THE SITUATION: Heading into the first year in Green Bay A.F.
(After Favre), there was plenty of trepidation about what the Packers would get
from his replacement at quarterback, Aaron Rodgers.
Rodgers had spent his first three seasons as Favre’s caddy,
playing only in garbage time and the one time Favre got hurt he wasn’t out long.
In fact, 2008 represented Rodgers’ first opportunity to prove himself capable of
replacing the most famous man in Wisconsin.
By the end of 2009, Packers fans had fully embraced Rodgers as
he pieced together a tremendous season that while it didn’t erase memories of
Favre, it certainly softened the blow of his departure.
And while Favre spent the offseason in the middle of another
soap opera, Green Bay took solace in the fact that they have their signal caller
for the foreseeable future.
Rodgers threw for 4,038 yards and 28 touchdowns with just 13
interceptions for a rating of 93.8 in his first season as the starter. Although
Green Bay didn’t win as much as he would have liked, Rodgers became just the
second player in league history to throw for 4,000 yards in his first season as
a starter.
Rodgers got off to a solid start this season in leading his team
to a win against rival Chicago and he poses a serious threat to the Rams today.
Rodgers is at his best when the Packers get him out of the
pocket and give him a chance to make plays on the run. He throws a good deep
ball and can get yards with his legs.
“He is a very accurate guy and the thing that has impressed me
is how well he makes plays with his feet; he extends the down with his speed and
he is a very accurate quarterback on the run,” Rams defensive coordinator Ken
Flajole said. “It creates some problems for you – you can’t get loose in
coverage when he starts running around because he finds guys. I’ll tell you,
he’ll launch it deep on you too. He’s not afraid; if you don’t have good
integrity in the deep end and your back end coverage, he’ll launch it deep on
you and make you pay.”
In order for the Rams to slow the Packers offense, they must
contain Rodgers and force him into some mistakes.
THE ANSWER: Rodgers was held in check early but hit some big
plays that really hurt the Rams. Rodgers also used his legs to get out of
trouble and finish with 269 yards and two touchdowns on just 13 completions. He
added a rushing touchdown.
2. On the Receiving End
THE SITUATION: Of course, Rodgers’ job would be much more
difficult if he didn’t have some quality targets to throw the ball to. But
Rodgers actually has one of the best receiver tandems in the NFL and he has the
perfect mix of developing young superstar and grizzled veteran who knows how to
move the chains.
Leading the way is young stud Greg Jennings. Jennings hinted at
possible success in his first two seasons but he had a monster breakthrough in
2008. Jennings posted 80 catches for 1,292 yards and nine touchdowns and was
rewarded with a contract extension in June.
The savvy old man of the crew is Donald Driver, an 11-year
veteran who has three Pro Bowl appearances to his credit. Driver is nothing if
not steady and has posted at least 1,000 receiving yards in five straight
seasons.
While Driver has lost a little bit of juice, he’s still more
than capable of making plays and keeping the chains moving. Jennings, on the
other hand, is the deep threat who is capable of busting a big play at any
moment.
“It’s hard not to see what you see on ESPN and NFL Network every
day with them just running up and down the field left and right,” cornerback
Jonathan Wade said. “They look amazing. They play hard and they play fast. We
have to find a way to match their intensity and their play on Sunday to keep
that to a minimum.”
Rams cornerbacks Ron Bartell and Wade will face a tall order in
attempting to limit Driver and Jennings and forcing Rodgers to check down to
running backs or tight ends.
THE ANSWER: Jennings and Driver were mostly quiet but they hit
some big plays that significantly hurt the Rams’ cause. Jennings had just two
catches but those went for 103 yards. Driver had four grabs for 95 yards and a
score. It wasn’t the Rams’ secondary’s best day.
3. Defensive Makeover
THE SITUATION: After a dismal defensive showing in 2008, the
Packers set about finding ways to create more pressure and make more plays.
So the Packers swept out some members of the defensive coaching
staff and brought in experienced coordinator Dom Capers to run the show.
Capers immediately scrapped the Packers 4-3 defense and
installed his trademark 3-4 alignment.
That meant a serious reconfiguration, not the least of which
meant asking defensive end and best pass rusher Aaron Kampman to move to outside
linebacker. While Kampman has a wide array of pass rushing moves, he’s not known
for his speed and the Packers had some concern that his sack production might
drop off even more after a disappointing 2008 season.
Green Bay’s front seven is one of the largest in the league and
presents a variety of problems.
“Well, they have a very sturdy front seven and then they have a
talented front secondary, especially at the corner position,” Rams offensive
coordinator Pat Shurmur said. “So when you have guys with size in there
sometimes they can stand shoulder-to-shoulder and just make a difference. So a
little different scheme on defense than what we’ve seen the last few weeks with
the 3-4. Their size helps them execute that.”
In week one against the Bears and in the preseason, the Packers
did nothing but create havoc and plenty of turnovers. Green Bay has an
opportunistic secondary and a fierce front seven that can put pressure on an
opponent and force mistakes.
Green Bay intercepted Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler four times
in week one. For the Rams to compete today, they will need to take care of the
ball and ensure that Green Bay doesn’t force them into many of the mistakes that
Green Bay is hoping to force.
There was a big drop off last week against Cincinnati as the
Bengals torched Green Bay’s defense with a big day, especially allowing a lot of
yards on the ground.
With just seven points in two games, the Rams hope they can get
running back Steven Jackson going like the Bengals did with Cedric Benson last
week and get some points on the board.
THE ANSWER: Green Bay’s defense loaded the box, often using five
linebackers to try to stop Jackson but to no avail. The Rams piled up 336 yards
of offense and Jackson rushed for 117 on 4.3 yards per attempt. A pair of
takeaways did buoy Green Bay defensively.
4. The Money Down
THE SITUATION: It is said that one of the most important
statistics aside from turnover differential in terms of correlating to victory
in the NFL is a team’s ability to convert on third down and stop the opponent
from converting its third down opportunities.
For the Rams offense, that was one area of serious improvement
in last week’s game against Washington, allowing that unit to extend drives and
move the ball.
And while the defense was outstanding in the red zone and held
the Redskins to just nine points, the time of possession favored Washington
because of an inability to get off the field on third downs.
In the first two games, Seattle and Washington combined to
convert 15 of 30 third downs into first downs.
That’s an area the Rams have emphasized in this week of practice
and something Flajole and coach Steve Spagnuolo say they can help too by dialing
up some different ways to create pressure.
“You try to find ways you can rush the passer as everybody knows
and that doesn’t always necessarily mean you have to blitz them,” Flajole said.
“We are trying to find ways to move guys around and maybe create some favorable
match-ups where we don’t have to pressure and we can play some zone around it
and when we do play our ears back, so to speak, that we make sure we’ve got the
right thing dialed up for what they are doing. That’ll be an ongoing process. We
will continue to work on it.”
THE ANSWER: The Rams were much better on third down, holding the
Packers to two-of-nine on third down conversions. On offense, the Rams were
four-of-14.
5. Line Dancing
THE SITUATION: If ever there was a time for the Rams to ratchet
up the aforementioned pass rush, this week could present a prime opportunity.
The Packers will be without left tackle Chad Clifton and that
has caused them to do some serious shifting on their offensive line. Left guard
Daryn Colledge will move to Clifton’s spot with center Jason Spitz sliding from
center to guard and Scott Wells taking over at center.
That shift didn’t help Green Bay much last week when Bengals
defensive end Antwan Odom punished the Packers for five sacks. Right tackle
Allen Barbre has also had his share of struggles.
The Rams have just one sack in the first two weeks and would
like to get a strong pass rush going against Green Bay. Whether that comes from
the front four or by way of the blitz, expect the Rams to show some different
looks this week.
“I am sure they are just like us; they have got the things they
are working on,” Flajole said. “I am sure they’ll be much improved in that area
but there are some things from a game plan stand point that we are going to try
to do to maybe help us. That will have to be a Sunday revelation but we’re going
to see if we can do some things.”
Should the Rams be able to generate enough pass rush to get
after Rodgers, it would go a long way toward their first victory in 2009.
THE ANSWER: The Rams were in Rodgers’ face pretty consistently
and Leonard Little came up with a pair of first quarter sacks. Rodgers is
elusive, though, and that was the extent of the Rams’ sacks.
|
Print
|
