Redskins beat Rams 9-7; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

[Curly Horns]

Thanks for your comment regarding my writeup being laughable ferter. You are certainly invited to take a shot at it yourself once in a while instead of just taking a shot at me.

That said, you make a very fair point that jackson missed that hole. He absolutely should have hit it. No guarantee he gets in the end zone of course, but it should have been a big game. Jackson made several outstanding plays during the game and without him, we arent in the game. Avery was a disaster all game long with multiple drops in addition to the crucial fumble. I am sure it looks easy on the replay to hit the correct hole every time, and of course its not as simple as it looks.

As for scheme, spags is not a magician. You can scheme all you want, the players have to execute. Talent is still the key coaching alone wont do a thing. We lack the talent to get to the passer without blitzing, its that simple.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

Oh, you're quite welcome! Just to be clear it was not your entire write up that was laughable and I never indicated that it was the entire write up.

It was the fact that you were not really being fair by indicating Avery quite possibly cost us the game.

Whether I write something up like this is not really the point. A fan of your knowledge knows better than to lay blame on one individual. Or at least I hope you know better.

And just for the record - I don't think our talent is as bad as you constantly claim it is.

GO DEM RAMS!!!

[NJ Ramsfan1]

One of the things you're taught from an early age in athletics is the mantra of "winning and losing as a team". It is both honorable and in the interests of team harmony to not blame one guy or throw a teammate under the bus. And many times you can indeed point out dozens of instances where multiple guys made mistakes that were costly.

The truth, however, is that there ARE occasions where you can trace a loss (or a win) to one or two guys who are involved in a pivotal play which turns the tide. Donnie Avery cost us dearly today by committing a cardinal sin: not protecting the football in the red zone on what undoubtedly would have been a field goal at the very least.

Donnie owes the Rams one. He's been non-existent in two games and the only distinction he's brought upon himself has been negative. It's time he starts playing to potential.

[Mooselini]

Good analysis as always GC. I always look forward to these.

I watched the game, and I will say our defense looked good out there when it mattered. Stopping them in the redzone shows us a lot about this squad. We still need a pass rush. No clue as to why Adeyanju sat again. Ah You almost got the Campbell though.

I thought it was an assisted sack by Long, but the hell if I know how stats work.

As stated last week. Get Jackson rolling! Look how we were in the game because play by Jackson. When Jackson is on a roll, so are the Rams. It's been proven time and time again.


We need to work on clock management. I thought Martz was coaching again. We burned through timeouts like nerds burn through dungeon and dragon manuals. It was ridiculous!

Overall, better play by our boys. Now comes the Pack. Gotta score this time.

[general counsel]

I dont see how you can claim that Avery didnt "possibly" cost us the game. It certainly did POSSIBLY cost us the game. I didnt say that it definitively cost us the game and your response is that Jackson missing the hole cost us the game. How is it laughable that a fumble on the five yard line when we should have had first and goal in the fourth quarter of a very close game "possibly" cost us the game. How is that not a crucial play in your mind and how is it less important than jackson missing the hole when even if he hits the hole it doesnt mean he gets into the end zone.

Furthermore, you are certainly entitled to your opinion on the talent level on the rams. Your view is certainly in the distinct minority and i am not talking about people on this board. You can say that no one in the national media knows anything but i dont believe that. We have won 5 games in 2 years. Are you suggesting that we are talented and thats all on the coaches? We havent had a winning team in many years. There can be no debating spags credentials as a defensive coach. The giants had a great pass rush. The rams have none. Are you seriously going to tell me its because the rams have talent and that spags cant make them play and in two games against at best decent teams we have one sack and about two qb hits and thats because our talent level is fine.

Tell me which rams at this point of their careers on either the offensive or defensive line are above average in talent? I am not talking about potential (ie jason smith) or past glory (leonard little) i am talking about right now. Tell me about the current talent of our wide recievers. Talk to me about the entire team other than donnie jones and josh brown and tell me how many rams starters are above average in talent let alone outstanding.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

[RamsSB99]

I did not get to see todays game because of a family get together. I listened to most of the first half on the radio while driving in the car. From what little I heard today and saw the first game Laurinatis has been good as a MLB. The thing I would like to know about this game is how Bartell and Butler looked in coverage. I thought those two were sub par in the first game. I thought Wade looked better then Bartell in the first game. Laurent sounds like our #1 WR and Avery is starting to concern me. McMichael dropped what they described on the radio as a very catchable ball in the end zone. I did not get to see it but I also thought he did not have a very good first game. Fells maybe the better answer before the season is over IMO. I also would like to see them use Jackson more in the passing game especially since Avery has been unproductive and McMichael has been a little eratic. Again can someone that watched the game tell me how Bartell did in coverage? It seemed like he was playing to far off the first game and allowing a lot of completions. It sounds like Lajuan Ramsey had a good game at DT. What other guys seen the most time at DT today?

[blood85]

Well friends, there is a pulse, but the Rams came up short today to the Redskins losing 9-7. Aided but some spectacular defense in the red zone (specifically inside the 10 yard line), the Rams followed the projected script for the season (Pound the Big Boy, shorten the game, and pray on defense) to perfection, only to see a costly fumble by donnie avery midway through the fourth quarter cost the Rams a first and goal inside the 5. The Rams fought hard all game, but lousy offensive line play continues to make it very tough for the Rams to get the ball down the field and create big plays and we have little or no ability to pressure the qb, making it really tough on the secondary, even on third and long.

The Good

Another nice game for Laurent Robinson. Great pickup for the Rams. Nice catch on a beautiful td throw by bulger at the goal line. 6 catches for 54 yards.
Terrific 58 yard run for Jackson, who wound up 17-104 and seemed to be picking up steam at the end. We were much more successful running in the second half as the game wore on. I was surprised that we didnt pound jackson twice at the end rather than trying the pass to robinson on 3rd and 2 when we were on the redskins 42 yard line.
Donnie Jones must have felt like it was a day off as he had only 4 punts for a 43.3 average , with one nice one inside the 20.
Bulger played with a lot of guts today, making some very tough throws under pressure. He had some drops (mcmichael and avery) which hurt him and we just dont have the protection to get the ball down the field. He checked off nicely time after time and wound up 15-28 125 yards and a td. Anyone miss ike and holt yet? Plenty of people will blame bulger again, but i dont personally see how. He moved nicely, didnt throw an INT (although he got lucky a couple of times) and got rid of the ball quickly to avoid the sacks. I am not suggesting he was great, but he isnt the problem. We need better offensive line play and better play from the receivers.
James Hall recorded the Rams first sack of the year. One total sack in two games and i think we only hit campbell a couple of times. Lack of pass rush is killing us.
We stopped the skins three times inside the 10 yard line to keep us in the game. Not a great game by the dline, but scoring is the name of the game and if we hold our opponents to 9 points a week, i am sure we will do better.
Nice fumble caused by bartell.
Two nice key catches by burton.


The Bad

Avery was AWFUL today. 1 catch for 4 yards (and he fumbled the ball on the five yard line after that catch which may have cost us the game). By my count, he had four drops, a fumble and a holding penalty. He dropped a pass on third down on the first series that was a little behind him but still hit him in the hands. He tries to run before he catches the ball which is obviously not good for a receiver.

Our pass rush is non existent and along with our weak offensive line, explains for than anything why we are in full rebuilding mode.
Will the Rams ever cover a tight end? 7 catches or 83 yards for cooley and many other catches over the middle of the defense.
We struggle getting off the field on third down, but i think thats mainly due to no functional pass rush.
Jason Smith got hurt today, goldberg played the second half. Announcer said knee, i have no idea how bad it is. Obviously, we need much improved offensive line play to give bulger and jackson a chance to make plays.


The Ugly

Our second half timeout management was awful, which may have cost us at the end. A timeout on a quasi fake punt when you want to take the five yards anyway? We still arent getting the plays in on time.
The false start by Fells on 3rd and 1 was ugly and totally stupid.


The Rams certainly didnt quit today, but the lack of talent on both sides of the line is painfully obvious and its where we need to improve and improve a lot to be a competitive team. The Packers are next, hope springs eternal.

Ramming speed to all

general counsel

so what else is new GC?

[RamsInfiniti]

I cannot even begin to tell you how ridiculous the statement "lack of talent" is when it applies to professional athletes ...

How much "talent" did Larry Bird have?

There is no lack of "talent" on any professional team ...

[rammiser]

Ha! Ha!

Laughable that there is no mention of Jackson not following a HUGE hole opened up by Karney on the play prior to the Avery fumble.

If Jackson follows his big lead blocking FB then he scores an easy TD. What a bonehead decision by Jackson and you make claim that perhaps Avery cost us the game?

Well, if you are going to put blame on individuals put some on Jackson. If he follows the block we are not discussing the Avery play!

Jackson missing the hole was mentioned. That hardly cost us the game though. So he made one bad read and it's his fault the Rams lost? You mean him running for 104 yds on 17 carries cost us the game because he missed one read and didnt follow Karney? Donnie Avery on the other hand dropping the ball four times and fumbling on the five yd line where we would have 1st and goal gets a pass? Avery also committed another penalty on another long Jackson run. Luckily this time he did it at the end of Jacksons run and not at the start like last week. It just amazes me when people want to always blame Jackson and Bulger for everything that happens with this team. Sure they are the leaders of the team but Jackson missing a hole hardly cost us the game. Where would we have been had Jackson not played?

If you want to see how nice it is to get time as a qb watch how long Campbell got to stand in the pocket all game long today. Bulger on the other hand was getting crushed a lot right after he threw the ball. Anyone who questions Bulgers leadership is just downright in denial. He got hammered by Fatsworth on a scramble where he ran and slid and he was hurting. You could see him cringing in the huddle a few plays after that but still managed to march the team down the field. Give Bulger a little more time and this team might actually score more than 7 points.

Why Darby is on this team and not Pittman is beyond me. He goes down when the wind blows too hard and is absolutely terrible on kick returns. I would have rather had Pittman over Darby any day of the week.

Sure our defense was great inside the 10 but terrible everywhere else. No pressure all game long on Campbell absolutley is killing this team. Our corners cant hang with wr's for 5 seconds every play. If we cant find some way to get a push up the middle or on the edge we might not win 2 games this year. We play like that against good team and we will give up tons of points. I think the Skins becamse a bit inept inside the 20. Great effort but we need more stops before teams get into the redzone.

There are too many defenders getting through our line with little resistance on runs and passes that it is making it very difficult to execute plays. I'm sure it will be said im making excuses for Bulger but go back and look at the time campbell had compared to Bulger and tell me which one would be easier to execute an offense behind. Sure Bulger isnt playing great but he sure the hell isnt playing bad either. I dont know if we arent going down the field very often because of the o-line or because of the wr's but we need to stretch the field every now and then.

So say what you want but Avery definately cost us this game. We went from having a 1st and goal at the five to giving the momentum back to the Skins. I guess I just dont get someone wanting to blame Jackson when clearly Avery was the most terrible player on the field today.

[Birdbrain]

Glad Robinson is working out for you.Couldn't stay healthy in ATL.Hope he has a big year.Definately talented.

[Goldenfleece]

I cannot even begin to tell you how ridiculous the statement "lack of talent" is when it applies to professional athletes ...

How much "talent" did Larry Bird have?

There is no lack of "talent" on any professional team ...

It's all relative. Compared to the general population, of course, everybody who has made an NFL roster has a great deal of talent. At the same time, there are some guys who put up great stats every year and make it look easy; and then there are some guys who find themselves fighting for their job every season.

Why Darby is on this team and not Pittman is beyond me. He goes down when the wind blows too hard and is absolutely terrible on kick returns. I would have rather had Pittman over Darby any day of the week.

It seemed to me that last season Darby was one of our better backs at blitz pickups. And although he had far fewer carries than Pittman last season, his 4.4 yard/carry average was better than Pittman's 3.7.

There are too many defenders getting through our line with little resistance on runs and passes that it is making it very difficult to execute plays. I'm sure it will be said im making excuses for Bulger but go back and look at the time campbell had compared to Bulger and tell me which one would be easier to execute an offense behind. Sure Bulger isnt playing great but he sure the hell isnt playing bad either. I dont know if we arent going down the field very often because of the o-line or because of the wr's but we need to stretch the field every now and then.

I won't argue with that. In that game, I'd say Bulger was easily playing at the level we need to succeed, but defenders were getting through our line about as often as balls were getting through our receivers' hands.

[RockinRam]

I agree totally with GC about our talent level. Some of the guys we have starting wouldn't even be STARTING in other teams!

Vobora would not be starting, Wade, Ryan, Gary Gibson, Incognito, Avery. None of them would be starting for other teams.

The lack of production of our O-line as a whole is very frustrating. The excuses "they need time to gell" is ridiculous. I guarantee you if we plug in Mark Tauscher at right tackle, and Logan Mankins in there at guard, and I assure you, our line would be 10 times better than it is right now.



The good things I got from this game are:

-the effort is still clearly there, even though we may not be getting great end results.

- our red zone defense

- Laurent Robinson, and Mike Karney

- Surprisingly, Incognito surprised me on how well he run blocked on Sunday. Still, his pass blocking is not very good...

[general counsel]

Golden Fleece hit the nail on the head. Talent is a relative concept and by the way, Larry Bird was enormously talented. Surely you are not suggesting that all teams have equal talent or that all players are equally talented?

Ramming speed to all

general counsel

[Slug]

Ack, I spoke to soon on the no major injuries front. Our starting right guard, Randy Thomas, tore his tricep and is out for the year.

[RAMarkable]

Ack, I spoke to soon on the no major injuries front. Our starting right guard, Randy Thomas, tore his tricep and is out for the year.

Sorry to hear about this, Slug. Rams fans know all about this type of injury as Orlando Pace suffered one several years ago.

Hope you guys can fill Mr. Thomas' shoes as he's a stud and a guy that is a road-grader when healthy.

WHAT SAY YE?