Head Coach Scott Linehan reacts to a play against the New Orleans Saints. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
When the Rams knock off the 49ers on Sunday in San Francisco, they will have posted back-to-back victories. “That’s a winning streak,” coach Scott Linehan declared Friday.
After a slight pause, he added, “When you don’t have any, one in a row is a winning streak.”
After slogging through his team’s 0-8 start, Linehan can be excused for expanding the definition a bit. Just as his players can be pardoned for lingering in the aftermath of the 37-29 triumph at New Orleans.
“You try to stay the same, no matter if you win or lose,” tackle Alex Barron said. “But that’s hard to do after you’ve gone 0-and-whatever and then you win a game. It’s going to give you a little kick.”
The result was a more upbeat mood this week at Rams Park. “Just winning in itself changes the entire atmosphere,” Isaac Bruce said.
Added fellow wide receiver Torry Holt: “Winning always inspires you, gives you a little more bounce. You’re just a little bit more chipper, a little bit more excited about coming to work.” Still, Linehan emphasized that no one is organizing a celebratory parade just yet.
“The perspective is there; we understand where we are and how we got here,” he said. “If we can find a way to flip the result of the second half (of the season) from the first half, it’s going to continue to improve the atmosphere around here.”
Although the 49ers have the lesser of the two horrendous records, it's becoming evident that the two are headed in different directions this year.
Surprisingly, it's the 49ers who are dead last in the NFL in total offense. The Rams were competing for that dubious distinction before they reeled off 37 points against the Saints last week. The Rams started the season 0-8, but the 49ers are hot on their heels having lost their last 7 in a row. Both the 49ers' running and passing games are unproductive and they are struggling to sustain any drives. On defense, they are struggling to stop the run and are allowing other teams to convert too easily on third down.
The Rams have caught alot of bad breaks and were incredibly bad on the road up until last week, but now look renewed with a healthy Steven Jackson playing the role of workhorse, Marc Bulger finding his rhythm, and the defense playing hard snap to whistle.
The 49ers now have a distraction to go along with their poor play as of late as quarterback Alex Smith admitted Wednesday that his shoulder, and now forearm, have been "killing him" and have greatly affected his play. Coach Mike Nolan took exception to Smith airing this to the media before admitting it to him. Look for Trent Dilfer to start this week against the Rams in his place, and possibly the rest of the season.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
Get Jackson involved early Jackson isn't quite 100 percent recovered from his groin injury, but he's still capable of setting the tone for the Rams' entire offense. All of their production on the ground and in the passing game is directly related to Jackson's presence. The Rams won their first game last week because Jackson delivered with consistently strong running to move the chains, and even contributed a TD pass. The fact that Marc Bulger could rack up big yardage without being sacked stemmed from Jackson running hard and wearing down the Saints' defense, and the 49ers' defense is similarly undersized. The quicker that Jackson gets going as a rusher and as a receiver, the sooner everything else opens up. The Rams also need to remember to give Jackson a breather, and can do so effectively with Brian Leonard and Antonio Pittman. Pittman showed his big-play potential last week against New Orleans when he broke off a 43 yarder late in the game.
Disguise the defensive sets The 49ers' offensive line is playing poorly. With the injury losses of left tackle Jonas Jennings and right guard Justin Smiley, there has been much confusion in the blocking assignments. The 49ers have used two tight ends to help with pass protection, but that is not working, and both the passing and running games have suffered as a result. Rams defensive coordinator Jim Haslett has been changing schemes every week and will have the 49ers guessing on assignments, leading to plays breaking down. Last week against the Saints, Haslett said he recalled calling blitzes on 16 of the first 18 plays. One wrinkle he put in was using linebacker Will Witherspoon as the "buck" end in passing situations with end Leonard Little out for the season. Witherspoon responded with one sack and one forced fumble.
Spread the wealth The Rams looked to have their swagger back on offense against New Orleans, who was no slouch of an opponent. Having receivers as talented as Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, Drew Bennett, Randy McMichael and Steven Jackson puts great pressure on any defense they face. Now that Bennett and McMichael are starting to see more action on the field, teams are going to have to account for their whereabouts more stringently. The 49ers like to bring strong safety Michael Lewis up into the box to stop the run and blitz on passing downs. He is a hard-hitting upfield defender, but he does not recover well in pass coverage. The Rams will start with quick slants to Holt and establish a rhythm, which also will keep the pressure off Bulger. Look also for the four-receiver set and Jackson going up the middle to the area that Lewis has vacated.
WHEN THE RAMS HAVE THE BALL
RUNNING GAME The healthier running back Steven Jackson gets the healthier the Rams' running game gets. To showcase him, the Rams will use tight end Randy McMichael to block an outside linebacker, and tight end Joe Klopfenstein will come in motion and get in between the guard and tackle and engage an inside linebacker. The Rams also will go to a four-receiver set and run Jackson up the middle. Backs Brian Leonard, Antonio Pittman and Travis Minor will serve as a change of pace and will be used to make sure Jackson doesn't wear down.
The 49ers will play in their base 3-4 defense and try and occupy the Rams' linemen, giving linebackers Patrick Willis and Jeff Ulbrich an opportunity to stop the run. Willis, though, is playing with a cast on his hand, and it has affected his tackling. It is difficult for him to wrap up on the tackle and trying to stop a blood-stained hurricane like Steven Jackson only makes his job that much harder. Strong safety Michael Lewis will come up and add an eighth man in the box to try and get Jackson down before he gets deep into the secondary. The Rams will likely swing Jackson into the flat to get him the ball in space when things get too clogged in the middle.
PASSING GAME Once the Rams get their running game going and the 49ers put defenders in the box, the Rams will be ready to open up the offense. The Rams' passing game is all about rhythm and timing with the receivers. The 49ers cornerbacks must try to bump the receivers at the line if they want to disrupt that timing.
Cornerbacks Walt Harris and Nate Clements are big enough and fast enough to cover the Rams' receivers one-on-one, but they cannot let Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce (who could be limited by a strained hamstring) off the line cleanly. The corners will not get any other help, since the Rams will likely go to their four-receiver set with Drew Bennett and McMichael. In this formation, the Rams will usually hit Holt on a 15-yard dig route over the middle. Another favorite is to drive the cornerback deep to the corner and hit McMichael in the gap between the corner and the dropping linebacker.
QB Marc Bulger has been reading the defense very well recently, Holt has a reception 127 consecutive games and the Rams are happy to take short passes to get first downs. Even if you know what they are planning, they have a way of getting the ball in there and moving the chains. And Jackson is a dangerous weapon in the passing game as well when you get him out in space and hit him with a screen or flair pass.
THE BLITZ The Rams have been hurt and are playing with their 13th different offensive line combination this season. But line play was surprisingly good last week. It is still porous, especially at left tackle with Alex Barron very susceptible to a gap blitz. But Bulger is reading the blitz very well and has been able to release the ball before the pressure gets him. The Rams will use two tight ends and two back sets to hold the linebackers on play action.
The 49ers are just not that effective on the blitz, and Bulger has been seeing this all season long. If the 49ers do not play aggressive on defense, Bulger could have an extremely productive day.
IN THE RED ZONE Until last week, the Rams were among the worst teams in the red zone -- mainly because they were only there 22 times. Last week, the offensive production finally changed. Jackson even threw a touchdown pass of his own. This week the Rams will run Jackson in the red zone to take advantage of a smaller 49ers defensive front 7.
The 49ers will bring everyone up and attack the line of scrimmage to try to stop Jackson. If he is stopped the Rams will spread the offense and go to their favorite target -- Holt -- or use their two new targets -- Bennett and McMichael
KEY MATCHUPS
Rams RB Steven Jackson vs. 49ers ILB Patrick Willis While still not entirely 100% after coming back from his groin injury, Jackson is still getting stronger every game. He will want to make up for lost time and will control this game with his running, receiving and who knows, maybe even his passing. The running game will get extra blocking from tight end Joe Klopfenstein, who is improving in that area. Klop will go in motion and lead up into the hole for Jackson as was the case against New Orleans. Jackson's power and speed to the outside will wear down the 49ers' defense and allow Jackson to dominate a tired unit later in the game if he holds up that long. The rookie Willis is the 49ers' leading tackler, but he is starting to run out of gas. He also is playing with a broken hand, which doesn't let him wrap up on his tackles or handle the ball well in pass coverage. Willis looks like he is getting frustrated and trying to do too much for his struggling team.
Conversely....
Rams MLB Will Witherspoon vs. 49ers RB Frank Gore The 49ers will need to rely on Gore to carry their offense, and he will be responsible for the running game and giving Alex Smith (or Trent Dilfer) a chance in the passing game with good play-action potential. Gore was the man in the teams' Week 2 meeting, getting 20 carries and scoring twice as the 49ers held on to win, 17-16. Gore's tough inside running and ability to break tackles will hopefully give the 49ers a chance to get a balanced attack going this week. The Rams will play their attacking defense and will have to meet Gore in the hole and stop him before he gets into the secondary. Witherspoon is fast enough to match up with Gore, but Gore is substantially bigger and stronger than Reggie Bush is, so this will be a much bigger test.
Rams WR Torry Holt vs. 49ers CB Nate Clements Clements was signed away from Buffalo to be a shutdown corner, and he will challenge Holt in the passing game. Clements is good at taking away deep routes, but he will need to be prepared for plenty of quick-slant timing patterns to Holt.
Clements will not get any help against the crafty Holt because the 49ers will likely commit eight defenders to play against the run. Despite all the talk about his age, Holt has found a way to get open against the league's best corners, and he will do it again this week in spite of that "talk".
INJURY REPORT
49ers 11/7/07 - Alex Smith - QB - Shoulder - Not likely to play 11/15/07 - Aubrayo Franklin - DT - Calf - Out 4 weeks 9/20/07 - Manny Lawson - LB - Torn ACL - Out for season
Rams 11/7/07 - Richie Incognito - G - Knee IR 11/15/07 - Isaac Bruce - WR - Hamstring - Should play Week 11 11/13/07 - Aaron Walker - TE - Shoulder - IR 11/12/07 - Dante Hall - WR - Ankle - Did not play Week 10 11/12/07 - Brett Romberg - C - Ankle - Status uncertain 11/5/07 - Leonard Little - DE - Toe - Out for season 11/8/07 - Steven Jackson - RB - Groin - Should play 9/12/07 - Orlando Pace - T - Shoulder - Out for season
After painstaking analystist this is the new and improved predictions for the NFC WEST.
St. Louis Rams (Last Year: 8-8)
Veteran Additions: WR Drew Bennett, TE Randy McMichael, DE James Hall, MLB Chris Draft, CB Lenny Walls, CB Mike Rumph, S Todd Johnson, KR Dante Hall. Draft Picks: FB Brian Leonard, WR Derek Stanley, OT Ken Shackleford, C Dustin Fry, DE Adam Carriker, DE Clifton Ryan, DT Keith Jackson, CB Jonathan Wade. Major Subtractions: RB Stephen Davis, RB Tony Fisher, FB Paul Smith (DEN), WR Kevin Curtis (PHI), WR Shaun McDonald (DET), G Adam Timmerman, C Larry Turner, DE Brandon Green (SEA), DT Jimmy Kennedy (DEN), DT Jason Fisk, OLB Dexter Coakley, MLB Isaiah Kacyvenski, LB Jamel Brooks, CB Travis Fisher (DET), CB Jerametrius Butler (WAS), S Dwaine Carpenter, P Matt Turk, KR Willie Ponder.
Offense This Year: When Scott Linehan took over the head-coaching job in St. Louis and the Rams failed to score more than 20 points in each of their first three games of the 2006 season, I was concerned that the "Greatest Show on Turf" that we've all loved to watch over the past half decade had disappeared and never would be seen again. Well, I was relieved to notice that St. Louis was able to score 24.6 points per game the rest of the campaign - which was only .4 less than last year's average when Marc Bulger was in the lineup.
Speaking of Bulger, I was shocked to see that he started all 16 games in a season for the first time in his career. That's a pretty impressive feat, considering he was sacked 49 times. If Bulger's healthy, he's one of the best and most underrated quarterbacks in the NFL. What he, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce have done over the years is amazing, especially when you take into account how atrocious the offensive line has been.
I already mentioned Bulger's 2006 sack total. Rams quarterbacks have been taken down 46 times in 2005; 50 times in 2004; 43 times in 2003; and 46 times in 2002. I thought Linehan would decrease that total, though to be fair, it should be noted that left tackle Orlando Pace missed eight games. The right side of the front looks better, as guard Richie Incognito and tackle Alex Barron started every single contest last season. However, left guard Mark Setterstrom, taken in the seventh round of the 2006 Draft, and 37-year-old center Andy McCollum will both be taking care of buisness.
McCollum isn't the only one whose age Rams fans need to be concerned about. Bruce turns 35 in November, which hurts because receivers Kevin Curtis and Shaun McDonald defected for other teams via the free-agent market. Drew Bennett was signed, and will be a effective a replacement. Newly acquired tight end Randy McMichael should fit well into the offense, but the man who makes the entire unit work is running back Steven Jackson. Jackson, free of Mike Martz's pass-happy scoring attack, rumbled for 1,528 rushing yards, 806 receiving yards and 16 total touchdowns, establishing himself as one of the most potent weapons in the NFL. Jackson could be in for better numbers if Pace stays healthy.
