4 LA Rams surprise stars emerge in team’s week four contest

RB Brown

RB Malcolm Brown is that guy who looked oh-so=good in the opener against the Dallas Cowboys has fallen into a bit of a slump. After getting 18 carries in the season opener, he has carried the ball just 18 more times over the next two games. While his teammate Darrell Henderson has gotten hot and seen more carries, Brown’s workload has diminished as has his yards-per-carry. Against the Buffalo Bills, he averaged just 2.91 YPC.

Now he is in his fourth game, and the Rams are without the opportunity to involve Cam Akers in the running distribution this week, as he is nursing a rib injury. So the Rams could be tempted to just give the workload to Henderson and be done with it. After all, Henderson put up over 180 yards and two touchdowns in his past two games.  But doing so burns our Henderson too early, allows Brown to get cold, and hurt the team’s long term chances.

Why this game?

Brown suffered a broken little finger and that has contributed to his reduced production. And he had a hot game one in 2019, only to fade over the next two games. But he eventually puts on another good game to reclaim his share of carries. And Brown has been doing well so far carrying the ball. He has been carrying the ball with a great deal of authority so far this season.

The Giants defense is not only a good test for Malcolm Brown, but he is the type of power runner who could help the Rams passing offense have a huge game. It’s almost certain that the Giants will try to compensate for the Rams’ strong passing attack by going almost exclusively with a nickel or dime defensive package. With more defensive backs on the field, the Rams most certainly would be well advised to pound the ball at the Giants. That will encourage their young safeties to cheat closer to the line of scrimmage to help defend the run, which will give the Rams lots of space to throw to Everett deep.