Hopkins

[blackbart]

Not so sure den.....what I saw last night was a fragile nonexplosive JAG of a wideout! Left me with a sinking feeling. I did not see much there to work with. If OBJ has torn that ACL completely once again & there terminate damage a one-legged OBJ would still be more help on the field than Jefferson is.

I think he needs to learn how to make a play when it’s not laid in his lap. I don’t know if anyone but his dad can do that, it’s a heart thing.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Not so sure den.....what I saw last night was a fragile nonexplosive JAG of a wideout! Left me with a sinking feeling. I did not see much there to work with. If OBJ has torn that ACL completely once again & there terminate damage a one-legged OBJ would still be more help on the field than Jefferson is.

I didn’t see much better than what I’d expect from Josh Reynolds.

 

[PARAM]

Higbee, Blanton, Hopkins at TE in 2022? Harris at WR/TE? Added to Kupp, Woods, Jefferson and OBJ? Gonna be interesting to see how it all shakes out.

 

[OntarioRam]

The stepping up of Brycen Hopkins in the receiving game was one very big positive.

The poor showing & ZERO step up from the 26 yr old Van Jefferson & Ben Skowronek nearly cost the Rams the game. No excuse for the 2nd round 2020 draft selection Jefferson .

Is there cause for alarm @ WR due to the pending OBJ departure & the horrendous 2021 2nd rd selection TuTu Atwell.

Seems like the only real hope will be coming from the WR Jacob Harris rehab outcome. I sure would look strongly at keeping the often injured OBJ!

View: https://twitter.com/mortreport/status/1492889379731226626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1492889379731226626%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportsgrid.com%2Freal-sports%2Fnfl%2Flos-angeles-rams-certain-odell-beckham-jr-returns-next-season%2F

I was/am thinking similar.

OBJ and Woods are coming off ACLs and are no longer young. OBJ in fact has torn the same ACL twice now, if it is torn again. Jefferson seems to be a JAG - good in a depth role but incapable of stepping up or making the hard catches. Benny Skow should not be getting any snaps. The Tutu pick seems to be a total waste but it is still early and hopefully he proves useful (I am sceptical though).

I would not say there is cause for concern, necessarily, as Kupp and Woods are an elite duo. And if we bring back OBJ, the Rams' WRs are the NFL's best as far as I am concerned. But it would be a group that is very fragile. Even Kupp has been injury prone prior to this season. You'd definitely be walking on egg shells that the health could fail at any moment and the house of cards comes crashing down.

Lots of people are high on Harris. We force fed him in pre-season and his catch % was weak. He is so raw though, that he might well improve and become a serious weapon yet. And even Harris now has injury concerns!

 

[BonifayRam]

I think he needs to learn how to make a play when it’s not laid in his lap. I don’t know if anyone but his dad can do that, it’s a heart thing.

Good late morning my good Ram Bud! It's a good Day for us Ram fans!

Jefferson has been groomed for the NFL since he was in diapers. His dad has been a HOF WR & coach in the NFL.

Jefferson has been in the NFL now for 2 full seasons with one of the best WR coaches in the NFL to coach him every day. He is considered a starter!

What else can be done to fix what we saw last night & throughout the Rams 4 post-regular season games?

IMO there is a lack of many elements to his game & I currently have zero faith in his abilities to improve to the point where he can have an impact on the field at this point.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

I was/am thinking similar.

OBJ and Woods are coming off ACLs and are no longer young. OBJ in fact has torn the same ACL twice now, if it is torn again. Jefferson seems to be a JAG - good in a depth role but incapable of stepping up or making the hard catches. Benny Skow should not be getting any snaps. The Tutu pick seems to be a total waste but it is still early and hopefully he proves useful (I am sceptical though).

I would not say there is cause for concern, necessarily, as Kupp and Woods are an elite duo. And if we bring back OBJ, the Rams' WRs are the NFL's best as far as I am concerned. But it would be a group that is very fragile. Even Kupp has been injury prone prior to this season. You'd definitely be walking on egg shells that the health could fail at any moment and the house of cards comes crashing down.

Lots of people are high on Harris. We force fed him in pre-season and his catch % was weak. He is so raw though, that he might well improve and become a serious weapon yet. And even Harris now has injury concerns!

Snead/McVay wanted speed so badly that maybe they overlooked other important traits, like size and hands.

Harris is enticing with his speed and height but if he’s not a natural pass catcher it doesn’t do much good.

And who comes off the field so the other guys can get some reps? Odell, Kupp, or Woods?

 

[blackbart]

Good late morning my good Ram Bud! It's a good Day for us Ram fans!

Jefferson has been groomed for the NFL since he was in diapers. His dad has been a HOF WR & coach in the NFL.

Jefferson has been in the NFL now for 2 full seasons with one of the best WR coaches in the NFL to coach him every day. He is considered a starter!

What else can be done to fix what we saw last night & throughout the Rams 4 post-regular season games?

IMO there is a lack of many elements to his game & I currently have zero faith in his abilities to improve to the point where he can have an impact on the field at this point.

Good morning, Rams brother!!

Yeah he is what he is at this point #3 fits him well. Learning how to fight through the grabs to get a PI call and high point the ball to fight off a db like on the throw to the end zone isn’t really something that can be taught.

 

[OntarioRam]

Snead/McVay wanted speed so badly that maybe they overlooked other important traits, like size and hands.

Harris is enticing with his speed and height but if he’s not a natural pass catcher it doesn’t do much good.

And who comes off the field so the other guys can get some reps? Odell, Kupp, or Woods?

Agreed. Above all else, I want hands and route running in my WRs.

 

[Merlin]

Not so sure den.....what I saw last night was a fragile nonexplosive JAG of a wideout!

Left me with a sinking feeling. I did not see much there to work with.

If OBJ has torn that ACL completely once again & there's permanent damage .......a one-legged OBJ would still be more help on the field than Jefferson.

I wouldn't call him a JAG but I agree with you Boni. This Super Bowl game is the metric for this team. It is the expectation. So Van playing like a lamb on critical down/distances is not a good sign for his future here. Rams will keep him because he's cheap and runs great routes but if he's going to stay here he needs to improve his game a great deal.

He's got time to develop still and I am rooting for him because he's the right type of team-first dude. But you gotta produce for this roster if you want to stick.

I've been in Odell's corner for a while now, since he started making all those impact plays for us. Difference he brings is profound and with him and Kupp out there Stafford can play the way he wants to, by trying to place contested throws. So we either need him or someone similar, and a directional change on the scouting to add hands and contested ability to the team-first and route running side. Makes it harder to find what you want though, so a guy like Odell would be a great addition this offseason.

All that aside I will say I feel for Odell. I was planning on posting a "Big Money Beckham" thread because I figured he'd be MVP but that injury effed all that up. And the injury history now rears its head and it needs to factor in to the bottom line for signing him. Sucks but this is a business. So I hope they get it done and now you're talking a more reasonable contract if it gets done. The good thing is after that injury I think it makes it more likely the Rams sign him, it's just not gonna be a bank contract it's gonna be much more affordable than it would have been had he finished that game off and gotten MVP.

Either way stick around 3. Make some history here. There's gonna be movie and TV type deals for these guys if the old Rams teams are any indicator. So there are other benefits to staying with the team.

 

[den-the-coach]

If OBJ has torn that ACL completely once again & there's permanent damage .......a one-legged OBJ would still be more help on the field than Jefferson.

IDK Vernon, IMHO, Jefferson has some tools and we all gave up on Brian Allen so I believe everyone at that level can improve. Also I know that Jefferson was dealing with some injury issues too, so next year is a blank page and clean slate combined with an offseason of strength & conditioning, I 'm willing to see what the former Gator can do.

 

[thirteen28]

IDK Vernon, IMHO, Jefferson has some tools and we all gave up on Brian Allen so I believe everyone at that level can improve. Also I know that Jefferson was dealing with some injury issues too, so next year is a blank page and clean slate combined with an offseason of strength & conditioning, I 'm willing to see what the former Gator can do.

That is something to consider. I think the critiques of Jefferson at this stage are valid. However, we can't say for sure that he's a finished product at this point and that he can't get better. I do think he was better in year 2 than in year 1, he just wasn't where we wanted him to be. If we on the board here know where he needs to improve, you can bet the coaches see it too. If Van is a team guy, he'll work on these things in the offseason. I think if he does, he might have a ceiling in Robert Woods territory and certainly higher than being a JAG. But he's gotta work on some things for sure.

 

[Riverumbbq]

IDK Vernon, IMHO, Jefferson has some tools and we all gave up on Brian Allen so I believe everyone at that level can improve. Also I know that Jefferson was dealing with some injury issues too, so next year is a blank page and clean slate combined with an offseason of strength & conditioning, I 'm willing to see what the former Gator can do.

To say nothing about his wife giving birth during the Super Bowl, ... nothing like having trouble trying to focus on your job while that's going down.

I'm going to assume this must have been a history making event, how many players wives have had babies while their man was on a team that became Super Bowl Champions ?

 

[MachS]

Not only was Hopkins getting open vs man coverage and making plays when Van and Skrow couldn't, but how about that block on the 4th & 1 jet sweep that Kupp ran!? It was Hopkins, our FOURTH STRING TE on the edge vs a very good player in Hubbard sealing that edge creating the seam for Kupp. What a clutch game by the youngin.

 

[Pupped]

Not only was Hopkins getting open vs man coverage and making plays when Van and Skrow couldn't, but how about that block on the 4th & 1 jet sweep that Kupp ran!? It was Hopkins, our FOURTH STRING TE on the edge vs a very good player in Hubbard sealing that edge creating the seam for Kupp. What a clutch game by the youngin.

Honest question.. do we know the play was designed to go inside? Or did Hopkins just get blown up and Kupp made it work?

 

[MachS]

Honest question.. do we know the play was designed to go inside? Or did Hopkins just get blown up and Kupp made it work?

Hopkins didn't get blown up, but hard to know if he was technically asked to seal or not. If he was he battled Hubbard who tried to not give up the edge, and Hopkins held his block which allowed Kupp to make a good cut and get inside. Regardless a great job by a 4th string TE vs a good NFL starter in crunch time in the Super Bowl.

1:17 mark

View: https://youtu.be/LYP91oVyUuU?t=77

 

[12intheBox]

It’s pretty amazing how both Hopkins and Blanton stepped up so seamlessly when called on. Hopkins has a ways to go as a blocker but these 2 guys got very little real action thru the year and both stepped up as heroes in the biggest 2 games of the year.