Brandin Cooks' reliability on deep passes should help Jared Goff immensely

[CGI_Ram]

https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/04/14/nfl-los-angeles-rams-jared-goff-brandin-cooks-stats-pff/

Brandin Cooks' reliability on deep passes should help Jared Goff immensely

The Los Angeles Rams acquired Sammy Watkins last offseason in an attempt to add a true deep threat. Robert Woods has good speed, but he wasn’t viewed as a true downfield weapon like Watkins was.

Unfortunately, that experiment didn’t work in the Rams’ favor with Watkins leaving town after a mediocre 39-catch, 593-yard season, signing a $48 million contract with the Chiefs. Les Snead and the front office doubled-down at wide receiver this offseason by trading a first-round pick to the Patriots for Brandin Cooks, but how does he compare to Watkins as a deep threat.

The numbers suggest Cooks is the better option in that regard. Not only is he one of two receivers to have 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns in each of the past two seasons – Antonio Brown is the other – but he’s proved to be one of the best downfield targets in the NFL.

Via Pro Football Focus:
Since entering the league in 2014, Cooks has amassed 1,794 yards from passes that traveled at least 20 yards in the air, which is second only to Julio Jones in that span, and he’s generated a catch rate of 44.9 percent and a passer rating of 101.4 on such throws – which rank second and eighth among receivers with at least 75 deep targets in that span, respectively.

Jared Goff doesn’t have a big arm and isn’t going to take deep shots the way Matthew Stafford and Aaron Rodgers do, but he’s certainly capable of moving the ball downfield with deep passes. Although he struggled to connect with Watkins on such passes last season, he showed in college that he can be accurate on passes 20-plus yards downfield.

Last season, he was the sixth-most accurate quarterback on deep passes, according to PFF, so adding Cooks’ reliability in that area should only help Goff improve. And with Kupp and Woods working underneath, the Rams have solid targets at all three levels.

 

[ausmurp]

Super psyched about our pass O this yr. Hard to believe we may have actually got better on O.

It's funny though how ppl constantly find ways to bash Goff lol. Goff doesn't hach a big arm?! Where do ppl come up with this stuff? 6th best at deep balls last yr means he's better than 81% of the other 32 starting qbs. To me that translates to a highly ranked 'big arm' QB. His step forward this yr will be huge.

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

I wasn't a huge fan of Sammy during the season (I knew he was a big contributor mainly in requiring so much attention from dbs), but watching season highlights so far during the offseason has made me a big fan (unfortunately).... All of his TDs were so fluid, efficient, and graceful. He's one of my favorite players now. Weird.

Sorry to drift a tad off topic

 

[Ram65]

Since entering the league in 2014, Cooks has amassed 1,794 yards from passes that traveled at least 20 yards in the air, which is second only to Julio Jones in that span, and he’s generated a catch rate of 44.9 percent and a passer rating of 101.4 on such throws – which rank second and eighth among receivers with at least 75 deep targets in that span, respectively.

To give a better perspective it would have been nice to know how many WRs had the 75 deep targets. McVay likes his chunk plays and Cooks will give them to him.

Jared Goff doesn’t have a big arm and isn’t going to take deep shots the way Matthew Stafford and Aaron Rodgers do, but he’s certainly capable of moving the ball downfield with deep passes.

Why not just say how good Goff's arm strength is.

Here is what Belicheat and Patricia said in Goff's rookie year.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-belichick-heaps-praise-on-rams-qb-jared-goff
........"You just have to respect the talent and the skill that Goff has," Belichick said Wednesday. "You can certainly see that, particularly in this game against New Orleans. He's a very, very talented player with a great arm and the ability to make a lot of throws."

Belichick isn't alone in his high regard for Goff. Whereas the Rams offense was limited by Keenum's subpar arm strength in the first half of the season, defensive coordinator Matt Patricia suggests defenses will have more respect for Goff's ability to stretch the field.

"Big guy, tall quarterback, he's long. He has an extremely strong arm and a very accurate arm in a lot of the different throws that they ask him to make," Patricia explained. "He's a very good quarterback from the standpoint of arm strength, the ability to get the ball downfield."

That talent was on display in New Orleans last week, as Goff became the first Rams quarterback since Sam Bradford in 2010 to throw three touchdown passes in the first half of a game. Bouncing back from an overthrow to Kenny Britt on the previous play, Goff's most impressive moment was a backpedaling, 24-yard sideline strike to tight end Lance Kendricks. Three plays later, the two connected on a 15-yard touchdown, capping off a textbook two-minute drill for the rookie signal-caller.

Last season, he was the sixth-most accurate quarterback on deep passes, according to PFF, so adding Cooks’ reliability in that area should only help Goff improve. And with Kupp and Woods working underneath, the Rams have solid targets at all three levels.

All three can get open deep. Teams can't sit on Cooks for deep passes.

https://theramswire.usatoday.com/20...nts-jared-goff-sammy-watkins-touchdown-stats/

 

[1maGoh]

I wasn't a huge fan of Sammy during the season (I knew he was a big contributor mainly in requiring so much attention from dbs), but watching season highlights so far during the offseason has made me a big fan (unfortunately).... All of his TDs were so fluid, efficient, and graceful. He's one of my favorite players now. Weird.

That makes perfect sense. When you watch only the good things, you like him. When you watched all of his plays (during the season) he wasn't a favorite.

I think we'll be ok without him. Greater consistency will lead to the same or better performance, even if red zone performance is hampered a little.

 

[Soul Surfer]

Sammy Watkins recently tweeted that he is a "reptilian solar creature".

Sammy may have lost it which may account for the reason the Rams decided not to sign him.

 

[Soul Surfer]

It's funny about Watkins;

When somebody wants to dog him out, they point out his 39 catch 593 yard season.

If somebody wants to praise Watkins, they mention his 9 touchdowns, the fact that he drew special coverage and the fact that he didn't go through the Rams camp.

A healthy Watkins will answer a lot of questions this year.

 

[Flint]

Super psyched about our pass O this yr. Hard to believe we may have actually got better on O.

It's funny though how ppl constantly find ways to bash Goff lol. Goff doesn't hach a big arm?! Where do ppl come up with this stuff? 6th best at deep balls last yr means he's better than 81% of the other 32 starting qbs. To me that translates to a highly ranked 'big arm' QB. His step forward this yr will be huge.

I noticed that as well, and now you just hear it repeated. But it is out there on tape, Sammy and Goff missed on several opportunities so now Goff has trouble with the deep ball.
I thought that was supposed to be one of Goff’s strengths in college, throwing deep. I think he and Sammy couldn’t get it figured out but this year Goff isn’t learning a new offense with a new coach and they can build some kind of rapport.

 

[jap]

https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/04/14/nfl-los-angeles-rams-jared-goff-brandin-cooks-stats-pff/

Brandin Cooks' reliability on deep passes should help Jared Goff immensely

. . .

The numbers suggest Cooks is the better option in that regard. Not only is he one of two receivers to have 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns in each of the past two seasons – Antonio Brown is the other – but he’s proved to be one of the best downfield targets in the NFL.

. . .

This is not quite accurate. Actually, both Antonio and Brandin averaged at least 1000 yards and 7 TDs in each of the past three seasons---not just two. In particular, Brandin averaged roughly 1100 yards and 8 TDs over the past three seasons.

I wanna see Jared refine his downfield accuracy & touch with Brandin. We also need to see him improve significantly at throwing accurately (& ideally with touch too) while on the move. The better defenses are simply not going to allow QBs to stand tall in the pocket all game long---you have to be able to complete targets while locomoting across the field. Jared has been compared to ARod. Can he move around like ARod and place even more stress on opposing defenses?

 

[Psycho_X]

If Jared and Brandin have good timing with each other this is going to be a really fun team to watch. More so than last year even. Offseasons always suck... even when we sucked and knew it... but the excitement and anticipation of this upcoming season might kill me before September.

 

[Akrasian]

I noticed that as well, and now you just hear it repeated. But it is out there on tape, Sammy and Goff missed on several opportunities so now Goff has trouble with the deep ball.

Or Watkins never learned the playbook and generally didn't adjust on deep throws, unlike virtually all other deep threats.

But the media has it in their heads that Goff is deeply flawed - it can't be the guy who had to repeatedly have where he lined up corrected by other players, and who is on tape giving up on routes at times.

 

[Prime Time]

Sammy Watkins recently tweeted that he is a "reptilian solar creature".

Sammy may have lost it which may account for the reason the Rams decided not to sign him.

View: https://twitter.com/sammywatkins/status/985174403926327296

 

[nighttrain]

What ever he's taking

 

[Tailback]

Y'all do see the emoticons right? He's (Sammy) joking around.

 

[A.J. Hicks]

It's funny about Watkins;

When somebody wants to dog him out, they point out his 39 catch 593 yard season.

If somebody wants to praise Watkins, they mention his 9 touchdowns, the fact that he drew special coverage and the fact that he didn't go through the Rams camp.

A healthy Watkins will answer a lot of questions this year.

I think KC and LA both have very threatening offenses next year.

There is a lot of speed in KC, a lot of threats, I kind of wonder what Sammy's production will be. . . More catches and yards with less TD's? We will see.

 

[Legatron4]

I think KC and LA both have very threatening offenses next year.

There is a lot of speed in KC, a lot of threats, I kind of wonder what Sammy's production will be. . . More catches and yards with less TD's? We will see.

We will see what kind of progress Mahomes can make first. He reminds me of Paxton Lynch.

 

[gogoat1]

The longest NFL pass, "in the air" during the 2017 season was thrown by Jared Goff. So, because he is a bit thinner than say Wentz he has a weaker arm ??
No, he has a stronger arm than Wentz. MPH of the ball right off QBs hands tells all. Strong arm by NFL standards. One of the reasons the Rams drafted him over Wentz.

 

[FarNorth]

To give a better perspective it would have been nice to know how many WRs had the 75 deep targets. McVay likes his chunk plays and Cooks will give them to him.



Why not just say how good Goff's arm strength is.

Here is what Belicheat and Patricia said in Goff's rookie year.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-belichick-heaps-praise-on-rams-qb-jared-goff
........"You just have to respect the talent and the skill that Goff has," Belichick said Wednesday. "You can certainly see that, particularly in this game against New Orleans. He's a very, very talented player with a great arm and the ability to make a lot of throws."

Belichick isn't alone in his high regard for Goff. Whereas the Rams offense was limited by Keenum's subpar arm strength in the first half of the season, defensive coordinator Matt Patricia suggests defenses will have more respect for Goff's ability to stretch the field.

"Big guy, tall quarterback, he's long. He has an extremely strong arm and a very accurate arm in a lot of the different throws that they ask him to make," Patricia explained. "He's a very good quarterback from the standpoint of arm strength, the ability to get the ball downfield."

That talent was on display in New Orleans last week, as Goff became the first Rams quarterback since Sam Bradford in 2010 to throw three touchdown passes in the first half of a game. Bouncing back from an overthrow to Kenny Britt on the previous play, Goff's most impressive moment was a backpedaling, 24-yard sideline strike to tight end Lance Kendricks. Three plays later, the two connected on a 15-yard touchdown, capping off a textbook two-minute drill for the rookie signal-caller.




All three can get open deep. Teams can't sit on Cooks for deep passes.

https://theramswire.usatoday.com/20...nts-jared-goff-sammy-watkins-touchdown-stats/

Goff has shown he can throw 65 yards downfield through the air with perfect accuracy. Suspect he can throw farther but that ought to be sufficient. He can certainly throw deeper and stronger than Brady or Brees, Cooks previous qbs. Tell me again what a "big arm" is??

 

[CGI_Ram]

Goff’s got plenty of arm strength for the deep ball. We saw it many times last year.

 

[ReekofRams]

If Jared and Brandin have good timing with each other this is going to be a really fun team to watch. More so than last year even. Offseasons always suck... even when we sucked and knew it... but the excitement and anticipation of this upcoming season might kill me before September.

Today is a good day to die.:death: