The Los Angeles Rams sent a message to the NFL on Sunday. When we enter the opposing side's ten-yard territory, the Rams will throw the ball. On the Rams' first eight plays inside the Tennessee ten-yard line, they threw the ball seven times.
Not only did that happen, the Rams struggled to get Kyren Williams rolling on the ground, and the main reason Blake Corum had the success he had was that he came in to finish off a defeated Titans defense because the blocking and the scheme weren't working.
McVay's run game is built out of formations that allow McVay to mirror the pre-snap looks of both passing and running plays, which is great and is proven to be effective, but it gets to a point where simplicity is paramount, and full-frontal physical football is required.
Let's not mince words, if this was the Eagles defensive line or if T'Vondre Sweat could've played for the Titans on Sunday, the Rams could've lost and lost badly. There were several moments that highlighted these issues.
On third and two on the Titans' 46-yard line, the Rams decided to motion Puka Nacua as a blocker and ran Kyren Williams out of shotgun. The Rams got blown up and stopped. On fourth down, they ran a jet sweep to Nacua that got snuffed out with multiple defenders getting their hands on him before the marker. They couldn't tackle, so Nacua took it to the house but against playoff competition, it's a tackle and a turnover on downs.
The Rams just told the entire country that they can't run in the red zone. The red zone play calling sequencing has yet to improve, and there's a clear answer why. They have no heavy formations to establish the power run.
It is my humble opinion that a full renaissance of the rushing attack needs to happen with the introduction of a full back and heavier formations, with Warren McClendon stepping is as an extra blocker. Kyren Williams is getting lit up on social media for lack of production, but when I look at the film, it's clear that the scheme is not working for Williams' strengths.
A "heavy formation" for the Rams is two tight ends and Jordan Whittington. That's not power football at all, especially when Tyler Higbee is trying to put himself in position to block but those movements leave him exposed to getting blown up by a defender who is hauling downfield with ill intentions.
It's time for big boy football, it's time for a proper fullback, and Whittington is not a proper fullback.
If there's one detriment to the Rams' offense, it's that they haven't had a prolific rushing attack that induces fear since 2018. While one could point to Todd Gurley's gifts and athleticism for that being the reason, C.J. Anderson was gashing defenders so it's not about players.
It's time for innovation and in my opinion, offense goes on a cycle between run and pass with success hanging on this simple concept.
Whoever is able to incorporate concepts of the past into a digestible, succinct product for the modern game will achieve ultimate victory, and for the Rams, the past is the early 2000s. Neck rolls and hammer curls, let's bring back power football.
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