Raheem Morris discussion thread

[Mackeyser]

I think there's still a chance for him to enter the offseason as a hot commodity. He's going to need to finish strong and unfuck where he's come up short thus far.

He's sitting on a defensive front that can eat QBs. To do that he must have these DBs do a better job on the underneath routes and early reads. If he can get that going then this defense should round into shape as most teams won't have good enough protections to keep their QB safe unless they're dishing it out really quick.

So remove the quick outlets and start covering those hots. Then I think we'll see some QBs panicking instead of sustaining drives.

That's been my point.

His scheme is all about "nothing over the top" and giving the offenses multiple chances to "make a mistake".

Well, the good teams can and have shown against this all start defensive roster to be able to dink and dunk us to death while taking 40 mins off the clock.

It's a scheme that's terrible against good teams in the regular season, but absolute DEATH in the post-season.

I mean, unless we expect 4 teams to disintegrate as we play them... seems like an awful lot to ask.

 

[sjm1582002]

Don't mean to interupt the Morris bashing but I was persuing some team D stats and lo and behold the Ram's run D comes in at #2 in the NFL yielding only 3.8 yards a rush.

Nothing pisses me off more than getting out muscled by the opponent in the run game.

We now return you to the normally scheduled bitching about the coaches.

 

[Mackeyser]

Don't mean to interupt the Morris bashing but I was persuing some team D stats and lo and behold the Ram's run D comes in at #2 in the NFL yielding only 3.8 yards a rush.

Nothing pisses me off more than getting out muscled by the opponent in the run game.

We now return you to the normally scheduled bitching about the coaches.

3 straight rushes of 3.8 gets you a first down.

And while some of the critiques are just bitching, not all of it is.

It's fine to just "root, root, root" for one's team.

That said, some of us really enjoy dissecting the schemes, the Xs and Os, so to speak. We've certainly spoken very highly of both the offense and defense when they've excelled. Why would it be any different if someone looking with a critical eye (not in the pejorative sense, but in the analytical sense) saw something that required significant change or the poor outcomes would continue?

Bottom line is that the scheme is terrible, doesn't fit our defensive players and worse, actually makes them make extraordinary plays for ordinary results. The ONLY time it's remotely redeemable is when we're playing with a lead. Not straight up or behind... with a lead...ONLY.

Now, if we'd gone down by 10 and then fought back to win by 30, THAT would have been a whole different kettle of fish.

The big test comes on Monday. I mean, we'll know because Reeder will be on Nuke and Ramsey will be guarding a paraplegic grandmother who runs a 5 hour 40 yard dash...

I mean, I really hope NOT to see that... I'd rather Ramsey shut Nuke down, but we'll see... seeing Reeder on Davonte Adams was just... I dunno how to put it... I was shocked beyond words...me!... of all people!

 

[Merlin]

I will say sometimes in any given gameplan the other team might figure out a way to get a matchup that is insanely bad for you. The great DCs simply adjust that look/check immediately and contain the damage. Also the great ones generally don't have that happen all that much.

It happens to Morris a bit more than I like to see. But we are 8-4 and IF he can get this unit to play well and we get through this nasty December stretch in good shape he's gonna be real popular in the offseason.

The players obviously love him too btw and that does carry some weight with me. There's a lot of shit that goes beyond X's and O's and that stuff he's got down IMO. The leadership stuff. He just has to keep working on his gameplanning, to me that's where he's come up short the most. He has to recognize that most teams are going to want to dish it quick and take that away so his front can feast. Call it to his players' strengths basically.

 

[Merlin]

Don't mean to interupt the Morris bashing but I was persuing some team D stats and lo and behold the Ram's run D comes in at #2 in the NFL yielding only 3.8 yards a rush.

Nothing pisses me off more than getting out muscled by the opponent in the run game.

We now return you to the normally scheduled bitching about the coaches.

Pretty sure I recognized him and the defense for that in previous posts. But when you play certain teams like say the 9ers they will take advantage of your soft coverage to convert a fresh set of downs and keep mashing you on the ground until your defense tires out.

I think if I was gameplanning vs Shanny I'd totally flip the script. Play Cover 3 and 0 with DBs rolled up tight at the LOS and make Garoppolo beat us. He would shit the bed for certain IMO.

 

[OldSchool]

Don't mean to interupt the Morris bashing but I was persuing some team D stats and lo and behold the Ram's run D comes in at #2 in the NFL yielding only 3.8 yards a rush.

Nothing pisses me off more than getting out muscled by the opponent in the run game.

We now return you to the normally scheduled bitching about the coaches.

Excellent point, people dislike the man enough (a few have even gone beyond the boards rules to call him stupid) and lose site of the fact that on a per carry basis only 1 team in the NFL is better at stopping the run. We've been beat up by a couple teams on the ground but on the season we're doing very well against the run especially by this metric.

 

[Merlin]

Gaines and Jones are coming on for us. Bigtime.

 

[Kupped]

D comes out.. creates a turnover that directly contributes to the lead…

Makes some adjustments like having Williams in man coverage more and Jones on the field more..

But.. yeah… Morris is awful.

 

[Kupped]

Rochell played 1 snap.
Long 0.
Burgess 8.
There is just not anything in the cupboard at the moment, it seems.

Lewis didn’t play a snap either.

I did see Rapp dropping down with Jones & Scott added high.

 

[TexasRam]

Gaines and Jones are coming on for us. Bigtime.

No doubt. This we can agree on. I wasn't high on Jones based on what I saw in preseason but he has really played some solid ball and been a menace out there. So good call on that, I believe you were holding out hopes for him. If he could continue to ascend is might really lift the Defense over what we see with Reeder. And Gaines. My owe my. Dude has been looking like a pro bowler honestly. Destroying run, pressuring the QB and running down QB's which is just insane for a 312 fat dude. Looks like Kung Fu Panda out there.

 

[TexasRam]

D comes out.. creates a turnover that directly contributes to the lead…

Makes some adjustments like having Williams in man coverage more and Jones on the field more..

But.. yeah… Morris is awful.

It was the Jags dude. Any scheme is normally going to suceed vs them.

Sitting back and letting a rookie QB make mistakes is probably a fine approach in that situation.

People are upset about the schemes vs the Packers, Zona and Niners of the world. Soft zone. Not covering go to WR’s with Ramsey keeping Reeder and Rapp on the field when they are terrible. Also, how about using the jags game to see what literally any other DB could do instead of Rapp?

Now given, more Jones was good. More Williams in man was a good start.

But I would put all my Rod dollars that you will see Rapp giving up more third down conversions vs the Cards because of Morris stubbornness.

I would literally try anything different. I would even use Miller to drop back in the middle and spy Murray while covering the WR flooding the zone. We saw this at least once in the Jags game and Miller nearly picked it. We have others that can generate edge rush, so I would consider using his speed in our most vulnerable, perhaps the NFL's most vulnerable spot.

 

[El Chapo Jr]

We need to just clamp down tight and not give their WRs any room to breathe so our pass rush squashes that lil midget. If we play that soft coverage, we are essentially gifting yardage away. Also, we need to just play them physical as hell. Would like to see us beat up on them to re-establish that we are the alphas. Bring the hard hats out please.

 

[Tano]

It was the Jags dude. Any scheme is normally going to suceed vs them.

Sitting back and letting a rookie QB make mistakes is probably a fine approach in that situation.

People are upset about the schemes vs the Packers, Zona and Niners of the world. Soft zone. Not covering go to WR’s with Ramsey keeping Reeder and Rapp on the field when they are terrible. Also, how about using the jags game to see what literally any other DB could do instead of Rapp?

Now given, more Jones was good. More Williams in man was a good start.

But I would put all my Rod dollars that you will see Rapp giving up more third down conversions vs the Cards because of Morris stubbornness.

I would literally try anything different. I would even use Miller to drop back in the middle and spy Murray while covering the WR flooding the zone. We saw this at least once in the Jags game and Miller nearly picked it. We have others that can generate edge rush, so I would consider using his speed in our most vulnerable, perhaps the NFL's most vulnerable spot.

I have stated a few times that Morris scheme will work against teams that do not have decent veteran QBs

New York Giants
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
Seahawks even once Wilson went down
Even Tennessee since I am not that big of a fan of Tannehill without his RB

Lions - we were just lucky that the Lions really suck because Goff was doing well against us for a lot of the game

Tampa Bay - we just have Brady's number for some reason the last few years

We got lucky that Chicago Bears and Indianapolis Colts could not get in the end zone on their first few drives against that scheme.

Our defensive stats are overstated primarily due to the first 4 games listed above and Tennessee had no running game to speak of.

 

[Ellard80]

Excellent point, people dislike the man enough (a few have even gone beyond the boards rules to call him stupid) and lose site of the fact that on a per carry basis only 1 team in the NFL is better at stopping the run. We've been beat up by a couple teams on the ground but on the season we're doing very well against the run especially by this metric.

Our run defense has been good most of the year outside of a couple.. mainly the cardinals game.

 

[MachS]

So Morris took Reeder off the field in every known passing situation for Ernest Jones and a lot of times even on early downs. Rapp dropped down and played LB in those situations as well.

Almost like Morris reads this board from time to time. Who woulda thought? What a genius this guy is to utilize his players in a way that fit their skill set.

 

[El Chapo Jr]

So Morris took Reeder off the field in every known passing situation for Ernest Jones and a lot of times even on early downs. Rapp dropped down and played LB in those situations as well.

Almost like Morris reads this board from time to time. Who woulda thought? What a genius this guy is to utilize his players in a way that fit their skill set.

Smart teams will run hurry up if they see Reeder on the field. I say the less of him we see, the better. He's a backup, not a starter.

 

[So Ram]

I don't know what you're disagreeing with.

Fuller was great last year and has been better this year.

DD is a scrappy guy who's okay as a 5th corner on a roster... not as a 3rd. Way too small and too limited to rely upon.

JJ *with the Rams* and Hill *with the Rams* were much, much, MUCH better than the guys who have replaced them and it's not close. JJ rated out at an 85 on PFF last year... Rapp's at 62 and the eyeball test confirms there's a huge gap. Hill was 74 last year and Long is a 62 and Deayon is a 66.. and that doesn't even factor in that Hill played three positions well.

The drop off from those two losses in the defensive backfield has been really big.

I don’t agree as of NOW. Yes JJ was playing at a high level,but Jalen RAMsey has taken over there. So in that SENSE totally disagree!

DD21 is just as good as Troy Hill imo because he does get moved around & doesn’t have to a cover CB.He was on the practice squad & David Long was being counted on. He is back on the bench.

RR31 is going to be an excellent CB & has a way better future than David Long so my point is depth is there.

Burgees is healthy & can’t even get on the field.All these posters that made such a big deal about his injury.I’d say he is just as good now.

Nick Scott is getting some good Reps at FS. I like him as well.

My point is DD21 is a Key player on The Rams D”. Mcvay said in the first 2 losses how much he was missed.He is underrated & I’m always going to be in The NOW.
I like The Rams defense more now than last season as a whole. SJD69 I wonder if he will get back healthy? Hollins is coming back. Now Lewis is back on bench.I’m a next man up type.JJ’s comp pick won’t be missed or his salary cap.
-Troy Hill gets all kinds of credit for his time as a Ram.Would I want him now? No - I believe this defense is really starting to play well together.

 

[So Ram]

So Morris took Reeder off the field in every known passing situation for Ernest Jones and a lot of times even on early downs. Rapp dropped down and played LB in those situations as well.

Almost like Morris reads this board from time to time. Who woulda thought? What a genius this guy is to utilize his players in a way that fit their skill set.

It’s situational. Each game is of its own.He can see what’s going on. Raheem Morrisnis a very smart & experienced coach.

Troy Reeder was in a passing down though one on one in the middle for a 3rd & 4. Lawrence went to a WR with RAMSey on him. Aaron Rogers & Jimmy G would have had a easy 1st. Down.

Ernest Jones is starting to come into his own.This is a process,so to think success just comes over night? Jones wasn’t a plug & play player.

Why did The Rams trade Kenny Young ? This Arizona game is going to look like what ? Good test. IMO The Rams win.

 

[Kupped]

It was the Jags dude. Any scheme is normally going to suceed vs them.

Sitting back and letting a rookie QB make mistakes is probably a fine approach in that situation.

People are upset about the schemes vs the Packers, Zona and Niners of the world. Soft zone. Not covering go to WR’s with Ramsey keeping Reeder and Rapp on the field when they are terrible. Also, how about using the jags game to see what literally any other DB could do instead of Rapp?

Now given, more Jones was good. More Williams in man was a good start.

But I would put all my Rod dollars that you will see Rapp giving up more third down conversions vs the Cards because of Morris stubbornness.

I would literally try anything different. I would even use Miller to drop back in the middle and spy Murray while covering the WR flooding the zone. We saw this at least once in the Jags game and Miller nearly picked it. We have others that can generate edge rush, so I would consider using his speed in our most vulnerable, perhaps the NFL's most vulnerable spot.

If we're gonna use... "it was the Jags dude".. .we can use that for the offense as well and say that nothing matters.

But it actually does and they made actual adjustments.

I'm well aware of what people are upset about.. I'm pointing out what happened in the game and the fact that the Rams made at least two adjustments that should help with the aspects you're complaining about.. they had Williams up on the line more and put Jones in a bunch more at primary ILB. I also saw more of Scott up high with Rapp alongside Jones than I remember, but it could've ben about the same.

I'm laughing about the Rapp comment because.. as I've been saying.. he ain't JJ .. and that's part of the problem. It's not only a usage thing, Morris simply doesn't have the tools.
Bring Rapp down all the time and run a single high? They do not have the horses for that.. at all.

Morris does mix things up, there's only so much he can do with the guys he has in the defensive backfield.

Heck.. I don't know what Rochell did in practice this week.. but he only got one snap on D.. against the Jags. Ouch.

 

[Kupped]

I have stated a few times that Morris scheme will work against teams that do not have decent veteran QBs

New York Giants
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
Seahawks even once Wilson went down
Even Tennessee since I am not that big of a fan of Tannehill without his RB

Lions - we were just lucky that the Lions really suck because Goff was doing well against us for a lot of the game

Tampa Bay - we just have Brady's number for some reason the last few years

We got lucky that Chicago Bears and Indianapolis Colts could not get in the end zone on their first few drives against that scheme.

Our defensive stats are overstated primarily due to the first 4 games listed above and Tennessee had no running game to speak of.

Other teams in the NFL benefit from playing bad offenses or teams in a bad stretch. Seattle barely won and didn't have to deal with Deebo or Warner.
It's the league.