LA Rams don’t need Jalen Ramsey to shadow Chiefs’ best weapon

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce still makes the NFL’s best offense tick, but LA Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey doesn’t need to spend Week 12 shadowing No. 87. The defending Super Bowl champions are heavy underdogs on the road, but a Herculean effort from a solid defense could inspire an epic upset.

Using a shutdown cover man over a pass-catcher as prodigious as Kelce seems like a safe strategy for LA Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. It makes sense because of Ramsey’s familiarity with playing the slot, and Kelce’s fondness for attacking the inside of defenses.

Appearances are deceiving, and Morris would be better served to let the bigger bodies on his unit beat Kelce up at the line of scrimmage and bully him throughout his routes. The same strategy worked well for the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens in recent seasons.

Instead of Ramsey, Morris should have defensive linemen and edge-rushers jam Kelce and disrupt his release. Stopping Kelce completely is the stuff dreams are made of, but the Rams can at least limit him with the right plan.

Pats, Ravens Provide Ramsey-less Blueprint

The expectation Ramsey may see a lot of Kelce was explained by Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic in a recent article:

"“Kelce’s production has exploded since the first third of the season. Since Week 6, he ranks No. 2 in the NFL in catches for first downs, according to TruMedia. Ramsey’s role has expanded over the last few years to include coverage underneath the Rams’ zone shell, including in the slot, and it’s not hard to imagine he’ll have some tough assignments with Kelce.”- as per the Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue"

It’s a reasonable expectation, but the Rams are no longer as reliant on Ramsey to man the slot. The 28-year-old has only played more than 30 percent of his snaps in the slot four times in 10 games this season, according to PlayerProfile.com.

Morris should use members of his front seven against Kelce underneath. They would make 6’5″, 250-pound Kelce pay a heavy price for working the middle.

Here’s a great example from when the Patriots faced the Chiefs in Week 6 of the 2020 season:

LA Rams’ edge-rushers Leonard Floyd and Terrell Lewis can take turns knocking Kelce about. So can LA Rams’ versatile 6-foot-2 287-pound defensive end Marquise Copeland.

Hitting Kelce on inside releases is one way to slow him down. Edge defenders can also disrupt Kelce whenever the Chiefs align him outside.

That’s what Ravens’ outside linebacker Odafe Oweh did in Week 2 last season. One of his best plays was highlighted by The Athletic’s Nate Tice, who showed how Oweh (99) helped the Ravens double Kelce on this 3rd-and-9:

Making Kelce run around big-bodied athletes at the line of scrimmage will slow him down and limit the big-play potential of a receiver who is averaging 12.4 yards per catch. Kelce’s averaging “5.6 receptions per game,” according to CBS Sports’ Jeff Kerr, so blanking him is unlikely, but keeping him quiet is essential. He caught just 10 passes combined against the Pats and Ravens.

Morris needs to force similarly modest production, but without Ramsey. The latter can cover wide receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and rookie Skyy Moore, both of whom also love to work the middle for Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

The Rams’ defense must lead the way with quarterback Matthew Stafford on the shelf again and at risk of being shut down for the final seven games. Things will get ugly if Morris’ D’ can’t limit the Chiefs’ best weapon.