Los Angeles Rams: 3 Keys to Victory in Week 4 vs. Vikings

USA TODAY Sports

Pressure Kirk Cousins

One surprising stat so far this season, is that this Rams defense is 29th in the NFL in sacks. If you told me a team with Aaron Donald, Ndamukong Suh, and Michael Brockers would be 29th in sacks at any point this season, I’d call you crazy.

The low amount of sacks so far for the Rams doesn’t mean they aren’t getting pressure though. In all three of their games, they’ve made the quarterbacks uncomfortable by collapsing the pocket. There’s been plenty of plays where they were milliseconds away from a sack.

Here’s an example (bottom video) of the Rams pressuring the QB in Week 3, without getting a sack on the play.

The pressure Donald creates, leaves Philip Rivers to do nothing but check it down to Melvin Gordon for a gain of just a few yards. It also makes Rivers think differently going forward, likely making him rush through his reads.

The sacks will come as the year wears on, so I wouldn’t get too worried if I were a Rams fan. This team is too talented to not find a way to sack the QB. It also helps having a guy like Wade Phillips drawing up different ways to do so.

This week, they’ll need to create pressure on Cousins to make him uneasy in the pocket. This past Sunday, Cousins had a hard time feeling the pressure. He was sacked four times by the Bills, while also turning the ball over three times.

With the injuries to Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib, it is especially important for this defensive line to step up. Talib has been ruled out, while Peters is questionable for Thursday night.

The Vikings offensive line looks shaken up, leaving room for this sack-hungry Rams defense to feast. Of course, the Vikings could look to get the ball out of Cousins hands faster, but the Rams will need to keep Cousins under duress through the entirety of this game.

If that happens, the Rams could likely be undefeated through four weeks in the NFL season.

Next Page: No. 2

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4
Share on Facebook
Share On Twitter

San Francisco 49ers Trade Up For Major Playmaker In Bold Proposal

The San Francisco 49ers own the 31st overall pick in the NFL Draft this Thursday, but they could be interested in moving up. Kyle Posey

49ers QB Brock Purdy’s Physical Change Is Creating Major Buzz

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy already appears to be working very hard on improving himself this offseason. In a recent photo, Purdy seems to

Broncos Land No. 4 Pick In Blockbuster Proposal With Cardinals

The Denver Broncos are in need of a quarterback after releasing Russell Wilson. The problem is, they don’t pick until 12th in the first round

latest posts

1
2
3
4
5
6