Failed fourth-and-goal with Todd Gurley costs the Rams

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den-the-coach

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Failed fourth-and-goal with Todd Gurley costs the Rams

Alden Gonzalez

DETROIT -- Todd Gurley was supposed to cut left, but the Los Angeles Rams' star running back darted up the middle. It was fourth-and-goal from the Detroit Lions' 1-yard line, with the score tied and the first half down to its final seconds. Gurley was stuffed for a loss. The Rams' gamble had backfired, and it showed up big in a 31-28 defeat at Ford Field.

"They made a good play, we didn’t," Gurley said, plainly.

Gurley seemingly had a hole to his left, with Cory Harkey blocking his man while acting as a fullback and right guard Jamon Brown acting as a pulling guard to create a hole on the left side. But Gurley ran straight ahead, and the penetration came quickly.

"Sometimes it’s hard to get to the gap that you want to get to if there’s quick pressure," Rams left guard Rodger Saffold said. "At the end of the day, you have to give Todd space to make things happen, and we didn’t do it that play.”

That play -- and Case Keenum's game-ending interception -- was one of few blemishes on a day when the offense scored four touchdowns, amassed 23 first downs and gained 387 yards. Gurley himself started strong, gaining 64 total yards on the first two drives. But he picked up just 33 thereafter and finished with 58 yards on the ground, giving him only 346 through the first six games.

The Rams went 6-for-9 on third down, but are just 1-for-6 on fourth-down conversions this season.

Harkey felt the crowd noise made it difficult for the Rams to get a good jump off the ball in their latest attempt, which led to them getting beat badly at the line of scrimmage.

"It’s one we wish we had back, but that’s kind of the way it works," Harkey said.

"I'd do that again," said Rams coach Jeff Fisher, whose failed fake punt hurt his team last week. "Inside the 1-yard line, I mean, you need to knock that in."

[www.espn.com]
 

Mojo Ram

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14-14 tie at the half and receiving the 2nd half kickoff
or
17-14 lead at the half and receiving the 2nd half kickoff

An hour and a half and about a dozen possessions or so later the game ends 31-28
Yeah, that one critical decision clearly cost the Rams the game.
The game doesn't work that way.
 

OldSchool

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Didn't I see somewhere that Saffold said the play was supposed to go left but Gurley went right?
 

MountainRam

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That play alone didn't cost the game.

What was worrying is Gurley pulling a Trent Richardson on that play!

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FaulkSF

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No it didn't matter. The Lions would have went for it on fourth down instead of kicking a fg and would have gotten a first down. They would have marched in for a TD too if they needed it. Anyone that says differently is either kidding themselves or selling you something.

Our D was awful yesterday.
 

LACHAMP46

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Didn't cost us...lot of game left...but it started the swing in momentum....I have NO DOUBTS we convert there, and we win that game going away...Especially if we score on the 3rd quarter kickoff....

And I agree with the general consensus....Gurley is missing some lanes...for some reason....but I didn't like the pulling guard there either...just man up, drive block, and tell Todd to follow corey harkey in the hole...simple. See who's really the strongest...We were killing them on the ground early.

that fly sweep fake to Tavon couldn't hurt either....Didn't Boras play any Madden? I never ran straight up the gut in the first half...only late in the 3rd quarter or 4th quarter....
 

Alaskan Ram

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Another factor on that play was the spot of the football after the booth review.
Are they not allowed to spot the ball at the 1 inch line?
No way Britt was 1/2 yard out.
He was stopped at or on the line. I'll concede he might not have crossed the plane, but isn't 1 inch to go a better deal than 18 inches to go? Allows the dive play to work a little better.
 

OldSchool

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Another factor on that play was the spot of the football after the booth review.
Are they not allowed to spot the ball at the 1 inch line?
No way Britt was 1/2 yard out.
He was stopped at or on the line. I'll concede he might not have crossed the plane, but isn't 1 inch to go a better deal than 18 inches to go? Allows the dive play to work a little better.
I believe they spotted it there because that was the balls forward progress. Britt's feet were at the goal line but he was leaning back away from the goal line.
 

Shoman01

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These kinds of things happens to teams like the Rams. They are inconsistent from play to play and from game to game. That is why they have a losing record over the last 13 years. No one has been able to fix it. It doesn't look like it will be fixed anytime soon.