Grading the Rams & Overreaction Monday: Week 3 vs. Green Bay

by 3k on Sep 28, 2009 6:20 PM CDT in 2009 St. Louis Rams regular season

I decided to combine these two this week; for each grade, I will be overreacting... at least I'll try to. Really, assessing this team's performance is hard to do without getting a bit weepy. It's ugly right now, and with the injuries the Rams have suffered, it's hard to imagine it getting any less uglier from here on out.

Let the overreacting begin.

QB: C-

I want to give the dynamic duo of Marc Bulger and Kyle Boller a D+, but two touchdowns from a Rams QB is breathtaking. Really, though, what did Boller do except exploit Brandon Chillar on two plays? Not much. He finished with just 164 yards on 31 attempts and completed just over half of them. Boller still can't shake his old "raising cain" throws, you know, the ones that end up a good 4 feet above his target's head. Enthused, I am not.

HB: A

Steven Jackson pounded it over and over, making diamonds out of dirt. Kenneth Darby even contributed in spots. Yes, Jackson's fumble killed some momentum, but Green Bay only converted a field goal from it. Let's be honest - you couldn't ask anyone to do more than Steven Jackson did yesterday.

WR/TE: D+

Take away Daniel Fells two catches, and this was a pretty piss poor game for the receivers. Laurent Robinson got hurt, Donnie Avery was targeted 7 times for 12 yards, Randy McMichael couldn't catch... When and how will this group get better?

O-line: A-

Aside from the one sack to Boller and the traffic that took out Bulger, the O-line fared well. They helped out Steven Jackson at times by opening up some solid running lanes. Take your time, Jason Smith. No need for you to rush back. We can lose just fine without ya...

D-line: B+/D+

More of the same. Great job bottling up the run, horrible job getting to the QB. Leonard Little nabbed two early sacks before disappearing. Chris Long didn't even wait; he was a minimal factor in the pass rush from the kickoff to the final whistle.

LB: B

The softest game for the LB corps thus far. The secondary and D-line ended up with most of the tackles, so Laurinaitis and Co. didn't have as much to bring down. Kudos to the DTs, uh, No-Doz for the secondary.

DBs: F

What can I say. The secondary matched gravity on Sunday - they brought me down to Earth.

ST: B

Pro Bowl-caliber punting from Donnie Jones, a blocked FG followed by a long successful one (and the first of the season) by Josh Brown, and a respectable opening game for new return man Danny Amendola. So far, this has been the best facet of the Rams' game along with the force that is Steven Jackson

Coaching: D

Wildcat formations, shuffle passes on 3rd and long early on, no deep tosses to Avery, and a consistent addiction to coverage over blitzing. No thank you.

So there's your overreactions after sleeping on it. Which of these is closest to a rational reaction? I report. You decide.

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Comments

Spot on.

I can’t wait ‘til next week when the Niners put 11 in the box, since Jackson becomes our only playmaker. I suspect he’ll still get good yardage.

THIS year's the year. I hope....

by thisguy on Sep 28, 2009 6:47 PM CDT reply actions

+1

Perfecto, nothing more can be said. That’s not an overreaction, that’s reality fellow Rams fans.

VanRam put it best earlier today.

“The St. Louis Rams are now on the clock.”

"The greatest accomplishment is not in never falling, but in rising again after you fall." - Vince Lombardi

by VTramsFan on Sep 28, 2009 7:03 PM CDT reply actions

the coaching

that was rough. I understand that right now the chances of success are low, but why not try some vertical stuff? Green Bay has the best CBs of any team we’ve seen so far this year, but they weren’t so good as to completely take away deep passes. Hell, it would have caught them by surprises, since that’s the one play the odds say the Rams won’t try.

Turf Show Times

by Ryan Van Bibber on Sep 28, 2009 8:15 PM CDT reply actions

Mostly dead on...

except the DB’s can be exploited when there’s absolutely NO pressure put on the opposing QB. Chrissy Long leads the “invisible” men on the D-Line. I know Little got a couple early sacks (amazing), but where was the front four when Rodgers was bombing us later on? The D-Line deserves an F-

At least GB put Bulger out of his (our) misery for a week or two.

by edpjr on Sep 28, 2009 8:18 PM CDT reply actions

Butler out at least two weeks

We have enough trouble winning when healthy. With the loss of a a couple key players its going to be even harder.

SHURMUR NEEDS TO GO, Avery needs to get it going.

by Carneros on Sep 28, 2009 9:09 PM CDT reply actions

2 good, 2 bad.

This game was certainly tough, but we played a half of solid football (2nd and 3rd) and got killed in the the 1st and 4th. I think we can take away some more positives, and we should be looking to jump all over a Frank Gore-less Niners squad.

Go Rams!

by PMack1982 on Sep 29, 2009 9:20 AM CDT reply actions