NFL
By: George Lopez
The Los Angeles Rams return to prime time for the 2nd week in a row as they travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football. This will be one of the coldest games the Rams will play in with the temperature expected to be 15 degrees at kickoff. The Rams and Packers are both in the midst of disappointing seasons. The Packers are currently in 3rd place in the NFC North with a 5-8 record. The Rams are sitting at 4-9 in the NFC West. The Rams are coming off an improbable win last Thursday night against the Las Vegas Raiders ending their 6-game losing streak. Baker Mayfield, who the Rams claimed off waivers 2 days prior, led the Rams on a 98-yard drive in the closing minutes of the game to pull out a 17-16 victory. The Packers are coming off a 28-19 win over bitter division rival Chicago Bears. Both teams will look to carry the momentum on Monday night and extend their winning streak.
Rams Offense vs Packers Defense
In their win against the Raiders, quarterback Baker Mayfield came into the game in the 2nd series and completed 22-35 passes for 230 yards and 1 touchdown. With limited knowledge of the offense, Mayfield was able to spread the football, completing passes to 9 different receivers. Leading the way was 2nd-year receiver Ben Skowronek with 7 receptions for 89 yards. Mayfield seemed to have developed a connection with Skowronek and Tutu Atwell, who totaled 5 receptions for 50 yards. Van Jefferson caught 2 passes, none bigger than the 23-yard touchdown with 10 seconds remaining in the game to give the Rams the victory. The Raiders had a rookie defensive back on Jefferson playing man coverage and Jefferson was able to beat him off the line of scrimmage. Look for Packers CB Jaire Alexander to shadow Jefferson when the Packers play man coverage.
The Rams offensive line has been a big disappointment all season long. Injuries have decimated the line. The Rams used their 13th different starting line combination in 13 games against the Raiders. The lack of consistency has been evident in pass protection. Mayfield was sacked 4 times against the Raiders. As a team, the Packers have 24 sacks going into the game Monday night. LB Rashan Gary leads the team with 6 sacks. The Packers don’t put a lot of pressure on the quarterback but look for the Packers to try different stunts on the Rams offensive line to generate pressure on Mayfield. The Rams offensive line has had problems with adjusting to the stunts by the opposing defense all season and expect the Packers to exploit this tendency.
On the ground, the Raiders held the Rams to 71 yards on 22 carries. Cam Akers led the way with 42 yards on 12 carries and 1 touchdown. Since his return to the team, Akers has been running with more determination, showing the form he had in his rookie season. The Packers defense gives up an average of 154 yards rushing per game. Look for the Rams to establish their running game early with Akers and rookie RB Kyren Williams.
Rams Defense vs Packers Offense
With DeVante Adams playing for the Raiders, the Packers passing game, led by Aaron Rodgers stumbled out of the gate. Rodgers has thrown for 2864 yards with 22 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Per game, Rodgers is averaging 220 yards passing, numbers that Packers fans are not accustomed to seeing from their franchise quarterback. Unlike the Rams, pass protection has not been too much of an issue for the Packers offense. Their offensive line has given up 24 sacks on the season. Without a true #1 receiver, Rodgers has been able to spread the ball around, as 14 different players have caught a pass. Running back Aaron Jones is the team’s leading receiver with 48 receptions. WR Allen Lazard and TE Robert Tonyan are 2nd on the team both with 45 receptions. For the season, Lazard has been targeted the most, with 75 targets going into Monday nights game. Rams Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris plays a lot of soft zone coverage and that should be the case Monday night. When Morris does call man coverage, look for the Rams to focus on Lazard and WR Randall Cobb. DB Jalen Ramsey should be locked on Lazard when the Rams do play man coverage. Sammy Watkins is Rodgers deep threat and look for the Rams to roll a safety over to his side to provide deep coverage help. In zone coverage, look for Morris to bracket Packers TE Tonyan with a safety or nickel back.
Aaron Jones leads the Packers running game with 847 yards and 2 touchdowns. AJ Dillon is 2nd on the team with 624 yards on the season. The Packers average 125 yards rushing per game with Jones and Dillon averaging a combined 113 yards rushing per game. Against the Raiders, the Rams allowed 165 yards rushing. With Rams All-Pro Aaron Donald and A’Shawn Robinson out with injuries, look for the Packers to go to their running game early. Inside LB Bobby Wagner and Ernest Jones will be key in stopping the inside running game of the Packers. They will need to take away cut-back lanes for the Packers running backs. The Rams defensive line will need to do a better job at getting off their blocks early and closing up the running lanes or they could expect to see the Packers have the same type of success as the Raiders did running the ball.
Prediction
The Rams and Packers both enter Monday night’s game looking to build on their previous game. With over a week to get more acclimated to the Rams offense, look for Coach Sean McVay to open up his playbook for Baker Mayfield. Both teams will look to establish their running games early and use play-action passing to open up passing lanes for Rodgers and Mayfield. Look for Rams running back Cam Akers to rush for close to 100 yards, which will be the difference in this game as the Rams win their 2nd game in a row.
Rams 21
Packers 17
