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On the game tonight.
- The team seemed genuinely enthusiastic despite their lackluster performance against the Chiefs and only a three-day break.
- Once again the Rams burned all their timeouts fairly early, but the call by the officials on the Challenge was bullcrap.
- Torry Holt was okay, I guess.
- The offensive line was surprisingly stout. They showed flashes of good run blocking early on and gradually got better as the game went on. The pass blocking was, for the most part, solid. Scott Tercero was horrible at right tackle as usual, Tom Nutten was unfortunately injured soon after he came in, and Chris Dishman was very slow on his pulls, but he's a big fella.
- I watched Brandon Manumaleuna as he pulled around to block for Marshall on one play, which looked like it would be a good gain, and he completely whiffed on his block.
- Isaac Bruce was Isaac Bruce.
- Marshall Faulk (as if I need to say his last name) was solid, but didn't show me anything to prove he hasn't lost a step.
- Steven Jackson seemed to get quicker and more consistent as the game went on. He carried the team on his shoulders moving downfield on a drive in the fourth. His strength along with his ability to read blocks and react impressed me greatly.
- Arlen Harris looks to be the same as last year. Boring, slow, but solid, especially for a fourth running back. Same with Dane Looker, minus the "slow" part (maybe?).
- Shaun McDonald and Kevin Curtis looked supremely superb. McDonald was quick, fluid, and breaking tackles while Curtis made an amazing catch that was called back (holding) and displayed blazing speed. Those shin splints are a thing of the past, methinks. At this point, Shaun seems to be leading the race for the slot position. I loved the play where he took the handoff as he was motioning across the field and took it around the corner for a first down.
- Bulger was off-mark on a couple passes as usual, but gave fans some optimism with his impressive play. Chandler was smart, accurate, and efficient as usual. He started off a bit slow (5/10 100 some yards and a pick) but tore it up the Skins' defense later on.
- Hell, even Jeff Smoker looked pretty good. His first pass was a beauty. As he turned around to roll out, he was met face-to-face with a Redskins defender, but immediately flipped the ball out for a nice completion.
- Erik Jensen dropped a pass that landed right in his cradle.
- The defensive line was better than I expected. Leonard made a couple plays, Bryce Fisher was efficient at right end, Erik Flowers was in on a lot of plays, and all three were making tackles against the run. Damione Lewis showed good pass rushing abilities on his late hit (&@%$!). The tackles overall seemed to hold their ground and even clogged the middle (gasp!) on a few runs. Brian Howard was even a little impressive.
- The linebackers were speedy and hitting hard. Pisa Tinoisamoa and Robert Thomas seemed to be smacking people all over the field. Brandon Chillar held his own on the outside, making some good tackles. Tommy Polley? You wouldn't have even known he played.
- The secondary was decent, but Garrett disappointed me somewhat with his below-average play. He needs to get comfortable and up to speed. He redeemed himself after getting burned on one play by knocking the ball out of the receiver's arm, and Aeneas Williams was there to pick it up. The Redskins were lucky they had a false start on a play where Williams had an open lane to blow up the quarterback on a blitz. Ramsey would've been decapitated. Who is this Nijrell Eason guy? The official website has him as a RCB, but I'm pretty sure he was playing free safety. He looked damn good. Justin Lucas has really disappointed me with his sloppy pass defense and weak "tackling"; I hope Shivers will get more of a chance.
- Special teams were, well... special. No, they were actually doing pretty good - making tackles and being AGGRESSIVE. That's what I like to see. Following Holt's fifteen-yard penalty (unsportsman-like blah blah blah), they made a big play by stuffing the returner despite the kick only making it to the fifteen- or twenty-yard line. Sean Landeta had a textbook inside-the-10 punt that bounced backwards, as the Rams players, seemingly dumbfounded, watched it. "Wow, that was a great punt. How'd he get it to bounce backwards? Oh, crap, we still have to down the ball."
And for my final thought...
- Tommy Polley playing special teams in the fourth quarter? Ouch. How embarrassing for him.
- The team seemed genuinely enthusiastic despite their lackluster performance against the Chiefs and only a three-day break.
- Once again the Rams burned all their timeouts fairly early, but the call by the officials on the Challenge was bullcrap.
- Torry Holt was okay, I guess.
- The offensive line was surprisingly stout. They showed flashes of good run blocking early on and gradually got better as the game went on. The pass blocking was, for the most part, solid. Scott Tercero was horrible at right tackle as usual, Tom Nutten was unfortunately injured soon after he came in, and Chris Dishman was very slow on his pulls, but he's a big fella.
- I watched Brandon Manumaleuna as he pulled around to block for Marshall on one play, which looked like it would be a good gain, and he completely whiffed on his block.
- Isaac Bruce was Isaac Bruce.
- Marshall Faulk (as if I need to say his last name) was solid, but didn't show me anything to prove he hasn't lost a step.
- Steven Jackson seemed to get quicker and more consistent as the game went on. He carried the team on his shoulders moving downfield on a drive in the fourth. His strength along with his ability to read blocks and react impressed me greatly.
- Arlen Harris looks to be the same as last year. Boring, slow, but solid, especially for a fourth running back. Same with Dane Looker, minus the "slow" part (maybe?).
- Shaun McDonald and Kevin Curtis looked supremely superb. McDonald was quick, fluid, and breaking tackles while Curtis made an amazing catch that was called back (holding) and displayed blazing speed. Those shin splints are a thing of the past, methinks. At this point, Shaun seems to be leading the race for the slot position. I loved the play where he took the handoff as he was motioning across the field and took it around the corner for a first down.
- Bulger was off-mark on a couple passes as usual, but gave fans some optimism with his impressive play. Chandler was smart, accurate, and efficient as usual. He started off a bit slow (5/10 100 some yards and a pick) but tore it up the Skins' defense later on.
- Hell, even Jeff Smoker looked pretty good. His first pass was a beauty. As he turned around to roll out, he was met face-to-face with a Redskins defender, but immediately flipped the ball out for a nice completion.
- Erik Jensen dropped a pass that landed right in his cradle.
- The defensive line was better than I expected. Leonard made a couple plays, Bryce Fisher was efficient at right end, Erik Flowers was in on a lot of plays, and all three were making tackles against the run. Damione Lewis showed good pass rushing abilities on his late hit (&@%$!). The tackles overall seemed to hold their ground and even clogged the middle (gasp!) on a few runs. Brian Howard was even a little impressive.
- The linebackers were speedy and hitting hard. Pisa Tinoisamoa and Robert Thomas seemed to be smacking people all over the field. Brandon Chillar held his own on the outside, making some good tackles. Tommy Polley? You wouldn't have even known he played.
- The secondary was decent, but Garrett disappointed me somewhat with his below-average play. He needs to get comfortable and up to speed. He redeemed himself after getting burned on one play by knocking the ball out of the receiver's arm, and Aeneas Williams was there to pick it up. The Redskins were lucky they had a false start on a play where Williams had an open lane to blow up the quarterback on a blitz. Ramsey would've been decapitated. Who is this Nijrell Eason guy? The official website has him as a RCB, but I'm pretty sure he was playing free safety. He looked damn good. Justin Lucas has really disappointed me with his sloppy pass defense and weak "tackling"; I hope Shivers will get more of a chance.
- Special teams were, well... special. No, they were actually doing pretty good - making tackles and being AGGRESSIVE. That's what I like to see. Following Holt's fifteen-yard penalty (unsportsman-like blah blah blah), they made a big play by stuffing the returner despite the kick only making it to the fifteen- or twenty-yard line. Sean Landeta had a textbook inside-the-10 punt that bounced backwards, as the Rams players, seemingly dumbfounded, watched it. "Wow, that was a great punt. How'd he get it to bounce backwards? Oh, crap, we still have to down the ball."
And for my final thought...
- Tommy Polley playing special teams in the fourth quarter? Ouch. How embarrassing for him.
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