pass to Kupp left side for 6 yards. Perfect pass.
2nd and 4 - Shotgun - Quick pass to Cooks left side for 6 yards. Perfect pass.

1st and 10 - Shotgun - Quick pass to Woods right side for 13 yards. Perfect pass.

1st and 10 - Shotgun - 18 yard route to Woods on right side incomplete. Pass Hurried. Demby blocks his man for a second then for some unknown reason leaves his man to go block Allens man, this leaves Dembys man on a free rush to hurry Goff. Goff hit as he throws by Dembys free rusher.
2nd and 10 - Shotgun - Quick pass to the middle to Kupp for 5 yards.
3rd and 5 - Shotgun - Demby false start.
3rd and 10 - Shotgun - (28 seconds left, Rams on their own 36 yard line need a long developing pass to get into FG range) defender # 95 Garrett twists around Demby to knock ball out of Goff hands and force a fumble right as he is throwing it.

DRIVE KILL CULPRITS:
Demby blocks wrong guy
Demby false start
Demby beat by Garrett

Baker Mayfield is 'overrated as hell' according to Rex Ryan

Baker Mayfield is taking heat for the Cleveland Browns’ offensive struggles. After scoring just 13 points in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Mayfield was called out by former New York Jets coach Rex Ryan.

How bad did it get? Well, Ryan called Mayfield “overrated as hell.”

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After casually dropping that line, Ryan is asked to explain why he thinks Mayfield is overrated. Here’s a list of all the things Ryan says Mayfield needs to fix:

• He’s a one-read guy who improvises when his first look isn’t there.
• He’s too slow to outrun guys when he takes off.
• He’s not getting the ball out in rhythm.
• He’s staring down guys.
• He’s not that accurate down the field.
• He didn’t get the ball out quick enough against the Rams.

That’s a long list, and while Ryan is perhaps exaggerating, Mayfield hasn’t been great to open the season. Through three games, Mayfield has thrown three touchdowns passes against five interceptions. He has seen his completion percentage drop from 63.8 percent last season to 56.9 in 2019. He hasn’t produced like people expected.

That doesn’t mean Mayfield is bound to play like this forever. He has plenty of talent, and looked like a star last season. There’s a scenario where Mayfield and the offense gets on track and he starts playing like a superstar talent again.

So, is Mayfield overrated? If Ryan what is talking about right now is Mayfield not living up to the expectations placed on him during the offseason, maybe. But if Ryan is suggesting Mayfield will continue to be this bad, that seems unlikely.

That’s not to dismiss Ryan’s criticisms. Mayfield hasn’t played like an All-Pro to open the season. It’s just as foolish to assume what Mayfield has done in a three-game sample will continue to happen, especially when Mayfield showed he could play better than this last year.

NFL Power Rankings: Andrew Luck-less Colts still can win AFC South with Jacoby Brissett
Frank Schwab,Yahoo Sports 3 hours ago

Nobody can completely replace Luck. He was a fantastic player. But Brissett isn’t too bad himself and the Colts have a much better team than they had in 2017, the last time Brissett was forced into the lineup to replace Luck.

It seemed premature when the Colts gave Brissett a two-year, $30 million deal right after Luck’s retirement. Now it looks like it could be a smart investment. Brissett has a 112 passer rating through three games. The Colts seemed to open up the offense a little against Atlanta and Brissett was up for that challenge. Luck was great but was prone to throwing interceptions. Brissett has one interception on 92 attempts this season and his 1.3 interception percentage in his career would be the best in NFL history if he had enough attempts to qualify.
Brissett might not be Luck, but he is better than a lot of people gave him credit for. If he continues to play this well he’ll be in line for a huge payday after the 2020 season, and the Colts might end up winning a division title after all.
Who else in the AFC South is all that impressive? Houston is 2-1 but there are still issues on that roster, especially with depth. The Jaguars are 1-2 with rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew starting (though he has looked pretty good at times). The Titans have lost two in a row after a season-opening win at the Browns, and they don’t look very good.

The Colts were pretty much left fo dead after Luck’s surprise retirement. Then they battled in their opener, losing an overtime road game at the Los Angeles Chargers. They came back in Week 2 and won a huge road game at the Titans. The Colts look like they’ll battle the Texans for the top spot in that division all season, even with their franchise quarterback in early retirement.
Frank Reich is a very good coach. The Colts have a very good roster from top to bottom. And surprisingly enough, they’re not missing Luck very much through three games.



Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been a nice story since Andrew Luck's retirement. (AP)

Here are the NFL Power Rankings after Week 3 of the season:

32. Miami Dolphins (0-3, Last week: 32)
The Dolphins have not led once this season. There’s a real chance we’re watching the worst team in NFL history (yes, the 1976 Buccaneers, but they had the excuse of being an expansion team).

31. New York Jets (0-3, LW: 29)
In a strange way, Adam Gase probably is better off with Sam Darnold missing as much time as possible. If Darnold comes back and the Jets still are awful — and this is possible — is there any reason to bring Gase back or year two? At least the quarterback health issues would give him an excuse for this year.

30. Washington Redskins (0-3, LW: 31)
Had the Redskins rolled over after that 28-0 start on Monday night, Jay Gruden might not have survived to Week 4. Not that a meaningless second-half rally should determine his job status, but at least it was something. The first half on Monday night was absolutely miserable.

29. Cincinnati Bengals (0-3, LW: 27)
Cincinnati has lost two very close road games. There have been some positive signs, but it’s still an 0-3 start with rookie head coach Zac Taylor. He has a challenge not letting his team get discouraged.

28. Denver Broncos (0-3, LW: 26)
Some bad turnovers and a bad holding call on a Royce Freeman touchdown turned their game at Green Bay around. The Broncos didn’t play that poorly. But they’re getting no big plays out of the defense, which is shocking for a Vic Fangio defense with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb. They’re the first team to go three games without a sack or turnover since sacks became an official stat in 1982, according to Nicky Jhabvala of The Athletic. That’s hard to believe.

27. Arizona Cardinals (0-2-1, LW: 25)
Kyler Murray had only 173 passing yards on 43 attempts. His two interceptions were rough. And the Cardinals defense is not very good. This is all still very much a work in progress.






Kyler Murray throws bubble-screen TD to Larry Fitzgerald
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray completes 1-yard TD pass to wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.

26. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-3, LW: 23)
The theory was that the Steelers traded a 2020 first-round pick for Minkah Fitzpatrick because they were comfortable with Mason Rudolph. That never made much sense, and makes even less now that Rudolph had 174 yards in his first start, and 76 of those yards came on one big play to JuJu Smith-Schuster. They might regret sending that first-round pick away.

25. Oakland Raiders (1-2, LW: 22)
Tight end Darren Waller has been a real find. Grabbing 13 receptions for 134 yards on 14 targets is impressive, no matter if most of it came in garbage time. It’s one of the few positives for the Raiders over the past two weeks.

24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-2, LW: 24)
Bruce Arians is a smart coach and willing to take a hit for someone else. So I have to assume that him saying he took a delay of game because a longer field goal would be easier for Matt Gay is not the absolute truth. At least I hope not.

23. New York Giants (1-2, LW: 30)
It won’t be easy without Saquon Barkley, but they’re suddenly very entertaining with rookie quarterback Daniel Jones. He should have been starting since day one. I doubt the Giants will be in playoff contention, but it’s much tougher for them after punting the first two games to protect Eli Manning’s feelings and legacy.

22. Tennessee Titans (1-2, LW: 17)
That Week 1 win at Cleveland looks like a total fluke, or at least more of a reflection of the Browns than the Titans. Marcus Mariota is a shell of what he was his first two seasons. You have to wonder how long Mike Vrabel waits before trying Ryan Tannehill.

21. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2, LW: 28)
I don’t want to overreact to Gardner Minshew. He’s a fun story and everyone loves him. The Jaguars offense also didn’t score a touchdown in the final three quarters last week. In Week 2 they scored one touchdown, on their 10th drive. He has been better than expected and throws a nice ball, but there’s still work to do.

20. Atlanta Falcons (1-2, LW: 19)
If Julio Jones didn’t break a long touchdown on fourth down against the Eagles and the Falcons lose that Week 2 game, we might be on Dan Quinn watch right now. The Falcons have too much talent to be this unimpressive. The Falcons better not lose at home to the Titans this week.

19. Carolina Panthers (1-2, LW: 21)
The attention will go to Kyle Allen, and he certainly is intriguing. Don’t overlook the defense, which limited big plays and had eight sacks. That is what’s going to get the Panthers back to relevancy this season.

18. Cleveland Browns (1-2, LW: 18)
Freddie Kitchens had a great half-season as interim offensive coordinator. It made sense for the Browns to hire him. But in retrospect, the hire doesn’t look good. At least at this early point in the season. The Browns offense has real talent and has been bad. Kitchens’ play-calling has been questionable, and that’s being kind. It’s a big jump from offensive coordinator to head coach (and an even bigger jump when we remember he’d never called plays before midseason last year), and it looks like he has too much on his plate.

17. Los Angeles Chargers (1-2, LW: 8)
Keenan Allen had 13 catches for 183 yards and two touchdowns and the Chargers still lost at home to Houston. The defense got no pass rush against a bad Texans offensive line and couldn’t slow down Deshaun Watson. Maybe the Chargers once again rally from a bad start, but that’s tough to do in the NFL. This has been a rough start to the season.

16. Detroit Lions (2-0-1, LW: 20)
I’m not sure what to make of the Lions. They’ve won two straight three-point games — winning in extremely close games isn’t something that can be counted on — and have been significantly out-gained in both games. Detroit isn’t really doing anything all that well through three games. But they haven’t lost yet.

15. Seattle Seahawks (2-1, LW: 10)
The Seahawks’ 2-0 start doesn’t look so hot anymore. They barely beat the 0-3 Bengals at home and barely beat the 0-3 Steelers with Mason Rudolph playing the second half. Given that, a lopsided home loss to a Saints team without Drew Brees becomes a little more concerning.

14. Philadelphia Eagles (1-2, LW: 6)
The Eagles are a tough team to rank. I still like their roster and assume injuries have set them back. But the truth is they’re 1-2, they needed a big comeback to beat a bad Washington team at home, lost to a 1-2 Falcons team and then the Lions at home. You either buy the potential or the results. And the results have not been very good.

13. Indianapolis Colts (2-1, LW: 16)
Losing safety Malik Hooker for 4-6 weeks due to a torn meniscus was the downside of Sunday’s win. Hooker has been very good when healthy, but he hasn’t been able to stay healthy for a full season yet.

12. Houston Texans (2-1, LW: 15)
Could you have named the Texans’ tight ends before Sunday? They had eight catches for 122 yards and three touchdowns in a win over the Chargers. (The answer is Jordan Akins and Darren Fells ... Deshaun Watson can make anyone better.)

11. Chicago Bears (2-1, LW: 14)
The Bears took the air out of the ball after going up 28-0, and that made things a little closer than they’d have liked. Chicago’s first half was quite promising though, especially Mitchell Trubisky going 20-of-23 for 173 yards and three touchdowns before halftime.

10. New Orleans Saints (2-1, LW: 13)
All things considered, Sunday was probably Alvin Kamara’s finest NFL moment. He had 16 of New Orleans’ 23 rushing attempts for 69 yards and a touchdown. He was targeted on 10 of Teddy Bridgewater’s 27 throws and caught nine for 92 yards and a touchdown. The Saints needed someone to step up big with Drew Brees out, and Kamara answered the call.

9. San Francisco 49ers (3-0, LW: 12)
The 49ers had five turnovers and still won, which is really hard to do in the NFL. The 49ers won’t want the turnovers to repeat, but it says their win Sunday was a little more dominant than it might have looked by the final score.

8. Baltimore Ravens (2-1, LW: 7)
Mark Ingram had 103 yards and three touchdowns in a loss. Baltimore threw it 43 times, mostly because they trailed the Chiefs most of the day, but they need to be wary about getting away from their identity, which is as a run-first team and letting Lamar Jackson’s passing play off of that.






Lamar Jackson's best runs and throws vs. Chiefs | Week 3
See the highlights from Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson in the Week 3 game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

7. Buffalo Bills (3-0, LW: 9)
I’m not sure if you get too hyped up about wins against the Jets, Giants and a tight win over the Bengals, but 3-0 looks pretty nice. We’ll find out if the Bills are legit this week, with the Patriots coming to town.

6. Minnesota Vikings (2-1, LW: 11)
The Vikings beat bad teams and don’t beat good teams. That’s the pattern in the Kirk Cousins era. We can’t be sure if the Bears are good or not, but a game at Chicago will test that pattern.

5. Green Bay Packers (3-0, LW: 5)
The Packers keep winning without Aaron Rodgers doing much. Is he now a second-tier quarterback, or is his slow start the product of a tough schedule of defenses through three weeks? Or is Matt LaFleur’s offense not that good? Green Bay keeps winning but at some point they’ll need more than the 215.7 yards per game they’re getting from Rodgers.

4. Dallas Cowboys (3-0, LW: 4)
The Cowboys have a chance to be up three games on the Eagles after Week 4. The Eagles play at Green Bay on Thursday night. Dallas faces New Orleans, which isn’t as daunting with Drew Brees out. Unless you’re a big believer in the Daniel Jones-led Giants, a three-game lead over the Eagles would seem pretty comfortable for this early in the season.

3. Los Angeles Rams (3-0, LW: 2)
The Cowboys almost moved ahead of the Rams in this week’s rankings. Cleveland had its entire starting secondary out on Sunday night and the Rams still looked sluggish on offense. This is a good team and plenty of teams would take a 3-0 start, but this still doesn’t look like the same team we saw last season. Dallas stays at No. 4 because they still haven’t played a quality opponent, though that changes this week when the Cowboys go to New Orleans.

2. Kansas City Chiefs (3-0, LW: 3)
A Jalen Ramsey trade to the Chiefs makes too much sense for Kansas City. The offense is great again and maybe even better than last season, which is insane. The window to win a Super Bowl is wide open but it will still be hard to knock off ...

1. New England Patriots (3-0, LW: 1)
With 2:03 left in the fourth quarter of the AFC championship game, Damien Williams of the Chiefs scored on a 2-yard touchdown run. It was Jan. 20. That’s the last time the Patriots defense allowed a touchdown, and they have played four games since then.

My wife and I had a few girly cider beers with the game and somehow we started laughing after the second Kupp TD about "kupping Goff balls" and we giggled way too much like simple idiots.
It was awesome.

So, with that... how about #18? We are all so focused on our offense struggling, we haven't really had a discussion about our star WR who is producing like a stud even while we aren't really running on all cylinders.
I know player comparisons are always weird, espescially the ones I am going to make, but hear me out: Kupp reminds me of a mix of young Larry Fitzgerald and Anquon Boldin circa '05 Cardinals.
Big hands, long arms, great routes, coach on the field, a beast after the catch, unstoppable from the slot. Anyways, I just wanted to offer a different conversation and discuss what is going right on our offense: The Super Cooper, The Coupe de Ram, the Albino Rhino (okay nobody has ever called him any of those but I'm working on the fly y'all)

Yes, like many of you, I have been disappointed that the offense can’t do whatever wants like years past.

On the other hand, I’m seeing a defense that can be legitimately called “SuperBowl caliber.”

Shutting down the likes of Kamara, Miachel Thomas, OBJ, laundry and Brees is no small task.

I’d like to see a little more conversation how about how good this defense is. “Offense wins fans, defense wins championships.”

This is a championship defense.

WoooOoOoo!

Monday Night Football: Chicago Bears vs. Washington Redskins

The Week 3 edition of "Monday Night Football" features two teams in need of momentum. The Washington Redskins (0-2) are in most need of a win as they host the Chicago Bears (1-1), who are looking to prove that last week's thrilling victory against the Denver Broncoswas no accident. Both teams have their share of both issues and qualities, and they hope to become more complete teams on Monday night. They're also in the midst of some tough stretches.

After hosting the Bears, Washington hits the road for two of their next three games. They have a crucial NFC East matchup with the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium next week, then return home to face the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, followed by a trip to South Florida to take on the Miami Dolphins. New England is a handful for any team, while New York and Miami are hungry teams with nothing to lose at the moment.

The Bears also have a tough slate ahead of them. After departing our nation's capital the Bears will return home to host the Minnesota Vikings. Then, they make the long trek across the Atlantic Ocean to play the Oakland Raiders in London in Week 5. After a bye, Chicago will be back at Soldier Field to face New Orleans. The Bears are certainly familiar with the Vikings, who appear to have a rejuvenated running game to go with their stingy defense. The Raiders are a bit of a wild card but dealing with the travel and other logistics associated with the London games is not easy. And while the Saints aren't the same team without Drew Brees, they still have more than enough talent on both sides of the ball to give Chicago trouble.

But first things first for both teams and that's Monday night's game.

Chicago at Washington

Kickoff: Monday, Sept. 23 at 8:15 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Spread: Bears -3.5


Three Things to Watch

1. Offense will be the focus

This holds true but for different reasons. The Bears have scored just 19 points thus far, with 12 of those coming in the form of four field goals from kicker Eddy Pineiro. The Bears have 547 total yards of offense in their first two games (only one touchdown), but 348 of those have come courtesy of the arm of quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. The Bears are barely averaging four yards per rushing attempt, while Trubisky is only averaging five yards per completion. The Bears ran the ball 29 times for 153 yards and a touchdown (with David Montgomery accounting for 18 carries, 62 yards, and said TD) against Denver last week, and head coach Matt Nagy should make the run the focus of the game plan, which should open up the passing game.

For Washington it's the exact opposite; their passing game is firing on all cylinders, while the rushing attack is almost non-existent. Case Keenum (not Dwayne Haskins yet) is completing 69 percent of his passes for 601 yards, five touchdowns, and is averaging 7.4 yards per attempt. The biggest beneficiaries of his accuracy have been wide receiver Terry McLaurin (10 catches, 187 yds., 2 TDs), running back Chris Thompson (12 rec., 116 yds.), and tight end Vernon Davis (7, 88, 1). Jay Gruden's team will take to the air early and often against the Bears.

The Redskins will definitely have to rely on their air attack as the ground game has struggled to get out of the gate. As a team, Washington only has 75 yards on 30 carries (with one score). Derrius Guice (10 carries, 18 yards) was the starter in Week 1 but suffered a knee injury against Philadelphia. He had surgery to repair a torn meniscus and was placed on injured reserve, so he's out for at least eight weeks. Adrian Peterson was inactive for the opener against the Eagles but reclaimed the starting job after the Guice injury. He managed just 25 yards on 10 carries last week against Dallas but did score a touchdown.

Washington needs to find balance with its offense while Chicago needs to get its own attack moving. We could witness a chess match between Gruden and Nagy.

2. Don't forget about the defense

Both teams need improvement on this side of the ball. The Bears have done a good job in limiting the damage on the scoreboard (24 points allowed) but they have given up 632 yards in the first two games. Chicago couldn't prevent Denver from running a successful two-minute drill last week when the Broncos took the lead with just 31 seconds left following a 12-play, 67-yard TD drive and the subsequent two-point conversion. Fortunately, there was still enough time for Trubisky to move the ball downfield far enough to set up Pineiro's game-winning, 53-yard field goal on the last play of the game.

Chuck Pagano's defense hopes to avoid a similar situation Monday night. Washington's defense also has had its struggles in the early going. The Redskins have surrendered 63 points and 918 yards, 336 of those on the ground. Both defenses, however, have combined to register nine sacks, 23 tackles for a loss, 17 pass deflections, and two takeaways. Given each team's offensive issues, the opportunity is there for one defense to emerge as the difference-maker.

3. Head-to-head

The Bears last defeated Washington back in 2003. Since that game, the Redskins have won the past seven meetings, outscoring Chicago 173-130 in the process. The most recent matchup took place during Week 16 of the 2016 season. Washington won that game, which was played in Chicago on Christmas Eve, 41-21 behind three total touchdowns from Kirk Cousins, who is now a Viking. Overall the series (including playoff games) stands at 26-23-1 in favor of the Redskins. The Bears' last win at FedEx Field came back in 2001, a 20-15 victory en route to winning the NFC Central (now NFC North) title.

Final Analysis

The Bears may be on a losing streak in this series but they've upgraded their talent significantly since that 2016 loss. Under Matt Nagy, the Bears are 6-3 in road games and have won their last three games away from Soldier Field. Washington, on the other hand, has lost its last five home games by a combined score of 156-72. This will be a close and hard-hitting game, but the Bears will do just enough to break their losing streak to the Redskins.

Prediction: Bears 14, Redskins 13

Do you have an interesting and or unusual hobby or pastime that you enjoy. Something a little different than stamp collecting. (not knocking stamp collectors) Maybe a extreme sport or just something unique. For me since I was a teenager I have loved to explore old graveyards and abandoned houses. Mostly old graveyards. I think being a Edgar Allen Poe fan probably helped me along. Where I grew up was rich in history and I liked studying the stones and art work. Trying to puzzle out the family units and what it all meant and the lives they must have lead. Graveyards do not affect me the way they do most. I have no fear of them only respect. Here in Missouri what I find is long ago abandoned graveyards forgotten if you will lost to friends and family. Its quite sad really. I have plenty of stories so feel free to ask. If you wish. Now whats your unusual hobby?

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Everyone has been trying to emulate the success the pats had with 6 guys on the line, the Rams responded with the toss crack with some success. This week we didn’t see it at all although they did have some success right up the middle.

The coaches don't seem to have the offense ready to play at the start of these games, they start slow and look sloppy. They may want to go back to the days when the first 15 plays were scripted. The defense has played very good and the new additions have really added something. If not for the defense they would at best be 1&2, at this point. Special teams have been okay but Natson needs to be replaced.

Anybody else notice what nbc was doing in the first half when the Rams had the ball? It was a split screen with McVay, Goff and the play clock. Don’t think they did it a lot but when I saw it I thought it was odd. Then I thought, are they trying to catch McVay hurriedly telling Goff what to do as the clock ticks down? It didn’t seem like McVay was really saying anything so it didn’t really work or maybe I’m just a conspiracy theorist.
It kinda made me laugh that this is never gonna go away.

Let’s take a look at which players impressed and which didn’t.

By Sosa Kremenjas@QBsMVP Sep 22, 2019, 11:04pm CDT



Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

Battling throughout an ugly game, the Los Angeles Rams escape the Sunday Night Football contest versus the Cleveland Browns with a 20-13 win. The game was a rough performance for both teams, though the Rams ultimately did enough offensively and rode the coattails of the defense to a win.

Let’s jump into the stock report:
Stock Down

QB Jared Goff
The offensive line wasn’t great tonight, though they did enough to allow the offense and Jared Goff to make plays. And while Goff did make some good plays by throwing a few darts and collecting a few ankles, he ultimately was careless with the ball, giving the Browns multiple chances to remain in the game. Goff was 24/38 for 269 yards with two touchdowns, two interceptions, and a fumble. Goff nearly had another two passes intercepted to boot. The Rams will need their signal caller to play much cleaner moving forward, though a handful of drops from the Rams’ receivers didn’t help.

RG Jamil Demby
Ugly performance by the replacement right guard as Austin Blythe’s ankle injury kept him inactive. Demby had at least two completely blown pass pro reps, as well as two false starts, one of which was on the inch yard line. Luckily for the Rams, they still scored a touchdown after being moved back, but that was an inexcusable mistake.

RB Todd Gurley
Todd Gurley didn’t have much running space at all in this one, though he didn’t do anything to help either. Gurley averaged 3.1 yards-per-carry on the ground, only had 43 yards rushing, and was completely blanked as a receiver (only receiving one target). The Rams need their highly paid running back to get back to retro Gurley asap, particularly because the offense runs through #30.

Play Calling
The play calling in this one was rough throughout. The never ending receiver screens, the lack of a running game, the lack of a creative running game to offset the “6-1” defense which all defenses have deployed against the Rams since the New England Patriots proved it’s capabilities in the Super Bowl, and the strange calls near the end of the game when attempting to ice it. The Rams’ offense is slowly being figured out, meaning Head Coach Sean McVay will need to adjust accordingly.

Stock Up

DT Aaron Donald
Aaron Donald finally came alive on the stat sheet with his first sack of the 2019 season, as well as collecting four tackles and two tackles-for-loss. Donald also drew at least three or four penalties (holdings and false starts), simply because of the fear offensive lineman possess going against the game’s most dominant force. The back injury didn’t look to be a factor at all as Donald was moving around like he always has. #99 has officially started the road to 22.5 sacks.

Secondary
The entire secondary needs a shoutout, as singling any of them out just isn’t fair. Safeties John Johnson III and Eric Weddle were very active flying all over the field and enforcing their physicality, with rookie safety Taylor Rapp coming alive towards the end with a big pass breakup on third down in the redzone. Cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Nickell Robey-Coleman made multiple great plays on the ball in coverage, hardly giving anything up in their direction. Cornerback Marcus Peters didn’t feel like he was tested at all, which is a good thing as it means he blanked his receivers all night.

LT Andrew Whitworth
Andrew Whitworth continues to be the bright spot on the offensive line as he was a stalwart on the blindside of Jared Goff. Big Whit is as productive as ever, regardless of his age and experience. The rest of the offensive line will need to pick their play up to the standards of the left tackle.

WR Cooper Kupp
Cooper Kupp was probably the best player on the Rams’ roster today, registering 11 receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Kupp was targeted 12 times, letting only one pass go incomplete. Kupp continues to look 100% healthy post-ACL surgery, and his chemistry with Goff is developing into something special. His routes in the redzone that resulted in touchdowns were absolutely filthy.

Does anyone else feel like his age is showing up. Seems like they've been giving him a lot more help than in the previous two years with the guard sliding over or a back chipping his guy. He ended up on the ground on two plays that Goff was still able to get the ball off. Don't get me wrong, he's still a very serviceable LT but I'm not sure he's dominant anymore.

Some of that play calling just sucked and reminded me of Martz. 3rd and 2 and you don't run Gurley WTF. Also 8:30 left in the game and Gurley is not in there for the Rams possession. Oh, and let's not forget the timeout he called right before Reynolds made his first catch of the season for a 20 yard gain and a first down. Mcvay looked out of sorts and I know he is going to say during his press conference he has got to do better and he does. Goff seemed somewhat upset with him on the sideline after that 3rd and 2 play where they threw an incomplete pass.

This shouldn't be necessary, but we kinda played like shit tonight.
If not for Wade Phillips we would be 1-2.
McVay gifted the opponent 3 points going into the half AGAIN.
gOFF was not good tonight.

Anything else?

4 sacks so far this season.

Helped pressure Mayfield into an errant pass that led to the JJ pick.

He’s been a difference maker for the defense.

Very happy he is on our team.

Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp, and Clay Matthews?

Looking forward to seeing yours. Peace and Cheers.