Overall, this might be the 'funnest' Rams matchup to consider since 2001 vs NY Giants.....and that was a 15-14 game?
We have beaten some very good teams in the last 13 non-playoff years, but it wasn't because we were so talented on offense---in those games, maybe some things just turned our way--or the other team was expecting the 3-13 Rams and we punched them hard and early. HOWEVER, NOW, we are talking about teams that might not be able to match up with our offense! That is worthy of some 'matchup' conversation....I will save the Rams offense for last...
DALLAS O vs RAMS D:
Donald vs Dallas LG (not Martin)
Donald not against Martin is what Wade wants to do...and Wade knows that. Donald can be shifted to the LG side very easily. Brockers did pretty well, if I remember, against Dallas' line in our 2014 matchup.
Brockers vs Fredrik and RG/LG
This is a like the old LSU days for Brockers....this is why Fish drafted him. If he is healthy, he will dominate against the run. He is also a lot quicker than he has been the last few years; I think he weighs less (listed at 302 vs 325). The double teams will still get him, and we will be gashed, but they will not consistently move him out of the way. He is my favorite player on defense right.
Quinn vs Smith (LT)
Quinn will be erased. Even when he was pro bowl level he didn't match up aginst this guy.
Maybe we can get some chase down sacks with #50 (Ebukam) from the other side.
I wonder what kind of pass rush we will have from these three. Donald is great, but he can be doubled. It was Quinn that made people step up in the pocket....can he make Dak step up.
Dak vs our pass rush
Dak looks grat moving around, and it doesn't seem to bother his accuracy very much. Very impressive.
Though his timing and coordination with his WRs doesn't look so amazing. ( you can't see this form stats, you gotta see all his throws). I think we have to blitz to put pressure on Dak or he will eat us up with our mediocre CB play.
Zeke vs our LBs:
Well, we have Barron who is paid $9mill to erase guys like Zeke, and Barron when he is on is an amazing hunter. I think he and ALec will be on a mission...will we win, most of the time, maybe, no. But, if you look at 21 of Hyde's runs we did great, right....so, maybe.
TruJo vs any Dallas WR:
I don't know....hmmm, this might be his biggest game of the year....i get that feeling that he will step up, but he isn't SO talented that he can just handle Dez all alone....and I think Wade knows that.
RAMS O vs DALLAS D:
McVay knows Dallas D from the last two years. If you see the 2nd game, he was throwing aggressively out of the gate---maybe knowing they were the inferior team. WRs were opene every play the first quarter, and then everthing just shut down until the late 3rd quarter. The difference is McVay has Gurely---and that balance will keep Dallas guessing. Because of Dallas' offensive line, I think we will be under a lot of pressure to produce, and that might make us one dimensional--I hope McVay keeps the 50/50 run pass ratio. Gurley has been pretty much pro bowl level the last 2 games.
Everett vs LB or Safety:
I think Everett will be taken out of the mothballs (thigh bruise). To be diverse, and thus always keep the D guessing, Everett will be a key to our victory; once they have to worry about him, Watkins and Woods have bigger opportunities. Dallas loves the 6 DB look, but Everett can block, too....so, on 3rd and 3, I bet we run a few times. Arizona wasn't going to do that with Arians...McVay will.
Watkins vs Scandrick:
Watkins is very good, but Scandrick isn't scared. We need to go up top to keep him afraid, to bring that safety over. IN training camp, BS (before Sammy, lol) I could just see our WRs being shutdown, but now we have a guy who beat any non-pro bowl corner consistently. And, Goff is so accrate. Hopefully Sammy is healthy for this one.
Kupp vs who?
They put 6 DBs in a lot of times; I don't know if that helps Kupp, but I wonder if they rotate back to him a bit after big games by Watkins and Wood.
Our O line vs D Lawrence and Malik (DT)
I am not really worried about Havenstein so much. When someone gets 3 sacks on MNF, it is pretty rare they come back and destroy again...this is the NFL not highschool, and Havenstein is very smart and will be ok in pass pro 80% of the passes.....Lawrence vs AZ: he destroyed Valdeer play after play--won't happen with McVay. Arians has always allowed his tackles to suffer on an island, McVay isn't that stubborn---what is Derek Carrier for, anyway?
Gurley
Can Gurley get his 80-100 yards? I think the passing game puts enough fear in to the safeties that Gurley will continue to have some good series. Goff passing 30-35 times max is good, and Gurely is the anecdote.
Goff
He seems to be 'protected' by the system, the O line and McVay very well. Is D Lawrence such a talent as to destroy our wonderful thrower?--I don't think so. Marinelli is an old timer, and so I wonder what he will have up his sleeve with blitzes. Goff seems to have handle most pretty well, but the games feel very low in intensity so far these first three games. In Dallas that will change. Goff seems to be an extremely 'cool' guy during the game, like Montana, and I think that helps him handle the duress of people coming to attack. SOme team will find a way to make Goff look like a school boy, and it might be this game....Dallas is a playoff team, and we are still learning our offense, but I won't be suprised if Goff does well because McVay kind of knows the scheme and personel.
Oveeall:
I think the Rams might have a 'divisional rivalry' type of intensity for this one that seemed missing against the Redskins and against the 49ers (except for Gurley & Brockers!!!). The Rams might play like a young team in this one and we could lose 37-13, or we could win 27-23, or we could lose 27-23. THis game will tell us about the LEVEL of our offense. I know we can be top 15, but can we be top 8-10. If our offense puts up 27 points, then I say yes, and even if we lose the game then we are going to be a good team. If we put up 13 and kind of wimper, well then, we have a lot of work to do.
I say we put up at least 23. Why? Goff, Gurley, Watkins, Woods, Kupp, Everett, Whit, Hav and Sullivan are very smart players. Those smart players also happen to play their positions very well.....you can't stop all of that. Smart people figure out a way to win. We don't have Dez on offense who is an idiot. We don't have an Adrian Peterson, who after 10 years still can't run the right patterns and play on 3rd down passing situations. We are not Kenny Britt guy anymore!!!! NO, we are very, very smart and talented. ANd, we will shine.
Taking away the fact that I am a Ram fan I will say this: we may not win, but I am convinced that if we played in Week 12 we would win....the Rams are still finding out who they are. I think we are a better "team" than Dallas----but they have playoff experience and we are still learning our systems. OUr defenses may be about even, but our O, though not as dominant Dallas can be when they run at 180 a game, is truly a better NFL offense....and time will bear that out. But, for now, do we really think Goff is the 3rd most efficient passer in the NFL. The stats say yes, but the reality is we haven't played a VERY GOOD defense AND put up 30 points.
The Score might be around 27-23, 30-27,30-23. ANd if we played ten times, we both would win 5 each. This Sunday the Rams might surprise themselves.
