Rams 2nd half scoring D has been exceptional...

[Rams43]

I knew it was good, but this is elite.

[www.teamrankings.com]

And if not for that bad call against Williams late in the Bills game that resulted in a ‘gift’ 7 points? Rams would be easily #1.

Color me impressed with Staley’s scoring D in general, and 2nd half of games in particular.

 

[jap]

Staley is doing well with adjustments, and he is still learning what he has in his players. Imagine how he will do when he KNOWS his players inside out?

 

[Rams43]

Staley is doing well with adjustments, and he is still learning what he has in his players. Imagine how he will do when he KNOWS his players inside out?

And imagine what this Staley D could be if they somehow strike gold at edge with Lewis, Obo, or bring in a decent vet via trade.

Upgrading Hill with Burgess or Long would be icing on the cake.

Hit Damn!

 

[jap]

And imagine what this Staley D could be if they somehow strike gold at edge with Lewis, Obo, or bring in a decent vet via trade.

Upgrading Hill with Burgess or Long would be icing on the cake.

Hit Damn!

... with A'Shawn Robinson returning to anchor the middle, allowing The Kraken! to attack from anywhere & everywhere!!!

 

[dang]

Washington is #6 so Rams need to finish drives in the first half or it may be another nail biter.

 

[Merlin]

Staley's strengths as I see them right now...

1. He will play whoever shows the best regardless of draft spot or previous season performance.
2. Schematically the way he calls a defense is mostly on point. Even that much whined about 3rd and forever that his defense gave up he had the defense in an ideal look to stop it. His ability to anticipate the opponent on down/distance is there which is a huge missing piece with DCs who fail.

His weaknesses...

1. He tends to require adjustments to shut down the opponent and the Rams' second half performance in part demonstrates this I think. This insinuates to me that he has room for improvement in his gameplanning.

Lastly it's important to consider sample size too. Using the Giants' game as an example, a better offense probably finishes drives and puts us in a very uncomfortable and maybe even losing position. So even though we think we know who we are defensively (in my case I think we're a defense with a stacked secondary and weak front seven) there isn't enough game tape to really show it.

But so far it looks to me like Staley is qualified to do this job. Which isn't a surprise given that McVay hired him, which means he was probably vetted at a chalkboard over a grueling 4 hour interview.

 

[FarNorth]

Staley's strengths as I see them right now...

1. He will play whoever shows the best regardless of draft spot or previous season performance.
2. Schematically the way he calls a defense is mostly on point. Even that much whined about 3rd and forever that his defense gave up he had the defense in an ideal look to stop it. His ability to anticipate the opponent on down/distance is there which is a huge missing piece with DCs who fail.

His weaknesses...

1. He tends to require adjustments to shut down the opponent and the Rams' second half performance in part demonstrates this I think. This insinuates to me that he has room for improvement in his gameplanning.

Lastly it's important to consider sample size too. Using the Giants' game as an example, a better offense probably finishes drives and puts us in a very uncomfortable and maybe even losing position. So even though we think we know who we are defensively (in my case I think we're a defense with a stacked secondary and weak front seven) there isn't enough game tape to really show it.

But so far it looks to me like Staley is qualified to do this job. Which isn't a surprise given that McVay hired him, which means he was probably vetted at a chalkboard over a grueling 4 hour interview.

No question in my mind that Staley has an exceptional, McVay-like, understanding of football and is fully qualified by his experience under Fangio (and before) to be our DC. We need to bear in mind however that we have a new DC, a new scheme, key players at new positions who haven't played much together until now (such as Johnson and Ramsay), and a lot of young players, with no preseason games.

I think the D is doing very well overall but there is plenty of room for improvement. No question the D can and should execute the schemes better with more experience. There will also no doubt be adjustments to the schemes, game plans and to playing time/positions for players. Moving forward I expect younger players to get more playing time, or possibly in part to replace current starters, and to prove themselves. Getting Lewis and Robinson back will be big.

In short, there's reason to be optimistic that the D is not yet playing at its highest potential. We'll see... but if so the Rams will be a threat to anyone in the playoffs, if they are not so already.

 

[dang]

D progressing and peaking by week 11/12. Robinson fully back?? Fox becoming a force. Lewis unleashed. DBs/Edge figured out. Someone taking control of the 2nd ILB position. Dream or Reality? TBD!!!

 

[Memento]

Defense has stepped up in the second halves in almost all of our games (and even the Bills didn't score more than ten points in their second half, if I'm not mistaken). When Robinson and Lewis come back, we're going to be stacked. I'm just hoping that we don't cut Polite when Lewis comes back; I think he could be a great pass rusher for us, and he's gotten pressures in limited snaps. I'm thinking that Eric Banks gets cut when Robinson comes back, but you never know.

 

[FarNorth]

Defense has stepped up in the second halves in almost all of our games (and even the Bills didn't score more than ten points in their second half, if I'm not mistaken). When Robinson and Lewis come back, we're going to be stacked. I'm just hoping that we don't cut Polite when Lewis comes back; I think he could be a great pass rusher for us, and he's gotten pressures in limited snaps. I'm thinking that Eric Banks gets cut when Robinson comes back, but you never know.

And not to forget Fuller. There's a great article in the Athletic about how and why the Rams drafted him. One of their area scouts had him rated as the top safety and pounded the table for him:

"In fact, Fuller was Hill’s top-rated safety in the entire draft class. And in advocating for Fuller, Hill even pushed himself out of his comfort zone in meetings.

“He was one of my favorite guys in the draft. I tried to convey that as emotionally as I could,” Hill said with a laugh. “There are some scouts who are excellent presenters. … I’m more analytical, more introverted. So it was about being more firm. Yes, this guy is the top safety. Yes, I would take him. Yes, I love this guy. Yes, I want him (to be a Ram).”

Data, film and luck: How the Rams hit the jackpot on Jordan Fuller

The Rams, high on Fuller's talent and character, were shocked to draft him as the 17th safety off the board.

theathletic.com

 

[TexasRam]

Staley's strengths as I see them right now...

1. He will play whoever shows the best regardless of draft spot or previous season performance.
2. Schematically the way he calls a defense is mostly on point. Even that much whined about 3rd and forever that his defense gave up he had the defense in an ideal look to stop it. His ability to anticipate the opponent on down/distance is there which is a huge missing piece with DCs who fail.

His weaknesses...

1. He tends to require adjustments to shut down the opponent and the Rams' second half performance in part demonstrates this I think. This insinuates to me that he has room for improvement in his gameplanning.

Lastly it's important to consider sample size too. Using the Giants' game as an example, a better offense probably finishes drives and puts us in a very uncomfortable and maybe even losing position. So even though we think we know who we are defensively (in my case I think we're a defense with a stacked secondary and weak front seven) there isn't enough game tape to really show it.

But so far it looks to me like Staley is qualified to do this job. Which isn't a surprise given that McVay hired him, which means he was probably vetted at a chalkboard over a grueling 4 hour interview.

Merlin,

Solid points I would also agree with. The first Strength you mention Is very important. We have seen Fuller get the Starting Job over Rapp, Ebukams snap
Decrease and generally snaps and starts represent preformance across the board.

The planning could use work as mentioned but I would say a lot of offenses tend to change things up Game to game for obvious strategic reasons, so early game defensive struggles can always be a challenge. I would rather see a coach that can adjust then the other way around. Good point though.

One good Quality he has that really comes across in the press conferences is his humility. The ability to critique himself and honestly see areas he can improve. I believe this is part of why McVay likes him as it’s a big part of McVays value system, and what makes McVay successful among other things. One of the post conferences Staley did mention that after the Buffalo game he is going to look at if it would have better to bring 5 or 6 guys if he faces that same situation in the future. Then in the Giants game we saw a few new blitz packages.

 

[Zodi]

I just hate the soft coverage. We have probably the most physical corner in the league in Ramsey and he's consistently 10 yards off the receiver.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

It is too difficult to judge Staley right now. His roster is not complete as he intended it. They had an incomplete camp, so some rookies are still adjusting, and he may prefer some roster changes in the offseason.

 

[Merlin]

And not to forget Fuller. There's a great article in the Athletic about how and why the Rams drafted him. One of their area scouts had him rated as the top safety and pounded the table for him:

"In fact, Fuller was Hill’s top-rated safety in the entire draft class. And in advocating for Fuller, Hill even pushed himself out of his comfort zone in meetings.

“He was one of my favorite guys in the draft. I tried to convey that as emotionally as I could,” Hill said with a laugh. “There are some scouts who are excellent presenters. … I’m more analytical, more introverted. So it was about being more firm. Yes, this guy is the top safety. Yes, I would take him. Yes, I love this guy. Yes, I want him (to be a Ram).”

Yeah and I like to see the scouts get their accolades in moments like this. He definitely deserves it for seeing past the workout numbers and he's going to be riding that one for a while in terms of the prestige and all.

One good Quality he has that really comes across in the press conferences is his humility. The ability to critique himself and honestly see areas he can improve. I believe this is part of why McVay likes him as it’s a big part of McVays value system, and what makes McVay successful among other things. One of the post conferences Staley did mention that after the Buffalo game he is going to look at if it would have better to bring 5 or 6 guys if he faces that same situation in the future. Then in the Giants game we saw a few new blitz packages.

Agreed, no doubt there. This guy is in his DC infancy really, so who he'll be down the road should be far more capable. I do like that he actually called games and managed the defensive gameplans in college though, so it was a shrewd hire by McVay I think and early returns are quite good.

I've always been in Wade's corner too btw and always will be. But I like Staley as well. Just like with Wade, he's going to have to hope they get him all the pieces he wants to have a dominant defense but until then just give us the best chance to win. Which I think he's done so far.

And it's entirely possible the defense goes on a bit of a run here now that they have Fuller back. There was a lot of dropoff when he went out, and also getting him back means they can hopefully get Rapp in there more in a box role that suits him and call it ILB.