That oline!!

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Interesting, on the 11 Personnel Podcast, Jourdan talks about Corbett doing a lot of communicating presnap on the line. Is it possible he's responsible for the line calls? Sounds like she was suggesting that.
 
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12intheBox said:
A QB can make an O line look better. Getting the right protections called, making the right audibles, reading the coverage and getting the ball out quickly when it need to get out, pocket presence.

The line is playing great - don’t get me wrong - I just don’t think they have been as bad the last few years as many here have thought.
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You mean, there's more to playing QB than standing like a statue in the pocket like Bradford & Goff??
 
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NJRamsFan said:
Agreed and I said as much in another one of my posts in this thread. It is not lost on me that the fear of Stafford beating the blitz, his pre-snap reads, and ability to torch the D deep is taking a lot of pressure off of the o-line. However I don't think Stafford's contributions and the O-line's elevated performance are mutually exclusive, the o-line is playing better this year than they have the past two.
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If the Rams have taught me anything the past few years, it's how much good run blocking protects the QB (Ds can't just pin their ears back). That's another factor Staff is benefitting from thus far.
 
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WestCoastRam said:
Interesting, on the 11 Personnel Podcast, Jourdan talks about Corbett doing a lot of communicating presnap on the line. Is it possible he's responsible for the line calls? Sounds like she was suggesting that.
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Some teams allow all of their and/or multiple offensive lineman, and of course the quarterback to point out things, (make line calls) pre-snap.
Mostly I see our guards pointing and yelling at players that they think might be sneaking through on a blitz.
Some of what they do is orchestrated to draw the other team offsides or at least keep the defense on their toes.

Another great thing that the Rams are coached at and do as well as anybody.
 
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Allen’s low sack totals are heavily assisted by the fact that he gets double team help from Corbett while Edwards does the heavy lifting with numerous one on one blocks.

When Allen does draw a one on one he is getting protection from Sony and Higbee. This is something stats don’t show but is very important to recognize.

When talking value and contract it would be unwise to prioritize Allen over Corbett or Edwards.
 
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Mojo Ram said:
I'm not sure you get what i'm saying. edit: and that's my fault for not explaining.

Everything is moving faster with #9. Have you noticed how when the Rams get to the LOS that there's usually still a good 10-12 sec left on the play clock vs before? I've been watching this. Stafford has time to check out or adjust protections etc.

Next, we all know Stafford is running primarily out of the gun vs a ton of behind the Center play action and roll outs like before. It's quicker into the play.

Next is the reads as you mentioned. Quicker. Then the release. Much faster...and finally the arm. The ball gets to the targets much quicker than before. All of these milliseconds add up in a game that moves fast for blockers.

The offense was plodding through Goff vs now...from playcall to the reads to the looping throw. Watch a Goff series from anywhere the last 2 years. With the exception of Blythe stinking it up occasionally the blocking was fine. Get the damn ball out. Guys are open. We've all seen it.
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For the most part I don't really disagree with you, though I have a different view. There is a chicken and egg or "after therefore because" aspect to this as well. But I have to give the oline the substantial credit for its own play.

I agree that McVay is calling plays faster and differently, as well as different plays, and speculate that he may be calling one play instead of two and leaving adjustments to Stafford. The play calling itself was very slow at times last year. As in time out calling slow. And I agree that Stafford has a quicker and more compact throwing motion and doesn't need to step up in the pocket nearly as much as Goff. These are advantages.

I would point out that Rams have run uptempo very successfully the last few years, so calling the offense in the past plodding is not the case across the board. And, factoring in injuries, imo the oline and receivers last year were not consistently good enough to support a downfield passing game without play action, which we didn't have.

I am done with QB comparisons, but I will say that our former QB was extremely successful when he had time to throw. And he threw plenty of dimes downfield in his years with the Rams. If you want give Stafford most of the credit now, that's fine, but it's a team game as we know from his time in Detroit.

And imo the oline this year is greatly improved on its own merits. They are the ones giving Stafford the time to drop back, read the field and throw. This imo enables Stafford to play at his best.

But it's a team game and right now there's plenty of credit to go around.
 
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Some of you are comparing apples to oranges. The 2019 Oline was completely decimated by injuries. The 2020 Oline had Whitworth missing 7 games, Edwards missing 3 games including the playoffs with Evans starting the GB game and getting destroyed, Blythe starting at center and Higbee injured or playing hurt most of the year. And yes his role in pass protection along with the RB is critical. For those that think last years protection is anything like what we have now you are out of your mind, or just don't actually watch the film. This doesn't mean we don't recognize Goff's inability to hold onto the ball or his deficiencies.

When we are excited about the O-line and Higbee being healthy and playing good ball we know what that means. In 2017-2018 it was the highest scoring offense in all the NFL for those of you that can't make the correlation. We are not making a case against Stafford's success or trying to justify our point. The entire point is Mcvay's offense is the best when the Oline is healthy and competent, Stafford or no Stafford. It's historical statistical fact you can actually look up on the internet. Let me repeat - when the Rams had a healthy Oline and blocking cast - They were the highest scoring offense over 32 games. They also made a Super Bowl without Cooper Kupp and an street free agent at RB. That is how far a healthy Oline can take you - even with a bum like Goff. Same reason Mahomes was castrated in the Super Bowl and couldn't do shit. Same reason the Niners had a top scoring offense and made the Super Bowl a few years ago with Jimmy at QB. Same reason Rodgers went from a 97 QB rating three years straight to a 121 QB rating when his Oline was rebuilt last year. A top O-line cannot win you a Super Bowl in itself but it is the best indicator of offensive success and can get you there even with an average QB as we have seen with Jimmy and loser Goff.

On a separate point we all are excited about what Stafford brings with his experience, deep ball and ball security - He also brings other things Goff didn't like using his fakes and eyes - and so far his poise under pressure. So be assured we are happy about him as well and do see his strengths. He's playing some awesome football right now. If we are fair, he's played 3 of the worst secondary's in the NFL that were banged up. One so bad they just freed up money to bring in 33 year old Dick Sherman.

I don't think anyone isn't happy with Stafford, he's our QB and we have moved on and love what he brings. Can he play good come playoffs and get us to a Super Bowl? I hope so, but I guarantee you it will be dependent on the Oline as history shows.
 
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IIRC the 2020 offensive line was doing well until Whitworth went down. Many of us were pining for him to come back for the playoffs; the run blocking in particular suffered for him not being in there.

Stafford as a veteran is doing many things at a higher level than Goff; but he took a lot of sacks in Detroit. The difference now is he's playing in a much healthier offense, one that allows him to fully realize his talent. For the most part, over the first three games, the Rams O has put stress and pressure on defences, putting them on their heels. Rams have been playing tied or ahead for all but two minutes of the first three weeks. As opposed to having to play uphill and letting the opposing pass rush tee off. 2020 Rams had the most punts and turnovers of any team that made the playoffs. It was a grind. Now they're playing much more loose and dictating to the other teams. Not to mention the return of the deep ball. Three TDs on that play so far this year which I believe is more than we've had in any one season in the McVay era.

So far the boys up front are getting it done.
 
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