Sep 7, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams quarterback Austin Davis (9) reacts to a false start penalty called by head linesman Patrick Turner (13) during the second half against the Minnesota Vikings at the Edward Jones Dome. The Minnesota Vikings defeat St. Louis Rams 34-6. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Rise and shine, Rams Nation. No, the world did not end yesterday when the St. Louis Rams got humiliated by the Minnesota Vikings in their season opener. It will undoubtedly be somber in the film room over the next couple of days, as the coaches and players attempt to find the “good” from the game, and twist the “bad” into something that can be adjusted and tweaked this week, leading up to the Week 2 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While some may still have their hand firmed pressed on the panic button, there were certainly some positives that could be taken away from that Sunday afternoon debacle. Here are our quick thoughts on the game.
1) The St. Louis Rams have either a) not settled on an offensive philosophy or b) over-thought their offense gameplan heading into Week 1. In the opening two series, Brian Schottenheimer called seven passing plays to only four running plays. Those drives resulted in two three-and-outs, with a missed 50 yard field goal being the closest the Rams came to scoring points. When the Rams were competitive with Kellen Clemens at quarterback, they relied heavily on the run game, controlling the pace of the game and keeping their defense well-rested on the sideline. Until they revert back to that mindset, the St. Louis Rams offense will remain stagnant.
2) However, even a failed offensive game plan can reveal some positives. One of those was the emergence of Brian Quick, who recorded 7 receptions on 9 targets for 99 yards. In terms of season-pace, in one game, Quick has already accumulated one-third of his total receiving yards from last year and needs only 67 more yards to usurp his rookie total. While those bars were set relatively-low, it is a good sign for the third-year receiver who, for the first time, appears to be carrying over his offseason progression into the regular season. Quick, for once, just look better than some of his NFL counterparts, which should be a good sign going forward.
3) With that being said, there were few other offensive highlights to speak up, from a Rams’ perspective. Jared Cook had an average game, snagging 4 catches for 56 yards. Tavon Austin was adequate, getting six touches on offense, with half coming out of the backfield, where he was lined up as the halfback. The rest of the “skill” players were no where to be found…
4) …then again, neither was the offensive line, which allowed three sacks and 21 total quarterback pressures in only 60 minutes of play. To be fair, the offensive line was forced into a no-win situation late in the game, playing within a one-dimensional offense, in front of a quarterback that struggled to make decisions and held onto the football for far too long. Surprisingly, both Davin Joseph and Greg Robinson managed positive blocking grades, although the Rams No.2 overall pick only saw nine total offensive snaps, replacing the injured Rodger Saffold late in the game. The offensive line will need to be better if the St. Louis Rams want to win this season. However, so will the play calling and the quarterbacking.
5) Despite the final score, the St. Louis Rams defense was not that atrocious on Sunday, often being put in deplorable situations, forced to contain Adrian Peterson, as while keep a “wide open” playbook in-check, as the Vikings led for essentially the entire game. Peterson was held to “only” 75 yards rushing, although Cordarrelle Patterson more than made up for that relative ineffectiveness with his 102 yard rushing performance. Overall, the Rams defended the pass and the run adequately, but, surprisingly, were not effective rushing the passer, managing only one sack, four hits, and six hurried throws throughout the game. That is typically Robert Quinn’s individual stat line.
6) One of the bright spots on defense was the play of Aaron Donald, who graded out as the top non-special teams player on Sunday for the St. Louis Rams. Donald managed four tackles and three defensive stops rotating into the interior of the defense line, including the unarguable top defensive play of the game…
Aaron Donald got to Adrian Peterson in 1.19 seconds. I timed it. #MINvsSTL #Rams https://t.co/VFHQcB20yr
— Dan Doelling (@dandoelling) September 7, 2014
7) Janoris Jenkins also showed up big on Sunday, playing both the run and the pass at an extremely high level. In fact, Jenkins would finish the game as the second-highest graded player on the St. Louis Rams (after Aaron Donald), finishing with six tackles and three defensive stops, all while allowing only 36 total yards in coverage on the outside. While we should expect Jenkins to thrive in coverage while playing in Gregg Williams new, more aggressive defense, his development as a run defender stood out on Sunday. On two separate occasions, Jenkins was forced to make arguably the toughest play in football: Tackle Adrian Peterson, one-on-one, in open space, while fighting off a blocker. Both times, Jenkins was successful.
8) However, outside of those two players, there was not much positive to take away from the defense. EJ Gaines, T.J. McDonald, and Lamarcus Joyner played adequately in coverage, although no defensive back was truly challenged in the passing game. Kendall Langford and Michael Brockers appeared to hold their own in the middle of the defense, but got no help from their second-level defenders. Taking everything into consideration, it is probably best to wait another week before jumping to conclusions on any individual’s performance.
9) On another positive note, it appears Johnny Hekker is well on his way to earning back-to-back trips to Hawaii. The “red rifle” of the kicking world finished the game with an impressive 45.5 yard net average on punts, with the coverage unit allowing only six total return yards. As a result, Hekker was graded as the top punter in Week 1, so far, according to Pro Football Focus. Not to be outdone, Greg “the Leg” Zuerlein was also impressive on Sunday, despite missing his opening attempt of the season; a 50-yarder with plenty of distance that sailed left of the uprights. Legatron would make up for that miss by nailed a 56-yarder later in the game, finishing with all six of the St. Louis Rams points. Even with the miss, Zuerlein graded out 3rd overall among kickers.
10) Typically, the last thought it reserved for the special teamers, who are the only consistent light in the midst of darkness. However, this week, Brian Schottenheimer’s performance stole the show.
While there is certainly plenty of blame to go around on the coaching staff, with the St. Louis Rams nearly doubling the Minnesota Vikings’ total yardage in penalties, the Rams offensive coordinator should shoulder the majority of the blame for his pathetic offensive game planning and apparent ineptitude in play calling.
As previously mentioned, the St. Louis Rams offense started off on the “wrong foot,” coming out of the gate attempting to dominate through the air, instead of relying on their stable of running backs and mauling offensive line. Next, despite watching Seattle use Percy Harvin to near perfection, Schottenheimer still seemed unaware of how to utilize Tavon Austin in the offense. Instead of using misdirection or distracting the defense with players like Jared Cook or Brian Quick, they opted to toss Tavon Austin into the backfield as the lone halfback, even after Zac Stacy and Benny Cunningham had struggled to gain yards with “traditional” run plays.
After halftime, there did not seem to be any offensive adjustment, aside from Austin Davis entering the lineup as the new quarterback. Despite the knowledge that the Minnesota Vikings pass rushers would be “pinning their ears back” as the trailing Rams attempted to claw their way back into the game, Schottenheimer still forced his young quarterback into five- and seven-step drops. Moreover, never once did he attempt to alleviate some of that pressure by using the screen game, but, instead, watched as the St. Louis’ third-stringer flounder.
While the onus ultimately falls on the head coach for the failures of the team, the only blame that should fall on the shoulders of Jeff Fisher is his unrelenting faith in Brian Schottenheimer, despite his consistent display of ineptitude in offensive game planning, in-game adjustments, and overall play-calling.