Rams @ Jaguars: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The St. Louis Rams completed the preseason with a perfect record, which they have not done since 1979—the year they went to the Super Bowl and lost to Terry Bradshaw and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Rams traveled to Jacksonville to take on Jaguars for the preseason finale, which resulted in a Rams victory by the score of 24 to 17.  

However, the preseason is basically meaningless, and the team is more concerned with what they’ll be bringing into the regular season, which is why there was panic when it seemed for a moment that they would not be bringing defensive end James Hall.

Hall was on the ground early in the first-quarter in what seemed to be a somewhat serious injury, but he eventually got back on his feet and exited the game. He later announced during the broadcast that he left the game with a back injury, but that it was not serious.

So since the Rams dodged that bullet, they were able to successfully escape the preseason with no major injury, which is always a major goal in the preseason.

And with that, here is “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly”…

The Good

Once again Sam Bradford was alert and productive. He completed 63.3 percent of his 11 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown.

There were a few miscommunications on the first drive of the game, but for all we know the receivers are completely at fault. Other than that first drive, Bradford was elusive and made intelligent decisions in the passing game.

However, Sam was not the only quarterback to shine. Thaddeus Lewis had another solid preseason outing, and he’s giving A.J. Feeley a good fight for the No.2 quarterback job. Lewis was 12-for-15 with 164 yards.

Outside of the quarterbacks, rookie tight end Lance Kendricks was clearly the most potent offensive weapon of the game.

Kendricks had three catches for 73 yards, including a 44-yard touchdown reception on third-and-short.

Kendricks is obviously safe for the 53-man roster, but the same doesn’t ring true for everyone.

Out of the wide receivers still fighting for spots, apparently Donnie Avery is the only one who really wants employment this season. He finished with a pair of catches for 42 yards, but this brings us to the next segment…

The Bad

The starting receivers were not good enough tonight.

The running backs and tight ends saved the passing game in the first half, but the wide receivers were almost completely absent.

In the first half, other than Avery’s 27-yard catch within the two-minute warning, Danny Amendola was the only wide receiver to catch a pass in the first half—a modest eight-yard dump from Bradford.   

Danario Alexander became part of the subpar receiver performance after dropping a deep pass from A.J. Feeley that hit him in the hands, but he made up for it later in the game with a 43-yard reception in the fourth quarter, which set up the Rams third touchdown of the game.   

Mardy Gilyard was completely absent as a receiver. He had a dropped pass that should have been an easy catch, and he even fumbled two punt returns (both were recovered by the Rams).

However, Gilyard had a first-down reception midway through the fourth-quarter for his only real positive play of the night.  

The Ugly

The Rams starting defense was getting great penetration against the Jaguars offensive line in the first-half.

Chris Long recorded a sack, while Jaguars quarterback David Garrard was feeling heavy pressure constantly while he was in the game.

In fact, the Jaguars didn’t play first-round draft pick Blaine Gabbert in the first-half. 

They went straight from their starter, Garrard, to their third-string quarterback Luke McCown, which suggests that perhaps the coaches were concerned about putting the future of their franchise in against the Rams pass rush.  

Rams @ Jaguars: Previewing the Key Points of the Preseason Finale

With opening day just 10 days away, and with final roster cuts due in just three days, the coaching staff will get one last shot at examining their talent in live action, while the borderline players will fight for a chance to make the 53-man roster. 
The St. Louis Rams (3-0) will wrap up the preseason tonight on the road against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2) at 6:30 p.m. CDT. 
Typically, the starters only play about one drive in the final preseason game, but due to the new offensive scheme that the Rams have installed—as well as lost time due to the lockout—the starters will remain in the game for approximately an entire quarter, according to reports.
Here are some hot topics entering tonight's game.


Wide Receiver
Are Danario Alexander's knees healthy enough for him to make the team? Is Donnie Avery a lock, and if so, why is he not getting reps with the starters? Would the team dare to put third-round draft pick Austin Pettis on the practice squad?
We know that Brandon Gibson, Mike Sims-Walker, Danny Amendola, Greg Salas are locks, and possibly Donnie Avery. That leaves Alexander, Pettis and Mardy Gilyard fighting for one, maybe two more roster spots.
Neither of the three have made an impression so far this preseason, so a big game by one of them could clinch a roster spot.


James Laurinaitis
Star linebacker James Laurinaitis missed practice on Monday due to a recurrence of a pectoral injury that has been nagging him at different times throughout training camp.
Laurinaitis returned to practice later in the week, but will he play in the finale against the Jaguars?
It's always a benefit for the Rams to have Laurinaitis on the field, but he is a key part of the defense, so he has to be ready to go Sept. 11 against the Philadelphia Eagles on opening day.
It's probably not worth it for Laurinaitis to see the field against the Jaguars. It's a meaningless game, and it's not as though the defense is learning a new scheme, unlike the offense.


The Unexpected Quarterback Battle
It was probably assumed by most that veteran quarterback A.J. Feeley was the undisputed owner of the backup quarterback gig. 
However, earlier in the week, head coach Steve Spagnuolo suggested in his post-practice commentsthat there is an ongoing battle between Feeley and Thaddeus Lewis.
Lewis led the Rams offense on a game-winning drive at the end of the fourth quarter during the team's second preseason game against the Tennessee Titans, which resulted in a field goal by kicker Josh Brown that put the Rams ahead for the final score of 17-16. 
Lewis boasts a 81.0 passer rating so far this preseason, while Feeley is slightly behind with a 77.1 rating.


Robert Quinn
After showing nothing but potential during the first two preseason games, first-round draft pick Robert Quinn finally translated his potential into some production last week against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Quinn recorded a sack, a forced fumble and he even blocked a field goal in the fourth quarter.
If Quinn can repeat that production against Jacksonville, he will likely see an increase in his playing time during the opener against the Eagles.  


Note: Check back in after tonight's game for the post-game segment "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly," which will break down the important events of the game.

Rams vs. Chiefs: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The St. Louis Rams (3-0) took on the Kansas City Chiefs (0-3) at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, and they were able to win the Governor's Cup in the process.

The annual preseason competition between the two teams for the Governor's Cup trophy is usually a minor accomplishment for the winner, but this year's game had an increased significance as some of the proceeds went towards aiding the victims of the Joplin tornado disaster last April.


This year the Rams were able to take home the trophy with a 14-10 victory over the Chiefs.


The win wasn’t quite as dominate as their performance against the Indianapolis Colts during the first preseason game, but it was certainly a great improvement over their disappointing display last week against the Tennessee Titans.


So without further ado, here is “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly”…


The Good


-Other than an interception while the Rams offense was backed up deep in their own territory, quarterback Sam Bradford had a solid outing going 9-for-16 with 95 yards and two touchdowns. And when the quarterback is rolling, the team is rolling.


- Steven Jackson had a questionable game last week against the Titans with a 1.7 yards per carry average, but he turned it around tonight with 72 rushing yards on 15 carries, including a 25-yard run on the first drive of the game.


-It was only a single six yard reception, but after a 25-yard reception against the Titans last week, receiver Mike Sims-Walker was able to get involved once again with his six yard touchdown reception tonight against the Chiefs.



-Newly drafted tight end Lance Kendricks came on strong in the first preseason game with five receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown, but he was a non-factor last week against the Titans. However, he was able to continue his progress tonight with two receptions for 26 yards and a touchdown.


-The offensive line showed up to play tonight, as oppose to the pitiful performance they put on against the Titans last week. The run lanes were wide open and Sam Bradford had enough time to make plays.

-Prior to tonight, the Rams defensive line had zero sacks in the preseason, but defensive ends Robert Quinn and James Hall were both able to record a sack each. The front four looked less like the pushovers we saw last week and more like the line we were expecting to see in 2011.


-On top of Quinn's quarterback sack, he also came up big with a field-goal block in the second-half. It's good to see the Rams 2011 first-round pick making plays in the preseason. He should be fun to watch. 


The Bad


-Wide receivers Mardy Gilyard and Danario Alexander both had drops tonight. They’re both supposedly fighting for a roster spot, but unfortunately neither of them was able to clearly stand out tonight. Of the two, Gilyard was probably the most impressive with three catches for 18 yards, including a 14-yard catch, as oppose to Alexander and his single three yard reception.

-The backups looked phenomenal in the first two preseason games, and they actually won the game for the Rams last week against the Titans with a last second field-goal. However, they were not nearly as dominate tonight, as they allowed a 32-yard touchdown catch to Chiefs receiver Cody Slate. But in the end they kept the Rams in the game and secured a win.


-Donnie Avery looked solid for a second week straight. He had two catches for 26 yards against the Chiefs, including an 18-yard catch. However, for the second consecutive game he played with the backups as oppose to the first-team offense. Perhaps next week they’ll stick him with the Bradford and try to make something happen.


The Ugly


If you were watching the game tonight either on television or through the online NFL preseason package, then you experienced some technical difficulties during the first half.


There was supposedly a power surge that interfered with the broadcast, but it’s hard to not get frustrated with a situation like that, especially since Rams fans missed a Lance Kendricks touchdown during the blackout.

The blackout also caused a change in momentum. The first-string Rams offense was dominating before the blackout, but the game returned just in time for Bradford to throw an interception. It was a nightmare for those who believe in superstitions.         

Rams Vs. Titans: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The St. Louis Rams had a solid preseason opener a week ago against the Indianapolis Colts. The Rams walked away with a convincing 33-10 victory.

Brandon Gibson hauls in an 83-yard touchdown reception against
the Titans last night on the very first offensive play of the night. 

This week, however, the Rams still won the game against the Tennessee Titans with a score of 17-16, but this week’s victory was not nearly as convincing.

There were obviously some positives, as they won the game, but the negatives were plentiful in the first half and difficult to ignore. So without further ado, here is the 2011 premiere of “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly”…



The Good

The 83-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sam Bradford to receiver Brandon Gibson on the first offensive play of the night was seemingly a good omen, perhaps even a sign that the Rams would repeat last week’s routing of the Colts, but it turned out to be their only points in the entire first half.

Despite the touchdown pass being the only points of the half, Bradford played well the entire time. He was 8-for-15 with 138 yards and a touchdown. He also had an interception, although it came off of a pass that hit receiver Mike Sims-Walker perfectly in the hands but was deflected off of the gloves and into the hands of a defender.

The only other positive was the backup players.

Second-string quarterback A.J. Feeley looked sharp and alert for the most part. He hit Donnie Avery for a touchdown in the third-quarter, and Avery looked surprisingly fast and healthy coming off his ACL tear from 2010.

Third-string quarterback Thad Lewis drops back
 for a pass in last night's game against the Titans.

Third-string quarterback Thad Lewis was phenomenal during his playing time in the fourth-quarter. He completed 80% of his passes (8-for-10) for 74 yards, had a ten yard scramble, and he even led the Rams downfield for the final drive of the game, which resulted in a game-winning field-goal by kicker Josh Brown in the final seconds of the game.

The Bad

There are plenty of things from the game that are considered “Bad”, the only question is where to start.
The Rams were out rushed by the Titans 198 yards to only 44. Star running back Steven Jackson had only 10 yards on six carries, which equals out to a 1.7 yards per carry average.

But it wasn’t just the running backs. The receivers greatly struggled to get separation, with Gibson’s touchdown being the main exception. In fact, tight end Fendi Onobun and wide receiver Greg Salas led the team in receptions with only three each, and only five of fourteen receivers had more than one catch.

On defense, the team made some solid third-down stops that forced field-goals instead of touchdowns, but the effort of the unit as a whole was lackluster at best.

The Rams run game last night can be summed up with this picture.

The starters allowed over 80 rushing yards in the first-quarter alone. And although the pass defense was better, they were still flawed. They gave up 24 and 29 yard receptions, respectively, and allowed starting quarterback Matt Hasselbeck to go 7-for-9 on his passes.

Overall, the defense looked unfocused and they were lacking intensity. Linebackers were not staying home and they were blowing assignments, while the defensive line failed to apply consistent pressure.

The Ugly

The ugliest aspect of the game for the Rams came at the line of scrimmage. Both lines underachieved, but it was particularly the offensive line that stood out in a bad way.

Bradford was feeling pressure all night and, as mentioned earlier, the run game was non-existent.

But the most infuriating was the play of Hank Fraley, who started at left-guard in place of the injured Jacob Bell, as well as Adam Goldberg, who eventually replaced Rodger Saffold at left-tackle late in the half.

The offensive line allowed almost instant penetration as a whole, but the 33-year-old Fraley was particularly ineffective, and the Titans defensive line turned Goldberg into a ragdoll.

What is absolutely dumbfounding is that the coaching staff left Bradford in the game with Goldberg and Fraley guarding his blindside. On Bradford’s last play of the game he was taken down by a defensive tackle and was hesitant to get up.

It’s hard to justify risking your franchise quarterback just to build the self-esteem of two guys who barely belong in the NFL. If you want to give Bradford second-string blocking then put the second-string quarterback in the game.

Conclusion

It was a win, but it wasn’t easy to watch either.

There is a reason they have the preseason. It gives teams a chance to try a variety of players in different situations, and it also gives them a chance to identify clear problems before the season begins.

The game was not ideal, but it’s good for the team and the coaching staff that they were able to expose some team weaknesses before Week 1 against the Philadelphia Eagles, so that way they can go to practice this week and work on ironing out the kinks.

Next week the Rams will travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs for the third preseason game and the annual Missouri Governor’s Cup. The game is on Friday, August 26th and it will kick off at 7:00 PM CDT.