How Bout Some Love For Henderson

[JonRam99]

I think Hendo is doing a great job but there are also holes opening up that I can see.

I bet if Gurley is watching some of the Rams highlights, he is wondering where were these holes last year.

They were right in front of him. Or sometimes left / right, but oftentimes it looked like he ran straight into a mob of defenders without even trying to cut. I think he knew where the hole was "supposed" to be, ran right towards it, and if it wasn't there got tackled. He just didn't / doesn't (going by the Falcons games) have the ability to put stress on that knee anymore. We all saw the highlights last year. The holes were there, he just couldn't turn. And I think defenses knew it.
I'm not saying our OL was all that last year, it really wasn't, especially Boom & our C cadre. Looks like a couple tweaks (Blythe at C, Edwards replacing Boom at LG, Corbett moving to RG) and we're golden. Between these tweaks & drafting Hendo & Akers I think we've finally developed a run game. That and McVay said as much after last year that he wanted a run game like the 9ers did.

 

[RamsSince1969]

They were right in front of him. Or sometimes left / right, but oftentimes it looked like he ran straight into a mob of defenders without even trying to cut. I think he knew where the hole was "supposed" to be, ran right towards it, and if it wasn't there got tackled. He just didn't / doesn't (going by the Falcons games) have the ability to put stress on that knee anymore. We all saw the highlights last year. The holes were there, he just couldn't turn. And I think defenses knew it.
I'm not saying our OL was all that last year, it really wasn't, especially Boom & our C cadre. Looks like a couple tweaks (Blythe at C, Edwards replacing Boom at LG, Corbett moving to RG) and we're golden. Between these tweaks & drafting Hendo & Akers I think we've finally developed a run game. That and McVay said as much after last year that he wanted a run game like the 9ers did.

Gurley was hesitating for just a split second, maybe processing what he was seeing, and Hendo sees the game at lightning speed. I agree that the holes were there.

 

[badnews]

They were right in front of him. Or sometimes left / right, but oftentimes it looked like he ran straight into a mob of defenders without even trying to cut. I think he knew where the hole was "supposed" to be, ran right towards it, and if it wasn't there got tackled. He just didn't / doesn't (going by the Falcons games) have the ability to put stress on that knee anymore. We all saw the highlights last year. The holes were there, he just couldn't turn. And I think defenses knew it.
I'm not saying our OL was all that last year, it really wasn't, especially Boom & our C cadre. Looks like a couple tweaks (Blythe at C, Edwards replacing Boom at LG, Corbett moving to RG) and we're golden. Between these tweaks & drafting Hendo & Akers I think we've finally developed a run game. That and McVay said as much after last year that he wanted a run game like the 9ers did.

Yeah, I dont disagree that Gurley was a big part of the problem last year, he was. He wasn't explosive or decisive enough.

But for every play I can remember Gurley running straight into traffic, there are probably 2 plays I can think of where he is hit in the backfield within a split second of taking the hand off.

 

[JonRam99]

Yeah, I dont disagree that Gurley was a big part of the problem last year, he was. He wasn't explosive or decisive enough.

But for every play I can remember Gurley running straight into traffic, there are probably 2 plays I can think of where he is hit in the backfield within a split second of taking the hand off.

No doubt!! that was so frustrating to watch, and I"m sure TG was frustrated too. Much of our backfield penetration came straight up the middle through the A gap. Not much a RB can do about that. Is why I wanted us to draft a stud C so badly.
But now, with Corbett on one side & Edwards on the other, and Blythe in a more natural position for him, I think we're finally making a clean backfield & even getting some push up the middle.

 

[badnews]

No doubt!! that was so frustrating to watch, and I"m sure TG was frustrated too. Much of our backfield penetration came straight up the middle through the A gap. Not much a RB can do about that. Is why I wanted us to draft a stud C so badly.
But now, with Corbett on one side & Edwards on the other, and Blythe in a more natural position for him, I think we're finally making a clean backfield & even getting some push up the middle.

Hell yeah buddy and its a beautiful thing!

 

[Merlin]

Couple notes courtesy of Football Outsiders...

* Hendy jumped to 2nd in the league in DVoA (explosiveness/big play measurement) after that game. Going forward and if he can stay healthy and this line can too he's going to shit on other backs in this metric. Also in SR (success rate) he's 3rd this week. Rarefied air to be in for a back in today's league, and it shows he can do a bit of everything and it also shows your OL quality have that high SR result.

* Rams OL is ranked 7th in the league in power success runs (measure of key downs and short distances and getting what you need). In the plus yards measurements they don't do as well (12th and 20th) but I think both will trend upwards as we go forward with this current group.

Lastly 1/3 of these measures are with the current group which includes Edwards at LG. Which is a whole different feel for opposing defensive fronts on our schedule. If this OL we have right now can stay healthy watch the fuck out.

 

[CoachAllred]

Yup, I'll admit it
Dinner is served

Yea Dieter, but you gotta admit, that crow can't be tasting too bad,
At least you know the Rams have another good back and when Cam gets healthy
and starts to shake those rookie nerves, were probably gonna have a house full
of good backs.
Much respect to a man who admits his mistakes. Believe me brother, this forum is full
of people who have misjudged a player and I will be the first to admit I have missed on my fair share
as well. Go Rams!!

 

[CoachAllred]

Gurley was hesitating for just a split second, maybe processing what he was seeing, and Hendo sees the game at lightning speed. I agree that the holes were there.

Yep, Hendo has excellent vision.He showed it in his brief opportunities last year and in college.
Cam has excellent vision as well, He just needs to get healthy and get some game reps, so he
can calm his rookie jitters a bit. Just a matter of time. IMHO

 

[oldnotdead]

Henderson has looked like the player people saw on his college highlight film. He's fast, explosive, and tough. While the love fest was ongoing over Akers, I knew that the Rams had struck gold with both of them. That's why I was calling them the Ram's two-headed monster. The Rams don't lose that speed, toughness, and explosiveness with either of them. They are as good of a RB duo as you could want. Either of these guys can take it to the house from anywhere on the field. It's the run game that is fueling the passing attack as defenses have to stop both. Most defenses aren't structured that way which accounts for the use of so many sub-packages.

Unfortunately, Aker's injury will take several more weeks to heal and he definitely shouldn't play. Brown is a role player IMO. He's best when used as a between the tackles grinder. He simply lacks breakaway speed, but that isn't to say he doesn't have a role. The problem is unlike with Aker's, the playbook changes with Brown as he lacks the explosiveness you want in a perimeter run game. With Henderson and Akers the defense must defend the entire LOS and both are good receivers as well. I would love to see them involved more in the passing game. More than that I would love to see both on the field with one or the other running the jet sweep action. That would really raise the threat level. McVay can do it now with Brown in the backfield and Henderson motioning out of the slot. The defense doesn't know if it's an inside run, sweep or pass. It's the type of thing I envisioned before Akers got hurt.

This offense will be incredibly hard to defend because of the balance and versatility Henderson and Akers bring.