We very well could see the first axe falling tomorrow. Don't revel in anybody getting fired but it's hard to say this isn't warranted.

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What song is he playing?

Hello, world: The Rams are here to stay

http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/35982/hello-world-the-rams-are-here-to-stay

They traversed a nation, then crossed an ocean. The Los Angeles Ramsaccumulated more than 6,400 airline miles over a nomadic 10-day stretch, navigating from Southern California to Northern Florida to Western Europe, all to play the two games that remained before their bye week.

They'll return home, for the first time in a long time, with the look of an elite football team.

Seven days after a decisive road win against a tenacious Jacksonville Jaguarsteam, the Rams dismantled their division-rival Arizona Cardinals while serving as the home team from Twickenham Stadium in London. They won 33-0, pitching their first shutout since Dec. 7, 2014, and going 5-2 for the first time since 2003.

The first-place Rams, coming off a 4-12 showing in their first year in Los Angeles, have suddenly morphed into a legitimate playoff contender under Sean McVay, the youngest head coach in modern NFL history.

That much was crystal clear in Sunday's Week 7 victory.

Todd Gurley reached 100 yards on the ground for the fourth time in the past five weeks, after going 20 consecutive games without triple-digit rushing yards. He ran for 106 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown that saw him fight off two defenders as he raced his way to the outside, and caught for another 48. Jared Goff had another productive, efficient afternoon -- save for one interception -- going 22-of-37 for 235 yards and two touchdowns, while allowing six receivers to make at least two catches.

And the defense dominated a Cardinals offense that was without Carson Palmer for the entire second half. Safety Lamarcus Joyner and linebacker Mark Barron each had interceptions, giving the Rams nine this season -- just one shy of their total from all of last year.

The Rams' defense, seemingly rounding into form under coordinator Wade Phillips, has held opponents to 39 points in the past 14 quarters.

They entered halftime with a 23-0 lead, capped by a 53-yard field goal from Greg Zuerlein, then had a 10-play drive, an 11-play drive and a 16-play drive, the latter ending in an 18-yard catch-and-run by rookie sensation Cooper Kupp.

By the end of it, the Rams held the ball for more than 39 of 60 minutes. They converted 28 first downs, went 13-for-19 on third down and outgained the Cardinals (3-4) by 232 yards.

The Rams are finally heading back home now, set to cover 5,500 miles from London to Los Angeles on Monday morning.

But in another sense, they aren't going anywhere.

Thank you Rams for winning big on my bday!

As predicted in another thread yesterday...

They're starting to look like a tight 3-4 defense.
All that talent is coming to the forefront.

The pressure on the QB increased throughout the game.

Backfield looking better as the game went along.

They really tightened up in the run game.

If you look back at my posts over the years one of my biggest beefs with the Rams has always been our clock management. I'm talking about getting to the line of scrimmage during 2 minute drill and time out management.

As much as I love love McVay, I'm getting tired of the time out management. Yes I know he had to burn one there at the 4 yard line but it seems like every game we are down 1 or 2 timeouts early in each half.

Get that fixed please Sean.

For those with headsets inclined to talk football, mods?

It's free afaik, but I bring it up here because ROD belongs to ROD, so I figured I'd ask if anything like that was even of interest...

If there was one, even mobile users could log into it (I use my phone's discord to sometimes talk gaming)...

I now want to change my original 21-20 to Rams blowout.

Cuz Rams bout to bring down the London house!!!

Ok seems like several games we've said have been must win big statements?! Where does this one rank? Opinions???

Even though we lost to Seahawks I think they played them well enough to earn respect. I m not sure that's going to be good enough in this game-need the W!

SportsBook week 7 wagers here;

http://www.ramsondemand.com/sportsbook/

I had to start this thread early, since I’ll be busy in the celebration thread...

It's Game Day!



View: http://www.therams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Rams-and-Cardinals-Meet-for-Division-Game-Across-the-Pond/d2a1777e-11a9-4a44-9df4-74690e64ad23

Rams and Cardinals Meet for Division Game Across the Pond

The Rams’ 11-day road trip started off on a high note in Week 6 when they defeated the Jaguars 27-17. By doing so, the team is off to its first 4-2 start since 2006. But after a brief stay in Florida, the Rams are on the road once again, travelling more than 5,000 miles to London, England.

Across the pond, Los Angeles will face a familiar foe — the Arizona Cardinals — in a NFC West matchup that will have significant implications on the division standings. A loss to Arizona this weekend would see the Cardinals pulling into a tie with the Rams atop of the NFC West.

“We’ve got a great group of men in that locker room,” head coach Sean McVay said. “They understand that there is an approach we want to take where it’s very serious and businesslike, but you can still have fun and enjoy doing that. We know we have a big challenge ahead of us in the Cardinals, coming off of a big win and we’re looking forward to competing on Sunday.”

And that approach has worked well thus far. The Rams are 3-0 on the road this season for the first time since 2001 and are looking to continue that streak on Sunday.

“I don’t even think we should play at home,” running back Todd Gurley joked after the team’s win over Jacksonville. “We’ve gotten all the wins on the road. That’s been a good thing for us.”

“When we go on the road all we have is ourselves, so we have really been together when we’re on the road,” cornerback Nickell Robey-Colemanadded. “We are coming together as a team, that’s the difference.”

The Rams and Cardinals have met 76 times overall, dating all the way back to 1937 when the Chicago Cardinals first met the Cleveland Rams. Though Arizona holds a slight edge over the all-time record with 38 wins and most recently took home a victory over Los Angeles to end 2016, the Rams are ready to get some revenge come Sunday.

“We need to get them back,” defensive tackle Michael Brockers said. “It’s a divisional game. They know us, we know them. We’re coming to play, they’re coming to play. The best team that executes wins this game.”

But like any divisional contest, winning won’t be easy.

The Cardinals made headlines earlier this month by trading for running back Adrian Peterson. Though the 32 year-old rushed for just 81 yards on 27 carries and no touchdowns in four games with the Saints, he has since provided a breath of fresh air for Arizona.

In his first game last weekend, Peterson rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns.

“He just adds a different dynamic to their offensive scheme,” linebacker Alec Ogletree said. “They pretty much do the same stuff, but having him, he’s basically saying, ‘My athlete is better than yours.’ So you have to win your one-on-one matchups and be able to tackle.”

“When you have the name ‘All Day’ as your nickname, it’s kind of hard to back that up,” Brockers said. “But he can give it to you all day.”

Plus with Peterson rolling, it means less passing for quarterback Carson Palmer and more open receivers, including Arizona’s star wideout Larry Fitzgerald. Against the Buccaneers, Palmer completed 18 of 22 passes for 283 yards and three touchdowns — one of which was to Fitzgerald.

“They are veteran guys and they constantly do what they need to do to put themselves in a position to win their matchups,” Ogletree said. “So they definitely pose a challenge.”

However, the Rams defense under coordinator Wade Phillips has looked much improved in its last three games. Last week, the unit was effective in containing standout running back Leonard Fournette after an initial burst and was efficient in its passing defense as well.

When Fitzgerald lines up in the slot, expect a matchup between him and cornerback Nickell-Robey Coleman. The veteran wideout — who is undoubtedly the Cardinals’ most reliable target— will present Robey-Coleman with one of his toughest challenges yet.

Another player to watch will be defensive tackle Aaron Donald. Donald has looked more and more himself over the last few games, notching one sack and two quarterback hits in last week’s contest. But Donald said he’s not satisfied yet.

“Still want to make more plays, but it’s going to come,” Donald said Wednesday. “You have to keep playing hard and continue to study, continue to get myself better working on my technique and it’ll come.”

On offense, the Rams will look to improve on their performance from Week 6, where they struggled a bit both in the red zone and on third downs.

“I think just execution of each play,” quarterback Jared Goff said of what he hopes to clean up. “I think we had some good plays and just didn't quite execute them on everyone's part. I can throw a couple balls better and we could do a little bit better at running routes. [But] I think we'll look to bounce back this weekend in that regard.”

The offensive line in particular is one important area to watch on Sunday. Last season, Goff was sacked seven times and hit a total of nine times in Week 17 against Arizona.

Fortunately for Goff, the Rams’ effort to boost their O-Line has paid off in dividends this year. But the front five will still face a premier challenge from outside linebacker Chandler Jones who is averaging one sack per game this season.

“[They’re] definitely very good and very experienced,” Goff said of the Arizona defense. “They have been with each other for a while and have been good for a long time, so it will be a good challenge for us.”

For the Rams to be successful on Sunday they will also need to get the ground game going early. Running back Todd Gurley has three games with at least 100 yards rushing this season and currently ranks No. 4 in the league with 521 yards overall.

However, Arizona allowed just 68 yards rushing last week against Tampa Bay and will be looking to stall the Rams run game in much of the same way.

“The plan is to tackle him if I get a chance,” safety Tyrann Mathieu said, via azcardinals.com. “It has to be a group effort. He’s playing really well right now, he’s confident, and he’s not the running back he was last year either.”

Finally, Los Angeles’ special teams unit is coming off of a huge performance in Week 6, where it recorded both a kickoff and blocked punt returned for a touchdown. While the entire unit has played well throughout the season, the Rams have specifically become of the NFL’s most aggressive teams when it comes to returning kicks.

This year, Pharoh Cooper’s 476 kickoff return yards more than doubles the Cardinals’ 222. And against Arizona, Los Angeles will look to add an additional spark from the unit that McVay said made all “the difference in the game” last weekend.

————

The GDT is a live thread tradition here at ROD.

While we all get fired up watching the game, please remember one of our core principles; we always aim to show respect for our team.

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

Go Rams!

————

Get in your Rams SportsBook wagers, here;

http://www.ramsondemand.com/sportsb...angeles-rams-great-britain-special-bets.1779/

Week 7 all games;

http://www.ramsondemand.com/sportsbook/

If I'm watching a game not involving an NFC West team, I like a close game. If it's a game against an NFC West rival (or the Cowboys,Patriots, or Green Bay), I want the Rival destroyed!

If it's the Rams vs Anyone else, I don't want a close game. Close games mean heartburn and tension. I'd prefer 24 points in the first quarter and "beat they ass" points until we get a 50 burger. I want the comfort of luxuriating in a win while we do high fives on ROD for two hours, and then really the next week while we go over the deep end and start talking about Super Bowls....lol

So how about you? You want a "Good Game" or do you want a gobsmack beatdown of the lowly Cards?

Anyone else notice how we've had a lot of miscue's on the shotgun snaps?! Jared's done an awesome job handing the miscue's, especially on the one where he did like a shuffle pass for a TD. That one almost got a way from him but Goff made a very athletic save which resulted in a score!

With a new coaching staff and new players as a given, that has not meant anything in the first years of Linehan, Spags and Fisher. Fisher created teams meant to beat the Hawks, Cardinals, 49ers, and almost no one else. He wasn't successful last year against the horrid Niners at all. So what's different?
1. We are 4-2 for the first time since 2006.
2. We are 3-0 on the road.
3. We beat the Niners and lost to the Hawks
4. We see in game adjustments
5. We are 3-1 against teams outside of the NFC West

Significant change. We lost to the Hawks but beat a playoff team last year in the Cowboys. This team is so unlike the Fisher teams, where EVERYTHING was centered on divisional games. I like beating teams within the division like anyone else, but 10 games outside of the division are more important to win. I think we beat the Cards this weekend, but it's not catastrophic if we don't. The before mentioned 4-2 team in 2006, only went on to win 4 of 10 games after that. Let's hope we can at least beat that record!

Browns sent Kenny Britt and Corey Coleman home from Houston for missing curfew
Posted by Michael David Smith on October 21, 2017, 3:11 PM EDT

Getty Images

The winless Browns have been a mess on the field this year, and they have some problems off the field as well.

According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, last week in Houston receivers Kenny Britt and Corey Coleman were both sent home early after they missed Saturday night curfew. Britt and Coleman had both already been ruled out for the game against the Texans with injuries, but they traveled with the team and were expected to attend meetings and team functions and stand on the sidelines during the game. Instead, they were already on the way back to Cleveland by kickoff.

The incident is the latest in a long line of disappointments for both players in Cleveland. The Browns signed Britt to a four-year, $32.5 million contract this offseason, and he’s been a big disappointment. Coleman was a first-round pick last year, but he’s been limited by injuries and has just 39 catches so far in his NFL career.

The Browns have not publicly addressed the matter. Britt is listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game against the Titans with knee and groin injuries, while Coleman remains on injured reserve with a broken hand.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...coleman-home-from-houston-for-missing-curfew/

Debunking the myths of the Rams in Los Angeles
11:08 AM ET

• 
  
  Alden GonzalezESPN Staff Writer

Thirty-five days now separate Los Angeles Rams home games. They last played at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, against the division-rival Seattle Seahawks, on Oct. 8. Tickets sold for that game were announced at 60,745 -- only about 4,000 shy of capacity, but a discouraging figure when considering a greater L.A. area that houses 13 million people.

The Rams won't return home again until they host the Houston Texans on Nov. 12, at which point one may determine whether momentum in this market is starting to turn in their favor.

"Here's the thing: There's too many things to do in L.A.," Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson said earlier this year. "Nobody cares about a team that's not winning, and that's just a fact. If you're not putting something on the field that people want to see, they're not going to be interested in it. Not in L.A."

But the Rams are exciting under first-year head coach Sean McVay, who has breathed life into a spiritless offense and has turned the Rams (4-2) into what looks like a legitimate contender. So, what will it take for L.A. to truly rally behind this team again, the way it appeared to when the Rams first returned last year? What will it take for the Rams to carve a space in this robust market; a market that basically forgot about them while they stumbled?

Only time will tell.

In the meantime, here are some myths about the Rams in L.A. that are worth expanding on.

Myth No. 1: Attendance is way down at the Coliseum

Well, it is down. Way down. A recent FiveThirtyEight story stated that the Rams are on pace for the sharpest year-to-year attendance decline in the past quarter century by a wide margin. Through the first three of seven regular-season home games -- they're losing one to London -- the Rams are averaging 59,162 fans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. That's 25,295 fewer than last year's NFL-leading total of 84,457.

But there are a few things one must keep in mind.

First: No matter what, the Rams weren't going to draw more than about 65,000 fans to their games. They capped their capacity there at least in part because it became a logistical nightmare to host a pro football game with 85,000 people at a 94-year-old facility, with water not readily available and fans having a hard time accessing restrooms. Also, interest was never going to match what it was in 2016, the end of a 22-year run without an NFL team in the nation's second-largest media market.

Still, Rams vice president of ticket sales and premium seating Jake Bye admitted during the summer that the season-ticket renewals were even "lower than we anticipated."

"And I think a lot of that is more indicative of just Year 1 and just the extraordinary response we had last year," Bye said. "You can't fully understand that until you have something to compare that against. And seeing the normalization of the number of seats people purchase and the average seats per season-ticket member, I think that is certainly something that, though we anticipated that to some degree, I think was more prevalent than we would've thought."

Myth No. 2: The Rams don't know how to match

The Rams became the subject of ridicule when it came time to wear their blue jerseys on the road against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4. They're the same blue-and-gold shirts they wore in St. Louis, but they look hideous when paired with the blue-and-white helmets and pants that are new this season. Why on earth would the Rams assemble a uniform combination that clashes so badly? In short, because the NFL made them.

Teams can't change their jerseys until they go through an entire uniform redesign. Why didn't the Rams just change their uniforms now? Because it's at least a two-year process, and, according to the team, they couldn't start that process until the relocation. They're currently working with Nike to unveil new uniforms for the 2019 or 2020 season, the latter being the year they move into the new stadium in Inglewood, California.

In the meantime, the Rams wanted to get rid of the gold from their logo and anywhere else they could. It looks fine -- passable, at least -- when the Rams wear white at home, but is way off when they are forced to wear their blue jerseys on the road. Have no fear: The Rams aren't expected to wear their blue tops any more during the regular season because none of their remaining road opponents will be wearing white jerseys.

The Rams are 2-0 in their blue tops, and Todd Gurley was recently asked if that meant they should just keep wearing them.

His response: "No!"

Myth No. 3: There are no die-hard Rams fans in L.A.

The Rams have real, honest-to-goodness history in Los Angeles. They were there from 1946 to 1994. They played out of Orange County, just south of L.A., in the final 14 years of their previous stint on the West coast. But they returned with real roots in this market. The organization made a Super Bowl trip and 20 other playoff appearances out here, while Hall of Famers like Dickerson, Jack Youngblood, Deacon Jones, Jackie Slater, Merlin Olsen, Norm Van Brocklin and Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch made their mark in Southern California.

There's an entire segment of Los Angeles that grew up rooting for the Rams and was thus crushed when they left. Some burned jerseys, others begrudgingly followed along while their team played in St. Louis. And more than 70,000 of them helped make up a Facebook group entitled "Bring Back The Los Angeles Rams," until they actually came back.

"Many people think there aren't fans of the Rams here in L.A. or in California, but there are a lot of fans," said Joe Ramirez, a lifelong Rams fan who is a part of the So Cal Rams Booster Club. "If there weren't fans here in L.A., I assure you that the Rams wouldn't have come back here."

Now they just need more of them to start showing up.

[kwese.espn.com]

All Rams right now on 710AM. Good stuff

Klein/Thiry Rams Report From London –Video

The Rams (4-2) and Arizona Cardinals (3-3) will meet in an NFC West division game in London. LA Times’ Gary Klein and Lindsey Thiry report from London.

Watch Rams Report

https://www.westernjournalism.com/state-favorite-fast-food-restaurant-39-states-agree-chick-fil/

Each State Has a Favorite Fast-Food Restaurant… And 39 States Agree on Chick-Fil-A
By Kailey Guillemin

Business Insider and Foursquare wanted to find out which fast-food chain restaurant was the most popular in each state across America. The results showed that in 39 states, Chick-fil-A dominates.

“For the study, we looked at which chains received the most visits on average per location in every state based on the total number of visits to each chain divided by the number of locations in that state,” according to Business Insider.

McDonald’s was the runner-up in two states (Alaska and North Carolina) and the District of Columbia.

In-N-Out Burger, meanwhile, took two states: Texas and Utah. This put In-N-Out in a tie for third place with Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, which took South Dakota and Hawaii.

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Raising Cane’s, Culver’s, White Castle, Taco Bueno and Wendy’s each claimed one state.

Chick-fil-A brings in the most dollars each year compared to any fast-food chain in the United States. QSR magazine reported the chain generated $4.4 million in sales per restaurant in 2016. Altogether, the company brought in almost $8 billion in total revenue.

Chick-fil-A, though, only has about 2,100 restaurants across the country, compared to McDonald’s, which has 14,155, Wendy’s (6,537) and Taco Bell (6,278)

Moreover, Chick-fil-A is only open Monday through Saturday, while the other chains are open seven days a week.

So how does a fast-food chain become so dominant?

The restaurant was ranked number one for customer service at a fast-food chain in a 2014 Consumer Reports survey.

The survey looked at the politeness of staff, and how accurate and how quick they are with orders.

“We should be about more than just selling chicken. We should be a part of our customers’ lives and the communities in which we serve,” Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy, who died in 2014, was once quoted as saying.

Chick-fil-A is also dedicated to investing in their employees’ goals, whether they are part-time or full-time.

Kevin Moss, manager of a Chick-fil-A for 20 years, told Business Insider he tries to provide his employees with support when they need it.

“I’ve found people are more motivated and respond better when you care about them,” Moss said.

Each Chick-fil-A location gives its employees the opportunity to move into leadership positions, which come with more responsibility and a wage increase. Some franchisees will even offer classes to employees to gain more education on the management side of the fast-food world.

“The better we train, the longer people stay with us,” Moss said.

I've got two videos here that are truly emotional and eye opening. I don't think we realize just how smart... and human-like... animals really are.

This 1st vid shows a man reunited with a guerrilla after 5 years. 5 years! I recommend watching it all the way to the end as there is more of the meeting at the very end...

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This one is heart wrenching, but you've got to see it. This poor chimp is 59 and isn't long for the world. Watch what happens when she realizes the guy is her old caretaker that she hasn't seen in a very long time.

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iTUNES: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast...s-in-london/id1233567831?i=1000393762360&mt=2

SPREAKER: https://www.spreaker.com/user/downtownrams/previewing-rams-cardinals-in-london