Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Five Rams to watch

[Riverumbbq]

Stars shine, but it’s the role players that are making this engine go.

By EddieP@iAmEddieP_ Sep 12, 2019, 10:40am CDT

Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports

A rusty season opener is somewhat expected from Sean McVay’s Los Angeles Rams. Save for Sebastian Joseph-Day (Micah Kiser too, but he’s injured and most likely done for the year), no projected starters stepped onto the field during the exhibition period.
Lets hope and pray they knocked the cobwebs off. A second outing of the same ilk will not, however, be as forgiving.
The LA Rams are at home this week to take on the New Orleans Saints who will without a doubt come out seeking revenge after last year’s NFC Championship game.

So lets not waste any more broadband/bandwidth. Onto the five Rams to watch for Week 2:
S Taylor Rapp
Rapp’s first game as a pro was outstanding. We kinda knew this kid would be good, but we did not know he would be THIS GOOD!
Rapp is key in the sub-packages, filling the Nickel/Dime LB role superbly. Against the Saints — and with weapons like TE Jared Cook and RB Alvin Kamara — Rapp will have to be sound.
Theoretically, Taylor is the right man for the job. He can lay the boom and he can cover TEs. Lets hope it goes our way.

RB Malcolm Brown
Big Malc did his thang in the first game of 2019. He was crucial in the redzone — tacking on two scores. All in all, Brown tallied 53 yards on 11 carries — a 4.8 per carry clip.
If this first game is any indication of the Todd Gurley maintenance plan, then Malcolm will get his fair share of opportunities to EAT. His meals will continue into the home opener.

S Marqui Christian
When S Eric Weddle went down after sustaining that nasty gash on his head (and subsequent inclusion in the concussion protocol), “Q” stepped in and performed adequately.

If Weddle cannot go this week, Christian will be the one to fill in again. And it is a huge assignment, given New Orleans’ potent offensive assault.

EDGE Dante Fowler, Jr.
The storyline has always gone something like this: line up any scrub next to Aaron Donald and they will reap the rewards of all the attention AD demands. Well, reality does not work that way. We have seen it countless times.
In Dante’s case, and to his credit, he reaped the rewards of playing on Donald’s side last Sunday. Fowler first sack (two total) came on a stunt he pulled off with Aaron Donald. Donald ate up both defenders and Dante made his way to the QB unscathed — a thing of beauty, actually.
Fowler should continue racking up sacks on opportunities like this. It will prove he is worth his money ($12M, per Spotrac), and it will line him up for an even richer payday after the season.

CB Marcus Peters/Aqib Talib
The secondary played lights out in Week 1. This week brings forth an entirely whole different breed of monster. WR Michael Thomas is easily the one of the best pass catchers in the game. Playa can do it all. This is where Peters/Talib enter the scene. Whenever one is match up with Thomas, they will have to attempt to limit his windows/limit the damage Michael can cause.

Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Five Rams to watch

Stars shine, but it’s the role players that are making this engine go.

www.turfshowtimes.com

 

[Merlin]

CB Marcus Peters/Aqib Talib
The secondary played lights out in Week 1. This week brings forth an entirely whole different breed of monster. WR Michael Thomas is easily the one of the best pass catchers in the game. Playa can do it all. This is where Peters/Talib enter the scene. Whenever one is match up with Thomas, they will have to attempt to limit his windows/limit the damage Michael can cause.

Cam missed a ton of opportunities. I'd say the secondary was good for a game one but they need to be a lot better vs the Saints. They need to play with a bit more anticipation on the underneath stuff or they'll never get off the field.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Five Saints to watch

The boys from the Bayou are coming to town, and they are still very mad about last year’s NFC Championship. Assuming that lawyers are finally out of the picture, let’s take a look at the key players for the Saints.


By Joey The Jerk@LaRamsRamsRams Sep 12, 2019, 10:40am CDT

Photo by Stephen Lew/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

It’s barely worth noting that the Los Angeles Rams have a history with the New Orleans Saints. The Saints had a dramatic win over the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, and the three biggest stars from the Saints (QB Drew Brees, WR Michael Thomas and RB Alvin Kamara) had solid starts to the season.
Suffice to say, the Rams and the Saints will definitely be a Week 2 curiosity.
So if we’re talking about watching a player form the opposing team, Brees is unquestionable a no-brainer. Besides being an elite quarterback, Brees has to be holding a grudge against the Rams for the way the NFC Championship ended. If he comes out like a man possessed and throws for 500 yards, you don’t need a warning. Personally, I’m hopeful that the LA heat will weaken his old brittle bones, and he’ll fling several ducks into the air that NFL superstar LB Cory Littleton (with his classic cleats) will intercept for touchdowns.
So, who else besides their big offensive 3 should Rams fan know about?

C Erik McCoy

Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The rookie from Texas A&M was the first-round pick for the New Orleans Saints this year and played pretty well in his first NFL game. He’s obviously still green and prone to mistakes, so it’ll be interesting to see how DT Sebastian Joseph-Day matches up with him.

DE Marcus Davenport

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
After the Saints gave up a haul to trade up to draft him in the first-round of the 2018 NFL Draft, Davenport is poised to have a breakout season having posted pedestrian numbers as a rookie. He had two tackles on Monday night, but he has the potential to play like a beast on the same D-line as DE Cameron Jordan — that could be a problem. Let’s see how how the Rams’ O-line address the talents of Davenport.

WR Ted Ginn Jr.

Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Think Ginn Jr. is no longer relevant in the NFL? How about catching all seven of his targets for 101 yards? With all of the attention that CB Marcus Peters and CB Aqib Talib are going to be giving to WR Michael Thomas, look out for Ginn Jr. He still has the goods.

TE Jared Cook

Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images
If this game is about revenge, than no look further than former the former Rams tight end. Cook torched the Rams’ defense last season when he was with the Oakland Raiders, and now he’s poised to do it again. He caught 2 passes for 37 yards last week, so he’s still a viable option. But again, if he plays lights out, it’s because it’s personal, not because he’s a significant member of the Saints’ offense.

CB Eli Apple

Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images
The Saints have a lot of great players on defense, which is a recent identity for the team. A couple of years ago, you could expect the Saints to score a bunch points, but still have to sweat out the win because their defense consisted of a couple of plastic bags and a bag of sand. But no more! I haven’t even mentioned CB Marshon Lattimore, who needs needs to game planned for, no doubt. With that in mind, I think QB Jared Goff could take advantage of Apple in a big way by tossing some bombs at WR Brandin Cooks.

Now, is Apple an easy target? No. But if you’re going to pick a guy to throw at, I’ll pick him over Lattimore any day of the week and twice on gameday.

I’ll be honest with you: the Saints are for real. After going through their roster for this article, the Rams can do a lot for their confidence to grab a regular season win against these guys.

Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Five Saints to watch

The boys from the Bayou are coming to town, and they are still very mad about last year’s NFC Championship. Assuming that lawyers are finally out of the picture, let’s take a look at the key players for the Saints.

www.turfshowtimes.com

 

[bubbaramfan]

Rams WR's should clean up vs Apple.

 

[Mackeyser]

Lattimore isn't shut down the way that Darrelle Revis, Deion Sanders or Charles or Rob Woodson were.

He's damn good, don't get me wrong, but he's not on an island like those guys. He balled out as a rookie when some mediocre QBs tested him. His year last year was really pedestrian for CBs.

So, yeah, I'd go after Apple, first, but I don't think we'll avoid Lattimore the way that even Talib was avoided in his prime.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Saints at Rams: 6 key matchups to watch in Week 2

By: Cameron DaSilva | 4 hours ago

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports


The New Orleans Saints will march into the Coliseum on Sunday for a huge battle with the Los Angeles Rams. There’s no shortage of storylines surrounding this game, whether it’s the fallout of the missed pass interference penalty in the NFC championship or Marcus Peters once again facing Asshole Face’s team.

To preview the Week 2 contest, here are six key matchups to watch.
Marcus Peters vs. Michael Thomas
Thomas’ two games against the Rams last season came with very different results. In Week 9, he had 12 catches for a career-high 211 yards and two touchdowns. In the NFC championship game, he was held to four catches and 36 yards on only seven targets.
So what was the difference? It was partly thanks to Aqib Talib.

The first meeting was without Talib, which led to Peters following Thomas around the field for much of the game. Needless to say, that didn’t go well. Talib is healthy, but with the Rams’ cornerbacks playing specific sides, expect the Saints to do their best to match up Thomas on Peters. That’ll be a pivotal battle which could determine the outcome.

Wade Phillips vs. Alvin Kamara

(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

Christian McCaffrey had 209 yards and two touchdowns against the Rams in Week 1. Cory Littleton had a phenomenal game and was the highest-graded player in the NFL, but McCaffrey still went off. Against the Saints, Phillips will have to devise a game plan for stopping Kamara.

In the NFC championship game, Kamara caught 11 passes for 96 yards. The Rams put everyone from John Franklin-Myers to Mark Barron to John Johnson to Littleton on the shifty running back, having little success with any of those matchups.

If the Rams can’t find a way to contain Kamara, it’s going to be a very long game. He’s especially dangerous as a receiver.

Dante Fowler Jr. vs. Terron Armstead

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Fowler benefited from lining up next to Aaron Donald last week, with both of his sacks coming as a result of the Panthers paying too much attention to No. 99. Fowler’s matchup with Armstead is a tough one this weekend, just based on how good the Saints’ left tackle is.

Fowler still looked good in the season opener and led the NFL in pass-rush win rate, according to Next Gen Stats, looking more explosive and decisive than ever. He has to win his one-on-one opportunities when the Saints double and triple Donald, which will happen frequently.

If Fowler emerges as a double-digit sack artist like Donald predicts him to, it’ll go a long way toward helping the whole defense.

Cooper Kupp vs. P.J. Williams

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Williams will man the slot for the Saints again, but in this game, Kupp will be healthy and on the field – unlike the NFC championship. This is a matchup that favors the Rams and one they have to take advantage of. Marshon Lattimore is a great outside cornerback and Eli Apple is their No. 2, but Kupp should have some success against Williams.

Look for Jared Goff to target Kupp early and often, just as he did against the Panthers last week. He caught passes on four of the Rams’ first seven plays and looked every bit as explosive as he was before tearing his ACL.

Rob Havenstein vs. Cameron Jordan

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Jordan doesn’t often get recognized as an elite pass rusher, but he’s certainly among the best. He can play defensive end and kick inside in sub-packages, generating pressure from just about any spot. He’ll primarily rush against Havenstein on Sunday, who’s a premier right tackle for the Rams.

Goff is a different quarterback when facing pressure, so keeping him clean and protecting him well will go a long way toward the Rams winning this one. If given time, he can pick apart a defense.

Rams’ rushing attack vs. Saints’ linebackers

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Texans rushed for 180 yards against the Saints on Monday night, and that was with Carlos Hyde and Duke Johnson leading the charge. Deshaun Watson chipped in 40 yards of his own, but the Saints had no answer for either running back.

With Todd Gurley and Malcolm Brown handling the carries on Sunday, the Rams could be in for a huge game on the ground. Demario Davis and Alex Anzalone will need to play at a really high level to slow down Los Angeles’ rushing attack.

Saints at Rams: 6 key matchups to watch in Week 2

These six matchups could decide the winner of the Rams-Saints game.

theramswire.usatoday.com