LA Rams offense is key to defense’s Super Bowl performance

Running is more strategic than tactical

If the Rams offense is truly the key to victory, then the team is in pretty good shape.  After all, the LA Rams offense has a few things going for them this season. Not the least of which is the miraculous return to the roster of second-year running back Cam Akers. With Cam Akers return, the Rams are suddenly content to run the football more.

That’s huge. Not just for the fact that running keeps the opposing defense honest. But it keeps the Rams’ defense rested and at optimal potency.  Facing the Cincinnati Bengals offense, this team will need to be in top form. The Bengals can run, make no mistake about that. Their feature back, Joe Mixon, rushed for 1,205 yards and 13 touchdowns this season. And he did so in just 292 carries.

Bengals offense is very “Rams-like”

But the heart of the Bengals offense is quarterback Joe Burrow and his trio of receivers in rookie WR Ja’Marr Chase, second-year WR Tee Higgins, and veteran WR Tyler Boyd. Combined, they put up 3,374 yards of offense and kicked in 24 touchdowns to boot. Does this offense sound familiar to the LA Rams offense? It should. Their head coach is Zac Taylor, a former LA Rams quarterback coach who was hired to become the Cincinnati Bengals head coach after the Rams 2018 season and appearance in Super Bowl LIII.

This game will be about the mentor facing off against his former protege. This game will be about a cast of LA Rams veterans facing a young and excited Cincinnati Bengals roster. But don’t get lost in the distractions.

This game will be about controlling the Time of Possession. Even as the Bengals defense is susceptible to a passing offense, and is a bit stingy when it comes to running the ball, the key is to win the game, not the stats sheet. The LA Rams will most certainly have their work cut out for them. But as long as the team sticks to what got them here, they will have a good chance of finally hoisting the Lombardi Trophy for the City of Los Angeles.