Someone Explain Our Offense To Me

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The offense plays scared. Fisher refuses to let the offense take risks. That's basically the nutshell.

Steve Young towards the end of the game pointed out how the Whiners weren't even putting two safeties in the back. Just 1 high almost the whole second half and everyone on the line and CBs tight. The Whiners literally dare the Rams to do ANYTHING past the line of scrimmage and it never happened.
 
Basically Fisher is trying to evolve Martyball. Doing everything possible to extend the run game to our receivers. That's this whole horizontal thing you heard Steve Young talking about last night. Boras was hired because Fisher can mold him into what he wants. Boras was on to something last year with disguising our reverse to Tavon and runs to Gurley. But, we've seemed to abandon that for some reason into this pseudo West-Coast Martyball hybrid running/screen offense that is putrid.
 
This is a copy cat league, and all d-coordinators now have the formula for stopping Gurley. Load the box and go man coverage in the secondary because we can't throw anything outside of five yards. Until this team can stretch the field with consistent success, and loosen up the secondary and LB'ers, Gurley will not be successful, or any other back in this system. I fear for his health if he continues to get beat up like he did last night.

Teams know we can't throw so they will continue putting 8-9 man fronts. Our offense is a pathetic excuse because we can't throw the ball. It was so embarrassing watching their ineptness last night, I turned off the game midway through the 2nd quarter. I did go back to see if anything had changed and wasn't surprised to see the offense lay a goose egg.

the scary thing is its actually not man coverage. Its freaking zone coverage overloaded in the flats. I honestly have never seen a team defended like this before. In zone coverage the LBs were literally dropping horizontally instead of dropping back and the Corners were not dropping at all just sitting in there stance waiting on the short pass. The Middle of the field is always wide open evidence by a few of Kenny britts plays. It is just way too easy to scheme Keenum and our terrible offensive gameplan out of the game.
 
Seriously man..again, I'm probably the last to comment on how a play should be designed and executed but I've seen better offenses out of high school football teams! Hell, our local high schools display more creativity on Friday nights! No play action? Maybe 2 screens the entire game? 1 (ONE!) shot more than 15 yards down the field?! Holy crap, if that's not "vanilla" then I don't know what is.

I wouldn't be surprised if Keenum just walked into the huddle and said "Tavon...3 yard out, right side. Everyone else just look busy..BREAK!" That's how pathetic and remedial our play calling looked.
There were run plays where Rams linemen were chasing the pile while Gurley or Benny had 4 guys on them. Pick a man and block him for goodness sake! The linemen were completely lost running around trying to get in the play after it was over to look like they were busy. 49's D was blocking the hell out of our receivers to the point of holding.
 
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the scary thing is its actually not man coverage. Its freaking zone coverage overloaded in the flats. I honestly have never seen a team defended like this before. In zone coverage the LBs were literally dropping horizontally instead of dropping back and the Corners were not dropping at all just sitting in there stance waiting on the short pass. The Middle of the field is always wide open evidence by a few of Kenny britts plays. It is just way too easy to scheme Keenum and our terrible offensive gameplan out of the game.
Nice observation, makes me think what took so long for a defense to implement this scheme against Keenum. I've made comments about how defenses wouldn't even need to cover our WRs beyond 3 yards of the LOS because Keenum can't get the ball to them. Sometimes I just hate being right. Have you ever been able to count to ten while the ball is in the air but going two yards beyond the LOS when Keenum throws it. Try it, I bet that works.
 
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Nice observation, makes me think what took so long for a defense to implement this scheme against Keenum. I've made comments about how defenses wouldn't even need to cover our WRs beyond 3 yards of the LOS because Keenum can't get the ball to them. Sometimes I just hate being right. Have you ever been able to count to ten while the ball is in the air but going two yards beyond the LOS when Keenum throws it. Try it, I bet that works.

This is why Goff should be in there. He doesnt have to throw it so early to hit someone in the seam for 18 yrds, Goff can release the ball so much quicker and the ball gets there much quicker. On a play Keenum just cant throw with any consistancy. He may hit 1 or 2 a game, the Rams need at least 2 of those /drive, to get some space at the LOS for the OL to have a chance to block for Gurley or any back.
 
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Todd Gurley video from last night

3-stooges-o.gif
 
Explain our offense?

Four first round picks, ALL in the top 10 (Goff, Gurley, Robinson, Austin)

Five second round picks, four of whom are still with the team (Havenstein, Quick, Pead, Kendricks, Saffold)

Five third round picks, two of whom are still with the team (Brown, Mannion, Mason, Bailey, Pettis).

So ten offensive players, drafted in the third round or higher that are still on the team (four top ten picks!!), and the offense looks like this?? Yeah, at some point you gotta stop blaming the players.
 
Explain our offense?

Four first round picks, ALL in the top 10 (Goff, Gurley, Robinson, Austin)

Five second round picks, four of whom are still with the team (Havenstein, Quick, Pead, Kendricks, Saffold)

Five third round picks, two of whom are still with the team (Brown, Mannion, Mason, Bailey, Pettis).

So ten offensive players, drafted in the third round or higher that are still on the team (four top ten picks!!), and the offense looks like this?? Yeah, at some point you gotta stop blaming the players.

No wonder no FA offensive player will come here.
 
Kermit and Gurley saying "that wasn't us"...Actually, yes it was...A clone of the O of the last several years...Pityful at this point...I can't give up on them, but right now, at this point, I'm having trouble finding anything to help me put any kind of a positive spin on this team right now...
 
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How can Chip Kelly's "gimmick offense" work last night when ours can't? I've always heard that guys like Goff, coming out of spread and air raid offenses in college don't transition well to pro style offenses. Fair enough, but WHY do they HAVE TO transition to a pro style offense? Chip definitely didn't run one last night and he took 28 points from our defense. His offense huddled up, what, 1 time last night? It was a stereotypical college type of offensive system and it worked!

I will never for the life of me understand why a coach and offensive coordinator can't tailor their offensive philosophy to one that fits their QB's strengths. Give him something he's comfortable with. Something he can master and is already familiar with. Kaepernick is a good example of this...I think the guy is a terrible QB but he (and his defense) did enough to end up in a Superbowl.

I'm not advocating a complete Air Raid type of offense installed but why do we insist on having guys like Foles, Keenum and Goff completely change the way they play the game? Foles had success in Kelly's gimmick offense too, came here and shit the bed. Keenum came from a spread offense in Houston where he set NCAA records. We're taking these guys away from what made them successful QBs to begin with and forcing them into an entirely new system; and a shitty one at that.

I'm just ranting right now and I know a lot of people will disagree with me and explain to me why college offenses don't work in the NFL. I just can't understand how you can expect a guy to change everything about his game and expect him to succeed.
 
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the scary thing is its actually not man coverage. Its freaking zone coverage overloaded in the flats. I honestly have never seen a team defended like this before. In zone coverage the LBs were literally dropping horizontally instead of dropping back and the Corners were not dropping at all just sitting in there stance waiting on the short pass. The Middle of the field is always wide open evidence by a few of Kenny britts plays. It is just way too easy to scheme Keenum and our terrible offensive gameplan out of the game.

you hit the nail on the head with this post. I was so pissed last night I couldn't figure out why they wouldn't throw the ball down the middle. I don't care how good or bad our receivers are they will not get open on 3 yard routes every damn play.
 
another thing I did see our OL played way better in the second half but Keenum just throws the damn ball weather he has time or not to his first read. Keenum is what I thought he was a backup and makes mistakes at crucial times.
 
I don't know shit about coaching football and even I could predict our offense.. Last night I literally called one of our series, and I was right.... And it was sad.

Run up the middle, short pass, incomplete on 3rd down.

They need to do something more creative... At this point they're better off bringing a copy of madden into the room and doing what they say.
 
Every other NFL offense:

1 Call the best play to counter what the defense is probably going to do.
2 When you get to the line audible if they are in the right defense to counter our play.

Rams Offense:

1 Call a play that isn't high risk for turnover. Gurley handoff or horizontal pass.
2 When you get to the line if they are in the right defense be extra careful to not turn the ball over or audible into anything else.
 
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They need a real NFL o coordinator, and if Fisher won't hire one and leave him to his task, then he needs to be shown the door. It boggles my mind when you have a guy like Tavon running 2 yard patterns and coming to a stop....think of Az Hakim...remember how Martz used him...slight delay, then 5 yard crossing route after the middle was cleared out...Warner hits him in stride and he's off to the races...thats how Austin needs to be used...and that's just 1 example.