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Shane Gray provides special Rams commentaries on 101sports.com. Follow him on Twitter @ShaneGmoSTLRams.
Contain Cam Newton
Considering the fact that the St. Louis Rams defense faces both Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers and Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks twice per year, they should be as naturally prepared for Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton as any defense in the league.
When battling the likes of Kaepernick, Wilson and Newton, teams must obviously prepare for quarterbacks who can not only capitalize via the air, but who can also kill you while running, too.
St. Louis head coach Jeff Fisher is well aware of the dual-threat that Newton delivers.
“Tremendous athlete, great arm strength and accuracy and mobility,” Fisher said. “He extends plays when he needs to with his legs, and then they call plays to use his legs.”
Through six weeks, Newton’s 89.4 passer rating is the best of his three-year career and he’s completing a career high 61 percent of his throws.
Last week against the Minnesota Vikings, Newton served up one of his best performances ever: 20 0f 26 passing (77 percent) for 242 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 143.4. He also chipped in 34 rushing yards.
If the Rams are to take down the Panthers, it starts with containing Newton. Defensive coordinator Tim Walton knows that won’t be easy.
“He is a very athletic quarterback, (and) has a strong arm,” Walton said. “Obviously, (Newton) can make plays with his feet in scrambles and in just designed quarterback runs. So, we have a big challenge ahead of us.”
Improve on Third Downs
On both offense and defense, St. Louis is struggling mightily on third down.
Offensively, the Rams rank ahead of only the Jacksonville Jaguars with just a 31 percent third down conversion rate.
Defensively, St. Louis checks in at a disappointing twenty-eighth in the league while getting stops just 42 percent of the time to this point in the year.
(Hope you enjoy the remaining six keys here):
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.101sports.com/2013/10/20/rams-panthers-shanes-seven-sunday-win/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.101sports.com/2013/10/20/ram ... unday-win/</a>
Contain Cam Newton
Considering the fact that the St. Louis Rams defense faces both Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers and Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks twice per year, they should be as naturally prepared for Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton as any defense in the league.
When battling the likes of Kaepernick, Wilson and Newton, teams must obviously prepare for quarterbacks who can not only capitalize via the air, but who can also kill you while running, too.
St. Louis head coach Jeff Fisher is well aware of the dual-threat that Newton delivers.
“Tremendous athlete, great arm strength and accuracy and mobility,” Fisher said. “He extends plays when he needs to with his legs, and then they call plays to use his legs.”
Through six weeks, Newton’s 89.4 passer rating is the best of his three-year career and he’s completing a career high 61 percent of his throws.
Last week against the Minnesota Vikings, Newton served up one of his best performances ever: 20 0f 26 passing (77 percent) for 242 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions and a rating of 143.4. He also chipped in 34 rushing yards.
If the Rams are to take down the Panthers, it starts with containing Newton. Defensive coordinator Tim Walton knows that won’t be easy.
“He is a very athletic quarterback, (and) has a strong arm,” Walton said. “Obviously, (Newton) can make plays with his feet in scrambles and in just designed quarterback runs. So, we have a big challenge ahead of us.”
Improve on Third Downs
On both offense and defense, St. Louis is struggling mightily on third down.
Offensively, the Rams rank ahead of only the Jacksonville Jaguars with just a 31 percent third down conversion rate.
Defensively, St. Louis checks in at a disappointing twenty-eighth in the league while getting stops just 42 percent of the time to this point in the year.
(Hope you enjoy the remaining six keys here):
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.101sports.com/2013/10/20/rams-panthers-shanes-seven-sunday-win/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.101sports.com/2013/10/20/ram ... unday-win/</a>
