Over/under on Helton being canned anyone?

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-sam-lagana-20160910-snap-story.html

Lindsey Thiry
Sam Lagana sat in a moderately sized office atop a hill in Malibu that overlooked the Pacific Ocean and chuckled as he pulled out his iPhone.

Lagana retrieved a text message sent by Golden State Warriors Coach Steve Kerr, who razzed him about ESPN Monday Night Football commentator Sean McDonough mispronouncing his name — “Laganya” — before the introduction to the national anthem at the Rams’ exhibition opener against the Cowboys.

“Have fun tonight and all season, Sam,” Kerr’s text concluded.

Lagana, the associate vice chancellor at Pepperdine University and a longtime friend of Kerr’s from Pacific Palisades, will ring in the NFL’s return to Los Angeles as the Rams’ public address announcer when the team hosts the Seattle Seahawks in its home opener Sept. 18 at the Coliseum.

“It’s crazy and exciting at the same time,” said Lagana, who counts a Deacon Jones autographed football among his prized collection of sports memorabilia, and can recall attending his first Rams game as a child against the Chicago Bears.

When the Rams announced their return to Los Angeles after 21 seasons in St. Louis, Lagana — a recognized voice among the volleyball community in Southern California and the voice of the former L.A. Avengers of the Arena Football League — mentioned to friends that he would be interested in announcing the games.

Soon after, while at work, he received an email from the team asking him to record seven lines.

Lagana wedged himself in a hallway between offices and a restroom, where he thought the acoustics were best, to record the script.

He included an eighth line — an insight to his personality and what he hoped could become a Rams signature:

“The time has come for every man, woman and child to rise with the Rams,” Lagana bellowed on the recording.

Two months later the Rams offered him the position.

“Sam really stood out because of his voice, his passion,” said Chris Slepokura, the Rams’ director of broadcast production. “His voice can really echo through that stadium.”

Lagana’s sound is discernible. His enthusiasm, the Rams hope, will be contagious.

“There are notions that you might just want your PA announcer just to tell you down and distance,” said Kevin Demoff, the Rams’ chief operating officer and vice president of football operations. “We didn’t subscribe to that. We thought we wanted to give Sam a chance to bring his personality to the game and try to make football infectious for the NFL.”

Lagana grew up a fan of legendary Los Angeles public address announcer John Ramsey, whose delivery was articulate, unruffled and deliberate, but admitted his style is noticeably different from the man who announced for virtually every sports team in the city.

“That was just never my style,” Lagana said. “I think what I might be is just a guy who is bringing the same kind of enthusiasm that they are feeling to the game. I am just kind of your average fan that is as excited as is everyone else to be there.”

Through two dress rehearsals during exhibitions, adjustments have been made, Lagana said. He and the Rams analyzed what they believed to have worked best inside the Coliseum, which can be acoustically challenging when sound reverberates off the Peristyle. His goal is to raise the energy and induce a crowd response.

Back in his office at Pepperdine, it was the first day of school after summer vacation, but it was the Rams’ pending opener that Lagana said was drawing goosebumps.

He pulled out his iPhone a second time to open a tweet that he saved after he announced the Rams’ exhibition opener.

“May we all live our lives with the enthusiasm of the Coliseum PA announcer,” the tweet read.

For Lagana, the message was perfect.

lindsey.thiry@latimes.com

Twitter: @lindseythiry

Copyright © 2016, Los Angeles Times

If Rams offense is off, is it time for Jared Goff?

By Rich Hammond, rhammond@scng.com, @Rich_Hammond on Twitter

[www.dailynews.com]

LOS ANGELES >> In terms of the Rams’ offense, it’s too early to worry, but not to wonder.

The NFL’s highest-paid offensive coordinator got fired this week, two games into the season and one day after his team (Buffalo) scored 31 points. The Rams, in last week’s season-opening loss at San Francisco, were shut out, had 10 punts and 10 first downs and never crossed the 49ers’ 20-yard line.

That’s not to say Rams offensive coordinator Rob Boras is on the hot seat going into Sunday’s home opener against Seattle at the Coliseum, but so far, the Rams’ offense hasn’t met even mild expectations.

“For everybody across the board – playing and coaching – it just wasn’t good enough, it wasn’t up to our standards,” Boras said of last week’s loss. “We all need to do better, starting, obviously with me at the coordinator position. But I think, to a man, everybody recognizes that we have a lot more in us.”

Will it come out this week? The Rams face a Seahawks defense that allowed only 214 yards and 11 first downs in a 12-10 victory over Miami last week, and traditionally is tough against the run and the pass.

The Rams, meanwhile, will send out quarterback Case Keenum, who admitted that he was so rattled last week against a mediocre San Francisco defense that he was “seeing ghosts” when he looked at coverage. It’s a near-certainty that the Seahawks will force Keenum to prove he can play better.

It worked for the 49ers, who loaded up at the line of scrimmage and held star running back Todd Gurley to 47 yards on 17 carries. Keenum, with some often bland playcalling, completed 17 of 35 attempts.

“Offensively, we couldn’t make plays,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. “It’s a combination of bad decisions at the quarterback position, and drops at the receiver position.”

More disturbingly, an anonymous 49ers player told NFL Network that, based on the way the Rams lined up and went in motion, the 49ers could determine which routes their receivers would run.

That sounds a bit far-fetched, and perhaps is a mental ploy, with the 49ers knowing that the teams meet again in December, but given how ineffective the Rams looked, it doesn’t seem impossible. Boras said he “did not have the perception” that the 49ers were jumping his play calls.

“Didn’t play up to our standard, didn’t coach to our standard, didn’t see it coming,” Boras said. “I think, across the board, coaches (and) players would say that we thought we had a great week of preparation and then obviously just didn’t live up to our standard, playing-wise (and) coaching.”

Boras might take some heat, but it’s not entirely deserved.

Formerly the Rams’ tight ends coach, Boras took over as coordinator last December after the firing of Frank Cignetti. Boras had never been an NFL coordinator, but in his four games last season, the Rams averaged 22.8 points and went 3-1. They had averaged nine points in Cignetti’s final four games.

Boras actually had the right idea last week. Knowing the 49ers likely would load up to stop Gurley, the Rams passed the ball on six of their initial eight plays. They actually moved the ball into 49ers territory, but then Keenum threw three consecutive incomplete passes.

The Rams never got going from there. They went a dreadful 3 for 15 on third down and Keenum was never enough of a threat to make the 49ers veer from their stop-the-run strategy.

So, Seattle could follow it. The Seahawks feature game-altering safety Kam Chancellor, who excels at creeping down toward the line of scrimmage and making plays. If the Rams can’t throw the ball against a talented Seattle secondary, Gurley once again might not find much running room.

“We’re going to have to take our shots,” Fisher said. “You make a couple of plays down the field, it changes things. But, we always subscribe to the philosophy that even if it’s loaded, we still have to find a way to (run the ball), especially at the end of the game.”

So, good luck, Case Keenum. The Rams already have elevated rookie quarterback Jared Goff to be Keenum’s backup this week. If Keenum, a former undrafted free agent and a practice-squad veteran, has another poor game, it’s reasonable to think the Rams might consider handing things over to Goff.

For Keenum and the Rams’ offense, it needs to be bounce-back time.

“I’ve got a chip on my shoulder,” Keenum said. “I’ve had it for a while. So, it’ll still be there, the same one.”

Fred Gehrke got out his brushes and changed helmets forever
By Mark Mandernach - Sports Illustrated
http://www.si.com/vault/issue/711170/1/1

Fred Gehrke liked everything about football except the leather helmets he and his fellow NFL players had to wear. "My gosh, I loved the game," says Gehrke, 76, who was a halfback and defensive back for the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams during the 1940s and for the Chicago Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers in 1950. "But those gosh-awful helmets we used to wear? At best, you'd have to call them dull."

So one day after the 1947 season, during which the Los Angeles Rams had gone 6-6, Gehrke took matters into his own hands. Deciding that his teammates needed inspiration, he went to coach Bob Snyder with an idea. "I told him we needed to put some kind of design on our helmets," Gehrke says. "No other team had anything like that, and I thought it was time for a change."

Gehrke, who had majored in art at the University of Utah, painted one of the team's brown helmets dark blue and then added the now familiar yellow horns. He and Snyder presented the helmet to the Rams' owner, Dan Reeves, who liked both the idea and the design. Gehrke took 75 helmets home with him that summer and decorated them all. He was paid a dollar for each paint job.

The new headgear was introduced on Sept. 2, 1948, in an exhibition game at home against the Washington Redskins. When the Rams went charging onto the field, the 77,400 fans in the Coliseum gave them a standing ovation. The Rams lost that day 21-10, but the team made history by being the first in the NFL to wear helmets with a logo or an insignia.

Besides playing both ways and returning punts and kickoffs for the Rams, Gehrke became the caretaker of the team's headgear. He stored brushes and cans of blue and yellow paint in his locker because after every game the helmets, particularly those of the linemen, needed touching up.

In 1949 Riddell introduced plastic football helmets to the NFL, and the Rams' horns were baked into the plastic. But while Gehrke's days as a helmet artist had come to an end, his creativity had found other outlets. After breaking his nose in four straight games in 1946, he fashioned a prototype mask out of aluminum and shoe leather during the off-season with the help of his grandfather, a shoemaker. The mask looked like something Hannibal Lecter might wear, and while it was uncomfortable and, according to Gehrke, "distracting," it did the trick. And in 1968 Gehrke used pipe and netting to design the first kicking cage, for the Denver Broncos' Bob Humphreys.

In recognition of his helmet design for the Rams, the Pro Football Hall of Fame honored Gehrke in 1972 with the first Daniel F. Reeves Memorial Pioneer Award for a "significant, innovative contribution to professional football." Today, an exhibit at the museum in Canton, Ohio, commemorates Gehrke's handiwork.

Gehrke grew up in Salt Lake City, and after earning letters in football, diving and track and field at Utah, he played his first NFL season with the Cleveland Rams in 1940 for $135 a game. After the season he got a job at Northrup Aircraft in Hawthorne, Calif., as a technical illustrator in the engineering department. When the U.S. entered World War II, in 1941, Gehrke stayed on the West Coast and played for the Los Angeles Bulldogs in the Pacific Coast League.

After the war Gehrke re-signed with Cleveland for $5,000 a year. The Rams won the NFL title in 1945 and moved to Los Angeles the following year. Gehrke played four more years with the Rams before finishing his career with the Cardinals and the 49ers in 1950.

Gehrke went back to Northrup after his retirement from football but returned to the game in 1965 as director of player personnel for the Denver Broncos, working with an old college buddy, Bronco coach Mac Speedie. Gehrke ultimately became general manager and vice president of the Orange Crush team that lost Super Bowl XII to the Dallas Cowboys 27-10. And, yes, he helped design the Broncos' Super Bowl rings.

"I spent the better part of my life in football, and I'll be best remembered for some work I did with a paintbrush, but that's O.K.," Gehrke says. "I've been called the Da Vinci of football helmets, and that's not all bad."

And which helmets, apart from the Rams', are Gehrke's favorites? He has always liked the Colts' horseshoe. "It's simple, it's an identifiable symbol, and you can see it from the stands," he says. "The Vikings' helmets are pretty good too, and so are the Eagles'." What about the headgear of the Cleveland Browns, the only NFL team without a design on its helmets? "Well, since they're the only team without a logo, you'd have to say at least it's unusual," he says. "Besides, how the heck are you going to show a Brown?"

I haven't read anything about Cooper or Spruce yet. I feel like those two are going to help the offense a little more. Any news on their potential returns? Thanks!

On this TD Pass completed by the 49ers... 3rd & Goal from the 8 Yard Line?

#21 Sensabaugh has outside coverage on his WR and covers him until about the 3 yard line. After 3 yards he just lets him go/drift as if there is safety zone help etc.

The issue for me is this is 3rd & Goal from the 8 and he doesn't even jam or funnel the WR in any capacity and looks lost just shuffling his feet 3 yards deep in the endzone.

He looks bewildered and just watches the TE make the TD catch as if he was safe guarding a ghost RB sneaking out of the backfield into his zone?

Anyway.... Sensabaugh stops covering the WR at about the 3 yard-line (no RB or other 49er player anywhere near his zone) and yet he's just shuffling his feet backwards 3 yards deep in the endzone?

No reaction/assignment or instincts to help with any kind of coverage? He just watches the closest player/ TE catch the TD pass with not other 49er player anywhere near his zone? This is quite baffling after watching it several times....

Goff is Rams' backup QB for now, but his former coaches believe he'll work out long term

By JACK WANG / STAFF WRITER

[www.ocregister.com]

THOUSAND OAKS – Less than five months ago, Sonny Dykes was the picture of optimism. Jared Goff, the only quarterback he’d started in three years at Cal, was not only entering the NFL, but doing so as the No. 1 overall pick.

“He’s ready,” the coach told Bay Area television station KTVU in April, shortly before the draft. “He’s one of those kids – you don’t ever know how somebody’s going to transition from college football to the NFL – but I can’t imagine anybody’s going to be as ready as he is.”

But earlier this week, in a stadium roughly 70 miles south of his high school, the Rams’ prized rookie was stuck on the sideline, a first for a top-drafted quarterback since 2007. He didn’t even dress in what turned out to be an embarrassing 28-0 loss to the 49ers, relegated to street clothes as the team’s third-string signal-caller.

Goff could still turn into a franchise player. But if it happens, the journey will likely consist of small steps rather than giant leaps. On Friday, Rams coach Jeff Fisher announced that Goff will back up veteran Case Keenum on Sunday against the Seahawks, jumping Sean Mannion on the quarterback depth chart. That this represents a promotion has forced those who once coached Goff to reconsider his developmental timeline – though it has not shaken their faith in their former pupil.

“He’s right where I thought he’d be,” Dykes said this month, in an act of revisionist history. “He’s 21 years old. I knew there’d be a period of adjustment.”

Mazi Moayed, Goff’s coach at Marin Catholic High School, was more forthright.

“It was surprising at first,” he said, “but it makes sense that he’s not (the starter) right now. I think in the long run, it’s going to help him.”

Goff himself has echoed those sentiments. On Friday, he insisted that he has prepared exactly the same way for the past several weeks. Monday’s game, which he watched in a white hoodie, simply meant a chance for him to absorb the game from a different angle.

“I tried to just take it into perspective,” he said. “Just tried to learn, tried to see everything from the sideline, tried to understand things.”

Offensive coordinator Rob Boras praised Goff’s study habits, saying that the quarterback hasn’t relaxed his study habits at all. A good sign, now that there’s a chance Goff could actually enter the game.

“They’re always one snap away,” Boras said. “It’s hard when you’re 21 years old to recognize that.”

The stakes are higher now. Fisher has long insisted that he will not rush Goff’s development, but there is pressure that comes with the Los Angeles spotlight. Against the 49ers, Keenum went 17 of 35 for 130 yards, throwing two interceptions along the way. If he puts up similar numbers Sunday against a more formidable Seattle defense, it may be difficult to justify leaving Goff on the bench.

Would the rookie, who had plenty of preseason struggles, be ready?

“I just remember a calm, skinny kid,” Moayed said, recalling the first time he met Goff. “I was like, ‘That guy can just play catch.’ He’s out there, he’s just calm, cool, he’s in control. Just playing catch with the guys, making it look easy.

“God willing, he’ll be doing that before long at the stage he’s at. I don’t see it being any different at that level. It’s just a matter of time.”

LOS ANGELES RAMS DT AARON DONALD
CONFERENCE CALL


(On what challenge the Seattle offense presents to him)
“We know what to expect, we know the plays they get. We know it’s going to be a dog fight, we know we need to try to cage [Russell] Wilson, have to get to him. It should be a good match, we match up against them well and we pretty much have a good feel for them.”


(On whether they consider the possibility of Russell Wilson not being 100 percent with his ankle)
“The goal is if he plays, I know if he’s out there he’s going to play his all and I know every time he’s on the field it’s an opportunity for him to hurt us. So we’re just going to take him like we would any other time of the season if he wasn’t slowed down or whatever. I know if he’s on the field he’s going to try to make some plays for them and our job is to stop that from happening.”


(On their win against the Seahawks in last year’s season opener)
“I think it was a good team win. The offense and defense, we all did our job like we were supposed to. We planned on what we’d been doing and we executed that game plan. Just the game plan that we usually had usually works for us. We have a game plan going into this week. We know that already and we know that we have to execute as we get ready for Sunday.”


(On why they are able to play so well against the Seahawks)
“Like I said, we play these guys twice a year, every year, and we have a feel for them. Just like they have a feel for us, they know what to expect, they know our personnel, they know how we play, so it’s the usual dog fight.”


(On how much shifting he’s doing on the defensive line)
“Same thing as last year. We flipped around, I might be on the right side or I might be on the left side. We flip a lot, wherever the strength’s at and things like that, they’re going to put me there. They’re going to put me in positions to do what I do.”


(On having a home game on Sunday)
“I’m pumped up about it. We’re back in LA, we know the fans are going to be pumped up about it. A home game in LA, we know it’s going to be loud, I’m excited and pumped up to get out there and play at our home stadium.”


(On whether he is getting antsy for getting his first sack of the season)
“I’ll get it, it’s going to come. It’s going to come, I just have to keep playing and doing my game and not try to think too much of it. When I’m in the position I’m going to take advantage of it, but I’m not worried about it at all.”


(On the frustrating season opener for the Rams)
“Just moving on. That’s the past, nothing we can change, but just move on and prepare and get ready for the Seahawks.”


(On whether he’s worried he’ll receive a suspension for last game)
“No, I think I’m good. Everything is fine as far as that, so I just have to get prepared for the Seahawks and get ready to play them like we have to.”


(On Justin Britt)
“He’s a football player, he played tackle our rookie year when we were in there. Last year he was a guard and now he made the move to center. That’s the strength of their offensive line, a guy that’s versatile, that’s played all positions. He’s a football player. It’s going to be a dog fight, like I said.”


(On him losing weight this season)
“I had a belly. I just bulked up a little bit. I didn’t lose any weight, just put some muscle on. When you look good, you feel good, you play good.”


(On how he prepares for being double teamed)
“You just watch film. You study film and you find ways to beat being double teamed. You find a way to beat that and get the upper hand. There’s going to be a lot of things that might change, slide protection and things like that, but you just have to find ways so they won’t slow you down and continue to have success. Try to make some plays that will help you get the win, anything you can do to get in the best place to make some big plays. Just training, lifting weights. Like I said, studying a lot of film myself and technique. We’ll put the pads on, go on out and come practice time, try to work on the things that I trained to do in the offseason.”


(On whether he cares about being known as one of the best defensive linemen in the league)
“I feel like everybody who plays this game wants to become one of the great football players and be talked about. That’s always my mindset, to be talked about one day. I have a long way to go, but when you talk about the future you always talk about the Warren Sapps, the John Randles, the guys like that. One day, I put the body of work in and keep getting better each day, and I’ll be in that conversation one day.”


(On his collision with Marshawn Lynch last year)
“Just that big plays help us win. Michael Brockers made a great play, got to it late, he actually got there before me, and hit Lynch then I just went on too and helped clean it up. Whether it’s a divisional game or the first game of the season, that was a big win for us.”


(On whether it will be odd not playing against Marshawn Lynch)
“I’m not mad at it at all, that I’m not going to see that guy. That’s definitely a tough running back. It’s going to be different but I’m happy that guy isn’t suiting up.”


(On being on the West Coast time)
“I’m used to it, I had to get used to it. Everything is good so far and I’m enjoying it.”

I am a lifelong cool aid drinking Ram fan...always think they have a shot...

But how does Mannion get screwed when he had absolutely ZERO responsibility for the debacle on Monday night? It's like they want to shut up the critics, but are missing the entire point. Personally I think Mannion deserves a shot. He's slow , his release isnt as fast...both things they say about Flacco. Im not saying he is the answer, just that he is better than Keenum, and building him up can do nothing but help this team. We blew it not trading Keenum to Denver.

I know it's early in the college year but this kid is something special. He has shredded FSU today - if you are missing it - check the highlight reel.

I'm finding it increasingly hard to support this team in manner in which I have been since I can remember. And no this isn't a "sky is falling after 1 week" rant because I'm sure we will play enough good football for me to go into next season with a heart full of ignorant hope. But once again...we are the same old rams. Bunch of talent that never seems to take the next step. Just flashes here and there.

I was a default cowboys fan for the first 7 years of my life because my dad is a die hard and at that age I liked whatever he liked. But in 1999 I found my 8 year old self mesmerized by Marshall faulk and have bled blue and gold ever since. And ever since then minus the 2000 season we have been either mediocre or down right bad. I've reached a point where it's like what am I putting myself through why continue to root for a team that can't get out of its own way.

And now we're in a position where Goff either becomes Aaron Rodgers good or we are going to continue to suck for another decade. Don't get me wrong as you all know i have thought very highly of Goff for a long time now but those expectations are hard for anyone to achieve regardless of talent. And now i continue to lose faith in our head coaches ability to help Goff reach that potential... let's face it almost every quarterback coming into the league drafted that high has immense talent. But, a huge part of realizing that potential falls on the surrounding circumstances. We have a coach stuck in the wrong decade and no real outside threats.

Idk I feel like I'm in a shitty relationship that I know is no good for me but I can't let go of because of history.

Practice Report 9/16: The Difficulties of Containing Wilson

By Myles Simmons

[www.therams.com]

In just his fifth year in the NFL, Seattle quarterback Russel Wilson has undoubtedly become one of its the best quarterbacks. He’s started every game since he was drafted at No. 75 overall in the third round of the 2012 draft, and Seattle has won at least 10 games in each of those seasons.

“It’s been a constant progression,” Seahakws head coach Pete Carroll said this week. “He played really well his first year and he’s played well every year. What we’ve seen, it’s just the natural progression of growing and understanding the game to the point where it becomes he’s in greater command of it.”

“I’ve had the chance to coach against a lot of quarterbacks who are in the Hall of Fame, and you see some of those marquee guys — and I think Russell is one of them,” L.A. defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said.

Willson has increased his yards passing each year as he’s grown and matured as a quarterback. And while he can undoubtedly make plays with his feet, it doesn’t mean he’s a run-first quarterback. Last year, Wilson completed 68.1 percent of his passes for 4,024 yards with 34 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He’s hovered around 100 rushing attempts per year in each of his first four years, but last year he decreased his output from 849 yards rushing and six touchdowns in 2014 to 553 yards and one touchdown.


“You can just tell that he’s just more and more comfortable each year we play,” middle linebacker Alec Ogletree said. “He’s standing in the pocket, he can make all the throws. He already knows what’s coming just by a look. You can just tell his growth in the offense.”

“I think the best quarterback extending plays is Russell Wilson,” Williams said.

Wilson’s numbers from the last seven regular-season games of the 2015 season are, in a word, bonkers. The quarterback completed 71 percent of his passes for 1,906 yards with 24 touchdowns and just one interception — thrown to Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson in Week 16.

“The second half of last season, he was just remarkably on it, so he goes in to the offseason with the thought that he wants to pick up where he left off and add to that,” Carroll said. “And that’s what he’s done, he’s been working like crazy to get that done, he had a great offseason, he came in in great shape.”

The only contest in which Wilson didn’t fare remarkably well was Seattle’s 23-17 loss to the Rams in Week 16. In that matchup, Wilson was 25-of-41 passing (61 percent) for 289 yards, with two touchdowns, an interception, and a fumble lost.

Last week, Wilson suffered an ankle injury in the Seahawks’ matchup with the Dolphins. Despite being visibly limited in his mobility, Wilson was able to engineer a 14-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a two-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Doug Baldwin with just 31 seconds left. With that, Seattle had a 12-10 victory.

“The Dolphins really played well up there in a tough place to play, and Russell, with a sore ankle, finds a way to put together a winning drive at the end that is really impressive,” Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said this week.

“He did a great job finishing the game last week to get us a win, when he was kind of hobbling around and still got it done kind of in dramatic fashion,” Carroll said.

Wilson has been listed as a full participant in practice all week, so there’s little doubt he’ll be starting at quarterback when the Seahawks come to the Coliseum on Sunday afternoon. And according to Fisher, L.A. is preparing for the quarterback to enter the contest with his full mobility.


“We’re preparing for a 100 percent healthy Russell. You have to do that or you sell yourself short,” Fisher said. “I thought their offensive staff, when he was injured, did a tremendous job adjusting the play-calling to allow him to find a way to win that game without using his legs. I thought they did a great job. We have to approach this, from a player standpoint and assume that he’s going to be 100 percent.”

And that means the Rams know they will have to swarm whenever they have a chance to bring Wilson down in the backfield or once Wilson decides to take off down the field. Still, the Rams’ defense sacked the QB a total of 10 times over two games last year.

“I have to make sure we plaster our guys,” Ogletree said. “He might scramble around and he’s really good on the run. We have to try to contain him and make sure our defensive line are in their rush lanes and everybody’s doing their jobs.”

“It’s really getting seven, six people surrounding him, and really getting him down. Because this guy, it really doesn’t matter — there can be three people after him and he can still get out of there,” defensive tackle Michael Brockers said. “The big thing about it is balancing the rush around him — making it a way where he can’t get out and he’s surrounded and everybody’s getting to the ball.”

If the Rams can keep Wilson contained as they have in the past, they should be in position for a W in the home opener.


EXTRA POINTS

— The Rams have five players on their injury report for this week’s game. Two players are questionable, cornerback Lamarcus Joyner (foot) and defensive tackle Michael Brockers (thigh).

Wide receiver Pharoh Cooper (shoulder) was a limited participant in practice on Friday and has been listed as doubtful.

Cornerback E.J. Gaines (thigh) and wide receiver Nelson Spruce (knee) did not practice all week and have been declared out.

— After Friday’s practice, Fisher announced quarterback Jared Goff will serve as the backup to Case Keenum on Sunday against the Seahawks.

“He’s going to be two and he’s ready to play,” Fisher said. “He’s gotten some reps throughout the week, so good for him. It will be exciting for him, knowing he’s a snap away from going in the game. He was here until the wee hours last night preparing — as he should.”

“They told me earlier in the week,” Goff said. “And I kind of have just been preparing the way I’ve been preparing the last two weeks.

“Obviously, I’m going to support Case,” Goff later added. “But anything can happen and I’ll be ready if my number is called.”

For more on Goff being named the Rams’ backup quarterback, check out our full story here.

— One of the elements Williams would like the defense to improve upon this week is picking off passes when players have the opportunity to do so.

“The other thing we could’ve done a better job with was we got our hands on three balls where it legitimately hit us in the hands,” Williams said. “And those three interceptions right there — and two of those three times that we dropped the ball, we could’ve put points on the board. We could have scored with those throws because there was nobody between us and the goal line. Our guys understand that and they’ll come back, they’ll bounce back very well.”

— Finally, offensive coordinator Rob Boras said his unit has to be resilient in coming back and attacking the Seahawks’ defense this weekend.

“Didn’t play up to our standard. Didn’t coach to our standard. Didn’t see it coming,” Boras said. “I think across the board, players would say that we thought we had a great week of preparation. And then, obviously, just didn’t live up to our standard — playing-wise [and] coaching.

I talked last week about being resilient, and we’re not going to let that define us,” Boras continued. “And, obviously, we have to see if we’re as resilient as we think we are moving forward.”

Rams claim to have seen good things on defense Monday, but it’s time for that unit to fulfill its reputation

[www.dailynews.com]

By THOUSAND OAKS >> The Rams will have a great defense someday.

That, of course, can be a promise without end.

Greg Norman was going to win the Masters someday. Healthy bacon was going to come along someday. Heck, pro football was coming back someday. The Rams fixed that, but they have brought it back to a notably impatient place.

The defense was one thing we knew about this unfamiliar team with the familiar name that returned to our lives Jan. 12. If nothing else, the Rams could stop you. They had four first-round picks on defense and, in some eyes, the best player in the NFL in Aaron Donald.

During those years, they also had to carry around the Rams’ offense like a box of anchors.

Then came Monday night: San Francisco 28, L.A. 0.

“We played very strong in that ballgame,” said defensive coordinator Gregg Williams Friday, indicating that the strain of keeping that promise might be getting to him.

But he elaborated.

“We have to do a better job in the red zone,” he said. “That’s something we’ve always done well in the past. We extended some of their drives with penalties. And we got our hands on three balls that legitimately hit us in the hands and should have been interceptions, and two of them would have gone for touchdowns. Our guys know that and they’ll come back. And I was very pleased with the way they responded at halftime.”

The Rams were second in the league last year in preventing red zone touchdowns, at 41.3 percent, and fourth in 2014.

“The worst part was giving 28 points, and it doesn’t matter how the offense did if you are going to give up points,” linebacker Alec Ogletree said. “We had some missed reads in the red zone, some missed tackles. Things happened really fast.”

San Francisco scored four touchdowns in four red zone trips and the Rams lost a net 92 yards in penalties. The 49ers had three touchdown drives that took 10, 10 and 11 plays. Etc.

“We had a couple of short fields,” Williams said. “We’re usually good on sudden change, making people kick field goals. One of those drives we had a second-and-15 and we had pass interference, and another time we had second-and-13 and the guy (Blaine Gabbert) threw it right in there. ... What I liked was that before I could say anything, the guys were coming up to me and they were bringing it up. That’s when you know things are going well, when they take ownership.

“They extended some plays with their quarterbacks, and that’s when you don’t want to be reading my lips on the sideline. But otherwise we held their running game down pretty well.”

Still, the Rams are holding onto someday a little too long.

In 2015 the Rams ranked 12th in the 32-team NFL in yards allowed per play. They were sixth on third-down defense, seventh in passing TDs allowed, 13th in touchdowns allowed. The year before they were 24th in yards-per-play defense, and 18th the year before that.

That is good but not dominant, and their ambition is dominance. A glimpse came in Week 16 last year, when William Hayes sacked Russell Wilson three times (for 24 1/2 yards) and the Rams won in Seattle, 23-17. Three of Seattle’s 10 losses in 2014-15 have come to the Rams, and one of them came with Nick Foles posting a quarterback rating of 115.8.

Now Wilson drags a bad ankle into the Coliseum Sunday.

“We’re preparing as if he’s going to be 100 percent,” Williams said. “We know how tough he is. He’s one of the few players who could come over and play defense. He does things on instinct, does things you can’t coach. He’s the best quarterback there is when it comes to extending plays.”

The Rams allowed Wilson to run 15 times for 51 yards in those two games, with one gain of 20. They can live with that, provided they can find a way to squeeze Todd Gurley through Seattle’s front seven. “We might have to throw it deep to do that,” coach Jeff Fisher said, which invites its own problems.

“We’ve been preaching the same thing for three years,” Ogletree said. “as far as becoming the best defense. We’re looking forward to this year and spreading our reputation around the league. We’re not looking to wait until next year to do that, because things change. What better time than now?”

Sure beats someday.

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What in the hell?

Given the 7-9 bull&*^&^ we saw from Hard Knocks not being good enough (in Fisher's own words)...then I assume this has to be a must win game for the Rams.

Statistically, only 12% of teams have ever made the playoffs after starting 0-2. And it doesn't get easier, next week is at Arizona.

I hope they're ready!

After the first game I tried giving up football. It doesn't work. So if I'm going to be a Rams fan, I need to figure out a way to remain positive. Thus, my new conspiracy theory.

What if they have decided to drastically change the offense to something modern, vertical, and aggressive? Something that maximizes the skillet of their top players while remaining flexible enough to take advantage of defensive weaknesses. What is they know that Keenum can't run that offense? And, due to its complexity and superior requirements, Goff isn't ready to run it yet.

So they keep Keenum running the old offense, the one he won with last year, the one he has the skillet to use. And when Goff understand the new offense, Bob's your uncle and we have a new starter?

Unlikely? Very. Does it give me hope? You bet it does.

And to be fair, I believe that they can win some games with Keenum so it's not like everything is lost until Goff comes around.

Anyone else in on the latest flavor of Kool aid? I like it.

...Brian Quick will have 48 garbage time catches, 368 garbage time yards. Shattering his previous career highs.

Keep it going Brian!


:fuelfire:

This is not a "rah-rah" post, but something to consider. Every year under Fisher we have that one game that is just pure SHIT. An absolute CLUNKER. The game where we all just want to stick our heads in the sand and give up. So ... hopefully, we got that one out of the way early on and there will be no more like it this year. Doesn't mean all wins from here on out, but let's hope no more "embarrassments" and we can actually be competitive.

That is all.....

.

i hope this doesn't mean we see sensabaugh out there this week. surely they will give hill a go.

for the love of all things holy and sacred, no more sensabaugh.

no, no, no.



.

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K, not really.

http://media.kfhradio.com/a/1167242...-legendary-los-angeles-rams-running-back.html

[av]http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/media.kfhradio.com/hosting/media/kfhradio/1636332/116724282.MP3[/av]

Of course the NFL doesn't want you watching videos on anything other than YouTube, so you have to go there to see it.

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