Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay may have ruined the preseason, but his tactics saved the offensive line

[Riverumbbq]

Joey O explains there is a method to McBae’s madness as the starters stand on the sidelines.

By Joey The Jerk@LaRamsRamsRams Aug 26, 2019, 10:56am CDT

Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images

More and more, NFL teams are following in Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay’s steps.

Last week, several coaches sat their starters while teams like the Carolina Panthers paid a hefty price with injuries to star players such as QB Cam Newton. That led Riley McAtee (editor’s note: no relation to TST Managing Editor Joe McAtee aka 3k) to declare over at the Ringer that Sean McVay has ruined the preseason and it’s now time to cut it.

That’s high praise for those like me who find the preseason a big frustrating waste of time.

The obvious reason for sitting players in preseason games and in practice is to prevent them from getting hurt. Makes sense. Football is a violent game, and an injury can strike at any moment, so it makes sense to be safe, right? Just this weekend, the Rams lost EDGE Josh Carraway and OL Aaron Neary to injuries. However, McVay’s trend of sitting players isn’t just injury prevention — he’s giving his depth players valuable reps that wouldn’t happen in traditional scenarios.

Let’s take a look at last season with the Rams aging offensive line.

The Rams had two significant departures in the offseason: C John Sullivan and RT Rodger Saffold III, but there hasn’t been too much panic in the Ramily. Rookie linemen Joseph Noteboom and C Brian Allen were basically redshirt guys in 2018 not seeing the field much.

How do we know that Noteboom and Allen are ready for such a promotion? Practice.
In at least one of the three practices during each week last season, LT Andrew Whitworth and C John Sullivan sat out, allowing Allen and Noteboom to take their reps. What was great about this move last season was that it allowed two linemen, both in their 30s, to take a rest during the week, but also gave the opportunity for the young guys to get a feel for the offense. In nearly every case, Whitworth and Saffold weren’t hurt. They just didn’t want to push it.

That’s the revolutionary idea that McVay is bringing to the NFL — “Don’t push it.” It seems contrary to natural instincts of football coaches which is usually a strategy that’s more along the lines of pushing a player so hard that they break down. The problem with that case is that you never know when it will happen.

Instead, the Rams prepared for the transition on the offensive line. That’s most likely why the LA Rams are feeling confident about Noteboom and Allen fitting into the O-line this season. So much so, that they are being treated like veterans.

Now in 2019, newly-drafted offensive linemen like OL David Edwards and OL Bobby Evans are getting their reps in preseason games which will come in handy later in the season if any injuries happen but likely pay the real dividends in the future with further attrition on the line.

Is McVay playing things too safe? Will the starters be rusty in week 1?

Maybe.

But you know what? At least they’ll healthy and well-rested.

And the future will look brighter for it.

Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay may have ruined the preseason, but his tactics saved the offensive line

Joey O explains there is a method to McBae’s madness as the starters stand on the sidelines.

www.turfshowtimes.com

 

[OnceARam]

You get better at football by playing football. Vets and redshirt freshmen starters are apples and oranges.

 

[CGI_Ram]

Joey O explains there is a method to McBae’s madness as the starters stand on the sidelines.

By Joey The Jerk@LaRamsRamsRams Aug 26, 2019, 10:56am CDT

Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images

More and more, NFL teams are following in Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay’s steps.
Last week, several coaches sat their starters while teams like the Carolina Panthers paid a hefty price with injuries to star players such as QB Cam Newton. That led Riley McAtee (editor’s note: no relation to TST Managing Editor Joe McAtee aka 3k) to declare over at the Ringer that Sean McVay has ruined the preseason and it’s now time to cut it.

That’s high praise for those like me who find the preseason a big frustrating waste of time.
The obvious reason for sitting players in preseason games and in practice is to prevent them from getting hurt. Makes sense. Football is a violent game, and an injury can strike at any moment, so it makes sense to be safe, right? Just this weekend, the Rams lost EDGE Josh Carraway and OL Aaron Neary to injuries. However, McVay’s trend of sitting players isn’t just injury prevention — he’s giving his depth players valuable reps that wouldn’t happen in traditional scenarios.

Let’s take a look at last season with the Rams aging offensive line.
The Rams had two significant departures in the offseason: C John Sullivan and RT Rodger Saffold III, but there hasn’t been too much panic in the Ramily. Rookie linemen Joseph Noteboom and C Brian Allen were basically redshirt guys in 2018 not seeing the field much.
How do we know that Noteboom and Allen are ready for such a promotion? Practice.
In at least one of the three practices during each week last season, LT Andrew Whitworth and C John Sullivan sat out, allowing Allen and Noteboom to take their reps. What was great about this move last season was that it allowed two linemen, both in their 30s, to take a rest during the week, but also gave the opportunity for the young guys to get a feel for the offense. In nearly every case, Whitworth and Saffold weren’t hurt. They just didn’t want to push it.
That’s the revolutionary idea that McVay is bringing to the NFL — “Don’t push it.” It seems contrary to natural instincts of football coaches which is usually a strategy that’s more along the lines of pushing a player so hard that they break down. The problem with that case is that you never know when it will happen.
Instead, the Rams prepared for the transition on the offensive line. That’s most likely why the LA Rams are feeling confident about Noteboom and Allen fitting into the O-line this season. So much so, that they are being treated like veterans.
Now in 2019, newly-drafted offensive linemen like OL David Edwards and OL Bobby Evans are getting their reps in preseason games which will come in handy later in the season if any injuries happen but likely pay the real dividends in the future with further attrition on the line.
Is McVay playing things too safe? Will the starters be rusty in week 1?
Maybe.
But you know what? At least they’ll healthy and well-rested.
And the future will look brighter for it.

Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay may have ruined the preseason, but his tactics saved the offensive line

Joey O explains there is a method to McBae’s madness as the starters stand on the sidelines.

www.turfshowtimes.com

Every year McVay loses week 1, the question about readiness will come up.

But, I support the strategy. I do worry about a little rust, but at least we increase the odds of arriving to the season as healthy as possible. Feels like a worthy trade off.

 

[kurtfaulk]

Every year McVay loses week 1, the question about readiness will come up.

But, I support the strategy. I do worry about a little rust, but at least we increase the odds of arriving to the season as healthy as possible. Feels like a worthy trade off.

Mcvay hasn't lost week 1 yet. I'm not counting on it this year either.

.

 

[dang]

So Goff is 100% healthy for the opener while Newton may not even play because of an injury. Which situation would you rather have? Drop the

 

[I like Rams]

Oh look, another preseason hit piece.
Without preseason Obo would still be a question mark, same with our back up qbs. Hodge nor Thomas would be able to display their potential, Demby would still be talked about his potential rather than how he can perform on the field, etc, etc.

 

[Merlin]

With all the problems we have seen regarding how hard it is to develop certain positions due to the spread offenses in college, you would think certain positions greatly benefit from McVay's approach.

OL problems for example are significant from the difficulties projecting them in the draft to the underrated mental side where they're going to have to understand play calls, responsibilities, and then execute them in real time at a higher level of competition with defenses demonstrating crazy complexity. So I think McVay's approach shows how smart he is, where he preserves starters and then allows his staff to coach up the bottom half of the roster, watch them play, and reap the benefits.

IMO the Rams are on the cutting edge of player development, as well as player evaluation where everything is tied together. So the rest of the league would do right to start implementing some of the things they're doing here.

 

[HE WITH HORNS]

I think four preseason games is too many, but cutting it out entirely is not fair to the young players and new coaches.

If a new coach is bringing in a new system, they need a few preseason games sometimes. And young players might have their only chance to play in the NFL that way.

 

[oldnotdead]

Three weeks of scrimmages with a different team each week like the Rams did this year. You don't really need any preseason games. I caught an interview with Philip Rivers and he was asked about his not playing in the preseason. He said they had two scrimmages and he got more reps and practice in those two than he if he played in one or two games. He pointed out that he might get 10 or 15 snaps in a preseason game. But he got well over 100 snaps in each scrimmage. So he was validating what McVay has been saying.

Preseason is a complete ripoff by the NFL. Pay full price to see a bunch of backups play a meaningless game. They charge for watching scrimmages now when they never did before, so why the need for preseason games? Greed is the answer.

 

[Ram65]

The article fails to mention the scrimmages against other teams. As we know they are controlled and give the starters situations the coaches want to practice. These are important to getting the starters game ready without injury. They also expose players to different deferent defensive and offensive styles. I guess it's better to be safe than sorry. Seems to be working but, the Rams didn't look ready early last year against the Raiders. This year the Panthers are a greater challenge than the Raiders. Let's hope the Rams are ready from the start of the game.

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

Sean McVay is changing the preseason by sitting players, and he's fine with it

Frank Schwab
,
Yahoo Sports•August 27, 2019



Of all the ways Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay’s rapid ascent has affected the NFL, how teams approach the preseason seemed to be far down the list.

However, McVay’s approach to the preseason — which is basically to blow it off — seems to be catching on.

Over the last two years McVay and the Rams have sat practically every starter through the preseason, including stars like quarterback Jared Goff and running back Todd Gurley. That goes against the way teams have approached the preseason for decades.

But the Rams will be healthy going into September. Teams like the Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans and Detroit Lions, who all saw key players get injured this month, perhaps wish they had followed that path.

Sean McVay comfortable with preseason approach
For as long as anyone can remember, the preseason went like this for just about every team: The first game, the starters got a series or two. The second game, maybe a quarter or more. The third game would be the so-called dress rehearsal, with a half or more to the starters. Then teams would sit everyone in the fourth game.

For some teams this year, every preseason game looks like the fourth game. That is McVay’s influence, after the Rams sat everyone last preseason, came into the regular season healthy and went to a Super Bowl.

“We feel confident and comfortable with the approach we’re taking, and we understand that it might not be for everybody,” McVay said, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“You never want to see your main guys that you’re counting on get injured, especially in games where it’s really just tuneups for the regular season.”

Teams are starting to blow off preseason
Here was the Chicago Bears’ inactive list from the third preseason game, which traditionally has been for starters to get a half or more:


View: https://twitter.com/BearsPR/status/1165375770333798400/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1165375770333798400&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com%2Fauthor%2Ffrank-schwab%2F


Even old-school coach Vic Fangio of the Denver Broncos sat almost all of his starters in the third preseason game. Last week’s Rams-Broncos preseason game, before an announced crowd of 66,899, featured very few players who will have any significant role in Week 1:

(NFL.com gamebook screen shot)
More
Warren Sharp of SharpFootballAnalysis.com pointed out how many teams barely played their quarterbacks this month:


View: https://twitter.com/SharpFootball/status/1165812071088447489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1165812071088447489&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com%2Fauthor%2Ffrank-schwab%2F


That list should grow. One quarterback on that list, Cam Newton, suffered an ankle injury in his limited snaps. The Texans lost running back Lamar Miller to a torn ACL. The Lions had center Frank Ragnow and linebacker Jarrad Davis get carted off and while neither injury seems to be as serious as it looked, both will likely enter the season at less than 100 percent.

Some coaches value the preseason. Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid plays his starters a lot in August, and he has had a lot of success. But a movement seems to be afoot. Teams can get ready for the season through practices, or even joint practices with another team. The preseason is already a dubious sell to fans, and it’ll get a lot tougher if most of the league adopts the McVay model and never plays starters.

Teams are starting to see that the risk of getting key players injured isn’t worth the reward of possibly being sharper after a couple dozen preseason snaps. If that approach becomes widespread in the NFL, thank McVay for it.

Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab

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