NFL
By: George Lopez
The Los Angeles Rams travel to Tampa to take on the Buccaneers in a week 9 matchup. The Buccaneers lost their 3rd consecutive game last week to the Baltimore Ravens dropping their record to 3-5. This marks the first time in Tom Brady’s career his team is 2 games under .500 this late into a season. The Rams are coming off a 31-14 defeat to the San Francisco 49ers, dropping their record to 3-4. The Rams were dominated by the 49ers in the 2nd half of the game. They were kept off the scoreboard, outscored 21-0, and held to 61 total offensive yards. Both teams look to rebound in what could be an elimination game for the losing team.
Rams Offense vs Buccaneers Defense
In last season’s Divisional round matchup, the Rams were able to take advantage of the Buccaneers defense’s tendency to frequently blitz. Quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 366 yards and 2 touchdowns, taking advantage of man coverage his receivers faced. For the majority of the season, the Rams have been seeing more zone coverage as defenses attempt to take away the big play from the Rams passing attack. With injuries to the Buccaneers defense, the Rams should not expect to see as much man coverage as they saw during the playoff game. In the 2nd half of the game against the 49ers, the Rams pass protection fell apart. Getting starting center Brian Allen back helped to settle the Rams offensive line during the 1st half, but they were not able to make the adjustments to what the 49ers were doing in the 2nd half with their pass rush. Stafford did get WR Allen Robinson more involved in the passing attack, completing 5 passes for 54 yards on 7 targets. Cooper Kupp led the way with 8 receptions for 79 yards and 1 touchdown. Kupp accounts for 31% of the Rams offensive production. Stafford has to find a way to get other receivers more involved in the passing attack, especially with Kupp questionable for Sunday’s game with an ankle injury.
Under Coach Sean McVay, the Rams offense hits on all cylinders when their running game is working. In their game against the 49ers, they were held to 56 yards on 21 carries. All season long, the Rams running game is been inconsistent. Injuries to the offensive line have contributed to the lack of a consistent running game. Those that are playing have not been able to sustain their blocks, closing running lanes. Cam Akers, who has not played the past 2 games due to what Coach McVay called “different things” may be back on the field this week as the Rams were not able to trade him before the trading deadline. Look for the Rams to try to establish the running game early in this game.
Rams Defense vs Buccaneers Offense
Like the Rams, the Buccaneers offense hasn’t been as fluid as fans have grown accustomed to with Tom Brady as their quarterback. The Buccaneers could be missing some key players as WR Mike Evans and Julio Jones were limited in practice and did not participate respectively. The Rams defensive line, led by Aaron Donald, need to put pressure on Brady and keep him off his spot. Throughout his career, Brady has been susceptible to a pass rush coming up the middle. At this stage of his career, Brady does not have the mobility to slide outside the pocket and create with his legs. Look for edge rushers Leonard Floyd and Terrell Lewis to bring pressure from the outside and force Brady to step up in the pocket into the rush from Donald and the rest of the Rams interior defensive linemen. In this game, do not look for Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris to play a lot of man coverage but he will mix it in the coverage.
Leonard Fournette leads the Buccaneers running attack with 386 yards and 2 touchdowns. His yards per carry average is 3.4. The Rams are giving up an average of 105 yards per game rushing. Look for the Buccaneers to attack the Rams run defense early in an attempt to establish an offensive rhythm. The Rams should be expected to utilize a run blitz with linebackers Ernest Jones and Bobby Wagner to close off running lanes on the inside.
Prediction
The Rams and Buccaneers enter the game in a virtual must-win to keep their playoff hopes alive. The loser won’t be eliminated from the playoffs, but will be standing on very thin ice. Tom Brady has a regular season record of 3-3 against the Rams. Look for that record to drop to 3-4 as the Rams hand the Buccaneers their 4th consecutive defeat.
Rams 24
Bucs. 20
