Pre Super Bowl Thread- On to the Rams

[obgod3]

I think this defense is considerably better than last year. The secondary alone is better, JC Jackson....yeh the Chiefs went after him but he didnt do too bad either, but when a team wont throw anywhere else then your going to get picked on. This is the NFL so plays will be made, but lets face it the Chiefs WR’s and QB are a lot better than the Rams.

I do worry about the NE Defense stopping Gurly, or CJ the human bolling ball....this is my greatest concern. Well other than containing Su and Darnold.

 

[blackglass3]

A big red flag to me is that this defensive group is basically the same group that gave up throw after throw to Nick Foles a year ago. As good as they were against the chargers, they gave up 24 points in the 4th quarter against the chiefs. The chiefs kept picking on JC Jackson and it worked. This isn’t your 01 defense but hopefully they can get the job done

I understand the worry of seeing the same results on defense as last year, but the group is not the same and is more talented. Hightower being back in the middle frees up Van Noy and Elandon Roberts to play their natural roles, last year they were both in weird positions. Jon Jones is better than Bademosi, JC Jackson is better than Rowe, and Jason McCourty playing as a safety is better than Jordan Richards. No Eric Lee being expected to play a big role, no Trey Flowers being the only person who can consistently generate some pressure (though Harrison did do his best). And, no Matt Patricia.

A repeat performance is possible. But as long as it's not due to a counted on player being benched 10 minutes before kickoff, there should be some semblance of D this year.

 

[SBLIII]

A big red flag to me is that this defensive group is basically the same group that gave up throw after throw to Nick Foles a year ago. As good as they were against the chargers, they gave up 24 points in the 4th quarter against the chiefs. The chiefs kept picking on JC Jackson and it worked. This isn’t your 01 defense but hopefully they can get the job done

We will be more than fine. Jackson had an off game, Hightower is back. Our pass defense is good. A pass defense as bad as the Rams have have not won a SB in 3 decades.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Sounds like the Rams are not prepared for the crowd noise...

Rams waited until Friday to use artificial noise

 

[Dorito Dink]

A big red flag to me is that this defensive group is basically the same group that gave up throw after throw to Nick Foles a year ago. As good as they were against the chargers, they gave up 24 points in the 4th quarter against the chiefs. The chiefs kept picking on JC Jackson and it worked. This isn’t your 01 defense but hopefully they can get the job done

1. This is not even close to the same defensive group as last year. Bademosi, Richards, Rowe, etc. all played major snaps last year. Those bums are gone and have been replaced with better players in Jackson, McCourty, and Jones. Also add Hightower this year, which has been a godsend for Van Noy who has looked like a Top 10 LB in the playoffs. Our secondary is really good and Flores has been a lot more creative than Patricia is, especially with generating a pass rush. Good secondary + unique pass rush packages make this defense a strength. It's the run defense that still concerns me despite them performing better the past two games.
2. While the second half wasn't what we hoped for against the Chiefs, the Chiefs were HEAVILY assisted on a ton of ticky tack PI's/defensive holdings that extended drives. They shut down a Top 3 WR in the league to one catch and kept "the best TE in the game" under 50 yards. That's impressive.
3. The Chiefs didn't really pick on Jackson. He had a couple penalties go against him that were highly suspect as mentioned above, but I would not say that he struggled. I think of struggling as an Eric Rowe last year, a Kyle Arrington in 2014 against the Seahawks, etc.
4. They are definitely not the 01 defense. In today's NFL climate, nobody is. Defense is hard enough to play now with all the bs rules. They are good enough to get the job done as long as the offense keeps playing up to its potential.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

So the Rams beat reporter just said on NFLN that Greg Zuerlein's range for this is around 68 yards???!!!! That's crazy. We cannot let the game come down to a Rams field goal attempt.

 

[Dorito Dink]

So the Rams beat reporter just said on NFLN that Greg Zuerlein's range for this is around 68 yards???!!!! That's crazy. We cannot let the game come down to a Rams field goal attempt.

He's good, but people get too carried away about the "range" thing. His longest field goals over the past few years haven't been any longer than most kickers.

2016: 54
2017: 56
2018: 56
His accuracy over the past 3 years though is really impressive at 90.3%.

For reference, Gostkowski's longs:
2016: 53
2017: 62 (although I think this one was in Mexico City with the high altitude)
2018: 52
Gostkowski accuracy over past 3 years: 87.5%

While Zurelein has the (slight) edge, I don't see this as any big advantage for the Rams. Their punter, Hekker, is who i'm worried about with the fakes and his big leg.

 

[SVN]

How can you stop Rams? Coaches offer ideas
Coaches' tips on how Pats can attack Rams D

 

[Wheelman]

It wouldn't surprise me if Zurlein misses a kick in the Super Bowl. I feel like he's due for one. He's no Justin Tucker.

 

[SVN]

A big red flag to me is that this defensive group is basically the same group that gave up throw after throw to Nick Foles a year ago. As good as they were against the chargers, they gave up 24 points in the 4th quarter against the chiefs. The chiefs kept picking on JC Jackson and it worked. This isn’t your 01 defense but hopefully they can get the job done

I am not worried about the secondary compared to last yr. I am worried what run defense shows up. It has been helped greatly by our offense last 2 weeks but i cant forget frank gore running 6 yards a carry vs us.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

I am not worried about the secondary compared to last yr. I am worried what run defense shows up. It has been helped greatly by our offense last 2 weeks but i cant forget frank gore running 6 yards a carry vs us.

I think the only way the Rams win is if they run it down our throats with Gurley and Anderson and we can't stop them. I would hope Bill is not going Nickel and Dime a whole lot this game given that the Rams receiving corps is not KC's. IMO we can add another safety to the box to stuff the run without risking Goff destroying us in the air with Cooks and Woods.

 

[RobertWeathers]

 

[Hokie Mark]

Here are some interesting stats from an article on ACCFootballRx about "2019 Super Bowl Factoids" (my apologies if this has already been posted - I'm new here)...

Jared Goff is the youngest NFC quarterback to reach the Super Bowl. Here's how 25-and-under QBs have fared both straight up and against the spread in Super Bowl history:

Youngest quarterbacks to play in the Super Bowl (SU/ATS)
- Dan Marino: 23 years, 127 days (L/L)
- Ben Roethlisberger: 23 years, 340 days (W/W)
- David Woodley: 24 years, 97 days (L/L)
- Jared Goff: 24 years, 112 days (?/?)
- Tom Brady: 24 years, 184 days (W/W)

----------------

Tom Brady is the oldest quarterback to play in a Super Bowl and would be the oldest to win (Peyton Manning).

This week's matchup will mark the biggest age difference between quarterbacks in Super Bowl history. It is also the second-largest age gap between quarterbacks in NFL playoff history.

Largest age difference in NFL Playoffs:
18 years, 1 month: Tom Brady (41) vs. Patrick Mahomes (23)
17 years, 3 months: Tom Brady (41) vs. Jared Goff (24)
16 years, 2 months: Tom Brady (40) vs. Marcus Mariota (24)
15 years, 9 months: Drew Brees (40) vs. Jared Goff (24)

Brady is 2-0 SU and ATS in these games.

----------------

Sean McVay is the youngest head coach in Super Bowl history. However, this isn't the first time a head coach on one team is younger than the starting quarterback on the other team. Mike Tomlin (36) beat Kurt Warner (38) when the Steelers defeated the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII.

This Super Bowl really sets up as youth vs. experience.

 

[UFGatorPat]

I am not worried about the secondary compared to last yr. I am worried what run defense shows up. It has been helped greatly by our offense last 2 weeks but i cant forget frank gore running 6 yards a carry vs us.

Anything could happen, we could stop them early or get to a lead to mitigate their run game again but I think this is the most likely outcome. They control the game in the run game, opens up the pass game just enough and their DL makes a few plays. Their OL is being undersold. I’m leaning towards the Rams because of that.

That said, this is so close either way, we have a lot of intangibles, the crowd potentially, and BB.

Id have the Rams winning this 51% of the time, so it’s not like either team doesn’t have a great chance.

 

[LuRkeR1978]

How is Goff the youngest when the stats below his name say otherwise?

 

[VectorPrime]

How is Goff the youngest when the stats below his name say otherwise?

Youngest in the NFC

 

[PatsFan92]

Pats will lose SB53.

Belichick has 254 wins all time with NE. 9/11 is the 254th day of the year and he could stay on 254 wins. This is a rematch of the 9/11 bowl. Flip the Rams logo {upside down} & Patriots logo {sideways} you get 911. Brady could stay on 99 road playoff wins, 9 x 11 = 99. Brady could lose his 11th playoff game and that is a number highly connected to 9/11. The planes that hit the twin towers were scheduled from Boston to LA.

The conference championships went into OT 23 and 31 tied.
23 is the 9th prime number.
31 is the 11th prime number.

 

[Hokie Mark]

More factoids/trivia: World Series/Super Bowl cities.

1) THE ONLY time the same two cities had teams in BOTH the World Series AND the Super Bowl in the same season/year:

2018 World Series
Boston won (4-1) vs LA Dodgers
2018 Season Super Bowl
2/3/19 Patriots vs LA Rams

...

3) only years when one city’s teams won BOTH the World Series AND the Super Bowl (4 with a possible 5th time) in the same season:

a) 1970
World Series
Baltimore won (4-1) vs Cincy
Super Bowl
1/17/71 Baltimore 16 vs Dallas 13

b) 1979
World Series
Pittsburgh won (4-3) vs Baltimore
Super Bowl
1/20/80 Pittsburgh 31 vs LA Rams 19

c) 1986
World Series
NY Mets won (4-3) vs Boston
Super Bowl
1/25/87 NY Giants 39 vs Denver 20

d) 2004
World Series
Boston won (4-0) vs St. Louis
Super Bowl
2/6/05 Patriots 24 vs Phil 21

e) 2018 ???
World Series
Boston won (4-1) vs LA Dodgers
Season Super Bowl
2/3/19 Patriots vs LA Rams ???

That's a lot of hardware for one city!

 

[Patriotic]

Pats will lose SB53.

Belichick has 254 wins all time with NE. 9/11 is the 254th day of the year and he could stay on 254 wins. This is a rematch of the 9/11 bowl. Flip the Rams logo {upside down} & Patriots logo {sideways} you get 911. Brady could stay on 99 road playoff wins, 9 x 11 = 99. Brady could lose his 11th playoff game and that is a number highly connected to 9/11. The planes that hit the twin towers were scheduled from Boston to LA.

The conference championships went into OT 23 and 31 tied.
23 is the 9th prime number.
31 is the 11th prime number.

 

[primetime]

So the Rams beat reporter just said on NFLN that Greg Zuerlein's range for this is around 68 yards???!!!! That's crazy. We cannot let the game come down to a Rams field goal attempt.

He's got a big leg but missed two from 40-49 and two from 50+ this year. He's as reliable as Gostkowski. Good kicker, but you never want to be taking a 60 yard field goal late in the Super Bowl.