Rams Fans United - Los Angeles Rams Fan Discussion Forum

with only the mnf game remaining, stafford owns the highest qb rating of week 1 and led the rams to the 4th most offensive points scored - i think it's safe to say that team mcvay + stafford lived up to expectations, especially considering that there seemed to be a sense that the rams offense could have easily added to their total at any time during the game!

add to this, sans staley, the rams d allowed just 14 offensive points, only 4 defenses (den, ari, phi, nor) allowed less.

McVay wanted more quick strike capability. He got it last night. Stafford looked very sharp in a new offense.

I'll be honest, I have been away from football for a number of reasons but my intention was to give it a chance, set low expectations and after being a born and raised West Covina kid (fully invested in the Rams for 50 of my 54 years of life) I literally could not accept the heartbreak of losing in the playoffs. It might have even just been the heartbreak of the season ending with no more Ram football.

When I finally accepted that Stafford was going to be slinging footballs I knew there would be a chance to light up the numbers and my only real concern was his ability to end a great drive with an interception. It felt good to see Stafford lighting up the air and having big play success. Yesterday was nearly enough to make me forget the things I didn't like about the modern NFL. When the Bears sort of crawled back within a score the outcome was never in doubt to me, in previous year/s I would have seen the glass empty. I used to joke about this imaginary player named Brad Samford because Bradford was a wasted pick to me at that spot and I thought we could have worked the deal for Stafford in 2009. I am glad to see Stafford here today without a doubt.

They posted a graphic last night.....he was the first guy to throw two TDs of 50+ yards in his first game with a new team. The lack of run game early was a tad concerning though. They ran it well late, when Chicago should have been expecting the run.

Lotsa talk (on the airwaves) about "well, IF the INT in the red zone doesn't happen, it might have been a different game". Sure. But it was a helluva defensive play by Kenny Young and a great pick by David Long, who looked pretty good in the slot.

I'm thinking it was their approach to not prioritize stopping the run but that was a bit concerning too. Of course 14 points allowed is 2.8 better than their 2020 average.

The O line held up well and I only have one question........Where was Tutu? Kupp returning punts?

One stat that isn't getting much light on it from the game is that each team had only 1 punt each and the Bears had the ball for 35+ mins vs 24+ for Rams.

Yes, the Rams held the Bears to 14 points but they are not an offensive juggernaut. I would think that the Rams D's inability to stop drives and get the ball back is something on McVay's mind today.

maxxx power wrote:One stat that isn't getting much light on it from the game is that each team had only 1 punt each and the Bears had the ball for 35+ mins vs 24+ for Rams.

Yes, the Rams held the Bears to 14 points but they are not an offensive juggernaut. I would think that the Rams D's inability to stop drives and get the ball back is something on McVay's mind today.

Collinsworth mentioned several times how the Rams were daring the Bears to run. Which tells me they were giving them the underneath stuff. Bend but don't break. Which seems different from last year's defense. Question is, was it just something they wanted to do in this particular game? Or will that be their new identity?

I hope the D adapts to the opponent @snackdaddy. Staley seemed to do that. I also want to see the ability and willingness to adjust from week to week and in game.
That bend don't break style can be frustrating to watch and puts more pressure on the 4 D linemen to create pressure.. .

Hacksaw wrote:I hope the D adapts to the opponent @snackdaddy. Staley seemed to do that. I also want to see the ability and willingness to adjust from week to week and in game.
That bend don't break style can be frustrating to watch and puts more pressure on the 4 D linemen to create pressure.. .

I suppose we can't complain giving up only 14 points. And I hope it was just a game plan for this particular opponent. I would worry about how much time the defense spends out there. They could tire late in games. Not to mention less possessions for the offense.

McVay mentioned at the half how it was hard to get into a rhythm because their opportunities were limited in the first half. I guess we will have to wait and see if that is how they want to play or if it was just their game plan for last night.

snackdaddy wrote:I suppose we can't complain giving up only 14 points. And I hope it was just a game plan for this particular opponent. I would worry about how much time the defense spends out there. They could tire late in games. Not to mention less possessions for the offense.

McVay mentioned at the half how it was hard to get into a rhythm because their opportunities were limited in the first half. I guess we will have to wait and see if that is how they want to play or if it was just their game plan for last night.

Despite only giving up 14 points, the defense couldn't get off the field. Surrendering that much time of possession is a recipe for disaster.

I'm writing it off as it being Game 1, with a new DC. But it has to get better than that, defensively.

maxxx power wrote:One stat that isn't getting much light on it from the game is that each team had only 1 punt each and the Bears had the ball for 35+ mins vs 24+ for Rams.

Yes, the Rams held the Bears to 14 points but they are not an offensive juggernaut. I would think that the Rams D's inability to stop drives and get the ball back is something on McVay's mind today.

It was only one game and maybe the Bears are better on offense than we think (though that seems doubtful) but yeah, the defense was hard to watch a lot of the time. 3rd and 8, sure we'll give you 8 but not much more than that, they gave up so many third down conversions to wide open guys it was ridiculous. That bothered me more than the running.

But again, it was just one game and maybe they expect the pressure to be getting there in those situations better than it was yesterday...