Why Rams Stars Will Continue To Impress

Sterling Xie is a sports writer for Pro Football Sports Network, and he released an article going over the highest graded players based on their week three performances. Despite the Rams losing, both Puka Nacua and Quentin Lake made the list.

"Puka Nacua leads our season-long WR Impact numbers due to his status as the most consistent receiver so far. The Rams wideout has had a top-10 finish in each of the first three weeks this season and leads the NFL with 333 receiving yards", said Xie.

Nacua Continues To Shine

Matthew Stafford's and Nacua's connection has slowly built up in the three years he's been with the team, to now, where it's undeniable that their connection downfield is special. There's an argument to be made that Nacua has been the best wide receiver this season, and the Rams knew that heading into the new year.

All off-season, it was talked about how this Rams passing attack would look with both Nacua and Davante Adams sharing the field together. It took some time, but it's looking like everything it was advertised to be, and it's only gonna get better as the season progresses.

"This was the fourth time Nacua has had the highest WRi grade in a single week. His 45.5% on-field target share led all qualifying WRs this week, but he still maintained efficiency despite that target volume with 3.73 yards per route (fifth-best at the position in Week 3)".

If it wasn't obvious before, it's clear that Nacua is the Rams' clear number one target. He's had over 100 total yards in each game he's played, and while he's yet to score a receiving touchdown, his usage is expected to earn him one eventually.

Rams’ Next Breakout Star?

"Rams safety Quentin Lake was the highest-graded safety of the week, thanks to four forced incompletions. No other safety has forced more than two incompletions in a game yet this season. Lake is a somewhat unique case".

Problems in the secondary were one of the biggest takeaways for me on why the Rams lost to the Eagles, but that wasn't because of Lake. While Lake has yet to get an interception in his career, he's always been a hassle to deal with for opposing receivers.

"Although he’s listed as a safety and therefore in our SAFi rankings, he plays the “Star” position in Los Angeles’ defense and lines up in the slot the majority of the time. Lake was targeted seven times (second-most by any safety in Week 3) and allowed just 15 yards in coverage".

Unfortunately for the Rams, not everyone in their secondary can be as much of a pest defensively as Lake. Emmanuel Forbes Jr. couldn't keep up with AJ Brown in coverage, and it led to the Eagles becoming more confident in their passing game and more aggressive overall.

"He’ll see more targets than most safeties in his role, which can lead to more volatile weekly grades. On a day when Lake excels in coverage, that can lead to a grade like Sunday’s".

The Rams can't afford to let Lake walk, as he's one of the few players in their secondary who isn't constantly getting beaten. He shut down one of the most talented wide receiver groups in the NFL for the majority of the game, and with him lurking in the back of their defense, the Rams should feel confident going up against anyone.

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