20 Random Some Blame, No Shame, Tough Game Thoughts

[AvengerRam]

1. Tough way to end a great run.

2. Not much to analyze here. The loss comes down to two things...

3. First... defense took too long to get into the game. Allowing three consecutive TD drives to start the game usually means a blowout loss.

4. Second... Red Zone offense failures were the difference. Sean McVay needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with some new twists for those 10 yard field scenarios. Can't just rely on Cooper Kupp to get open every time.

5. Yes, there was a very bad non-call on the Rams' final drive. Because of the situation (the Rams should have had a first down inside the Lions' 30), it will be amplified. We shouldn't have needed that call, though, so I'll only put so much blame there.

6. So let's talk good things... my co-offensive players of the game are Matthew Staford and Puka Nacua.

7. Stafford was a warrior. He made amazing throws all night, took a pounding, and shed some blood. Lions fans know that they are fortunate he didn't get one more opportunity to win the game.

8. Nacua was amazing. How do you finish a record setting season? By breaking the rookie record for receiving yards in a playoff game, of course. He's going to be a fan favorite for a long time.

9. You do have to give the defensive coaching staff and players credit for turning things around in the second half. By stopping the first down runs and bringing an extra man to pressure Goff, they held the Lions to 3 points in the second half.

10. My defensive player of the game is Ernest Jones, who was able to consistently pressure Jared Goff. He finished with 9 tackles and 2 sacks.

11. The Rams MUST figure out how not to waste time outs. Its one thing when it happens in the first half to keep key drives going but, in the second half, time outs are precious. Had the Rams not wasted two of their second half allotment, the defense would have had one more opportunity to give Stafford the ball back.

12. I'm happy for the Lions, the city of Detroit, Jared Goff, and even Josh Reynolds. Certainly, I'll be pulling for them to keep the hated 49ers from reaching the Super Bowl.

13. I'm not going to go too deeply into the offseason plan in this list (I'll do an offseason to-do list soon), but I do think this game revealed some pretty obvious areas that need improvement.

14. First, we need another pass rusher. No big surprise there. Aaron Donald gets double and triple teamed on every play, in part, because the Rams don't have enough guys to make opposing teams pay for doing so. Kobie Turner and Byron Young will continue to improve, but if you add another top EDGE to that mix (and there are several who are likely to hit free agency), that could make a big difference.

15. Second, we need more talent at the cornerback position. That could prove to be our first round target.

16. I'm sure there's a lot of disappointment in the Rams' locker room but, when the smoke clears, I have to believe there is a lot of optimism for the future.

17. How you go out matters. The Cowboys were the No. 2 seed and they have to go into the offseason after getting blown out in their own house. The Dolphins will look back on a late season collapse and a non-competitive finish. The Browns thought they had a top defense, and got shredded by a rookie QB. We'll look back on a disappointing loss, but nobody humbled us in the last 9 games we played.

18. Stafford was not able to take his old team down, but he definitely reminded the Lions' faithful how good he is and how tough he is.

19. And so, another season ends. Most of us have been following the team for decades, and only two years ended without disappointment. Still, this one feels... hopeful. After a few days to get over this outcome, I'm going to be fired up for what could be a very enjoyable offseason.

20. We'll be back!!!

 

[Dodgersrf]

11. The Rams MUST figure out how not to waste time outs.

That time out at the beginning of the second half pissed me off more than the bad calls.
We can’t control the garbage refs during the game, but something like this is completely avoidable.

 

[Tano]

One question I do have about the defense is did Jones blitz in the first half at all

I saw him blitz in the second half and really fluster Goff.

But I don't think he blitzed at all in the first half and that was strange since Jones was having a damn good year blitzing QBs this year.

 

[Ramrocket]

I’m going to miss these reports in the off season!

 

[rdlkgliders]

Really curious to see where Kupp is physically next season. He was off, I just hope it was from recoverable injuries and the developing chemistry of Nacua & Stafford and not father time or other potential issues.

 

[Dodgersrf]

Really curious to see where Kupp is physically next season. He was off, I just hope it was from recoverable injuries and the developing chemistry of Nacua & Stafford and not father time or other potential issues.

Definitely.
It was a rough year for Kupp.
I really hope he comes back 100% next season and lights it up.
I hate to think that he just can’t play at a high level anymore.

 

[AvengerRam]

One question I do have about the defense is did Jones blitz in the first half at all

I saw him blitz in the second half and really fluster Goff.

But I don't think he blitzed at all in the first half and that was strange since Jones was having a damn good year blitzing QBs this year.

They definitely dialed up pressure with Jones more in the second half, but part of that was due to a much better job of stopping the run on first down, which set up more obvious passing situations.

 

[AvengerRam]

I’m going to miss these reports in the off season!

Thanks.

I'll do one or two more weekly lists, then switch to a more situational schedule during the offseason. I'm sure I'll have plenty of random things to say about free agency and the draft!

 

[Tano]

Question number 2 - why was Hoecht covering the TE in the red zone. I just don't understand why they let Hoecht cover past 5 yards so often. It's one thing to have him back off from an OLB position and completely different when he is not on the line of scrimmage and covering someone outside. Makes no sense.

I think the one Time Out that McVay should have used was when he saw Hoecht covering the TE before the play.

 

[AvengerRam]

Really curious to see where Kupp is physically next season. He was off, I just hope it was from recoverable injuries and the developing chemistry of Nacua & Stafford and not father time or other potential issues.

He definitely did not seem right for most of the year. I'm not writing him off, but I do think the Rams need to be thinking about the future at the position. Maybe find another mid-round gem!

 

[AvengerRam]

Question number 2 - why was Hoecht covering the TE in the red zone. I just don't understand why they let Hoecht cover past 5 yards so often. It's one thing to have him back off from an OLB position and completely different when he is not on the line of scrimmage and covering someone outside. Makes no sense.

I think the one Time Out that McVay should have used was when he saw Hoecht covering the TE before the play.

No argument there. He's fine as a rotational pass rusher, but I have to believe we'll have a better starting EDGE next year.

 

[Tano]

They definitely dialed up pressure with Jones more in the second half, but part of that was due to a much better job of stopping the run on first down, which set up more obvious passing situations.

Yeah - our run defense was pretty poor in the first half. Not sure what they did to fix it in the second half but it was a billion times better.

 

[OntarioRam]

With our red zone issues it is even more perplexing why we don't run more there. Simplify things, and allow yourself to get into manageable 4th down territory.

 

[Tano]

No argument there. He's fine as a rotational pass rusher, but I have to believe we'll have a better starting EDGE next year.

I hope so. I blame Hoecht a lot for our first half woes. And then to miss the tackle at the end of the game was just icing on the cake. However, I will say I do like Hoecht as a DL. He should never have been made an OLB. But as others have asked - who else could we have put in his position. That is a tough question.

 

[AvengerRam]

With our red zone issues it is even more perplexing why we don't run more there. Simplify things, and allow yourself to get into manageable 4th down territory.

We did try that (without success) and the final Red Zone possession. That has worked several times this year, though.

I wonder if maybe we need a better TE option (or, perhaps, Davis Allen, who was great in the Red Zone in college could be that guy).

 

[Dodgersrf]

Yeah - our run defense was pretty poor in the first half. Not sure what they did to fix it in the second half but it was a billion times better.

I think we need to give some credit to Det as well. Their oline is great.
It makes me jealous.
I have dreams of Stafford standing in a clean pocket and picking apart defenses at will, while Williams runs wild through majestic holes in a clean uniform.

 

[I like Rams]

Goff may have beat his old team, but he beat his old team in a rebuild year. Come back to me when he beats a Rams team that's predicted to win the super bowl, and not 3 games the entire season.

 

[Tano]

I think we need to give some credit to Det as well. Their oline is great.
It makes me jealous.
I have dreams of Stafford standing in a clean pocket and picking apart defenses at will, while Williams runs wild through majestic holes in a clean uniform.

Oh I said before the game that Detroit has a hell of a good OL.

You are completely correct on that.

 

[thirteen28]

Great post, maybe your best one of these all year - thanks for doing these.

#17 hits home right now. Yes, we lost, and lost to our former QB. But our own QB was tough as fucking nails and we took them down to the wire and only lost by the thinnest of margins.

Dallas, once again, underwhelmed with great expectations and was absolute dogshit and worse today despite having all the advantages going in. Epic choke job.

The Dolphins, as you said, had a late season collapse after looking like a powerhouse for most of the season. With Detroit's win tonight, I think the Dolphins might be the team with the longest drought in playoff wins.

The Browns D just got annihilated, and that's before Flacco threw two TD's to the wrong team.

We can hang our heads high for massively exceeding expectations, winning 10 games, getting to the playoffs, and taking a decent team down to the final minutes before they secured the win.

Joe Frazier may have lost the Thrilla in Manila, but he had nothing to be ashamed of. Neither do the Rams.

And we are about to have an offseason that is totally fucking LIT!! LET'S GO!!!!

 

[Ram_Rally]

We gotta start calling something better than "the deep shot" on third down. 3 times tonight alone where we just chucked the ball up on third down for it to fall to the turf.