LA Rams RB Cam Akers may never be the same after Achilles injury

The LA Rams are not getting many yards in their running game. But sometimes the problem is a bit more complicated than you may first think. In light of the cascading number of injuries that have and continue to impact the LA Rams offensive line, many fans and pundits have simply concluded that the Rams’ ineffective rushing offense is the offensive line.

But I’m not so sure that is the problem. In fact, I’m not sure that it is even the most significant contributor to the problem.  The LA Rams offensive line, whenever I’ve scrutinized their play, has opened running lanes for whoever is carrying the football. The problem seems to be that the running back more often than not fails to hit the hole.

Such as on the occasion shown in the Tweet below. But I can assure you that there are plenty of occasions like this.

It’s simply not what the LA Rams are used to seeing from the explosive and elusive rusher. But there may be more to it than meets the eye.

Passing against the top NFL passing defenses?

We’ve talked about the struggles of the LA Rams offense in the past, but the rhetoric that continues to surface from LA Rams head coach Sean McVay suggests that the Rams are making all of the correct decisions, but players are not holding up their end of the bargain and executing what is expected of them.

But that ignores the same basic problem that has reappeared to haunt the Rams’ offense annually since 2019. Why have the Rams’ expectations not changed based on the personnel who are available to play, and the opponent that the Rams face? Isn’t that the lesson that the Rams tried to learn in one season with defensive coordinator Brandon Staley? In that year, the Rams talked quite a bit about redesigning the offensive game plan specific to that week’s opponent.

It seems fairly obvious that the Rams threw that strategy out the window this year when their game plan to defeat three of the NFL’s Top-7 passing defenses has been to throw an average of 44 times per game. That offensive strategy has resulted in two touchdowns, five interceptions, and a total of 19 quarterback sacks for a loss of  138 yards.

This is not intended to be a message from the safety of the post-game wrap-up. It’s simply a logical observation that perhaps should be addressed in the future.