Noteboom & Allen both injured

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LARAMSinFeb.

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We've made some big splashes in FA and trades with a lot of the more easily visible positions (QB, WR, Edge). Might be time to start focusing on the O line a bit more. Shame about the injury to Bruss, who showed potential in college, but he was a third rounder.

Love McSnead - absolutely cannot fault their overall success - but how awesome could this team be with a semblance of a running game?
We have easily the best coach and the best GM in the NFL; but they definitely have a weird blind spot about the value of OL.
 

Merlin

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Been waiting to see what this guy can do. Not glad about the circumstances, but glad we'll finally find out.
Yeah and I'll say again the guy held shit down in the SEC with plenty of tape. So how is it he's not good enough to bolster us at RG after some years of pro regimen. Man it's disappointing that he didn't make a move but maybe they find out he's a gamer. I'm grasping at straws here I realize but it makes me feel better. :hug:
 

Loyal

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I think the bigger question is how much would it take for Whitworth to give up tacos and beer again.

He seems pretty happy with where he's at in life.
And why should he? Whit has earned his retirement and he went out on top, on his terms. Enjoy the good life, big man.
 

payote75

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Please bring Eric Fischer and Daryl Williams in for a workout I don't care if it's game 1. It provides depth .and Fischer may be a find He was strong run blocking last year and had a little bit of an issue pass blocking but his lateral movement was affected by an Achilles tare. He may be fully back now a guy like Akers can return early smaller better shape younger. Fischer might have needed this time. I'd want both brought in but Fischer for sure could be a steal. Lord knows run blocking is wear we lack. Check his grading out.

Neither should cost much and I don't think it would effect Obj.
 

Shuie3225

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We have easily the best coach and the best GM in the NFL; but they definitely have a weird blind spot about the value of OL.
I dont get it. The only think I can put my finger on is McVay just thinks he's smart enough to game plan around their deficiencies while we prioritize other positions. This is why we have such a hard time beating SF and other super physical teams.
 

BonifayRam

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Rams C Brian Allen Out For 2-4 Weeks

September 9th, 2022 at 7:13pm CST by Ely Allen


The Rams’ offensive line had a tough night in their season-opening loss to the Bills last night. Unfortunately, their job won’t get any easier as starting center Brian Allen will miss the next two to four weeks in order to undergo a knee procedure, according to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic.

Allen played the entirety of the game last night without apparent issue but requires a cleanout procedure on his knee. Allen has seen a number of ailments to his knee. He missed half of the 2019 season with a knee injury and had to earn his starting job back upon his healthy return.

After successfully topping the depth chart again in 2021, Allen was sidelined with an MCL sprain one snap into a Week 12 game against the Jaguars that would force him to miss the following game in Arizona, as well. Another knee injury forced him to leave a Week 15 matchup against the Vikings early, but he was able to return the next week and stay healthy all the way through the Super Bowl.

With Allen out, the Rams will slide starting right guard Coleman Shelton into center and Tremayne Anchrum will sub in for Shelton. Last night was just Shelton’s third career start in the NFL but he does have center experience from his time at the University of Washington.

Placing Anchrum in the starting lineup will give the former seventh-round draft pick his first career start after appearing in 13 games since being drafted in 2020. Los Angeles doesn’t have much more of a choice as third-round rookie Logan Bruss is on injured reserve with tears in his right ACL and MCL from the preseason. Past Anchrum, the Rams only have backup tackles A.J. Jackson and Bobby Evans as substitute options.
 

BonifayRam

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Rams’ offensive line takes injury hits after allowing 7 sacks against Bills

The day after the Bills used a four-man rush and a variety of coverages to stifle Matthew Stafford and the Rams’ offense, the team announced that center Brian Allen (knee) will miss 2-4 weeks

By GILBERT MANZANO | gmanzano@scng.com |
PUBLISHED: September 9, 2022
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Last season, Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp went viral on social media for providing an overly technical response that went over the heads of most football fans. Kupp is rarely shy to talk scheme and his detailed answers display why he’s one of the best at processing and analyzing defenses quickly on the field.

Kupp, however, might have been stumped by what the Buffalo Bills did defensively in their dominant 31-10 victory over the Rams in the season opener on Thursday night.

Kupp knew what he was seeing on the field with the Bills rotating a variety of coverages, primarily with the popular two-high safety scheme mixed with the familiar and seldomly-used Cover 3 and Tampa 2 defenses. But Kupp was unable to say minutes after the game how they utilized the different looks to their advantage.

“I gotta go watch film and see exactly what happened,” Kupp said. “They just played things deep and short. Didn’t let anything get over the top. Kept everything in front of them. They had a good plan.”

Stafford also recognized the coverages, but he was surprised to see Cover 3, a scheme that was made popular by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2010s. The Rams were held to 243 total yards with 5.9 yards per pass attempt and 2.9 yards per rushing attempt.

“They just played two-high safety, basically, the entire game,” Stafford said. “Played some old school (cover) three, which I haven’t seen in a long time. Trying to rotate to Cooper (Kupp), but it wasn’t anything earth-shattering. They just did a nice job of playing.”

The issue wasn’t recognition but reacting to the standard coverages. Stafford was sacked seven times and saw constant pressure despite the Bills only rushing four players for nearly the entire game.

Stafford rarely had enough time to find the holes in the Bills’ zone defense, and that problem could continue in the coming weeks after Rams coach Sean McVay announced Friday that center Brian Allen and left tackle Joe Noteboom sustained injuries in the season opener.

Allen was scheduled for a procedure on his knee and is expected to be sidelined for two to four weeks, according to McVay. The plan is for right guard Coleman Shelton to replace Allen at center with Tremayne Anchrum taking Shelton’s guard position.

Noteboom strained his MCL, but McVay said he expects him to be ready for the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 18.

It was a rough debut for the Rams’ new-look offensive line with Noteboom and Shelton joining the starting group this season. Outside linebacker Von Miller, who came close to re-signing with the Rams before joining the Bills, had two of Buffalo’s seven sacks. Stafford was hit 15 times and his offense was held scoreless in the second half.

“It wasn’t really a lot of different looks,” McVay said about the Bills’ defense. “They did a great job of executing. They didn’t rush more than four guys the whole night. … They did a good job of being able to get pressure with a four-man rush and then they mixed up some vision zone defense. They only played a couple snaps of man (coverage) the whole night. That wasn’t something that totally caught us off guard. We just didn’t execute quite as well, and to their credit, they did.”

With Stafford unable to push the ball downfield versus the Bills, questions about his throwing elbow pain resurfaced after the Week 1 loss.

“He (Stafford) came out of that thing feeling good,” McVay said. “He took, obviously, some shots, but the elbow felt OK.”

Stafford targeted Kupp 15 times for 13 receptions and 128 yards and one touchdown, but no one else had more than 39 receiving yards, including newcomer wide receiver Allen Robinson, who had a quiet two targets (one catch, 12 yards).

With little time to operate, Stafford locked onto Kupp often. Now the Rams have more than a week to figure out how to get more players involved offensively.

“We gotta try to get Allen more involved, but there were some opportunities for him to come to life that for a lot of different reasons it didn’t end up occurring,” McVay said.

RUSHING ISSUES​

Rookie running back Kyren Williams was expected to have a role in the game plan against the Bills before an injury on the opening kickoff ended his debut early.

Williams sustained a high ankle injury and was scheduled to have surgery. His recovery timetable is six to eight weeks, according to McVay. Williams also broke his foot in the offseason and missed the first few weeks of training camp.

The Rams’ rushing attack only recorded 52 yards with Darrell Henderson leading the way with 13 carries for 47 yards. Cam Akers mysteriously spent most of the game on the sideline and was limited to three carries for no yards.

“I thought there were some bright spots for Darrell last night,” McVay said. “It’s a bummer because we were trying to get Kyren involved and he didn’t even get a chance to be able to do that.”

McVay has raved about Williams’ blocking in pass protection, something the Rams could have used last night. Akers struggled in that area, which could explain why he only received 12 offensive snaps.

“Cam’s gotta maximize his (opportunities) when he gets in there,” McVay said. “There were some positive things and some things that he can do better. But we want to see an increased level of urgency and accountability snap in and snap out from him.

Akers, the team’s 2020 second-round selection, said last week that he’s healthy, but it’s clear that he needs to do more than just be available.

“I know what Cam is capable of,” McVay said. “We’ve all seen how talented and what a special player this guy is capable of being and I want to see him reach his highest potential and that’s really all there is to it. It’s not about anything other than when he and Darrell are playing at a high level, I feel really good about those two guys at running back for us, and the opportunities were minimal. There were some things that, within each of those individual plays, that I think that we can be better collectively, starting with me and the players around him, but also with Cam.

“It’s more of a reflection of the confidence that I know what he can be and I’m confident that he’ll be that guy that we’ve all seen at the right moments as this season continues to progress and that’s our job to help get it out of him.”

ALSO​

Rams long snapper Matt Orzech sustained a calf strain against the Bills. McVay said he expects him to be available for Week 2, but the team might explore backup options.

 
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dang

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Call me crazy, but I’d like to see Shelton at C and better option than him at RG.

In other words… This could lead to a better combination.
Agreed. I believe there will be several changes in the OL between now and mid season. McVay won’t stand by and do nothing.
 

Loyal

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Agreed. I believe there will be several changes in the OL between now and mid season. McVay won’t stand by and do nothing.
But will he do something effective?

I wouldn't trade McSnead for any GM/HC in the NFL, but the interior Oline is a severe blindspot, imo. Logan Bruss was a welcome change this last draft, but we are chasing the tiger now, because more premium picks should have been taken for Center and Guard positions, over gadget wide receivers. Developing UDFA's is fine, but constantly relying on them and low round draft picks for the interior Oline is a recipe for getting manhandled by big Dlinemen. I absolutely HATE that.
 

Shuie3225

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Developing UDFA's is fine, but constantly relying on them and low round draft picks for the interior Oline is a recipe for getting manhandled by big Dlinemen.
Bingo. The McVay strategy. We have not used a premium pick on OL in his 6 drafts. It's actually insane.