The defense

[RebelYell]

The Rams defense is 19th in the league for YPG. Considering they didn't invest a lot of money in that side of the ball in the offseason, that's a major improvement over last year. Also add in the fact that the offense is still horrible, that's a massive improvement.

If during the offseason they can add about $8 million in salary cap for that side of the ball with a DE (no addition with Little leaving), DT and SLB, that could lead to a very good defense down the line.

People can bash the Rams but this defense is good.

[Nick_Weasel]

Re: The defense

19th overall is especially good since I'm sure they spend more time on the field than any other defense in the league. I wonder where we rank in terms of "yards per play."

[Nick]

Re: The defense

The defense has shown major flashes this year, and I think they had their best game against the ***** yesterday. It's a shame the 35-0 box score won't really advertise that.

I wouldn't rule out some additional improvements in the secondary, either. Maybe the Rams hope Wade, King, or Fletcher separates from the pack, but I've not been blown away by any of them recently. Plus, will OJ Atogwe want to sign long term on this team?

[AvengerRam_old]

Re: The defense

19th overall is especially good since I'm sure they spend more time on the field than any other defense in the league. I wonder where we rank in terms of "yards per play."

Same rank at #19 overall (5.6 yards per play). Notably, the Rams have improved in this stat by a half yard (6.1 ypp) from last year. That might not sound like a lot, but if you think about it, that equate to about 25-30 yards per game, which is pretty significant.

[Nick_Weasel]

Re: The defense

Same rank at #19 overall (5.6 yards per play).

Wow that's surprising. Shows what my insight is worth... ;)

[RebelYell]

Re: The defense

I'd disagree whole heartedly that Wade hasn't shown anything. He's shown me a TON. Guy has been playing like our best CB in my opinion (even above Bartell).

[txramsfan]

Re: The defense

I can't fault the defense for what has happened this year. I wouldn't have played so close to the Packers WR's but that was the DC's call. Other than the Seattle game, it really hasn't been "MY" defenses fault.

[AvengerRam_old]

Re: The defense

Wow that's surprising. Shows what my insight is worth... ;)

I think the reason the Rams' total plays on defense are not No. 1 in the league is that the offense, while inept, does eat up clock time by running the ball as much as it does.

[Guam rammer]

Re: The defense

This D has made crucial stops when it needs to and thats huge in the momentum category. Forget about the numbers and the rankings. If you dont have an Offense that can sustain drives and produce points then the Defense is practically alone to fend for themselves. They'll eventually tire and of course give up yardage but those numbers mean nothing if you watch the game. I see a defense that can take over a game but the other teams don't worry too much because our offense can't hold onto the ball or score any points. If any team can hold opponents to 7, 10 or 14 points that should be good enough to win games but in the case of our Rams we can't score any points so it usually results in a loss. Yesterday that ****** team only earned 1 TD and that was the 1st TD of the game. The rest of the game was given to them by our Offense.

[TekeRam]

Re: The defense

Every game we see the defense show up wanting to win, but the offense is lagging behind. Drastically. We have a great defense considering how much work they need to do. Being at the Green Bay game, I was proud to be a Rams fan as I saw them repeatedly take horrible field position and hold the Pack to field goals in the first half. Unfortunately, they can't hold off the offense forever, and that leads to the blowouts as the offense does nothing.