How do we feel about the Rams?

[Mr. Scot]

They're not the doormat they used to be. Anyone thinking that will likely be surprised.

Definitely an improving team. Still not there, but seemingly moving in the right direction (think 2002 Panthers).

I don't expect this game to be a walk in the park.

[SOJA]

Rams are no longer in the bottom of the NFL.....Bradford is infinitely better than Clausen at this point, and looks to be a future star in the NFL. Jackson is a beast as always. Their defense is playing better as a unit than in previous years......

Keys to win the game:

Matt Moore- needs to play turn-over free and hit targets on big downs like he did verse the niners

Run defense- containing Jackson will be the key to stopping the Rams offense

3rd and long- We have got to get to the quarterback more, especially with a rookie back there. It will be essential to get him rattled early

I see a very close game as these teams are pretty evenly matched. It comes down to whether or not our offense can continue its recent success ultimately

[Pox 08]

I expect our secondary to make Bradford look like a chump.

[Mr. Scot]

Let's not forget their head coach.

Spagnuolo has a very solid defensive mind. A lot of Eagle fans thought he'd be the successor to Jim Johnson before he moved on to the Giants, and since his departure the Giants haven't been quite the same on defense. Some would argue that he deserves more credit for the Giants 2007 Super Bowl victory than Coughlin does.

Given how vanilla and predictable our offense can be, this matchup concerns me.

[rayzor]

Let's not forget their head coach.

Spagnuolo has a very solid defensive mind. A lot of Eagle fans thought he'd be the successor to Jim Johnson before he moved on to the Giants, and since his departure the Giants haven't been quite the same on defense. Some would argue that he deserves more credit for the Giants 2007 Super Bowl victory than Coughlin does.

Given how vanilla and predictable our offense can be, this matchup concerns me.

agreed. i liked this matchup a lot better before coming into this year. rams won't be any walk in the park.

[RamsInfiniti]

This game is very simple ...

You have an offensive line which is not performing well. You have given up 18 sacks, and average 3.5 YPC ...

If your offensive line performs well, this will be a toss up, as your defense is pretty good ...

If your offensive line performs on par with first 6 games, it could be a very, very long day for the Panthers ...

We blitz from all angles, and have 20 sacks on the season. 16 of these sacks are from the front four ...

No one on this board should expect the Panthers to beat us at home, where we play very well. It will take an excellent effort on your part ...

[rayzor]

we've had a huge problem with blitzes this year. spag's defense won't be any different.

[Happy Panther]

Rams -3 might be the lock of the year

[Pox 08]

This game is very simple ...

You have an offensive line which is not performing well. You have given up 18 sacks, and average 3.5 YPC ...

If your offensive line performs well, this will be a toss up, as your defense is pretty good ...

If your offensive line performs on par with first 6 games, it could be a very, very long day for the Panthers ...

We blitz from all angles, and have 20 sacks on the season. 16 of these sacks are from the front four ...

No one on this board should expect the Panthers to beat us at home, where we play very well. It will take an excellent effort on your part ...

I remember one time when the Panthers traveled west to meet up with a certain St. Louis team that had been undefeated at home for like 2 and a half seasons..

Everyone, including fans, the media, claimed there was no way for the Panthers to win against the mighty Rams that were undefeated at home.

[RamsInfiniti]

I remember one time when the Panthers traveled west to meet up with a certain St. Louis team that had been undefeated at home for like 2 and a half seasons..

Everyone, including fans, the media, claimed there was no way for the Panthers to win against the mighty Rams that were undefeated at home.

I did not say you cannot win, I said you shouldn't EXPECT to win. You have a major offensive line issue that needs to be corrected to make this a good game ...

This may not be a particularly good matchup for you, as our pass rush has been very effective, and you have a shaky quarterback that is going to be coming into a very noisy environment ...

FWIW, Issac Bruce's retirement party is pregame this weekend. We will feed off that energy ...

I expect this to be a grinder of a game ....

[Pox 08]

I did not say you cannot win, I said you shouldn't EXPECT to win. You have a major offensive line issue that needs to be corrected to make this a good game ...

This may not be a particularly good matchup for you, as our pass rush has been very effective, and you have a shaky quarterback that is going to be coming into a very noisy environment ...

FWIW, Issac Bruce's retirement party is pregame this weekend. We will feed off that energy ...

I expect this to be a grinder of a game ....

I expect it to be a close one.

I do like that our two rookie Wrs stepped up against the niners. It will give the Rams something else to think about when they're game planning this week. "Do we really want to blitz and risk Moore making the rookie Gettis look like Jerry Rice, like the niners did?"

Edit: How about Bradford vs our secondary? That has the makings of a potential ugly match-up for the rookie Bradford.

[RamsInfiniti]

I expect it to be a close one.

I do like that our two rookie Wrs stepped up against the niners. It will give the Rams something else to think about when they're game planning this week. "Do we really want to blitz and risk Moore making the rookie Gettis look like Jerry Rice, like the niners did?"

I noticed this. Our two corners, Bartell and Fletcher, are both big, physical man press corners. They don't rely on safety help over top.

Their ability to press man on the outside has allowed us to aggressively rush the passer. Neither DB has been beaten over top on man coverage for a big gain a single time this season ...

In the passing game, we've been beaten most effectively when our zone blitzes fail. Freeman had great success picking at the zone blitzes last week in the 2nd half. This was after a first half where he looked like a deer in the headlights ...

I do not expect Bradford to have a very productive game against your backfield. With that said, we do not throw the ball down field often. I am sure we'll play it safe and try to be run heavy. Bradford has one of the lowest YPA's and DPaC's in the league. Bradford was subpar against Tampa, but he is unbelievably poised for a rookie ....

By a grinder of a game, I meant low scoring and slow paced. Just wanted to clarify ...

[Paintballr]

I feel like if we can keep our turnovers down (Matt not trying so damn hard to make a play out of nothing) and actually connect on some deep passes like we did against the 49ers, we should hopefully win if not keep it close.

I feel if we can connect the way he did last week our running game will improve. No not because Otah is back in, or Garry Williams in the best thing since Chuck Norris. But because the other team's defense will finally have to respect the passing game and not stack 8-9 guys in the box. It will give Matt more time to throw/routes more time to develop, and those PA pass and draws will finally work. If our defense stays firm like they have been we shouldn't see a big issue. I see their offense being very similiar to the 49ers in the fact that they want to throw the ball but have a excellent running back in the back field they can use on 3rd and 5, which scares me at times.

[Fox007]

I think we will be able to run the ball better vs the Rams. We could/should stack the box vs Jackson and press those WR's.