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Practice Report 11/20: Eliminating Explosive Plays
By Myles Simmons
View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-practicereport/Practice-Report-1120-Eliminating-Explosive-Plays/12312728-f013-4371-a1dd-1457a5ef738a
Last week, the Rams allowed touchdowns of 83 and 87 yards to the Bears. As you might expect, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was not pleased with those results.
“There was a little bit of a discussion going at halftime,” Williams said. “And there was a little bit of discussion going on the sideline.”
Those two plays, however, are particularly uncharacteristic of a defense that has been solid throughout the year. Prior to last week’s matchup, the Rams had allowed just one play of over 50 yards this season.
“You can't allow a simple curl-flat route to the side go 87 yards on you,” linebacker James Laurinaitis said this week. “You have to find a way to get them down and play another down -- limit those from being touchdowns.”
“The one thing that this group of guys has done a really, really good job on since I’ve been here is that there are going to be explosive plays in any game -- that’s what this game is about. But don’t let them score,” Williams said. “Give us a chance to play red-zone defense, give us a chance to play goal-line defense. And we didn’t get them down.”
“Plays that we wish we had back,” Williams added.
St. Louis still ranks No. 6 in total defense, No. 8 in scoring defense, and has the best red-zone defense in the league. But those two plays undeniably shifted the way the game went as a whole.
“You see that every game takes on an identity of its own,” Williams said. “And we had two plays in that ballgame that were very upsetting to all of us. And nobody makes a mistake on purpose, but we missed tackles on a two-yard pass, and we missed an assignment on a screen pass.”
“It still bothers everybody,” Laurinaitis said. “We have a bad taste in our mouths after that, but there's a lot we need to improve on this week.”
They’ll have to make those improvements against a Baltimore team that has done well with quarterback Joe Flacco. Though he’s often the subject of debate, the signal-caller still leads an offense ranked No. 10 overall, and No. 9 with its passing attack.
“He commands a presence out there,” Williams said. “They’ve taken some close losses, and he’s brought their team and kept their team in every game. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
Flacco has completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 2,492 yards, with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. And he’s doing it with a unit that has been ravaged by injuries.
The Ravens have 14 players listed on injured reserve, with key targets Steve Smith Sr., Dennis Pitta, and Breshad Perriman all out for the rest of the season. But young tight ends Crockett Gillmore and Maxx Williams have stepped up and made plays.
“You look at their offense and because they lost Steve and they've had some other injuries, that's the mainstay of their offense right now,” head coach Jeff Fisher said of the tight ends. “They just make big plays. It's impressive to watch.”
Flacco has also had to go through learning another offensive system, as Marc Trestman marks the quarterback’s third coordinator in three seasons. His previous two coordinators, Jim Caldwell and Gary Kubiak, both left to become the head coach in Detroit and Denver, respectively.
“Joe’s done a really good job of adapting to different coordinators,” Williams said. “He’s been going through that, and he still throws one of the prettiest deep balls in the league.”
“He’s done a very good job of adapting his skill set in a mixture of the last three coordinators who have been there,” Williams continued.
With last week’s contest the Ravens’ first after the club’s bye week, Laurinaitis said he noticed a minor shift in some of the offense’s tendencies on film.
“They came out after the bye week and threw it around,” Laurinaitis said. “Then the second half as the game was close they started running a little more.
“They run the ball similar to the way Washington does,” Laurinaitis added. “We've seen that. We tried to correct those things from that game going forward.”
But because Washington’s offense found success running the ball against the Rams, Laurinaitis said he thinks Baltimore may try to incorporate more of those elements this week.
“It's a copy and paste league,” Laurinaitis said. “I expect a lot of similar things with the two and three tight ends like they did against Jacksonville. I expect them to watch Washington and how they tried to attack us.”
It’s up to the Rams to limit those kinds of explosive plays this week.
INJURY REPORT
St. Louis has a shorter injury report this week.
Center Tim Barnes (concussion) was a full participant on Friday and is listed as probable.
Defensive end Chris Long (knee) was a full participant as well, and he’s listed as questionable. Robert Quinn (hip) was a limited participant in Friday’s session, and is also listed as questionable. Tight end Justice Cunningham was a new addition to the report on Friday, participating on a limited basis, and is listed as questionable.
Right tackle Rob Havenstein did not practice all week and is listed as doubtful.
DEFENDING A FAMILIAR FACE
Earlier this season, the Rams traded wide receiver Chris Givens to the Ravens for a future draft pick. With all the injuries Baltimore has had to overcome, Givens is contributing at a significant level. He’s caught 10 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown so far in Baltimore.
“He’s fit in well,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said this week. “He’s a hard-working guy and that’s credit to how he’s been brought up in the league here. Got some talent and we like him.”
Given the familiarity between the wideout and the Rams’ cornerbacks, there should be some good matchups on the outside this weekend.
“He knows my game too,” cornerback Trumaine Johnson said. “It's going to be fun. We have a tough matchup. Him and [Kamar] Aiken are over there, they're both over there with Steve Smith going out -- they stepped up big time.”
Wide receiver Tavon Austin is also looking forward to seeing Givens, as the two still keep in contact.
“We’ll definitely send a text here and there, good luck text, or I saw your play or something like that,” Austin said, adding he’s going to take Givens his forgotten socks. “Memories, just a little bit of memories, that’s all.”
But Austin said the receivers’ reunion will have to wait until the matchup is finished.
“It’s business -- he knows how I am,” Austin said with a laugh. “I won’t be talking to him before the game.”
By Myles Simmons
View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-practicereport/Practice-Report-1120-Eliminating-Explosive-Plays/12312728-f013-4371-a1dd-1457a5ef738a
Last week, the Rams allowed touchdowns of 83 and 87 yards to the Bears. As you might expect, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was not pleased with those results.
“There was a little bit of a discussion going at halftime,” Williams said. “And there was a little bit of discussion going on the sideline.”
Those two plays, however, are particularly uncharacteristic of a defense that has been solid throughout the year. Prior to last week’s matchup, the Rams had allowed just one play of over 50 yards this season.
“You can't allow a simple curl-flat route to the side go 87 yards on you,” linebacker James Laurinaitis said this week. “You have to find a way to get them down and play another down -- limit those from being touchdowns.”
“The one thing that this group of guys has done a really, really good job on since I’ve been here is that there are going to be explosive plays in any game -- that’s what this game is about. But don’t let them score,” Williams said. “Give us a chance to play red-zone defense, give us a chance to play goal-line defense. And we didn’t get them down.”
“Plays that we wish we had back,” Williams added.
St. Louis still ranks No. 6 in total defense, No. 8 in scoring defense, and has the best red-zone defense in the league. But those two plays undeniably shifted the way the game went as a whole.
“You see that every game takes on an identity of its own,” Williams said. “And we had two plays in that ballgame that were very upsetting to all of us. And nobody makes a mistake on purpose, but we missed tackles on a two-yard pass, and we missed an assignment on a screen pass.”
“It still bothers everybody,” Laurinaitis said. “We have a bad taste in our mouths after that, but there's a lot we need to improve on this week.”
They’ll have to make those improvements against a Baltimore team that has done well with quarterback Joe Flacco. Though he’s often the subject of debate, the signal-caller still leads an offense ranked No. 10 overall, and No. 9 with its passing attack.
“He commands a presence out there,” Williams said. “They’ve taken some close losses, and he’s brought their team and kept their team in every game. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
Flacco has completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 2,492 yards, with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. And he’s doing it with a unit that has been ravaged by injuries.
The Ravens have 14 players listed on injured reserve, with key targets Steve Smith Sr., Dennis Pitta, and Breshad Perriman all out for the rest of the season. But young tight ends Crockett Gillmore and Maxx Williams have stepped up and made plays.
“You look at their offense and because they lost Steve and they've had some other injuries, that's the mainstay of their offense right now,” head coach Jeff Fisher said of the tight ends. “They just make big plays. It's impressive to watch.”
Flacco has also had to go through learning another offensive system, as Marc Trestman marks the quarterback’s third coordinator in three seasons. His previous two coordinators, Jim Caldwell and Gary Kubiak, both left to become the head coach in Detroit and Denver, respectively.
“Joe’s done a really good job of adapting to different coordinators,” Williams said. “He’s been going through that, and he still throws one of the prettiest deep balls in the league.”
“He’s done a very good job of adapting his skill set in a mixture of the last three coordinators who have been there,” Williams continued.
With last week’s contest the Ravens’ first after the club’s bye week, Laurinaitis said he noticed a minor shift in some of the offense’s tendencies on film.
“They came out after the bye week and threw it around,” Laurinaitis said. “Then the second half as the game was close they started running a little more.
“They run the ball similar to the way Washington does,” Laurinaitis added. “We've seen that. We tried to correct those things from that game going forward.”
But because Washington’s offense found success running the ball against the Rams, Laurinaitis said he thinks Baltimore may try to incorporate more of those elements this week.
“It's a copy and paste league,” Laurinaitis said. “I expect a lot of similar things with the two and three tight ends like they did against Jacksonville. I expect them to watch Washington and how they tried to attack us.”
It’s up to the Rams to limit those kinds of explosive plays this week.
INJURY REPORT
St. Louis has a shorter injury report this week.
Center Tim Barnes (concussion) was a full participant on Friday and is listed as probable.
Defensive end Chris Long (knee) was a full participant as well, and he’s listed as questionable. Robert Quinn (hip) was a limited participant in Friday’s session, and is also listed as questionable. Tight end Justice Cunningham was a new addition to the report on Friday, participating on a limited basis, and is listed as questionable.
Right tackle Rob Havenstein did not practice all week and is listed as doubtful.
DEFENDING A FAMILIAR FACE
Earlier this season, the Rams traded wide receiver Chris Givens to the Ravens for a future draft pick. With all the injuries Baltimore has had to overcome, Givens is contributing at a significant level. He’s caught 10 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown so far in Baltimore.
“He’s fit in well,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said this week. “He’s a hard-working guy and that’s credit to how he’s been brought up in the league here. Got some talent and we like him.”
Given the familiarity between the wideout and the Rams’ cornerbacks, there should be some good matchups on the outside this weekend.
“He knows my game too,” cornerback Trumaine Johnson said. “It's going to be fun. We have a tough matchup. Him and [Kamar] Aiken are over there, they're both over there with Steve Smith going out -- they stepped up big time.”
Wide receiver Tavon Austin is also looking forward to seeing Givens, as the two still keep in contact.
“We’ll definitely send a text here and there, good luck text, or I saw your play or something like that,” Austin said, adding he’s going to take Givens his forgotten socks. “Memories, just a little bit of memories, that’s all.”
But Austin said the receivers’ reunion will have to wait until the matchup is finished.
“It’s business -- he knows how I am,” Austin said with a laugh. “I won’t be talking to him before the game.”
