Rams vs. Titans: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for St. Louis
The St. Louis Rams fell to the Tennessee Titans with a final score of 27-14, giving St. Louis its second straight preseason loss.
There are few positives to highlight from the Rams' performance in this game. The offense was completely overwhelmed, particularly the starting unit. The Rams defense had some encouraging moments early on, but overall, the Titans moved the ball with ease.
The preseason is not meant to be taken seriously and is rarely an accurate indicator of regular-season performance. Still, it's hard to not be discouraged by St. Louis' apparent lack of effort and overall futility. The offense has weighed down the team for years, and this preseason has given us no reason to believe anything will change on that side of the ball.
Hopefully, St. Louis will improve a week from now against the Indianapolis Colts for the third preseason game—the so-called "dress rehearsal" game for the regular season, where starters typically play an entire half.
In the meantime, this article will break down Sunday night's performance, including position grades, key takeaways and quotes.
Position Grades for Rams
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| Position | Grade |
| QB | D |
| RB | C+ |
| WR | C+ |
| TE | C- |
| OL | F |
| DL | B- |
| LB | D+ |
| DB | D+ |
| Special Teams | F |
| Coaching | D- |
For the most part, these grades will focus on the starters and their performance, as that's the most important aspect of any preseason game.
Nick Foles was completely lost and hardly resembled an NFL quarterback, let alone a starter. His pick-six went directly into Perrish Cox's hands and was completely avoidable. His accuracy was horrendous. Overall, he finished 3-of-7 for just 18 yards—earning him a comically bad passer rating of 10.7.
The starting offensive line was dreadful, and Foles was constantly under pressure. The run lanes were so small you'd have a hard time fitting a Hot Wheels car through them, let alone a running back.
Tre Mason and Benny Cunningham ran hard, but there was simply nowhere to go. They combined for just 22 yards, but it's hard to blame them for the lack of production. The blocking needs to improve.
Speaking of backs, rookie Malcolm Brown caught a 54-yard touchdown reception from Sean Mannion. It was against the tired backup defenders, but it's still worth noting.
The receivers were not a total disappointment, either. Kenny Britt got open and had two grabs and Stedman Bailey had a pair of catches for 34 yards. The highlight was Chris Givens torching the Titans defense for an 80-yard touchdown, but that was against Tennessee's backup defense.
The starting defense line looked solid, even with Ethan Westbrooks in for Michael Brockers. On the first defensive series, the line stuffed Bishop Sankey on back-to-back plays, forcing a punt. On the following drive, the pass rush forced an intentional grounding, but it was wiped out, thanks to Robert Quinn's unnecessary-roughness penalty. Still, the Rams held Tennessee to a field goal.
Even though the line played fierce, it received little backup from the linebackers. The Titans running backs reached the second level far too easily, including runs of 18 and 19 yards on the first two Tennessee drives.
The secondary did not provide a very inspiring performance, other than Lamarcus Joyner's pass breakup. The tackling was weak, and the secondary allowed Marcus Mariota and Zach Mettenberger to combine for a 70.5 percent completion rate.
Special teams was very shaky, other than Isaiah Pead's 27-yard kickoff return. The usually sure-footed Johnny Hekker had an awful 23-yard punt. Greg Zuerlein missed a 53-yard attempt well within his range, and backup kicker Michael Palardy missed a very doable 46-yard kick.
Coaching is always a tough thing to grade in the preseason. The game-planning is far less intricate than the regular season, and the intensity is nonexistent. Still, the Rams showed an overall lack of discipline in this game, and that reflects poorly on the coaches.
Time to Start Worrying About This Offense
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Out of the first-team offense's five offensive drives this preseason, the Rams have been held to just three points.
It would be one thing if the offense was showing great effort and at least somewhat moving the ball, but that hasn't been the case. Not at all. Based on what we've seen—and keep in mind it's still the preseason—it appears St. Louis fans are in for another year of anemic offensive play.
The so-called bulldozers on the offensive line seem incapable of opening any real run lanes. During the first four drives, the top St. Louis backs—Mason and Cunningham—were held to 22 yards on nine carries. Cunningham's five-yard gain was the high point.
Foles looked completely lost. Miscommunication, underthrown and overthrown passes and even a pick-six devastated his performance. He looked like he didn't even belong on the field, which is frightening, considering how vital he is for the offense's success this season.
Unless you count Britt's modest eight-yard grab, the starting offense had literally zero positives in this game. The first-string passing game averaged 2.6 yards per pass. The backs averaged 2.4 yards per carry. The starters managed just two first downs.
It's possible the Rams are hiding their cards and keeping the offense vanilla. No need to reveal too much before the real games begins.
Then again, hasn't that been the common preseason excuse for years now? Given that we've seen an incompetent offense every season under Jeff Fisher, do the Rams deserve the benefit of the doubt?
St. Louis fans better hope the defense is everything it's hyped to be. Based on what we've seen from the offense in two preseason games, beating every team 6-0 appears to be the Rams' best hope.
Discipline a Major Issue Once Again for St. Louis
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The Rams were guilty of 10 penalties in the preseason opener against the Oakland Raiders. Days before this game, the team was involved in a violent brawl in a joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys, per Todd Archer of ESPN.com.
Against the Titans, St. Louis was guilty of nine penalties. Starters committed three of those penalties in just one-and-a-half quarters of play.
In addition to penalties, the defense was guilty of a number of missed tackles. On one play, Mark Barron missed a tackle and instead went for the forced fumble—resulting in the receiver getting a 35-yard gain. Marcus Roberson made a similar error that resulted in Hakeem Nicks' big play.
At what point will this team discover the subtle difference between aggressiveness and blatant stupidity?
The Rams ranked third in the NFL in penalties last season, with 123. A repeat of that 2014 performance will almost certainly have an impact on the upcoming season's win-loss record.
Fans want Fisher to emphasize the importance of limiting penalties. But after three seasons in St. Louis and nearly 20 seasons as an NFL head coach, it should be obvious by now that Fisher has no earthly clue how to instill discipline. Either that or he refuses to do so.
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Defense Allowing Far Too Many Completions
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Ever since Fisher's arrival, the Rams have consistently been one of the NFL's worst teams when it comes to forcing incompletions.
In 2014, the Rams allowed the second-highest opponent-completion rate at 68.1 percent. The team allowed a 68.1 completion rate again in 2013, which tied for the NFL's highest. In 2012, Fisher's first season, St. Louis finished with the third-highest rate at 66.2 percent.
In 2011, the year before Fisher's arrival, the Rams finished 17th, and opponents completed just 60.5 percent of passes.
During the preseason opener against Oakland, the Raiders quarterbacks went a combined 23-of-30 against the St. Louis secondary (76.6 percent).
Things didn't improve against the Titans. Mariota and Mettenberger combined to go 12-of-17 in the first half (70.5 percent). Overall, the Titans completed 20 of 27 passes for an alarming 74 percent completion rate.
It's one thing to possess a "bend but don't break" defensive philosophy, but the Rams are simply allowing teams to complete passes at will, with zero resistance. And that's totally unacceptable if the the team hopes to field a top-five defense this season.
The Rams secondary needs to toughen up against the pass. Without providing some competent coverage, St. Louis' elite pass rush is useless.
Kevin Burkhardt on Todd Gurley
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"The Rams are almost giddy at what (Todd Gurley) can do for them." Kevin Burkhardt (via the Fox broadcast).
If the Rams are giddy about Todd Gurley's return, you can only imagine how jacked-up the fans are. After Sunday night's abysmal offensive performance, the desire to see Gurley on the field has reached an all-time high.
Based on what we've seen from the offense this preseason, it appears Gurley reaching his potential is St. Louis' only hope of flashing sparks on offense. We've seen what elite backs like Marshawn Lynch and Adrian Peterson can do for a team. If that's Gurley's true ceiling, there's a chance he'll transform the offense from awful to mediocre—maybe even average.
The biggest question is not Gurley's health, but rather the offensive line.
Even if Gurley is totally healthy several weeks into the year and ready to pop, will the helpless St. Louis line allow him to succeed?
It's worth noting that St. Louis' best offensive lineman—Rodger Saffold—has been absent from the lineup since the first drive of the preseason. His return will make everyone on offense better. Hopefully, it will be enough to give Gurley a chance to shine.
The Rams have been in need of an elite offensive weapon for almost a decade. If Gurley turns out to be that guy, things will dramatically improve on offense.
Nick Wagoner on Chris Givens' Touchdown
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"(Chris) Givens has quietly had a nice camp, though that's the trick we know he has in the bag. Still, first touchdown of the preseason for Rams." —ESPN's Nick Wagoner, via Twitter.
Chris Givens is a forgotten talent who has been somewhat overlooked since the offseason. Now, it appears things are changing in his favor.
Givens burst onto the scene in 2012 as a rookie fourth-round pick. He had 698 yards and three touchdowns, including five consecutive games with a reception of 50 or more yards. It appeared he had a bright future ahead, but our perception of him quickly changed.
Givens was phased out of the offense in 2014 with just 159 yards. He's been pegged as a deep-ball specialist and a one-trick pony—which is what Wagoner refers to in his tweet—and his chances of making the 2015 roster initially appeared to be slim.
Slowly, things have been shifting back in his favor. Rookie Bud Sasser was his primary competition for a roster spot, but Sasser was cut not long after the draft due to a heart condition, per Wagoner of ESPN.com.
Now, Givens is suddenly the star of the offense this preseason. He caught four passes for 36 yards last week against Oakland. His 80-yard touchdown against the Titans only strengthens his case.
The Rams are in no position to be picky. The team needs offensive production anyway it can get it, even if it's an occasional deep ball to a receiver who struggles in the short and intermediate game.
One trick is still better than no tricks. If Givens remains productive and the deep balls are working, why not keep him on the roster?
Jim Thomas on St. Louis' Starting Center
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"Rhaney is indeed starting at center for the Rams."—Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch via Twitter.
Demetrius Rhaney—St. Louis' seventh-round selection from 2014—lined up as the starting center in Sunday night's game. It's a bit surprising given his status as a low-level draft pick who missed last season with an injury, per Wagoner of ESPN.com.
It's unclear if the coaches were simply testing out Rhaney with the starters or if he's honestly ahead of Barrett Jones and Tim Barnes on the depth chart.
Next week's game against the Colts should clarify things. The third preseason game is the "dress rehearsal," so the starter in that game is more than likely the winner of the center competition.
Thomas reported on Twitter just prior to the game that Jones would start against the Titans, but apparently there was a last-minute adjustment. Perhaps, the Rams are simply protecting Jones, who has been very injury-prone at the NFL level.
Either way, it's important for St. Louis to get it right. The line is in desperate shape, so the team needs the best center possible in the starting lineup.
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