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https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/13/nfl-los-angeles-rams-broncos-preview-analysis-breakdown/
Rams opposition research: Breaking down the Broncos
By: Andrew Ortenberg
The Los Angeles Rams are 5-0 and will be looking to extend their winning streak to six games this Sunday against the Broncos. While the Broncos aren’t the toughest team to face on paper, the game will be challenging for multiple reasons. Denver is one of the toughest places to play in the entire NFL, with the elevation and raucous crowd both being factors.
While the Broncos got blown out by the Jets last week, they shouldn’t be taken lightly, especially when they’re at home. Here’s what the Rams can expect on both sides of the ball:
Offense:
As has been the case the past few seasons, the Broncos have struggled to get consistent production from their quarterback. The team sought to address their woes under center from the Trevor Siemian/Paxton Lynch-era by signing Case Keenum in free agency.
The team gave Keenum a two-year $36 million contract with $25 million guaranteed, and so far he hasn’t lived up to it. Keenum has put up decent yardage numbers, but has played poorly for the most part. He has five touchdowns and seven interceptions, but he’s been even worse than the numbers indicate. Last week against the Jets, for example, Keenum finished with 377 yards but most of them came in garbage time and he was terribly inaccurate most of the game.
With the Rams’ run defense looking vulnerable recently, I’d expect the Broncos to try and hide Keenum as much as possible and establish the ground game. They have an exciting young backfield led by rookies Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman, and both should see a lot of work. Denver will likely try and control the clock and keep the Rams’ offense off the field, leaning heavily on their rookies.
If they succeed in establishing the running game, they’ll likely take some shots down the field off play-action. Seeing teams have success throwing deep against Marcus Peters in recent weeks, the Broncos will likely try to do the same. Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas have still been fairly productive this season, although Thomas seems significantly slowed down from his prime playing days.
The Broncos’ offensive line hasn’t been very good and is a little banged up. Starting right tackle Jared Veldheer will miss the game, which should help the Rams’ struggling outside pass-rush get going. The Broncos’ interior line was dominated last week by Leonard Williams, causing them to contemplate a switch at right guard.
Of course, another angle here is that it’s a Keenum revenge game. While the Rams shouldn’t lose too much sleep over Keenum, there’s reason to believe they could have some success on the ground, which could bode poorly for the Rams.
Defense:
The Broncos’ defense is still capable of playing well, but it’s nowhere near the level it was a couple of years ago. The ‘No Fly Zone’ is no more, with one of its staples, Aqib Talib, now a member of the Rams. While the secondary isn’t what it used to be, the defense still has some dangerous pieces.
They have one of the best defensive players in the league in Von Miller, and have some up and coming studs like outside linebacker Shaq Barrett. Chris Harris Jr. is still one of the league’s better corners, but the secondary has fallen off a cliff as a whole.
Several Broncos defensive players have made comments critical of the coaching in recent weeks, hinting that defensive coordinator Joe Woods’ schemes are overly-complicated.
The Broncos have given up at least 277 passing yards in four of five games, and are giving up 7.9 yards per pass attempt. The run defense had mostly been playing well before last week, when it completely fell apart. They gave up an eye-popping 323 yards rushing to the Jets, including 219 to Isaiah Crowell. The Jets frequently ran to the outside and took advantage of the Broncos’ lack of closing speed.
Sean McVay has surely seen that tape at least several times now, and will likely try to do some of the same things. Expect to see Todd Gurley bouncing it outside frequently. McVay will also likely seek to pick on the Broncos’ weaker corners, like Bradley Roby, who has been targeted often.
The Rams offense should have no trouble putting up points, as long as they can consistently get on the field and run an up-tempo offense. How the offense does will likely be directly correlated to how well the defense slows down the Broncos’ run game. The Broncos still have a lot of talent along the defensive line in Miller, Domata Peko, and Derek Wolfe, and the Rams’ offensive line will need to continue its recent stellar play.
The bottom line:
The Broncos appear headed for another down year, but this could be a tough game for the Rams. What the Broncos will seek to do offensively, the Rams have had a lot of trouble stopping recently, and the crowd noise will be deafening if the Broncos manage to strike first and get up early. This could be a much stiffer challenge than most are expecting, and the Rams will need to be careful not to be caught off-guard.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/12/nfl-los-angeles-rams-broncos-concerns-week-6/
Rams' 3 biggest causes for concern vs. Broncos
By: Cameron DaSilva
Here are the three biggest heading into Sunday’s matchup.
Broncos’ rushing attack
The Rams were absolutely gashed on the ground by the Seahawks and Chargers, allowing 331 yards on the ground in those two games. Ndamukong Suh called the run defense “terrible” and that the entire unit just needs to get back to basics. That’ll have to happen quickly because the Broncos rank third in rushing with 685 yards, led by Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman.
Los Angeles has had trouble with running back tandems this season, which is exactly what it’ll be facing on Sunday. If either running back finds a rhythm, or if the Broncos have a huge game as a team like the Seahawks did running the ball, they could control the clock, keep the Rams’ offense off the field and win the time of possession battle.
That has to be concern No. 1 for the Rams this weekend, especially with the cold, snowy weather being a possibility.
Inclement weather slowing the offense
Speaking of inclement weather, the Rams could face their toughest test yet: snow. A few players have dealt with snowy conditions, such as Robert Woods and Ndamukong Suh, but there’s nothing easy about playing in that sort of weather. It’s particularly difficult on offense where you’re trying to throw the ball consistently, complete passes and move it downfield.
Jared Goff is a warm-weather quarterback who doesn’t have much experience playing in frigid, snowy temperatures, so Todd Gurley could see a hefty number of carries Sunday. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially considering the Broncos are 30th in rushing yards allowed this season.
Still, moving the ball in the snow is difficult, particularly for the visiting team. This is definitely something to keep an eye on.
Status of the secondary
Marcus Peters has been terrible the past two weeks as he continues to recover from a calf injury. He won’t admit the injury is hindering him, but Wade Phillips said he’s been “banged up.” With no Aqib Talib on the other side, the secondary is certainly not at full strength. That’s led to at least 313 yards passing in each of the Rams’ past four games, including 456 by Kirk Cousins and the Vikings in Week 4.
Sam Shields barely played in Week 5 due to a shoulder injury, but he hasn’t appeared on the report this week and should be good to go. And while Troy Hill stepped up nicely on Sunday, he’s hardly a consistent player on the outside. He’ll need to play better if called upon against Denver with Peters clearly not at full strength.
The Broncos have a strong group of receivers with a variety of skill sets to work with, so it’ll take a complete team effort to slow down the passing attack.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/11/nfl-los-angeles-rams-broncos-week-6-matchups/
Rams vs. Broncos: 4 key matchups to watch in Week 6
By: Cameron DaSilva
Aaron Donald vs. Ron Leary
The Rams move Donald all over the place on the defensive front, but his primary position is 3-technique on the right side of the line. That matches him up with the left guard more often than not, which gives us a Donald-Leary battle on Sunday. For fans who enjoy watching matchups in the trenches, this is a good one.
Leary is a powerful blocker who’s best in the running game, but he’s more than capable as a pass blocker. Donald has had a bunch of favorable matchups in recent weeks, but this will prove to be a difficult one on Sunday.
Brandin Cooks vs. Chris Harris Jr.
Assuming Cooks plays against the Broncos, he’ll likely draw Harris on coverage the majority of the time. There will be plays here and there when Harris will cover another receiver, but Cooks should be his primary opponent. As one of the best corners in the game, Cooks will be tested on the outside.
Harris likes to jam receivers and can play both man and zone coverage. Cooks obviously isn’t physical at the line or the point of attack, largely making plays by getting open with his route running, not necessarily winning 50-50 balls or making contested catches. There could be some tight windows for Jared Goff throwing Cooks’ direction this weekend.
Rob Havenstein vs. Von Miller
Four of the Broncos’ 11 sacks have come from Miller this season as they’ve found a tough time getting much production from the trio of Bradley Chubb, Shane Ray and Shaquil Barrett. They have just 3.5 sacks combined between them, so Miller is pretty clearly still the biggest threat on defense.
He typically rushes off the left side of the line, and while he started the season hot, he’s cooled off a bit in recent weeks. Havenstein, on the other hand, has been outstanding at right tackle this season. If he allows Miller to get going, it could cause problems for Goff, who has a tendency to be loose with the ball in the pocket.
Rams LBs vs. Broncos RBs
The Seahawks ran the ball down the Rams’ throat in Week 5, gaining 184 yards on 31 carries between Mike Davis and Chris Carson. Los Angeles has had trouble with running back tandems this season, which is exactly what the Broncos have. Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman each have 49-plus carries and 250-plus yards this season, averaging 5.0 yards per carry this season.
They’re by far the best playmakers the Broncos have on offense, particularly Lindsay. Assuming the weather forecast remains questionable for Sunday, Denver is likely to run the ball 25-plus times against Los Angeles. The Rams’ linebackers have to play better than they did last week, closing down running lanes and making tackles in the open field, limiting yards after contact.
