Game Notes - Rams

[Mr. Scot]

haven't been in a position to take game notes for a while now, but wasn't with the girlfriend today. That left me free to take notes and do a writeup

Wish I’d have had a better game to cover, though. The most entertaining part of this one was the commercials for “House”

Anyway, here goes...

ANALYSIS:

I’m never one to put blame on a single player or unit, but this one was an offensive failure more than anything else. From the game plan to the playcalling to the execution, pretty much nothing worked. Defense and special teams were mostly passable (though the defense had its fair share of bad plays too) but the offense has to bear the biggest part of the blame today.

Matt Moore's performance? Pedestrian, but I can’t put it all on him. Yes, he made mistakes, but the receiving corps today was largely terrible. Even Steve Smith wasn’t that special. With that said, Moore deserves blame for his own mistakes, especially that final pick. The play where he missed a wide open Steve Smith was pretty bad too. On the good side, two things Moore does better than Clausen: He’s better at stepping up in the pocket and he’s way better at hanging in under pressure. Clausen needs work on both of those attributes. Still, today wasn’t a game you’d want on your resume’ overall. Bad throws, bad decisions, and a game-ending tantrum on the sideline (wonder what the story will be behind that). I know he can be better than this, but today he just wasn't.

On the other end of the passes? Gettis and LaFell were largely no shows. LaFell had a great play on the TD and he’s an able blocker, but he’s also had some mental errors worthy of Dwayne Jarrett. He and Moore don’t seem to be on the same page, for the most part. What concerns me most is sometimes he just doesn’t seem to put full effort into his routes. Gettis is better for effort, but his results weren’t any better today. Not sure if he was benched today or hurt (heard something about an ankle wrap at one point) but you can’t label last week as a “breakout” unless you show up this week. Consistency is key.

Not much from the tight ends either. Chris Spielman once told me that his old teammate (Davidson) liked using the tight ends. Can’t say it shows on the field. You can debate whether that’s execution or design. Barnidge didn’t show up other than to get a flag. We did have a couple of Jeff King sightings and another Dante Rosario hurdle. Those are always entertaining (Rosario jumps over as many people as Mario and Luigi). Still, overall not good.

And what to make of Steve Smith? It wasn’t his worst day as a pro, but it was far from his best. Debate all you want about what he is or isn’t. The semantics don’t mean much. Drops, fumbles and such hurt no matter what adjective suits you best. Smith is still someone that teams have to account for, and he has one of the best “turn and run” moves in the league, but he isn’t what he once was. I really don’t think anyone can argue that. Add in that Munnerlyn did better on returns. Listening to Smith post-game, he sounds defeated. Not used to hearing that from him, and it’s a concern.

So what about the playcalling? I talked earlier in the week about the chess match between Jeff Davidson and old Panthers LB Coach Ken Flajole. It wasn’t much of a match. I was telling a buddy of mine we hadn’t seen the old flea flicker for a while. Wish we still hadn’t. That play only works if you throw it quick and Moore hesitated (shouldda thrown it away). Two trick plays. Two disasters. Creativity is much cooler when it works. I had a feeling those were called because of Flajole, but it didn’t work. Clearly, Flajole had his number. Was it familiarity or just superior performance? You tell me.

To those who have been saying we don’t need Williams and Stewart can do just fine as a workhorse back alone, do you still want to defend that after today? Until we get the offensive line fixed, nobody’s going to get much yardage. Shwartz-Williams is better than Schwartz-Bernadeau, but still not special. Schwartz-Otah is likely still the best available now, but Schwartz isn’t likely a long-term answer at right guard. There just isn’t any push on the run. I’d keep this current combo as backups, but there’s a reason why they’re backups.

On the defensive side, I’ve nicknamed our D “The Near Miss Defense” a time or two. Today was one of those days when they earned that nickname. Anybody still want to brag on our secondary? Richard Marshall needs to be benched, but there’s nobody better behind him. Charles Godfrey isn’t special either. While I’m at it, Ron Milus is the one defensive coach I could see not retaining if a new coach decided to keep any holdovers.

The one thing I can give them credit for though? They’re as physical a bunch as anyone. Beason really smacked Jackson on a pass rush, Munnerlyn put a nice supplex on Gibson, and Chris Gamble put a nice shot on Hoomanawanui (feel bad for the writers and announcers that have to deal with that name week in and week out). When we talk about big hitters, Gamble’s name isn’t one that usually comes up, but it probably should. He has his fair share of nice hits each season.

Looking at the Rams, they’re going in the right direction under Spagnuolo. Good overall game from Bradford. It’s weird. There’s no indication whatsoever that he’s the least bit scared when he steps to the line but his eyes are so wide. At least he showed us that all rookies drop the occasional snap, even seven or eight games in. Gotta wonder of James Laurinaitis owns any spiked shoulder pads. He’s genuinely good, but it was disturbing watching him do that one defensive signal where it looked like he was flopping a pair of imaginary breasts (wonder what that one means).

QUICK HITS:

Hated that non-review on the Brayton strip. The NFL needs to look at that rule.

The Rams started the game with three straight outside passes. I was starting to wonder if their OC had a stutter.

There was a time when the Rams home dome was a loud, loud place. Clearly that time is not now.

I’m beginning to wonder if Marshall backs off after getting flagged. He looked better before his initial penalty.

Nice breakdancing by Goodson on that one catch.

Note to the special teams guys. When the ball is bouncing around inside the five, RUN TO IT AND DOWN IT! Don’t stand there and watch that ball bounce around until it goes in the end zone. Half-decent day overall though.

I wouldn’t necessarily say he’s scared, but man is Sam Bradford wide-eyed at the line of scrimmage.

Stewart might be having practice flashbacks after being tackled by Na’il Diggs.

Mike Karney shows the value of a sledgehammer fullback.

As a side note, I had a chance to talk to Steven Jackson once a few years ago. Nice guy.

SUMMARY:

Bottom line for me, this game was painful. I can say that I’m not one of the people who put us in the playoffs based on last week’s win over the 49ers. Still, I would have liked to have seen the team look better than it did. Marty Hurney said postgame that he doesn’t believe there’s one single cause that’s deflating the whole thing. I think he’s right there, but that doesn’t make any easier.

I’ll close with this. I know there are some who believe Jeff Davidson is a smart coach. He doesn’t look like it right now, but some will throw the blame for that on John Fox? Is that valid? Don’t know, but I do know that breaking that combo up might be for the best. If Davidson wants to have a good coaching career, the best thing for him might be not to follow Fox to his next job (should Fox so offer) but to head for a new town, preferably one where the head coach is a little more loose with his coordinators. That way, stand or fall, at least people will know how good he really is (or isn’t).

The other combo that needs to break up so that both sides can get a fresh start? That'd be John Fox and the Panthers.

[Davis83]

Nice write up - one thing I would add. We need to get away from formations that pack the line of scrimmage - you don't need double TE set and motion another player into that formation. With the FB in, you have just set yourself up for 8-9 in the box. learn to run from some spread formations.

I thought the D played well up until the time they had been on the field almost 40 minutes - no matter how good you are, they can't stop them forever.

[Mr. Scot]

Nice write up - one thing I would add. We need to get away from formations that pack the line of scrimmage - you don't need double TE set and motion another player into that formation. With the FB in, you have just set yourself up for 8-9 in the box. learn to run from some spread formations.

I thought the D played well up until the time they had been on the field almost 40 minutes - no matter how good you are, they can't stop them forever.

I think that's meant to be a reaction to the box stacking on the other side. Doesn't seem to help though. Might be wise to try the opposite approach and spread things out some.

[Baschski]

Wait, you didn't say that we should get rid of Steve Smith. I'm sorry but I can't take your opinions seriously.

[Mr. Scot]

Get rid of? No. Count on to be a number one receiver beyond this season ? Sadly, that's also a no

[Mr. Scot]

Remiss in one area: I should give some kudos to James Anderson for his performance today.

No, he still isn't better than a healthy Thomas Davis, but if you wanted to suggest he's better than Dan Connor you might have a worthy debate.

[pstall]

Mr Scot. Good write up but with all due respect. This teams performance today didn't warrant you spending the time you just did typing this up.

Beyond putrid today out there.

[weyco2000]

Nice job, however I disagree about Smitty. It seems when Moore (or any Panther QB) isn't getting him the ball, he starts his on the field antics that draw attention to himself. Then of course all this grandstanding leads to a playcall to please the playmaker, which is usually a forced pass into coverage and picked off. This is a young team that needs leadership, not a veteran player that continues to "show up" his entire team.

[Khyber53]

Good write up as always.

Let's look at the positives, though. We really need to dwell on them for a bit.

... Sorry, I've got nothing.

[Mother Grabber]

Is there really any point to analyzing the team, other than to say let's blow it up and start fresh next season? Fox is a stay the course kind of guy. Things that are broken, aren't going to get fixed, and we will most likely have a new coaching staff with a new way of doing things next year.

[grateflday]

Nice write up. I just am sooooo looking forward for the John Fox era to end. I have felt this way for a least 3 season's now. One of the most frustrating things for me this season is they have no idea what or who they are. Early in the season Goodson was playing alot, and since he has been pretty invisible (expect on kick offs). They had Rosario playing WR - then stopped. Its nothing but the same run, run, run, 2nd and long every series.

I dont think Smitty is the cause of the inept Offense because he needs attention. He just wants to win and the biggest problem is the QB. Moore throws it to him when he is double covered and not open but misses him when he is wide open. Smitty was the first to go to Gettis last week when he made that big TD play, and he laid a big block on the Lafell TD today. Smith is not a problem on this team.

[ladypanther]

Thanks Mr, Scot. Would not have read this from anyone but you.

[Mr. Scot]

Is there really any point to analyzing the team, other than to say let's blow it up and start fresh next season? Fox is a stay the course kind of guy. Things that are broken, aren't going to get fixed, and we will most likely have a new coaching staff with a new way of doing things next year.

It's what I do.

I don't really think it'll be blown up, even with a new coach in place. When I analyze the roster, I see probably about a dozen changes I'd make. That's fairly normal turnover for an offseason.

The coaching roster will likely have a pretty radical shift. I'm not so certain the player roster will.