A complete and total disaster tonight, but it was just 1 game. And week 1 at that. No need to panic , but some worrying signs.
The OL looks awful. Now consider how common injuries are in the trenches. And imagine if Noteboom - who is injury prone - gets hurt for any extended period of time.
Hopefully, things will improve. This unit has a bunch of new starters, and had not played a meaningful snap together before tonight, as McVay rests starters in pre-season (I think wisely, despite tonight's trouncing, which McVay's opening night records speaks to). But if things do not improve, the season might well be over before it starts for the 2022-23 Rams. No running lanes. No time to throw. And the Bills never even had to stack the box or rush more than 4 to do it.
It would be a huge boost to the o-line if Logan Bruss can improve as the season goes on and earn a roster spot.
Allen Robinson with one target all night is deeply troubling considering he was open many times. Correction - he had two targets, with his 2nd coming on the last play of the game, when Stafford threw him a complete prayer, which probably only rubbed salt in the wound. Not good. Hopefully, as chemistry and timing and trust builds between Robinson and Stafford, ARob will be more involved, and prove to be a weapon. It's just 1 game. But if not, the Robinson signing will prove to be a huge waste of cap space. And as great a Kupp is, a one-man show on offense will not cut it. Better teams will be able to take that away to some degree. The Rams' offense really took off last year when OBJ gave us a 2nd dynamic threat. We need to get ARob involved and fast.
Stafford's throws looked off tonight. Too early to say if it is the elbow or not. More likely, it was a product of him being under duress all inght IMO. Time will tell. But if Matthew's elbow is shot, that spells trouble.
New OC Liam Cohen did not have a very good showing. But again, with the o-line play, it is hard to tell.
Benny Skow had a really encouraging outing as a possession receiver, but he continues to look lost on deep routes. Stop using him there. By contrast, Tutu couldn't hang onto the ball with his one target. Atwell's time in horns might be limited.
The RBs had nothing to work with but I thought Hendo looked the better of the two. Time will tell if Akers can bounce back post-injury. He did not look good tonight, but to my eye, it was mostly the run blocking that was to blame.
Ramsey gets beat deep far too often for a top tier CB. But he is still among the best in the NFL. I don't get the hate in the GDT for Jalen.
The defence has room for improvement, but played alright IMO. They were on the field all night. Against a team like Buffalo, that will burn you every time. This was always a game that would likely need 30+ points to win. 3 turnovers is a nice output. We needed to force more punts, but in the modern NFL, the best offenses will move the ball on you and score points. It's the reality of the NFL. And Buffalo is one of, if not the best offenses. The LBers look much improved. Hill seems to be an upgrade on Williams, or at least the 2021-22 version of Wlliams. There is potential for this defence yet. Jury is still out on if Morris can dial up a stifling defence without the luxury of both Von Miller and AD99 in his front 7... time will tell.
Even apart from all of the above, the Bills just seemed to want it more tonight.
Lots of questions that will soon be answered with the passage of time. It is important not to over-react to one game. But definitely some worrying thoughts to consider.
