One thing nobody is talking about...

[Merlin]

Is the impact of all this corona business on the players doing their workouts and much of their prep on their own. Across the NFL you have teams trying to best-utilize remote approach on all the things they usually do this time of year, and I would guess that there will be an enormous disparity in the end result thanks to a few different elements.

1. To what extent are your players self starters?

This one to me is a big deal. People in general mean well, but they're also inherently lazy. Guys who get paid tend to put their feet up, most are not Aaron Donald. How does the Rams' roster stack up against the other teams in this regard? I do think the jettisoning of Gurley and Cooks will affect this too btw, it reminds guys of the tenuous nature of a job in the NFL and also of what the Rams' standards are. On a scale of 1 to 10 where are the Rams among their peer teams? We will never really know this of course but I think they're in that top group of teams so I'd go with 8.

2. How smart and flexible is your Head Coach and staff?

This is another really important thing this season IMO. Teams with the old school type head coaches probably are at a disadvantage compared to McVay. But McVay has also added young coordinators on both sides of the ball. Looking at this realistically and even trying my best to be objective I'd say the Rams are at the top of the pile. There's no other way for me to look at it tbh. So I'd go with 9 here and say that if there are any teams in a better situation for this current environment at the head coach and staff positions it is a miniscule list.

3. How intelligent and motivated are your rookies and new additions?

Looking at each of the Rams' draft picks with an eye toward the above, only one of them is a concern (Lewis). That is not to say he's going to squander his time or that he's a bad guy, but I don't think he's a shining example of what you want in this type of environment. He strikes me as a massively talented type who has never really tapped into it to where he can get the consistency going and that's a bad mix with today's situation. The rest of the draft picks, however, look like top shelf options for this current climate.

The vets, meanwhile, are probably on the lesser side of the ledger in what you'd ideally want. Robinson is a big boy and those guys you're always going to be worried about what they'll weigh when they show up to camp. If you have a camp. Floyd is an underachiever who has yet to live up to his exalted draft status. So in the final total for this I think the vets weigh the final score down. I'd go with a 7 here for that reason, largely based on a draft that has a lot of good locker room types that seem to have good motors.

Totalling it all up and I'd say the Rams are without a doubt in the top 5-10 teams in terms of being on the plus side of the impact of this corona era.

 

[CGI_Ram]

All good points, merlin.

I’ll highlight this one, simply because.... how workout motivated are the guys? Couple that with limited access to weight equipment... bad combo.

I wonder how conditioning and injuries will be, particularly early?

To what extent are your players self starters?

 

[Frogbelly]

I think the Ram rookies are at a disadvantage. Quite a few of them will be asked to step right in. One of the most important issues is the speed of the game. Visual anything is not going to help with that. That requires real time contact. Facing Donald and Brockers daily would have been an advantage. Whenever the ban is lifted, they won't have as much time as usual to adapt.

 

[Loyal]

Welp...In the old days players came into camp to get into shape because they worked real jobs in the offseason. Time to loosen the rule books and allow 2 and 3 a day work outs, right Coach Vermeil?

"Water is for the weak" ~ Coach Boone

 

[den-the-coach]

I actually think this could benefit the players as long as they have the proper facilities to work out in. I know for myself, since you can't go to a restaurant or really anywhere else, working out has been easy. Running, lifting in the basement and every other machine I've had for years that at times collected dust,.

 

[Juice]

I think it can benefit the player that knows they should work out and stay in shape. There are always injuries in football, but I believe if training camps are altered too much, there is going to be a significant increase. Rookies are obviously not going to be in game shape, and some of the vets will report out of shape.

Let's just hope the Shield is smart and we do not put players and player's families behind the dollar.

 

[OldSchool]

Wait what were we talking about?

 

[Merlin]

I actually think this could benefit the players as long as they have the proper facilities to work out in. I know for myself, since you can't go to a restaurant or really anywhere else, working out has been easy. Running, lifting in the basement and every other machine I've had for years that at times collected dust,.

You superstar. My gym equipment is still dusty. However I have been doing some curls...

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

One thing that I really like about McVay and Snead drafting is that they prioritize football intelligence, leadership, and Love of the game. Those character traits should translate into self motivated players. I do worry about the conditioning of some of the big guys on both lines. Every year, around the league, we hear about guys coming into camp overweight and out of shape. It's a almost always the big boys.

 

[Psycho_X]

Have mentioned this several times. I’m looking forward to Aaron Donald destroying out of shape lineman more than he usually does. If there’s a year he can break the sack record I think this will be the best chance.

 

[Ram65]

The Rams new OC and DC should a big plus this offseason. From the stories I've read here they seem to be hitting it off with the players using video conferencing. Neither coach has to completely reinvent the wheel going over schemes. On offense the players aren't going to have to learn new terminology. The offensive is going to be more or less the same with some tweaks. On defense the Rams will still be using the 3-4 defense. It won't be the same defense yet will have similar concepts. It appears Staley will mix coverages and rushers to confuse the offense more than was used in the recent past. Prioritizing the run defense will be a big change with different gap responsibilities. The changes should keep the defensive players more engaged. These are young relatable new coordinators should be a big plus this offseason. Let's not forget McVay is a master motivator who studied the best ways to make the video conference meetings productive.


On offense the Rams WRs are workers. No worries there. The offensive line are in a big-time competition and all should be prepared. Same with the running backs. Goff is a pro and always seems to be trying to improve.

On defense, Aaron Donald is posting workouts that should motivate everyone. Brockers is a veteran and Robinson should be working for another contract and his new teammates. The young defensive lineman are fighting for reps. Lber is wide open competition except for Floyd who is only on a one year deal. They will all be working hard. The secondary has competition with a mix of players in contract years.

The Rams do a great job vetting rookies. They draft players that have demonstrated leadership and dedication. Lewis has a lot to prove with his injury history and should be working hard as he has the potential to be an early starter or major part-time player.

 

[dieterbrock]

Looking at each of the Rams' draft picks with an eye toward the above, only one of them is a concern (Lewis)

Why is Lewis the concern based on your criteria? Looks to me like a cat who wants to prove what he's got. Hampered by injuries, played like a beast in the big games he was involved in

 

[Merlin]

Why is Lewis the concern based on your criteria? Looks to me like a cat who wants to prove what he's got. Hampered by injuries, played like a beast in the big games he was involved in

Not enough beast on his film for my liking. Upside is there for certain. He shows it sometimes but not enough for me to think he's a self starter.

 

[PressureD41]

By Jourdan Rodrigue May 21, 2020

25

Ninety minutes, four days per week and over 100 different living rooms, dining rooms, patios, home offices and bedrooms across dozens of cities.
Those are the parameters of how Rams head coach Sean McVay has been conducting his team’s virtual offseason this spring, with football facilities closed across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. They’ve been working with phones and tablets, instructional videos, group conferences and text messages from himself and his staff into players’ homes as they shelter in place.
Normally, players would be holding meetings in a classroom-like setting within the Rams’ meeting rooms in Thousand Oaks. After a larger team meeting, players split up: offense and defense, and by position group. There are lunch breaks, scheduled workouts, meetings with doctors and break times in which players can bond and get to know each other better. For rookies, there are extra onsite instruction periods, “how to be a pro” meetings and even city exploration activities conducted by director of player engagement Jacques McClendon.
But with restrictions still in place, the Rams have had to stay creative, not only with their rookie onboarding but also in keeping more veteran players up to speed physically and mentally.
“I think the challenge is, ‘How can we do a great job as a staff of accelerating that learning process,” McVay said, “and being smart as we get ready for the first game?'”
For example, a huge focus for the staff is making sure players are set up for their own offseason workouts. These workouts are not mandatory, but they’re important. Players are operating under the possibility that training camps and preseason games will be truncated, a scenario that gives them less time to get into football shape.

Enter Justin Lovett, the Rams’ first-year director of strength and conditioning, who — even as he adjusts to his new role — has to design unique programming for every player in whatever situation they are in. Each player has received a specific plan that features whatever equipment they have at their disposal, and each player has an entire team of people within the organization assigned to him to communicate progress or needs in various ways.
“That’s the first thing … reaching out to the players to see what type of situation they’re in from a location standpoint and from an equipment standpoint,” Lovett told The Athletic this week. “Some of these guys are in a third-floor apartment with their fiancé (and) they’re not able to access a field. Versus some guys (who) are out bench-pressing trees. They have fields. They have space where they can gather more equipment. … It’s a wide spectrum.”

Sean McVay isn’t getting a chance to work with the Rams on the field, as he did last May. (Kirby Lee / USA Today)
Director of sports medicine and performance Reggie Scott, McVay and Lovett are also closely studying injury data from the 2011 season, which included a player lockout from mid-March to late July that prevented players from working with their respective teams in the offseason. Scott noticed a spike in Achilles and soft-tissue injuries among players at that time, a development which Lovett, then an assistant with the Broncos, corroborated. So as the strength and performance specialists designed offseason programming this year, they kept in mind not just strength-building but injury prevention, too.
“We’re paying attention to tendon health, and the load a tissue has to take to adapt to what is needed for full-speed, repeated, change-of-direction activities,” Lovett said. “Reggie Scott put together, with his staff, a tremendous amount of progressions that are dedicated solely to tendon health. Really, they’re infused with our programming — to take care of tendon health and tissue adaptation is really in the same vein as what we’re doing from a performance standpoint.”
It gets even more complicated with the rookies. Most enter their first NFL offseason in “combine” shape — meaning they have trained specifically for the single-rep testing drills at the NFL combine in February in hopes of putting up the best numbers possible. It’s Lovett’s job to add to their workload — he calls it “building strength as well as function” — to better prepare them for the massive toll a full NFL season takes on the body.
“It’s not a one rep, and they get off the field,” he said. “It’s about building a program with some of the elements they will see here, not only words on paper but also with video, different ways that we can engage and interact with players. … We wanted it to be interactive as they learn their playbooks …
“It’s taking basic elements of what we want and progressing them as we go, and not trying to rush in any situation. … It’s a lot of communication on an individual level.”
And, of course, it’s all virtual. Lovett and his staff have sent hundreds of demonstration videos to show players how to perform various exercises, and they are thrilled when they get back videos of a player working out so they can tweak technique and form if necessary. They also are leaning on technology to keep them informed about the workouts the players are doing — how much energy they are exerting, etc.
“One of our weapons (in-person coaching) was taken away, so how can we get that back and then some, using technology and being innovative, thinking outside the box?” Lovett said. “We have interactive features with our online applications where they can push their weights to us. They can push their technique videos. There are GPS components. … We can figure out if the player, for his workouts, hit his top speed or a certain percentage of his top speed (and) how many times he did it. We can find out where the field was where he did it. We can also find out, if he forgot to turn his GPS off, if he did laps in the parking lot around a Steak ‘n Shake to cool down!”
The staff is trying to meet players where they are, Lovett said, and working with what they have — whether it’s a Steak ‘n Shake cool down or something even quirkier.
“I haven’t seen the video, but I have heard of a player benching logs,” Lovett laughed. “The rumor was that it was (nose tackle) Greg Gaines. … He’s out in the woods doing something, bench-pressing or squatting logs.”

KHS

✔@KaraHenderson
· Mar 25, 2020

What do .⁦@NFL⁩ players do when they can’t go to the gym? If you’re .⁦@GregGaines99⁩ at your parents’ place in Idaho you cut down a tree and use it to squat!

Go .⁦@RamsNFL⁩ !!! (Action shot to follow)

KHS

✔@KaraHenderson

This is amazing .@GregGaines99 ...

21
1:27 PM - Mar 25, 2020
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Meanwhile, the daily virtual meetings must go on, and McVay has to get creative in his approach. How do you command a virtual room when you’re technically the only one in it? And when everybody else is on mute?
“He’s trying,” said receiver Robert Woods, playfully, via video conference earlier this month. “I feel like it’s so hard because he’s throwing jokes in the room by himself and no one is laughing in (the room he’s in). … It definitely has that (virtual “Saturday Night Live”) feel, very skit-like. … It’s like he writes it down and says, ‘All right. This is what I’m going to say tomorrow to the guys.'”
McVay has been pleased with players’ retention despite the circumstances, and he has had some help in keeping players engaged in meetings via a guest speaker series. Last week, Peyton Manning addressed the team, much to the delight of many players who posted on Twitter about the experience and Manning’s candidness.

Micah Kiser

✔@kiser_rollin
https://twitter.com/kiser_rollin/status/1261005190993330176

As an aspiring ball guy and young player, getting to hear a raw and unfiltered Peyton Manning talk ball was absolutely incredible.

182
11:47 AM - May 14, 2020
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Clippers head coach Doc Rivers also spoke to the team in late April. As with Manning, players had an opportunity to ask Rivers questions about his life and career.
“(Doc Rivers) was awesome,” McVay said. “I mean, I’m so impressed with his command, his presence. … You’re sitting there looking at all of the guys and how locked in they were for a full hour. I don’t think I could keep our guys’ attention for a full hour! It was a real credit to Doc. He did a great job, and I think there was a lot of wisdom that he imparted on our players.”
The players are finding new ways to keep connected, too. Many play video or phone games together. The defensive backs, for example, are all in a group text with each other.
“And just staying in contact with each other, checking up on each other, things like that,” cornerback Troy Hill said. “These phones are something else nowadays. Now that you can call somebody face-to-face, that’s the best part about it. … I can only imagine if we didn’t have them right now.”
And, as Woods said, players have been extremely engaged in discussions about “The Last Dance” documentary series aired over the last several weeks.
“Really, we just talk about the mindset, the team camaraderie and what we need from each other,” he said. “Just seeing that mindset, how to compete and making sure every single guy has that same mindset. We’ve been meeting with our leaders and trying to control the atmosphere of our room, of our offense, of our meetings.”
But that doesn’t mean it’s all serious, all the time.
Veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth keeps himself and teammates entertained in position meetings at times by changing his video-conference background to other players’ own rooms or photos of them from elementary school. He has a real crowd-pleaser in his arsenal — a throwback of quarterback Jared Goff in his formative years, posing with friend Christian Hackenberg at a quarterbacks camp. Goff is sporting a pair of thick-framed black glasses in the shot.
“Goff looks like the guy off of ‘(The) Sandlot,'” he laughed, quickly flashing the photo on his background screen during a video conference. “Is that ‘Squints’ or what?!”
With facilities still closed for the foreseeable future, McVay hopes the team and staff continue forward virtually with the perspective of managing what they are able to manage and making progress where they can — without getting bogged down in the “What if?”
“We’re moving forward with the anticipation and the optimism that we’re going to play a full season, and we’re going to kick off against the Cowboys (in Week 1),” McVay said. “That’s really the only thing I can do — it’s the cliche, ‘Control the controllables,’ but it’s true.”
(Photo of Sean McVay from video-conferencing interview)

 

[CGI_Ram]

Have mentioned this several times. I’m looking forward to Aaron Donald destroying out of shape lineman more than he usually does. If there’s a year he can break the sack record I think this will be the best chance.

Ooooh. Good point.

Now more than ever.... There is a chance to elevate your game by out working the other guy.

 

[Mackeyser]

I LOVE the mindfulness to go back to the strike shortened season and find the lessons learned and address them proactively.

I think some teams that are behind will have their season wrecked early due to the injury bug mauling them like Leo in The Revenant.

 

[Angry Ram]

Didn't this already happen in 2011 during the lockout year?

The good teams still ended up being good, and the bad teams were still...bad.