RamView, December 16, 2012, Game #14: Vikings 36, Rams 22, by Mike Franke
From Row HH
(Report and opinions from the game.)
The Rams playoff train has gone off the tracks for this season, derailed by yet another poor start and by big, sleek, fast, unstoppable, purple Engine Number 28. Yo, Adrian. Nice game.
Position by position:
* QB: Sam Bradford finished the game with gaudy numbers (35-55-377, 94.3 PR), but did most of that from far behind and against soft coverage, and it looks all too familiar that he had to run an OU-like no-huddle attack to get the Ram offense moving. Time to graduate to the pros, Sam. But once again, the Rams came out of the locker room spinning their wheels, dug a big hole, and this week, it was too big to climb back out. Bradford had obvious pass protection problems all game, but also missed a disappointing number of throws. He missed very makeable sideline throws to Chris Givens and Brandon Gibson in the 1st. Bradford went into a tailspin in the 2nd that sank the whole team. After taking a big hit from Antoine Winfield and Chad Greenway on a 9-yard scramble, Bradford bungled a snap away to Minnesota that set up a FG. Bradford delivered the next points himself, falling for the zone blitz opposing QBs never fall for against the Rams, throwing a terrible pick directly to DE Everson Griffen. TD for the big man and a 24-7 hole for the Rams. Right before halftime, Bradford overthrew Givens, wide open behind the secondary, missing out on a TD. He nearly overthrew Brian Quick on the one TD opportunity he did convert in the 1st half, but the rookie bailed him out with an excellent leaping play. Sam was much more comfortable in the 2nd half with Minnesota calling off the dogs, but mostly moved the Rams with dinks and dunks. He hit Amendola with a 6-yard bullet for the Rams’ 2nd TD, and again the next drive with a pretty 26-yard ball over the middle that led on to a well-timed goal line TD to Lance Kendricks. Late in the game, though, he missed Amendola and Austin Pettis open on back-to-back plays as the Rams turned it over on downs. Bradford got the Rams in the red zone a last time late in the game with several nice throws but then missed Quick open on the sideline on 4th-and-3. Besides the disappointingly spotty accuracy, Bradford also had a number of passes tipped or knocked down at the line, which is really getting intolerable for a 6’4” QB. I’d bet he’s got more of those this year than six-inches-shorter Russell Wilson. Bradford didn’t answer the opening bell well, made major blunders that put his team behind and didn’t get comfortable until garbage time. Yeah, his line let him get beat up like he’d been sparring with Clubber Lang, but it’s fair to expect better from Sam Bradford than the Rams got this week. That wasn’t a franchise QB performance.
full report: http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.ph ... 8111412746
From Row HH
(Report and opinions from the game.)
The Rams playoff train has gone off the tracks for this season, derailed by yet another poor start and by big, sleek, fast, unstoppable, purple Engine Number 28. Yo, Adrian. Nice game.
Position by position:
* QB: Sam Bradford finished the game with gaudy numbers (35-55-377, 94.3 PR), but did most of that from far behind and against soft coverage, and it looks all too familiar that he had to run an OU-like no-huddle attack to get the Ram offense moving. Time to graduate to the pros, Sam. But once again, the Rams came out of the locker room spinning their wheels, dug a big hole, and this week, it was too big to climb back out. Bradford had obvious pass protection problems all game, but also missed a disappointing number of throws. He missed very makeable sideline throws to Chris Givens and Brandon Gibson in the 1st. Bradford went into a tailspin in the 2nd that sank the whole team. After taking a big hit from Antoine Winfield and Chad Greenway on a 9-yard scramble, Bradford bungled a snap away to Minnesota that set up a FG. Bradford delivered the next points himself, falling for the zone blitz opposing QBs never fall for against the Rams, throwing a terrible pick directly to DE Everson Griffen. TD for the big man and a 24-7 hole for the Rams. Right before halftime, Bradford overthrew Givens, wide open behind the secondary, missing out on a TD. He nearly overthrew Brian Quick on the one TD opportunity he did convert in the 1st half, but the rookie bailed him out with an excellent leaping play. Sam was much more comfortable in the 2nd half with Minnesota calling off the dogs, but mostly moved the Rams with dinks and dunks. He hit Amendola with a 6-yard bullet for the Rams’ 2nd TD, and again the next drive with a pretty 26-yard ball over the middle that led on to a well-timed goal line TD to Lance Kendricks. Late in the game, though, he missed Amendola and Austin Pettis open on back-to-back plays as the Rams turned it over on downs. Bradford got the Rams in the red zone a last time late in the game with several nice throws but then missed Quick open on the sideline on 4th-and-3. Besides the disappointingly spotty accuracy, Bradford also had a number of passes tipped or knocked down at the line, which is really getting intolerable for a 6’4” QB. I’d bet he’s got more of those this year than six-inches-shorter Russell Wilson. Bradford didn’t answer the opening bell well, made major blunders that put his team behind and didn’t get comfortable until garbage time. Yeah, his line let him get beat up like he’d been sparring with Clubber Lang, but it’s fair to expect better from Sam Bradford than the Rams got this week. That wasn’t a franchise QB performance.
full report: http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.ph ... 8111412746