Rams debut in last place for DVOA

Though it really comes as no surprise givne how Week 1 went for the defending Super Bowl champions, the Buffalo Bills are first and the Los Angeles Rams are 32nd in the debut of Football Outsiders’ DVOA rankings on Tuesday.

DVOA is Defense-adjusted Value Over Average and it is an attempt to measure the efficiency of each play in the NFL. The Rams may have been the least-efficient team in the NFL in Week 1, which would make the Bills the most efficient team. L.A. ranked 31st on offense and 27th on defense, plus 17th on special teams to open the season.

DAVE is a metric that takes into account pre-season expectations, so that’s why the Rams are still 10th in DAVE. (It is too soon for Weighted DVOA to matter, as it is early for any stats to really matter at this point.)

The L.A. Rams ranked fifth in DVOA in 2021, eight on offense, fifth on defense, and fourth in special teams.

A lot of issues stem from the offensive line. The Rams had just 1.9 yards before contact on running plays and allowed over a 30-percent pressure rate on Matthew Stafford, both ranking in the bottom-10 for Week 1. Will things improve in Week 2, especially with Tremayne Anchrum starting in place of Coleman Shelton, who is starting in place of Brian Allen at center?

It’ll have to if the Rams want to improve their DVOA.