NFL
By: George Lopez
The NFL has not seen back-to-back Superbowl champions since the 2004-2005 New England Patriots. The Los Angeles Rams entered the 2022 NFL season with high expectations on defending their championship. Through 9 games, the Rams sit in last place in the NFC West with a 3-6 record. This is the first time under Coach Sean McVay the Rams have fallen 3 games under .500. Though not officially eliminated from the postseason, the Rams are barely clinging to their playoff chances.
The Rams 2022 offense is a shell of what fans have come to expect in recent years. The offense has lacked consistency all season. Through 9 games, the Rams are averaging 16 points a game. In 2021, the Rams averaged 27 points a game. The glaring difference between this year’s team compared to last year’s team is the changes on the offensive line. Left tackle Andrew Whitworth retired at the end of last season. Starting guard Austin Corbett left via free agency. Starting guard David Edwards and starting center Brian Allen have missed time due to injuries. The only constant from last season’s offensive line has been right tackle Rob Havenstein. All season, the Rams offensive line has been inconsistent in both run blocking and in pass protection. The Rams rushing attack is averaging 68 yards a game while quarterback Matthew Stafford is averaging 214 net passing yards per game. This offensive line has not been able to open up consistent running lanes for the Rams rushing attack. The pass protection has failed this season. Through 9 games, Rams quarterbacks have been sacked 31 times. With the pass protection not holding up, Stafford has not had the time to let passing plays develop deep downfield. A majority of the pressure Stafford sees is coming up the middle. Not having Corbett, Allen, and Edwards protecting the middle of the offensive line has hurt the Rams offensive production.
While the Rams offense is averaging 16 points a game, they are allowing their opponents to score 22 points a game. For most of their games, the Rams defense has been stellar. They do have moments during the game where their defense fails to step up when needed. Look to the Buccaneers game as an example. All the game, the Rams defense had dominated the Tom Brady led Bucs offense. The defense held until the final 44 seconds of the game when Brady was able to march the Bucs downfield with no timeouts to score the game-winning touchdown. The loss of Von Miller to free agency has had an impact on the Rams defense. The pass rush hasn’t performed to the level of last year’s team. The Rams defense has 18 sacks through 9 games this season. The Rams have not been able to replace Miller’s production on their defense though Terrell Lewis is beginning to show signs of promise.
The Rams defense is giving up comparable net passing yards to the Rams offense, about 214 net yards per game. The run defense is giving up an average of 96 yards rushing per game. Sebastian Joseph-Day leaving via free agency has hurt the Rams run defense. The defense is allowing their opponents to convert 40% of their 3rd down attempts. For the season, the Rams redzone defense has played well, allowing the opposition a 47% redzone touchdown rate. However, in the last 3 games, that number has climbed to 64%.
Frustration is starting to grow publicly on the Rams team. Following the loss to the Bucs, Jalen Ramsey publicly called out the Rams offense and their lack of production. While it is understandable for teammates to be frustrated, it is normally kept in-house. For Ramsey to publicly criticize the Rams offense was something fans did not expect. After the teams recent loss to Arizona, the players did not publicly criticize each other through the frustration of not winning this season is evident.
For the Rams to have any chance of making the postseason, they are going to have to win out. Their remaining opponents have a combined record of 30-32, so it is not out of possibility that the Rams can run the table. In order for the Rams to accomplish this, they need to figure out their offensive identity. The offense has been stuck in neutral all season. Coach McVay needs to devise a game plan that will successfully mix in the running game with his passing attack. The offensive line needs to correct their pass protection scheme that will give Stafford more time to let passing plays develop downfield. Through the first 9 games, McVay hasn’t been able to find the right formula to get the offense on track. Coach McVay is one of the top offensive minds in the NFL. With his offensive mind, McVay is able to come up with a game plan. The biggest issue the Rams are facing on offense is the offensive line. Until the offensive line fixes its issues with run blocking and pass protection, the Rams will continue to stumble. If the Rams lose one more game, their season will no longer be on life support, you can pull the plug on their season.
