Los Angeles Rams
2018 Record: (13-3) 1st NFC West
2018 Season Recap:
Offense
Points: 32.9 (2nd)
Yards: 421.1 (2nd)
Pass Yards: 281.7 (5th)
Rush Yards: 281.7 (5th)
Defense
Points: 24.0 (20th)
Yards: 358.6 (19th)
Pass Yards: 236.2 (14th)
Rush Yards: 122.3 (23rd)
Coming into the 2018 season after a disappointing finish to the
year prior, the Rams retooled and added more talent ultimately becoming one of
the league favorites to head to the Super Bowl back at the start of the
preseason.
With coach Sean McVay continuing his offensive genius creating
schemes that would make this offense put up numbers that would be tops in the
league, the Rams found themselves not losing a contest until week 9. Continuing
their dominance, the NFL world was treated to one of the best games in NFL history
on Monday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs. That contest proved
the Rams were indeed the best in the business.
Finishing the season with the 2nd best record in the
NFC (behind the Saints), the Rams saw some tough times during the 2019
postseason. Seeing a scare early verse the Dallas Cowboys, they ultimately found
their grove and displaced the Boys quite easily. Taking travel the following week
to New Orleans, the Rams became part of perhaps the most controversial outcomes
in playoff history. Seeing defensive back Robey-Coleman get away with an early
hit on the Saints receiver, it propelled the outcome to favor the Rams while
lifting them to the Super Bowl.
Entering Super Bowl week, the Rams held Vegas odds to be favored over
the Patriots. While the contest didn’t see the overall offensive output we all envisioned,
it truly was a defensive showing. To the dismay of the Rams faithful, their high-octane
unit went silent at the wrong time and couldn’t muster that great moxie to
bring them a championship.
2019 Offseason WorkBook:
The Coaching Staff
With the basic cast of characters returning for yet another season,
Sean McVay will continue to handle the offensive responsibilities and Wade
Phillips will hold steady as the defensive coordinator.
Getting to the Super Bowl and losing in the manner which they did,
a huge letdown the following season could transpire, but knowing McVay, he will
regroup and be that much hungrier. Having the same staff for the third season will
obviously aid in comradery and consistency.
The Offense
In reviewing this offense and what they were able to achieve in
year two of the McVay installation, it was truly incredible. Jared Goff went
from first round draft bust to gaining steam around the league of being one of
the better passers in the game. Setting career highs in almost every category,
Goff was proficient and precise form most of the year. There aren’t many negatives
we can point out in Goff’s game at this point and we should see him take
another leap in 2019.
When discussing the Rams running back situation, our circle can’t
get over the fact of how Todd Gurley wasn’t used in the latter points of the
season. Gurley was on a tear throughout the entire year literally getting close
to break many records in the process. As the season came to a close, Gurley was
clearly dealing with a knee injury which started back in that Monday shootout
with the Chiefs. Picking up CJ Anderson for insurance purposes paid great dividends,
as he was used greatly and produced to help the Rams move to the Super Bowl.
There is no question that Gurley is still the cream of the crop,
but with recent news that he is dealing with arthritis in his knee, it could
pose to be a problem in the future.
When discussing the Rams receiving core, we also have little negatives
to place on this group. Behind Robert Woods and Brandin Cooks, sprinkled with a
little Cooper Kupp. We could make the argument that this is the best all around
group of pass catchers in the NFL. The biggest issue which brought this unit
down form having all three hit the 1000-yard mark on the year was the injury to
Cooper Kupp. With that injury came more of an issue that people don’t really
speak of.
Cooper is an absolute beast over the middle and pulls so much
coverage from his teammates. When he was lost, the overall dynamic also changed.
When he returns (provided at full health), the Rams should pick up where they
left off here.
The Defense
The defensive group made headlines last offseason with the amount
of high-priced talent they brought to the fold. Having players like Suh, Talib,
Peters (just to name a few) were supposed to lead the shutdown prowess while
the offense ran up the score board.
While the overall dominance didn’t occur, the Rams defense did
show signs of strength. Led by super star, all world player Aaron Donald with
his whopping 20.5 sacks on the year, he was literally responsible for more than
50% of the team’s sacks in 2018. While that was an impressive self stat for
Donald, the lack of assistance from this line was a glaring issue for the
amount of money spent. With recent news that Dante Fowler has resigned with the
team, at least the positive of a pass rush will continue to move forward with
Folwer. With that already in the books, its clear that Ndamukong Suh will hit
the open market.
Perhaps the weakness of this defensive group could be the line backing
core. While Cory Littleton played admirably and led the team in tackles with a
healthy 125, his supporting cast wasn’t near good enough to help this defense
as a whole. This offseason should see more attention toward adding viable depth
to this group.
Moving toward the review of the defensive backfield, the Rams
still possess virtually the same group as last season with one great addition.
Los Angeles signed recently cut safety star Eric Weddle to a multi-year deal.
With this addition on the roster, the Rams might have appropriately solidified
the back end to help both Talib and Peters to take more chances to increase this
club’s interception rate.
All-in-all, this Rams defense should be able to find their way to
better outings and better production in 2019.
Team Free Agents / Team Salary Cap
For any club that just made it to the Super Bowl and employs a plethora
of talents which they do, the Rams have a fantastic 34 million (+$34,459,718)
on the books.
Even as the Rams hold a decent list of team free agents to contend
with, (27 in total) some have already been notified that they will not return.
Suh is surely a player that won’t find his way back given the amount of funds he
will ask for. Sam Shields may find a way back to the fold if he’s willing to
take a pay cut. CJ Anderson is a player that should generate a new deal with
the team as his productivity was great in relief of Gurley. Outside of that,
the Rams should look to go younger to retool the depth on this roster.
Normally while our main objective is to review the books and find appropriate
cap casualties to help in generating more funds for the team, in this case, it
may not be viable. The Rams will again be a team vying for the Super Bowl and
will pay as close to the cap as possible to get there. With Talib and Peters
contracts expiring at the end of 2019, money will organically come back to the
Rams to rebuild while staying relevant.
The NFL Draft
Entering the 2019 NFL Draft, the Rams currently hold 7 selections while
picking with the 31st pick in the first round.
While the Rams don’t have their 2nd round pick, they
have obtained an extra 3rd giving them three selections in the top
100 to add depth to this team.
Its our contention that the Rams should move on a more defensive
approach in this year draft class, while adding maybe one or two pieces on
offense. If the Rams can shore up the defense to be a true lock down unit, this
offense would have no issue lighting up that scoreboard.
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