Rams' offensive line still a major problem after Week 5

[Zaphod]

It makes me wonder how the decision was made to keep Fowler over Saffold.

Did McVay defer to Snead and Wade?

At some point he has to give Wade something to work with, and after that super bowl performance, I wasn't shocked the deference.

They started out well enough, but the defense really hasn't manifested as a strength this team could lean on as the offense struggled with a copycat league.

 

[Merlin]

Allen better at pass pro then Sullivan but not as good as a run blocker.

Noteboom about equal to Saffold in pass pro but no where near the run blocker.

Yeah there has been notable dropoff from Saff to Boom. Mostly you see it on the plays Boom pulls and has to block in space, but he is not very good at run blocking in general. I keep seeing him get ragdolled on that two point last Thursday in my mind. He's got a lot of room to improve in the run but yes he's a solid pass blocker. IMO the pass blocking is why he's gonna hold onto his job for now as he continues to improve.

Allen has a tendency to get pushed back by the stronger DL in pass pro but he's very good with his hands and tends to stay on his guy very well. That mauler thing I guess from the wrasslin background. And he's literally ten times better than Sully was at getting 2nd level and moving blocks, he whiffs sometimes but has had stretches where he's excellent at it.

I think Allen's better than Sully overall right now tbh. It's close in some ways but with him you don't have to sweat him getting trucked vs better DL. He has to get better on his line calls and in pass pro to my eye but he's very close to being a plus Center for us.

Boom needs to improve his hand usage in the run game. He just has the misfortune of replacing Saff which is a tough job, it is what it is but I think long term he is going to be a starting OL for us.

Whit seems to have his feet back under him, he just looks like he could have used some preseason snaps. Hav improved last game, and vs the better speed rushers they're just gonna have to help him a bit which is normal for a RT.

Still hoping to get a look at Edwards at RG. IMO they need to see if he or Evans can give us a boost in there for the latter half of the season not to mention Blythe's FA departure.

 

[MrRiceGuyRJ]

I've never missed our 2018 O Line so much. We made some sad assumptions with this O-line. Time to trade for help or really coach the F*** out of them

 

[Soul Surfer]

It makes me wonder how the decision was made to keep Fowler over Saffold.

They may have felt that Noteboom could replace Saffold better than they could find a outside pass-rusher to replace what they felt would be an improved Fowler.

Flower has looked pretty good.
And it may have been part of a youth movement.

Just throwing a couple things out there.

 

[Soul Surfer]

I concur with most of the discussion of the O line.

But unless we start winning there will be NO playoffs.

So they better gel soon!

You watched that 49er game, didn't you?

 

[max]

You watched that 49er game, didn't you?

Yup, I watched it.

Our OL is gonna get a huge test. Those guys got some big boys up front. Looks to me that the Niners built their team to wreck our offense.

We’re gonna find out if Snead knew what he was doing when he went cheap on our OL.

 

[jap]

this OL will improve, patience
train

It usually takes about half a season for an OL to gel when incorporating new starters. Look for a noticeable improvement around mid-season.

 

[dang]

It usually takes about half a season for an OL to gel when incorporating new starters. Look for a noticeable improvement around mid-season.

On offense the rams need to reduce the turnovers and do better in the red zone. Goff needs to do a better job at moving in the pocket and making quicker decisions. Using the TEs more will help with that. I actually like what they are doing with Gurley by not forcing themselves to depend on him and grinding him into the ground.

The real problem is on defense. So much pressure on the QB with too few sacks. NT was neglected this offseason and it shows. Perhaps Gaines steps up. I would love to pick up Ramsey and say bye bye to Peters but that is not likely to happen. So Phillips has to work with what he has and take a good look at some of the younger guys like they did with Reeder and will this week with Obo.

 

[bubbaramfan]

Rams OL rough ride so far but getting there

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Cowherd said, “You never see a bad Oline in the Super Bowl. “.

They better figure it out by seasons end.

 

[BonifayRam]

Here's how we compare to the rest of the league. We've got the cheapest interior OL. Is that important? You decide...

Plan is for LG Noteboom will move outside to LT to be replaced by a cheaper cost Jamil Demby @ LG.

RG Blythe is presently bound for Free Agency stands to be replaced by a cheaper cost Bobby Evans. Maybe Jeremiah Kolone could give Evans a fun for his money, but he is paid less than Evans.

 

[max]

Plan is for LG Noteboom will move outside to LT to be replaced by a cheaper cost Jamil Demby @ LG.

RG Blythe is presently bound for Free Agency stands to be replaced by a cheaper cost Bobby Evans. Maybe Jeremiah Kolone could give Evans a fun for his money, but he is paid less than Evans.

Demby sucks. Blythe is average at best. Evans is a huge question mark.

I would like to see them draft a stud OG for the first time in a very long time.

 

[bomebadeeda]

Here's how we compare to the rest of the league. We've got the cheapest interior OL. Is that important? You decide...

And in the grand scheme of things.....what does this have to do with the price of tea in China. the reason we let Safford walk and didn't pursue Sullivan, was we wanted to get younger (and cheaper....). Younger guys don't get paid as much. And the other guy is someone playing for Vet's minimum (or close to it....). It was done to be able to tie up loose ends on the roster for years to come. Goff, Gurley, Cooks have all been signed. And while our line needs to play better, the economics of the situation was understood before hand. Next year the question will be Havenstein, Talib, Peters. It's a part of the game everyone knows is there, but everyone thinks it should be an easy fix. It's not. Every silver lining has a touch of gray. The gray on this one is the guys who replaced the others aren't as good as of yet. And throwing out a graph, won't change things. I, personally, would have went w/ multiple colors.

 

[max]

And in the grand scheme of things.....what does this have to do with the price of tea in China. the reason we let Safford walk and didn't pursue Sullivan, was we wanted to get younger (and cheaper....). Younger guys don't get paid as much. And the other guy is someone playing for Vet's minimum (or close to it....). It was done to be able to tie up loose ends on the roster for years to come. Goff, Gurley, Cooks have all been signed. And while our line needs to play better, the economics of the situation was understood before hand. Next year the question will be Havenstein, Talib, Peters. It's a part of the game everyone knows is there, but everyone thinks it should be an easy fix. It's not. Every silver lining has a touch of gray. The gray on this one is the guys who replaced the others aren't as good as of yet. And throwing out a graph, won't change things. I, personally, would have went w/ multiple colors.

It's an indicator. You look at a chart like that and start asking questions. Clearly, the Rams aren't putting money in the interior OL. So what do they have? A closer looks reveals they have inexperienced, average talent, or out of position players.

The Rams knew this going in. They aren't surprised by their OLs poor performance, even if they hoped for better. This is part of their plan obviously. They are looking ahead. They go into the new digs next year, there wont be any "we may start slow because the OL is in transition" talk next year.

 

[BonifayRam]

Yeah there has been notable dropoff from Saff to Boom. Mostly you see it on the plays Boom pulls and has to block in space, but he is not very good at run blocking in general. I keep seeing him get ragdolled on that two point last Thursday in my mind. He's got a lot of room to improve in the run but yes he's a solid pass blocker. IMO the pass blocking is why he's gonna hold onto his job for now as he continues to improve.

Allen has a tendency to get pushed back by the stronger DL in pass pro but he's very good with his hands and tends to stay on his guy very well. That mauler thing I guess from the wrasslin background. And he's literally ten times better than Sully was at getting 2nd level and moving blocks, he whiffs sometimes but has had stretches where he's excellent at it.

I think Allen's better than Sully overall right now tbh. It's close in some ways but with him you don't have to sweat him getting trucked vs better DL. He has to get better on his line calls and in pass pro to my eye but he's very close to being a plus Center for us.

Boom needs to improve his hand usage in the run game. He just has the misfortune of replacing Saff which is a tough job, it is what it is but I think long term he is going to be a starting OL for us.

Whit seems to have his feet back under him, he just looks like he could have used some preseason snaps. Hav improved last game, and vs the better speed rushers they're just gonna have to help him a bit which is normal for a RT.

Still hoping to get a look at Edwards at RG. IMO they need to see if he or Evans can give us a boost in there for the latter half of the season not to mention Blythe's FA departure.

Another high quality post Merlin. Agree fully with 4 of your 5 paragraphs.

You & I continue to differ on our thoughts where OL'er David Edwards is best suited to get his first snaps at in this Ram OL. The over 6-6 1/2 ft 305 pound Edwards who ONLY put up 16 reps in his bench is far more suited for the outside posts & little lesser @ LG than playing on that strong side RG post.

Does not mean that I don't have positive opinions of David Edwards future involvement in the Rams OL. IMO Edwards is an excellent reserve rookie Swing OT who has a good future here. Those quick feet will prove invaluable next season. I would prefer Edwards over Demby @ LG.

I am still convinced the UDFA 6-5 320 lb Chandler Brewer will end up being the best prospect currently to help get this run game up & running @ RG. His extra large hands & powerful 34 reps on his pro day last March in the bench should give us a clue.

 

[ReekofRams]

And in the grand scheme of things.....what does this have to do with the price of tea in China. the reason we let Safford walk and didn't pursue Sullivan, was we wanted to get younger (and cheaper....). Younger guys don't get paid as much. And the other guy is someone playing for Vet's minimum (or close to it....). It was done to be able to tie up loose ends on the roster for years to come. Goff, Gurley, Cooks have all been signed. And while our line needs to play better, the economics of the situation was understood before hand. Next year the question will be Havenstein, Talib, Peters. It's a part of the game everyone knows is there, but everyone thinks it should be an easy fix. It's not. Every silver lining has a touch of gray. The gray on this one is the guys who replaced the others aren't as good as of yet. And throwing out a graph, won't change things. I, personally, would have went w/ multiple colors.

I agree with everything you said except for when you included Sullivan as one we replaced simply to to get younger and cheaper. This last year Sullivan was a shell of the center he use to be. He was slow, was being pushed around, and being manhandled. Father Time had caught up with him. While Brian Allen has done a nice job his first year as a starting center, and I think he will be an anchor on the Rams Oline for years to come.

 

[Merlin]

You & I continue to differ on our thoughts where OL'er David Edwards is best suited to get his first snaps at in this Ram OL. The over 6-6 1/2 ft 305 pound Edwards who ONLY put up 16 reps in his bench is far more suited for the outside posts & little lesser @ LG than playing on that strong side RG post.

Actually I think we are mostly in agreement on him. He looks like a RT to me down the road. But that said I think this guy was a home run pick. And I feel like if he were to get in there for Blythe he'd probably be better than him on the inside by the end of the season.

Blythe is a great guy and all but I just think he's too limited athletically.

 

[MachS]

Demby sucks. Blythe is average at best. Evans is a huge question mark.

Yea Demby and Evans are the options coming off the bench, that should show how horrible of a situation this line is in. SF has by far the most talent up front we will see all year, I have no clue how we hold up Sunday. I think our scheme will allow us to win a lot of games versus lesser defensive fronts, but SF will have 3 or 4 mismatches every rush situation. I hope McVay is drawing up a way to negate the pressure somehow.

 

[max]

Actually I think we are mostly in agreement on him. He looks like a RT to me down the road. But that said I think this guy was a home run pick. And I feel like if he were to get in there for Blythe he'd probably be better than him on the inside by the end of the season.

Blythe is a great guy and all but I just think he's too limited athletically.

I would like to see Havenstein off the books in a year or two. He's not good enough in pass pro. If Noteboom can play LT and Edwards can play RT that would be great. Then draft a stud OG high. And the OL could work. But we need a stud OG, thats the key to make the other stuff work like retaining Allen and Blythe.

 

[BonifayRam]

Actually I think we are mostly in agreement on him. He looks like a RT to me down the road. But that said I think this guy was a home run pick. And I feel like if he were to get in there for Blythe he'd probably be better than him on the inside by the end of the season.

Blythe is a great guy and all but I just think he's too limited athletically.

Blythe during the Seattle game was limping badly. I would imagine that Blythe will play much better this Sunday afternoon. I am rethinking my position on resigning UFA Blythe in 5 months. Of course, it depends on how interior OL's Coleman Shelton & Jeremiah Kolone improve as this season continues. Kromer might be able to get these two centers up to good reserve speed ...you never know. If not...well then having a young 28 yr old versatile veteran starting OL back on the roster would be an excellent ideal.

If Havenstein continues to trend downward in pass protection then David Edwards might see starting action @ RT much quicker than we think.