PhxRam
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[www.stltoday.com]
As defensive coordinators go, Gregg Williams was a sensible hire by the Rams. He specializes in applying pressure, especially on third down, and that should help the 2014 Rams tighten a bad pass defense and reduce the high number of big plays given up last season.
So even though Williams brings plenty of “Bountygate” baggage to the gig, he’s good at what he does. And I’m confident that he’ll find ways to get the Rams’ defense to reach its potential. Adding a safety and cornerback would help the cause.
Now we’re left to wonder: What are coach Jeff Fisher’s plans for the offense? The Rams established a sturdy power running game last season, and that gave them something to build on. But you need more than that to find success in the NFC West.
We’ll say it again: The Rams have to score more points.
The Rams’ offense did improve its points-scored total in 2013. And they did it with Kellen Clemens starting nine games in place of the injured Sam Bradford at quarterback.
The Rams should benefit from Bradford’s return in 2014, but let’s not get carried away. They averaged 22.2 points in Sam’s seven starts last season and nearly matched that with Clemens at QB.
No matter who was playing QB, the Rams continued to lag behind their division rivals. Their offense scored 304 points in 2013, trailing Seattle (385), San Francisco (369) and Arizona (340).
These totals don’t include points scored on defense or special teams. We’re talking offense only here, and the 12 NFL playoff teams averaged 25 points a game in ‘13. The Rams’ offense averaged only 19.
Fisher talks about closing the gap in the NFC West. And he’s gone through defensive coordinators faster than Tony La Russa used to go through short relievers in the late innings of close games.
For all of the attention paid to the defense, this team won’t catch up to Seattle, San Francisco or Arizona by averaging 19 points a game. The Rams don’t rattle anyone with their passing game, and some people like to hang most of that on Bradford.
Fine. But at some point you’d think the Rams would hire a receiver capable of making a defense worry. Maybe Tavon Austin will develop into such a weapon. Or perhaps we’ll see one of the other young receivers step up. But when you see a Chris Givens regress in his second NFL season, as he did in 2013, it doesn’t exactly inflate the confidence.
Between 2009 and 2013, NFL receivers put up at least 700 yards receiving in a season 260 times. And over those five seasons, here’s the number of Rams who accumulated at least 700 yards receiving in a year: zero.
Over the past five years, 50 NFL receivers have caught at least 10 touchdown passes in a season. And the Rams? They haven’t had a receiver gather more than seven touchdown passes in a season since Torry Holt grabbed 10 in 2006.
There haven’t been any meaningful changes to Fisher’s coaching staff on the offensive side, so I guess we should blame all of this on the quarterback and the receivers.
It’s great to see Coach Fisher make a move to upgrade his defense. But successful teams also make it a priority to score points.
As defensive coordinators go, Gregg Williams was a sensible hire by the Rams. He specializes in applying pressure, especially on third down, and that should help the 2014 Rams tighten a bad pass defense and reduce the high number of big plays given up last season.
So even though Williams brings plenty of “Bountygate” baggage to the gig, he’s good at what he does. And I’m confident that he’ll find ways to get the Rams’ defense to reach its potential. Adding a safety and cornerback would help the cause.
Now we’re left to wonder: What are coach Jeff Fisher’s plans for the offense? The Rams established a sturdy power running game last season, and that gave them something to build on. But you need more than that to find success in the NFC West.
We’ll say it again: The Rams have to score more points.
The Rams’ offense did improve its points-scored total in 2013. And they did it with Kellen Clemens starting nine games in place of the injured Sam Bradford at quarterback.
The Rams should benefit from Bradford’s return in 2014, but let’s not get carried away. They averaged 22.2 points in Sam’s seven starts last season and nearly matched that with Clemens at QB.
No matter who was playing QB, the Rams continued to lag behind their division rivals. Their offense scored 304 points in 2013, trailing Seattle (385), San Francisco (369) and Arizona (340).
These totals don’t include points scored on defense or special teams. We’re talking offense only here, and the 12 NFL playoff teams averaged 25 points a game in ‘13. The Rams’ offense averaged only 19.
Fisher talks about closing the gap in the NFC West. And he’s gone through defensive coordinators faster than Tony La Russa used to go through short relievers in the late innings of close games.
For all of the attention paid to the defense, this team won’t catch up to Seattle, San Francisco or Arizona by averaging 19 points a game. The Rams don’t rattle anyone with their passing game, and some people like to hang most of that on Bradford.
Fine. But at some point you’d think the Rams would hire a receiver capable of making a defense worry. Maybe Tavon Austin will develop into such a weapon. Or perhaps we’ll see one of the other young receivers step up. But when you see a Chris Givens regress in his second NFL season, as he did in 2013, it doesn’t exactly inflate the confidence.
Between 2009 and 2013, NFL receivers put up at least 700 yards receiving in a season 260 times. And over those five seasons, here’s the number of Rams who accumulated at least 700 yards receiving in a year: zero.
Over the past five years, 50 NFL receivers have caught at least 10 touchdown passes in a season. And the Rams? They haven’t had a receiver gather more than seven touchdown passes in a season since Torry Holt grabbed 10 in 2006.
There haven’t been any meaningful changes to Fisher’s coaching staff on the offensive side, so I guess we should blame all of this on the quarterback and the receivers.
It’s great to see Coach Fisher make a move to upgrade his defense. But successful teams also make it a priority to score points.