RUMOR Rams/Cowgurlz Celebration Thread

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fearsomefour

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Those who think this must be his last year might be in for a surprise.
A no contact preseason was certainly a benefit to older players.....not that he would have seen much action in preseason anyway.
Blythe did look good at C.
Much quicker and got to the second level a couple of times.
He is healthy now.
 

fearsomefour

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Rewatched the offensive snaps and Noteboom was ok.
Overall I’d say better than last year but he still has some issues.
The team ran a lot to left side in the first half. They would run behind a Blythe Noteboom double team.
That worked well.
Noteboom is certainly athletic enough to get to the second level or pull as the team had him do a couple of times.
He appears to not play with good balance.
I don’t know if this makes him play a little too upright or what but on his own he rarely gets push in the run game. Almost a total “shield” blocker.
That can work fine.
But for a guy who was supposed to be a physical run blocker he just isn’t at this point.
His balance issues come into play pass blocking as well.
A spin move will almost always work against him.
Too many times he makes good initial contact then the defender is able to get off his block.
Get off his block almost immediately.
That second of maintaining a block can mean the difference between a 2 yard gain and a 5 yard gain.
I see him having balance issues. This prevents him from really committing to physical run blocking or being able to sustain blocks.
The hit on Goff that led to the pic was a stunt that he was late in picking up. In fairness to him Aldon Smith was always great at this stunt. It was the exact same on the Whiners ran with him.
The sack later on Smith got off of an solid initial block by Noteboom and got the sack.
I don’t know if it’s a technical thing with Noteboom or if his lack of balance will doom him to be a C interior player.
There was some good work though.
The Rams ran behind him a lot as had a lot of success. A lot double teams with him and Blythe, which I love.
Frustrating guy to watch because he is like 75% there.
He is athletic enough it would appear.
He can often get into position but just can’t seem to sustain blocks or lock onto guys. They just get off of him too easily.
Lack of balance is a total killer for a lineman.
Hopefully he can improve as time goes along.
 
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André

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Think I saw his overall was 51.8. He continues to be a liability at guard. I think he was the blown block on Aldon Smith that caused the interception and was generally getting beat a lot in pass blocking. His run blocking looked limp at times as well. Hopefully he improves as the season goes on because we don't have many more options that don't involve putting Allen back at center which is a scarier proposition to me.
I like Noteboom. Just not at guard. I don't think it is a good position for him. I respect the concept that "you don't lose your job because of an injury". It shows loyalty to players. But you do lose it because of ability. And he hasn't shown enough to be the starting guard imho.
 

Tano

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The one sack on Goff, I kinda blame on Goff for holding the ball a little too long and not throwing it away when the rush came.

Goff tried to avoid the rush and ran right into Smith.

However, I do agree that Noteboom could have held his block 1 sec longer.
 

fearsomefour

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I like Noteboom. Just not at guard. I don't think it is a good position for him. I respect the concept that "you don't lose your job because of an injury". It shows loyalty to players. But you do lose it because of ability. And he hasn't shown enough to be the starting guard imho.
The question then is who has the skill to be an upgrade?
The obvious answer is Edwards.
I think he was better last year than we have seen from Noteboom.
He had issues pass blocking at times but could get push in the running game.
Noteboom inability to sustain blocks at this point would make LT an impossibility for him.
 

fearsomefour

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One great bit from the OL was only one penalty.
That was Whitworth sneaking downfield on a screen.
Zero holds.
Zero false starts.
Those were just drive killers last year.
This was great to see Sunday.
 

André

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The question then is who has the skill to be an upgrade?
The obvious answer is Edwards.
I think he was better last year than we have seen from Noteboom.
He had issues pass blocking at times but could get push in the running game.
Noteboom inability to sustain blocks at this point would make LT an impossibility for him.
Absolutely agree.
 

FarNorth

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The question then is who has the skill to be an upgrade?
The obvious answer is Edwards.
I think he was better last year than we have seen from Noteboom.
He had issues pass blocking at times but could get push in the running game.
Noteboom inability to sustain blocks at this point would make LT an impossibility for him.

My belief is that the Rams know Noteboom needs work and they are giving it to him now at guard. The hope of course is that he will show enough to eventually play left tackle or even right tackle. If it were just a matter of who is the better guard right now, Edwards possibly might be starting.

Notebook was a hockey player, his balance should be ok, seems big and strong enough, good athlete, they must think he can improve his technique. But he won't be ready until he has fully developed as a blocker and learned everything he can from playing next to Whit. Didn't really get much of a chance last year due to the injury. He needs more time on the field.

Right now they still have Whit and Havenstein. The Rams can't sit one of them to give him a spot, and they can't put Noteboom on an island at tackle until his blocking is better. So they're playing him at guard.
 

oldnotdead

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Noteboom is an LT and Kromer is messing with his head playing him out of position. Confidence is big with an o-lineman. He's playing well for a position he has never played. Having Anchrum at LT is all you need to know about how much Kromer knows about o-line. Blythe missed that stunt because he had his back turned and not facing his gap responsibilities. He missed two other blocks as well. It's why I don't like PFF they simply don't know what they looking at. People doubted Noteboom's run blocking but he's proving his doubters wrong despite playing out of position.

Whitworth missed at least one block, and Havenstein continued to struggle against speed if he has to hold the block more than 2 seconds. Goff's quick release and decision making was the key to their success in the passing game. It also shows his improvement in his presnap reads.

The Ram's continuing struggle in the Red Zone means McVay must tweak both his play design and how O'Connell calls the plays. They need Mundt to play FB and use both a power gap run in the Red zone, forcing the defense to load the box. They have the receivers in Woods, Kupp, and Higbee to then take advantage of that on play-action. That is to say, play it the exact opposite of his 11 personnel. He's got the RBs in Brown and Akers to pound it inside with a power gap design. it will then force their SS to split focus on Higbee and the run. That moment of hesitation will give Higbee the edge. This will mean if they play man then one of the WRs will be in single coverage. If they play zone they should get 3-5 yds per carry. In other words, McVay needs to rachet up the threat level in the Red Zone, where the field is condensed. The lack of a power inside run attack is what is hurting the Ram's Red Zone play.
 

LARams_1963

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One great bit from the OL was only one penalty.
That was Whitworth sneaking downfield on a screen.
I'm curious what the definition of lineman downfield is as far as distance. He was only 2 yards down field from the LOS when the ball was released.
 

nighttrain

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Twas a real CS type penalty. Cant call the obvious(fist in Goff's face), but this crap, oh yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!

train
 

fearsomefour

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My belief is that the Rams know Noteboom needs work and they are giving it to him now at guard. The hope of course is that he will show enough to eventually play left tackle or even right tackle. If it were just a matter of who is the better guard right now, Edwards possibly might be starting.

Notebook was a hockey player, his balance should be ok, seems big and strong enough, good athlete, they must think he can improve his technique. But he won't be ready until he has fully developed as a blocker and learned everything he can from playing next to Whit. Didn't really get much of a chance last year due to the injury. He needs more time on the field.

Right now they still have Whit and Havenstein. The Rams can't sit one of them to give him a spot, and they can't put Noteboom on an island at tackle until his blocking is better. So they're playing him at guard.
I agree with this.
 

fearsomefour

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Noteboom is an LT and Kromer is messing with his head playing him out of position. Confidence is big with an o-lineman. He's playing well for a position he has never played. Having Anchrum at LT is all you need to know about how much Kromer knows about o-line. Blythe missed that stunt because he had his back turned and not facing his gap responsibilities. He missed two other blocks as well. It's why I don't like PFF they simply don't know what they looking at. People doubted Noteboom's run blocking but he's proving his doubters wrong despite playing out of position.

Whitworth missed at least one block, and Havenstein continued to struggle against speed if he has to hold the block more than 2 seconds. Goff's quick release and decision making was the key to their success in the passing game. It also shows his improvement in his presnap reads.

The Ram's continuing struggle in the Red Zone means McVay must tweak both his play design and how O'Connell calls the plays. They need Mundt to play FB and use both a power gap run in the Red zone, forcing the defense to load the box. They have the receivers in Woods, Kupp, and Higbee to then take advantage of that on play-action. That is to say, play it the exact opposite of his 11 personnel. He's got the RBs in Brown and Akers to pound it inside with a power gap design. it will then force their SS to split focus on Higbee and the run. That moment of hesitation will give Higbee the edge. This will mean if they play man then one of the WRs will be in single coverage. If they play zone they should get 3-5 yds per carry. In other words, McVay needs to rachet up the threat level in the Red Zone, where the field is condensed. The lack of a power inside run attack is what is hurting the Ram's Red Zone play.
Noteboom would be a disaster at LT at this point.
The running plays that worked the best were double teams with Blythe.
The rest of his run blocking was average at best.
 

oldnotdead

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You need to look at the blocking on the TDs, especially the second one. Blythe almost got Goff killed because he was distracted and not covering his gap but gets praise? :cautious:
 

oldnotdead

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Hmmm let's see on another block on a run he pulls and totally whiffs but the run is successful regardless. On another he gets blown off the LOS but again the run is successful because the RB changes gaps. If you subscribe to the Kromer way of grading I suppose he played a good game. You offer his double-teaming as examples of his good plays? He wasn't even the primary blocker on those plays. On pass plays, he is routinely walked back into Goff but Jared's quick throws saves the play. PFF calls that a good block, I call it a speed bump block.

The hit on Jared is exactly what I've been warning about. Goff is the one guy they can't afford to lose. I specifically warned he's vulnerable to stunts and this was a perfect example of it. The Eagles have a good front 7. The o-line needs to be sharp next week.
 

fearsomefour

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Hmmm let's see on another block on a run he pulls and totally whiffs but the run is successful regardless. On another he gets blown off the LOS but again the run is successful because the RB changes gaps. If you subscribe to the Kromer way of grading I suppose he played a good game. You offer his double-teaming as examples of his good plays? He wasn't even the primary blocker on those plays. On pass plays, he is routinely walked back into Goff but Jared's quick throws saves the play. PFF calls that a good block, I call it a speed bump block.

The hit on Jared is exactly what I've been warning about. Goff is the one guy they can't afford to lose. I specifically warned he's vulnerable to stunts and this was a perfect example of it. The Eagles have a good front 7. The o-line needs to be sharp next week.
Some of the double teams it was the guy over him they were doubling other times not.
I wasn’t saying he was great on double teams I said the double teams worked well and in most cases the RB was running off the double team.
Not sure what your hard on is with Blythe but he was solid.
And also, the Rams don’t have any other options that are better at this point.
Most of the passes were quick design throws.
I hope Goff has developed some hall of fame level of pre snap reading or the ability to go through his options in under 2 seconds but I doubt it.
It was a good game plan that was executed well for the most part.
This includes Goff, the receivers and blockers.
Enjoy it.