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After 2 Preseason Games, Matt Longacre Continues to Shine vs the Chiefs. Number 96 is bolting up the depth chart and making a case that his 2015 rise to the active roster was anything but a fluke.
Longacre has been the most consistent Defensive Lineman in the Rams first 2 preseason games with his nonstop motor and the relentless quarterback pressures that he continues to add on his resume.
Unless he bottoms out the next two games, he's likely to crack Jeff Fisher's 2016 (53) man Roster. I know just about every one of us ROD members are in Longacre's corner and would be a bit stunned if he's not in the regular season D-Line rotation.
Bottom Line: This man is just a pure football player and the more of his type you have on your NFL Roster the better your team will be. I salute Mr. Longacre for another old-school, blue collar, smash mouth performance.
#96 DE MATT LONGACRE 6'3 261 lbs (Turns 25 on 09/21/2016)
2015 Rams.... Total Tackles... 11... Solo..... 7.. Int.. 0.. Sacks... 0
NWM.State.... Total Tackles.. 148.. Solo.. 64.. Int.. 0.. Sacks.. 26
Aug 15, 2016: PFF: That’s why when a second-year undrafted rookie from Northwest Missouri puts on a clinic in the first half against Dallas, some eyes start to open. In fact, DE Matt Longacre collected the highest pass-rushing grade and run-defense grade of any NFL edge defender in Week 1 of the preseason. In 36 snaps, he recorded two hits and three hurries.
IRVINE — The top-end talent of stars Aaron Donald and Robert Quinn isn't the only reason why the defensive line is the Los Angeles Rams' strongest positional group.
http://www.vcstar.com/sports/longac...79-a3cc-1123-e053-0100007f4798-390363771.html
Aug. 16, 2016: The depth the team has amassed at the position extends way down the depth chart. Just look at Saturday's 28-24 preseason win over the Dallas Cowboys at the Coliseum.
While third-string quarterback Sean Mannion has received deserved credit for directing the Rams' comeback win, the performance from a teammate on the other side of the ball also earned praise nationally.
Pro Football Focus senior analyst Mike Renner labeled the Rams' defensive line the biggest winner of the first week of the preseason, due to the play of second-year defensive end Matt Longacre.
"The rich get richer," Renner wrote. "The Rams already figure to have one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. … That's why when a second-year undrafted rookie from Northwest Missouri puts on a clinic in the first half against Dallas, some eyes start to open."
PFF gave Longacre, who had three quarterback hurries and two hits, "the best pass-rushing grade and run-defense grade of any NFL edge defender in Week 1 of the preseason."
Longacre called the Coliseum "a great environment" and was pleased with the fans and the comeback.
"It kind of stunk being down early, but we fought back," Longacre said. "Everything kind of started clicking and it started to roll."
Rams defensive line coach Mike Waufle said during OTAs that Longacre was part of a good young group at his position. "Longacre has a lot of upside," Waufle said.
Adjustments Longacre began to make on his pass-rushing technique in Oxnard are paying off during training camp at UC Irvine.
"Last year was very inconsistent," Longacre said. "This year, it's kind of coming together, starting in OTAs (by) kind of changing some things up. Just feeling more comfortable up there reading run and pass and when it is pass, being able to get a good rush off."
The 6-foot-3, 260-pound defensive end went undrafted a year ago out of Northwest Missouri State, but he found his way onto the Rams practice squad and played in the final five games of last season.
"I'm kind of approaching it the same way as I did last year," Longacre said. "I've got to produce every day and take it one day at a time,
"It was great having the experience last year, played in five games in the regular season. It was a nice steppingstone. This year, (I'm trying) to pick up last year where I left off."
He's currently listed as fourth string on the depth chart, behind Quinton Coples, who the Rams signed as a free agent from the Jets. Longacre said being a Rams defensive lineman means competing "with the best of the best" on a daily basis.
"It's awesome," Longacre said. "I couldn't really ask to be in a better room. We've got some really good players in that room. You can pick up things on stuff that they do and try to incorporate it in your game. The best in the league are in that that room and the little things can help."
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https://www.profootballfocus.com/pro-2016-cheat-sheet-los-angeles-rams/
Aug 21, 2016 Rams Cheat Sheet (PFF) by Nathan Jahnke
Breakout player watch
Matt Longacre, DE
Year after year, the Rams have fielded a deep defensive-line rotation, and this season could be their best yet. With Chris Long no longer on the roster, there is an opportunity for Matt Longacre to earn more playing time. As an undrafted rookie, Longacre was PFF’s third-highest-graded 4-3 DE last preseason, thanks in part to his five hits and five hurries.
On just 67 pass-rushing snaps in the regular season, he earned a 7.8 pass-rushing productivity mark—higher than Chris Long, Robert Quinn, and Eugene Sims. Longacre had an excellent start to the 2016 preseason with two hits and three hurries on 22 pass rushes against the Cowboys. The Rams’ pass rush was already scary enough with their starters, but being able to rotate a player like Longacre in makes the front-seven even more dangerous.
Projected lineups
Base defense (2015 season grades shown)
Base offense (2015 season grades shown)
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...-de-matt-longacre-finding-his-place-with-rams
Nov 25, 2015: Longacre's promotion to the active roster probably didn't qualify as a big deal in league circles. Faced with injuries to ends Robert Quinn and Chris Long, the Rams needed more depth at the position and Longacre was the best in-house option. He'd been a pleasant surprise in training camp and the offseason program, making a case to stick on the roster in the last round of cuts before falling victim to the numbers game at the position that was probably the Rams' greatest strength entering the season.
Finally, after a few weeks of what ifs and maybes with defensive line coach Mike Waufle, promoted Longacre on the Friday before the Nov. 8 game against Minnesota. Rams coach Jeff Fisher informed Longacre of the promotion before the team's walkthrough that day. Longacre played 24 snaps against the Vikings, posting four tackles. When Quinn returned the following week, Longacre was inactive but he was back on the gameday roster last week against Baltimore. In that game, Longacre played 25 snaps and had three tackles and two quarterback hits.
In the process, Longacre impressed Fisher. "Yeah, Matt's getting pressure on the quarterback and he's reading the run really well and he's playing the run really well," Fisher said. "He's making plays. So, he's hard to move and he's instinctive. Really, it's the same thing he did in the preseason. He's been very productive, so it's good that we were able to bring him up."
http://www.foxsports.com/midwest/st...imbing-a-steep-hill-with-st-louis-rams-062915
Jun 29, 2015: No Combine invite. Little contact from NFL teams. He knew the knocks against him: smaller school (he went to Northwest Missouri State, a Division II program that won a national championship in 2013), shorter-than-desirable arm length for his 6-foot-3 frame, a horrible showing in the 40-yard dash his junior day. When scouts came the following fall, they queried him about that number.
"What's up with this?" Longacre remembers them saying. "You caught me on a bad day," he told them. It was true.The day Longacre ran, the team had already done all their workouts that week. They'd maxed out. His body felt dead even before he lined up.
But here, at least, was a weakness he could do something about. That spring, at his Pro Day, he made up for the lackluster performance his junior year. According to ChiefsDigest.com, Longacre put up a 4.75 in the 40-yard dash, which, compared with the numbers put up by defensive linemen at the NFL Combine this year, tied for fifth best. He also finished the season as his conference's Defensive Player of the Year.
http://bearcatsports.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=1838
2014: NW Missiouri State MIAA Defensive Player of the Year. AFCA All-America. Daktronics Super Region 3 Defensive Player of the Year and First Team. Don Hansen All-Region First Team. All-MIAA First Team. MIAA Academic Honor Roll. Appeared in 11 games on the year, had 37 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 7.0 sacks, 17 quarterback hurries, four pass breakups and one forced fumble.
2013: Don Hansen co-Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-America (DE)… AP Little First Team All-America. Daktronics/CoSIDA First Team All-America. First Team All-MIAA.. Finished the season with 20.5 tackles for a loss of a total 120 yards, 19 quarterback hurries, 12 sacks, five forced fumbles and one fumble recovery
2012: Appeared and started all 13 games for the Bearcats in 2012 … named all-MIAA honorable mention … finished the year with 51 tackles, nine tackles for loss, seven sacks and seven quarterback hurries. Recorded a tackle in every game and had 11 multi-tackle performances.
Nov 6, 2015: Dani Interview with Matt Longacre
