Rams at Cowboys: 5 biggest matchups to watch in Week 15

[Riverumbbq]

Cameron DaSilva
6 hours ago

(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)


The Los Angeles Rams are back on the road for their next two games after beating the Seahawks at home in Week 14. First, they’ll head to Dallas where they’ll take on the 6-7 Cowboys, who have lost their way in recent weeks.

As poorly as the Cowboys are playing, though, they’re still a team with an abundance of talent – just like the Rams. There are star-studded matchups all over the field, and many of them will determine which team comes out on top Sunday afternoon.
The Rams have the edge in a lot of areas, but Dallas has a trio of offensive playmakers that rivals any in the league. Here are five key matchups to watch at AT&T Stadium in Week 15.


Rams OTs vs. Cowboys DEs

(Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

This is the matchup that could dictate how Los Angeles’ offense operates. There aren’t many pass-rush tandems in the league better than Robert Quinn and DeMarcus Lawrence. They both rank in the top six among all defenders in pass-rush win rate this season, which shows just how well each one is playing.
Andrew Whitworth will be the one blocking Quinn, while it’s not exactly clear who will be assigned to Lawrence. Rob Havenstein may return from injury, but the Rams won’t say whether he’ll replace Bobby Evans as the starter. Either way, Evans or Havenstein will have their hands full on the edge.

Aaron Donald vs. Xavier Su’a-Filo

(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

This is a lopsided matchup that favors the Rams, as is the case every week when Donald suits up. Su’a-Filo was the backup left guard until Connor Williams tore his ACL, and he’s not exactly an above-average blocker.

Donald probably won’t have more than a few rushes where he’s one-on-one with Su’a-Filo, considering how often he’s doubled by opponents. That means Tyron Smith will give his fellow lineman some help with Donald, as will Travis Frederick from his center position.

Interior pressure is the best way to throw a quarterback out of rhythm, so Donald winning his reps will be critical.

Jalen Ramsey vs. Amari Cooper

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

A marquee matchup between a top corner and wide receiver is always fun to watch. As good as Dallas is at wideout, this is the battle that will get most of the attention. Cooper has been significantly better at home than he has on the road with the Cowboys, averaging 7.8 catches and 126.3 yards per game with five touchdowns at AT&T Stadium this year.
Prescott should look his way often on Sunday afternoon, which means Ramsey could be busier than normal. Cooper has seen 100 passes come his way this year, an average of 7.7 per game. Expect Ramsey to be physical at the line and talkative after the whistle, trying to get Cooper off his game from the start.

Cooper Kupp vs. Jourdan Lewis

(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Lewis is a shifty cornerback who’s best when pressing at the line of scrimmage. The Rams do a lot of things to free up their receivers at the line, like stacking them and using motion, so this should get Kupp open against Lewis.

Since Kupp’s 220-yard performance against the Bengals, he only has one game with more than six targets and just 198 yards on 19 receptions in his last five starts. He hasn’t been as heavily involved since Robert Woods took over the bulk of the targets and Tyler Higbee’s recent emergence, but getting him going always helps the offense.

Cory Littleton vs. Ezekiel Elliott

Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Elliott is one of the best running backs in the game despite him having a down year in 2019. Littleton, on the flip side, is having his best season as a pro and will be tasked with tackling Elliott whenever the Cowboys offense is out there.

Littleton is one of the surest tacklers in football and rarely misses opportunities. Limiting Elliott’s yards after contact will be a big part of this game and the more often Littleton can get his hands on the Cowboys running back, the better the Rams will fare.

Rams at Cowboys: 5 biggest matchups to watch in Week 15

The Rams and Cowboys will square off on Sunday afternoon with several marquee matchups all over the field.

theramswire.usatoday.com

 

[Riverumbbq]

Los Angeles Rams at Dallas Cowboys: Opponent scouting report

It’s been a frustrating year for the underachieving Cowboys, and a coaching change appears to be looming.

By Skye Sverdlin@Skyeattolah
Dec 12, 2019, 10:59am CST

LOS ANGELES, CA - CIRCA 1962: Defensive Tackle Merlin Olsen #74 of the Los Angeles Rams goes after quarterback Don Meredith #17 of the Dallas Cowboys circa 1962 during an NFL football game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. Olsen played for the Rams from 1961-74. Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images

After opening the season 3-0, the Dallas Cowboys have gone into a tailspin, dropping 7 of their next 10 games. Yet, somehow these Cowboys lead the wretched NFC East despite their disappointing 6-7 record.

Statistically, the Cowboys actually appear to be a pretty good team. They lead the league in yards gained, are ninth in points scored, and have given up the ninth fewest yards in the league. Dak Prescott has mostly been good, and has certainly outplayed his classmates Jared Goff and Carson Wentz this season. Ezekiel Elliot is still great and should end up around 1,300 yards rushing. Receiver Amari Cooper will end up with over 80 catches. Yet they are not playing winning football, finishing games, or beating good teams.

The Cowboys are currently 0-6 against winning teams, and here come the 8-5 Los Angeles Rams, who have been playing pretty good football lately. Week to week, anything can happen in the NFL, but the body language in Dallas appears to be that of a team lost at sea. Barring a playoff victory, the writing seems to be on the wall regarding head coach Jason Garrett’s future in Dallas. The team’s accomplishments have fallen well short of their talent level this season.
A defense that features edges DeMarcus Lawerence and a revitalized Robert Quinn; linebackers Leighton Vander Esch, Jaylon Smith, and Sean Lee; and Pro Bowl cornerback Byron Jonesopposite Chidobe Awuzie should be better. But whether it’s been missed tackles or a lack of big plays, they’ve come up short when it has mattered way too often this season. Following their 3-0 start, the Cowboys have given up 100+ yards on the ground in all but one game. Their pass defense has slipped from a year ago, but are still ninth in passing yards allowed; however, opposing quarterbacks have a 93.6 rating against them so far. Their pass rush has been average. Had the Cowboys defense performed up to its capabilities this season, the team would likely have at least a couple more wins this season.

On offense, Zeke Elliot has been good, not dominant though. At times the Cowboys offense will often start off a game with a nice drive, but then falter due to drops or off target passes from Dak. Yet, the Cowboys must be respected- they have more air yards than any other team in the league and allow the lowest sack %. The Cowboys line remains a strength, and their offense remains capable, especially at home.

The Rams and Cowboys feel like teams trending in opposite directions at the moment, but we all know how quickly that can change. The Rams need to jump out to an early lead to suck the life out of the Jerruh Dome and its team. If they give the Cowboys a reason to feel good, things could snowball in the wrong direction and the Rams could end up with yet another regrettable loss. Based on the last few clashes between the Rams and Cowboys, expect the Rams to tap Todd Gurley early in this one.

Los Angeles Rams at Dallas Cowboys: Opponent scouting report

It’s been a frustrating year for the underachieving Cowboys, and a coaching change appears to be looming.

www.turfshowtimes.com

 

[Riverumbbq]

Sean McVay on facing Cowboys offense: 'They're a nightmare'

Cameron DaSilva

3 hours ago
Sean McVay has faced the Cowboys twice since he took over as head coach of the Rams, and each time, the game was close and competitive. The Rams beat Dallas 30-22 in the divisional round last year, and in 2017, they won 35-30 at AT&T Stadium.
He knows what a handful Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and Amari Cooper can be for a defense, and on Sunday, he’ll get another taste of that. There have been some changes on the Cowboys’ offense over the years, but for the most part, it’s the same unit Los Angeles faced in the playoffs.

Despite struggling in recent weeks, the Cowboys are ninth in scoring, first in yards, first in passing and 10th in rushing. In other words, it’s a well-balanced and effective attack.
To McVay, the Cowboys are a “nightmare” and a “real problem” to defend.
“I think Amari Cooper’s having a great year,” McVay said. “You look at just some of the improvements of their receivers as a whole – they’ve got three legitimate receivers. I think Dak’s making great decisions, they’ve always had a great O-line and Zeke’s résumé speaks for himself. Offensively, they’re a nightmare, they’re a real problem to deal with.”
One of the biggest changes the Cowboys made since last time these two teams played was replacing Scott Linehan with Kellen Moore as the team’s offensive coordinator. That’s led to more creativity and better play calling for the Cowboys, which has helped elevate the play of Prescott and Cooper, in particular.
Moore has left McVay impressed so far, and even a bit jealous of the success he’s had in his first season calling plays.
“It’s been impressive. You look at his first year doing it, the success that they’ve had. I wish I had that kind of success that early, it was impressive,” McVay said. “What he’s done, he’s done a good job putting the players in good spots. I think there’s a comfort level. They’ve got an identity, I think that’s as important as anything. The plays are one thing, but when you put your players in position to make plays, that’s the most important. It seems like he’s had a great feel for the game. I’ve been really impressed with him.”
The Rams are facing a lot of pressure this week, needing a win to keep pace in the NFC playoff hunt. A loss and a win by the Vikings over the Chargers would all but end any chance of the Rams making the postseason, facing a two-game deficit with only two to play.
McVay doesn’t see it as pressure, but he and the Rams know the urgency level has been taken up a notch.
“I think every single week, we don’t necessarily look at it as pressure, but it’s an opportunity for us,” McVay said. “It’s a great opportunity to go to Dallas, it’s going to be a great environment, great atmosphere. It’s a very good football team – they’ve got great coaches, great players. We know what the challenge is and we’ve got to have a great week of preparation to see if we can build on a little bit of the momentum that we do have. But, knowing that it’s one game at a time and what we did in the previous weeks won’t help us. We’ve got to be ready to show up when kickoff comes on Sunday.”
With their last three games being decided by eight points or fewer, this matchup is likely to come down to the wire, too.

Sean McVay on facing Cowboys offense: 'They're a nightmare'

Sean McVay knows how difficult it is to defend the Rams.

theramswire.usatoday.com

 

[Riverumbbq]

NFL.com’s QB index pushes Jared Goff into the top 20

LA Rams’ QB Jared Goff has been playing pretty well as of late and the experts at NFL.com have noticed.

By Joey The Jerk@LaRamsRamsRams
Dec 12, 2019, 1:05pm CST

Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images

If it wasn’t for the two interceptions last week, Los Angeles Rams QB Jared Goff had an excellent day against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14. Over the past two games, Goff has a QBR of 123.9 compared to 72.8 for the first 12 games.
What’s been positive for Goff as of late is his protection of the ball in regards to fumbles. Yes, he’s been throwing interceptions (which some of those are not entirely his fault), but his “smaller than desired” hands haven’t been an issue lately.
Here is what the guys at NFL.com said about Goff on the week 15 QB Index:

It’s an interesting argument that Goff is more effective when he’s not the primary driver, which is code for “system quarterback” nonsense. They make it seem like the run game is going on all-cylinders right now and Goff is only throwing the ball a dozen times or something — not the case. Yes, they ran the ball 35 times (two of those were Goff) and Goff threw the ball 31 times. In theWeek 13 game vs. the Arizona Cardinals, the Rams ran the ball 30 times and Goff had 43 passing attempts and they were very successful.
Do these stats make Goff complimentary? I say no.
Even if you argue that the Rams have a more balanced attack, they are still more of a throwing team than a smash-mouth rushing attack. And the offensive line has been playing better lately,so that needs to be taken into account as well.
If anything, RB Todd Gurley II is a system running back. There. I said it. Merry Christmas.
Just like every other week, I will end this with the caveat that Goff’s turnovers are keeping him out of the top ten of this very important QB index. By the way, QB Ryan Tannehill is ranked #8 on this list. A guy who could very likely be a talking head on the NFL Network in two seasons.

NFL.com’s QB index pushes Jared Goff into the top 20

LA Rams’ QB Jared Goff has been playing pretty well as of late and the experts at NFL.com have noticed.

www.turfshowtimes.com

 

[Merlin]

This is the matchup that could dictate how Los Angeles’ offense operates. There aren’t many pass-rush tandems in the league better than Robert Quinn and DeMarcus Lawrence. They both rank in the top six among all defenders in pass-rush win rate this season, which shows just how well each one is playing.
Andrew Whitworth will be the one blocking Quinn, while it’s not exactly clear who will be assigned to Lawrence. Rob Havenstein may return from injury, but the Rams won’t say whether he’ll replace Bobby Evans as the starter. Either way, Evans or Havenstein will have their hands full on the edge.

Whit has been playing at a high level since they inserted Corbett at LG. Last game vs Seattle he dominated (I'm almost halfway through that game review but the first half just damn). So while I think Quinn is going to give 100% in this game I expect Whit to handle him for the most part.

The matchup is Lawrence vs Evans.

And btw irt the game reviews of late Blythe is certainly being protected by the OG play on both sides of him. Gonna put up stills tomorrow to demonstrate it. This isn't a new thing either, so if Dallas is smart they'll attack the A gaps in the passing game and challenge Blythe in the run game. Problem for Dallas is their DTs are JAGs for the most part (Collins has his moments granted but still) so it's going to be hard for them to blow Blythe up.

I think the Rams are gonna run well vs that front.

 

[oldnotdead]

Blythe has always been the weak link on the o-line. Moving him to center gives him more protection except as pointed out if the DC exploits that weakness it could mean big problems. Blythe is poor if left one on one, he's also really poor picking up stunts. He has limited field vision and field awareness. If he's not immediately engaged he wanders off leaving his A gap assignment wide open often times never seeing the delayed blitz or stunt. If I was a DC that is where I would attack.

It was the same at RG why should it be different at center? I just hope he doesn't get Goff hurt. Sorry guys but this is all on Kromer who has blinders on when it comes to Blythe.

 

[Merlin]

Rams just don't have any good options at Center at this point. Shelton probably would be in there if he knew the calls.

It's interesting to watch the entire line firing off and one guy going backwards. But they're doing a great job of protecting him with those two physical OGs who btw are effin killing it.

 

[Rams43]

Blythe has always been the weak link on the o-line. Moving him to center gives him more protection except as pointed out if the DC exploits that weakness it could mean big problems. Blythe is poor if left one on one, he's also really poor picking up stunts. He has limited field vision and field awareness. If he's not immediately engaged he wanders off leaving his A gap assignment wide open often times never seeing the delayed blitz or stunt. If I was a DC that is where I would attack.

It was the same at RG why should it be different at center? I just hope he doesn't get Goff hurt. Sorry guys but this is all on Kromer who has blinders on when it comes to Blythe.

‘Did Blythe run over your dog, or something, oldnotdead? Lol.

 

[T-REX]

Aaron Donald vs. Xavier Su’a-Filo

(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

This is a lopsided matchup that favors the Rams, as is the case every week when Donald suits up. Su’a-Filo was the backup left guard until Connor Williams tore his ACL, and he’s not exactly an above-average blocker.

Donald probably won’t have more than a few rushes where he’s one-on-one with Su’a-Filo, considering how often he’s doubled by opponents. That means Tyron Smith will give his fellow lineman some help with Donald, as will Travis Frederick from his center position.

Interior pressure is the best way to throw a quarterback out of rhythm, so Donald winning his reps will be critical.

http://www.nfl.com/photoessays/0ap3000001086985/next-gen-stats-key-figures-shaping-the-dpoy-race

 

[LesBaker]

The first photo of EE with his hand on Littleton's face mask brings something up I have mentioned over the years.

Why is it OK for a player to do that when he has the ball, but if he doesn't have the ball it's a penalty.

And if a defender does that to any player on offense it's a penalty.

It just shouldn't be allowed period.

 

[Jacobarch]

Lets see how Blythe does at Center for the remainder of the year before we start saying he's the weak link at that position. I've watched game film and he seems to be holding his own. Teams aren't blitzing the A gap very often but when they have he's done an ok job. I honestly think he's better at Center than Guard as it takes less strength to play that position and a little more finesse. I will say he's better than Allen at Center.