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Rams' protection breakdown gave Packers' pick-six
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/22467/rams-protection-breakdown-gave-packers-pick-6
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- A look back at the turning point play in the St. Louis Rams' 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday:
The situation: Near the end of the first quarter, the Rams and Packers engaged in a shocking exchange of turnovers. It started when Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis ended Aaron Rodgers' streak of nearly 600 pass attempts without an interception at Lambeau Field and was followed just three plays later when quarterback Nick Foles threw one to Packers defensive back Micah Hyde.
But the Rams found a way to get a defensive stop after that sudden change and get the ball back at their 41 after stopping running back Eddie Lacy on fourth-and-1. That gave the Rams a fresh start with good field position and facing just a 7-0 deficit. After a delay of game penalty and two plays that netted 6 yards, the Rams had third-and-9 at their 42.
The play: Foles lined up in the shotgun with tight end Jared Cook split right, Kenny Britt, Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin split left and running back Benny Cunningham next to him in the backfield. The Packers, meanwhile, offered a more unique look with two down linemen and Clay Matthews and Mike Neal standing up outside the shoulder of the offensive tackles.
As you'd expect on third-and-long, Green Bay was clearly looking for pass here with five defensive backs and two linebackers dropping into a basic zone coverage. That means they only rushed four, which should have given the Rams a chance to block it considering they only had five in to protect Foles. But this play was pretty much doomed from the start.
From his spot at the top of the formation, Cook ran a simple crossing route with his primary focus on finding a soft spot in the zone (presumably beyond the sticks). But before any of that happened, Green Bay defensive lineman Datone Jones exploded off the ball and split right tackle Rob Havenstein and right guard Rodger Saffold.
The Packers were running a game in which Jones was to push the edge and allow Neal a chance to circle inside and get to Foles. But Jones was so successful pushing between Havenstein and Saffold that Neal really never got much of a chance to do anything. Jones quickly got past Saffold, who fell to the ground with a shoulder injury, and left Havenstein trying to get in front of Jones. With one eye on Neal, Havenstein was unable to get in position to stop Jones, who was in Foles' face in short order.
With Jones there so quickly, Foles forced the throw to the left to Cook, who had found his spot in the zone but didn't have a chance to make a play on the ball as Foles threw wide left as the pressure came.
Havenstein put blame on himself for the play after the game but it's clear from re-watching that he was in an almost impossible spot given the circumstances.
"So, when you talk about quarterback play, so many other things that are related to that," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. "Now, in retrospect Nick said, ‘I should’ve taken the sack.’ He was hoping to step up and make that throw. Then he felt the pressure. Then he tried to get it to Cook. He didn’t see the outside defender.”
The outside defender happened to be Green Bay defensive back Quinten Rollins, who happily grabbed Foles' throw and raced 45 yards to the end zone for a touchdown.
The fallout: There were more big plays and near misses that happened along the way before this one was over but Rollins' pick-six was Foles' second interception in as many drives and the one that happened to lead to the game-winning points for Green Bay. Rollins' score and subsequent Lambeau Leap gave Green Bay a 14-0 lead, a lead that would shrink to 14-10 but never saw the Rams get any closer.
Foles went on to throw two more interceptions, including another to Rollins on a day when the Rams defense managed three takeaways. But it was the Rams' own turnovers that proved the difference between an expected loss and a surprising win. None of those Green Bay takeaways were bigger than the one that instantly resulted in a touchdown.
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/22467/rams-protection-breakdown-gave-packers-pick-6
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- A look back at the turning point play in the St. Louis Rams' 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday:
The situation: Near the end of the first quarter, the Rams and Packers engaged in a shocking exchange of turnovers. It started when Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis ended Aaron Rodgers' streak of nearly 600 pass attempts without an interception at Lambeau Field and was followed just three plays later when quarterback Nick Foles threw one to Packers defensive back Micah Hyde.
But the Rams found a way to get a defensive stop after that sudden change and get the ball back at their 41 after stopping running back Eddie Lacy on fourth-and-1. That gave the Rams a fresh start with good field position and facing just a 7-0 deficit. After a delay of game penalty and two plays that netted 6 yards, the Rams had third-and-9 at their 42.
The play: Foles lined up in the shotgun with tight end Jared Cook split right, Kenny Britt, Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin split left and running back Benny Cunningham next to him in the backfield. The Packers, meanwhile, offered a more unique look with two down linemen and Clay Matthews and Mike Neal standing up outside the shoulder of the offensive tackles.
As you'd expect on third-and-long, Green Bay was clearly looking for pass here with five defensive backs and two linebackers dropping into a basic zone coverage. That means they only rushed four, which should have given the Rams a chance to block it considering they only had five in to protect Foles. But this play was pretty much doomed from the start.
From his spot at the top of the formation, Cook ran a simple crossing route with his primary focus on finding a soft spot in the zone (presumably beyond the sticks). But before any of that happened, Green Bay defensive lineman Datone Jones exploded off the ball and split right tackle Rob Havenstein and right guard Rodger Saffold.
The Packers were running a game in which Jones was to push the edge and allow Neal a chance to circle inside and get to Foles. But Jones was so successful pushing between Havenstein and Saffold that Neal really never got much of a chance to do anything. Jones quickly got past Saffold, who fell to the ground with a shoulder injury, and left Havenstein trying to get in front of Jones. With one eye on Neal, Havenstein was unable to get in position to stop Jones, who was in Foles' face in short order.
With Jones there so quickly, Foles forced the throw to the left to Cook, who had found his spot in the zone but didn't have a chance to make a play on the ball as Foles threw wide left as the pressure came.
Havenstein put blame on himself for the play after the game but it's clear from re-watching that he was in an almost impossible spot given the circumstances.
"So, when you talk about quarterback play, so many other things that are related to that," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. "Now, in retrospect Nick said, ‘I should’ve taken the sack.’ He was hoping to step up and make that throw. Then he felt the pressure. Then he tried to get it to Cook. He didn’t see the outside defender.”
The outside defender happened to be Green Bay defensive back Quinten Rollins, who happily grabbed Foles' throw and raced 45 yards to the end zone for a touchdown.
The fallout: There were more big plays and near misses that happened along the way before this one was over but Rollins' pick-six was Foles' second interception in as many drives and the one that happened to lead to the game-winning points for Green Bay. Rollins' score and subsequent Lambeau Leap gave Green Bay a 14-0 lead, a lead that would shrink to 14-10 but never saw the Rams get any closer.
Foles went on to throw two more interceptions, including another to Rollins on a day when the Rams defense managed three takeaways. But it was the Rams' own turnovers that proved the difference between an expected loss and a surprising win. None of those Green Bay takeaways were bigger than the one that instantly resulted in a touchdown.
