RamView, January 1, 2012, Game #16: 49ers 34, Rams 27, by Mike Franke
RamView, January 1, 2012
From Row HH
(Report and opinions from the game.)
Game #16: 49ers 34, Rams 27
For their finale as Steve Spagnuolo's team, at least the Rams were in a game for a change. A loss is a loss, but if a few more of the Rams' losses in 2011 had gone like this, we wouldn't be talking about replacing the entire front office the day after the season. Instead, happy Black Monday, Rams Nation.
Position by position:
* QB: What is it about Kellen Clemens? He has yet to put up game statistics that look good on paper (14-31-226, 67.4 PR), but still gives the Ram offense a spark. The Rams even discovered their long-missing downfield passing game this week. Clemens hit Brandon Lloyd for 24 off double play-action on the opening drive, which Clemens finished off himself with an 18-yard TD run, slipping some bad 49er tackling, running through Donte Whitner at the 5 and diving in for the score. The Rams' lead didn't last long, though, as the offense bogged down in a mudpit of sacks, dropped passes, fumbling and the Worst Trick Play Ever. Clemens did not come out of halftime sharp, missing a wide-open Lloyd on a slant after clanging a pass off a 49er lineman's head. Down 20-7 in the 3rd, Clemens drove the Rams to a FG on the strength of a couple of plays that hadn't worked here all year. He hit Lance Kendricks in the seam for 22 – remember when that play was going to be the bread and butter of this year's offense? - and then rolled out and hit Lloyd on the sideline for 23, becoming the first Ram QB this season to hit the deep option instead of taking the well-covered near-option for no gain. Clemens committed a critical mistake in the 4th, a poor throw from his end zone intended for Lloyd that Tarell Brown jumped and picked off easily to set up a 49er TD and a 3-TD lead. Clemens kept firing, though, and nearly rallied the Rams back. He beat a 3rd-and-11 blitz with a perfectly-placed pass to Lloyd over Whitner for a 36-yard TD. That combination worked again for a DPI penalty that set up a Cadillac Williams TD plunge. Down 34-27, the Rams got the ball back, and, after hitting Brandon Gibson over the middle for 21, Clemens had them within 33 yards of the tying score. That, though, became the moment his fearlessness in the pocket – he threw plenty of passes with defenders in his face – came back to bite him. NaVorro Bowman blitzed in for a sack that also put Clemens out of the rest of the game due to an ankle injury. That brought Tom Brandstater in for his first two professional passes, a one-hopper to Danario Alexander and a 4th-down rope to Alexander in double-coverage that the Ram WR really should have caught. Clemens' arrival on the scene and his quick absorption of the system made him one of the more intriguing Rams this season; intrigue lost, though, now that the Rams are scrapping everything and starting over.
full: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.php?story=20120102200801337" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.ph ... 2200801337</a>
RamView, January 1, 2012
From Row HH
(Report and opinions from the game.)
Game #16: 49ers 34, Rams 27
For their finale as Steve Spagnuolo's team, at least the Rams were in a game for a change. A loss is a loss, but if a few more of the Rams' losses in 2011 had gone like this, we wouldn't be talking about replacing the entire front office the day after the season. Instead, happy Black Monday, Rams Nation.
Position by position:
* QB: What is it about Kellen Clemens? He has yet to put up game statistics that look good on paper (14-31-226, 67.4 PR), but still gives the Ram offense a spark. The Rams even discovered their long-missing downfield passing game this week. Clemens hit Brandon Lloyd for 24 off double play-action on the opening drive, which Clemens finished off himself with an 18-yard TD run, slipping some bad 49er tackling, running through Donte Whitner at the 5 and diving in for the score. The Rams' lead didn't last long, though, as the offense bogged down in a mudpit of sacks, dropped passes, fumbling and the Worst Trick Play Ever. Clemens did not come out of halftime sharp, missing a wide-open Lloyd on a slant after clanging a pass off a 49er lineman's head. Down 20-7 in the 3rd, Clemens drove the Rams to a FG on the strength of a couple of plays that hadn't worked here all year. He hit Lance Kendricks in the seam for 22 – remember when that play was going to be the bread and butter of this year's offense? - and then rolled out and hit Lloyd on the sideline for 23, becoming the first Ram QB this season to hit the deep option instead of taking the well-covered near-option for no gain. Clemens committed a critical mistake in the 4th, a poor throw from his end zone intended for Lloyd that Tarell Brown jumped and picked off easily to set up a 49er TD and a 3-TD lead. Clemens kept firing, though, and nearly rallied the Rams back. He beat a 3rd-and-11 blitz with a perfectly-placed pass to Lloyd over Whitner for a 36-yard TD. That combination worked again for a DPI penalty that set up a Cadillac Williams TD plunge. Down 34-27, the Rams got the ball back, and, after hitting Brandon Gibson over the middle for 21, Clemens had them within 33 yards of the tying score. That, though, became the moment his fearlessness in the pocket – he threw plenty of passes with defenders in his face – came back to bite him. NaVorro Bowman blitzed in for a sack that also put Clemens out of the rest of the game due to an ankle injury. That brought Tom Brandstater in for his first two professional passes, a one-hopper to Danario Alexander and a 4th-down rope to Alexander in double-coverage that the Ram WR really should have caught. Clemens' arrival on the scene and his quick absorption of the system made him one of the more intriguing Rams this season; intrigue lost, though, now that the Rams are scrapping everything and starting over.
full: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.php?story=20120102200801337" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.nflfans.com/rams2/article.ph ... 2200801337</a>