A fans view from Oakland
| September 12, 2018 11:32PM |
Rams have had a remarkable a history. For as much nonsense as we have endured, we have been graced with some of the greatest stories in NFL history. How does the worst team of the 1990s end up winning a SB with an undrafted QB who was only a few years removed from stocking groceries in Cedar Rapids, Iowa?
I mean, what are the odds of that?
While we as fans were basking in that glory, remarkably, around the same time, a young kid from Georgia, was riding on a bus to a 49ers game with Grandfather’s football team. Seated on the team bus next to Jesse Sapolu, no one outside his family really realized how much football meant to him.
On one of those trips, a Monday night game in Atlanta, that young boy was thrilled that he found himself on the sidelines of the 49ers game where future hall of famer Steve Young tosses him a towel before heading back out onto the field with his team.
Many of us were probably watching that game, not noticing and certainly not realizing, what a prominent role that young child would play in our futures.
Those within his family understood, however.
They recall the young teen working his way through a book that was given to him. The book, “Finding the Winning Edge”, was written by Bill Walsh, the mastermind of the great 49ers dynasty.
Given the boy’s obvious love of football and the fact that his grandfather had worked as Walsh’s GM, it seemed natural that he may be interested. The massive book covered all aspects of how Walsh built a championship organization from the top down and the bottom up -- but it wasn’t the type of book written for the casual fan. It was a how-to book, a book steeped in details and minutiae and designed for junkies and those deep into the game.
His father Tim noted that each night, before going to bed, that young boy would read a few pages from the book before going to sleep, eventually working his way through all 550 pages. In some way, it seemed that all the boy was interested in was learning about football.
Each step along the way to his ultimate destiny, this child found himself connected to influential football people until January of 2018, when that young kid, at age 31, took the podium for the Los Angeles Rams to become the youngest coach in NFL history.
Sometimes, you can see great things coming.
Before Sean McVay became the Rams coach, I knew very little about him. After he was hired, I learned of his history, his family, and the fact that he was a student of the game.
When he brought in Wade Phillips to Coach the Defense, I saw he was already light years ahead of coaches who bring in “their guys” even if they are not qualified or the best people for the job. When he retained “Bones”, I knew he got it. When he convinced Kromer that LA was the place to be, I knew he was practicing the philosophies of “Finding the Winning Edge” and “The Score Takes Care of Itself “– another of Walsh’s books he referenced when he was hired.
Surround yourself by great people, let them do their jobs, the score takes care of itself.
Heading to Oakland, I knew I should have been concerned. After all, it was Jon Gruden’s return to Oakland after a 16 year hiatus. He was an integral part of that McVay history – Gruden was the Master to McVay’s student.
I’ve watched enough movies (and saw the Redskins game the year before) to know that sometimes the Master @#$%& slaps the student reminding the student, that even a Master cannot share all of his knowledge and wisdom.
Raider fans knew that this could be one of the last home openers ever in Oakland and they wanted to welcome in their own Savior right. Black regalia abound as I strode into the stadium. I was happy to note a small but strong and proud contingent of Rams fans wearing the new wave of jerseys – Donald, Gurley, Peters, Cooks, Kupp, Goff, Woods.
Not a single Warner jersey to be found.
The new era was upon us.
Understanding I was still in Oakland and trying to build good Karma, I invite a close friend with me. He is a true raider fan and also the strongest and most intimidating person I know. A winner of many strong man competitions, whose mother was an arm wrestling world champion – Tom is a gentle grizzly who can turn quite ugly when people move into his personal space or threaten his friends.
With Tom seated next to me, I knew I had the necessary cover to administer whatever type of counter-smack was necessary.
Just before Kickoff - Howie Long is introduced to inaugurate the new season. The crowd is going crazy.
Yet I wasn’t nervous.
I thought back to Florida Rams post on this board letting the board know why he wasn’t nervous following it with pictures of Donald and Suh, with Wade and Sean, with Gurley and Cooks, Peters and Talib and I too realized there is too much talent here, too many playmakers . . . over 60 minutes with those players and that staff, sooner or later, it would show itself.
When the Rams deferred and the Raiders chose to take the ball, I was curious to see our vaunted new defense. When the Raiders drove down the field for a season opening TD my heart rate did not elevate even a bit which is extremely unusual.
The replay board showed a Rams player hooked onto Lynch’s leg getting dragged 5 yards into the end zone.
No doubt about it, even with people pushing the pile “Beast Mode” Lynch is a very strong man.
That said, I figured Gruden had months to plan this drive, understanding that the Rams didn’t know what he was going to run and given his absence from the NFL. I tip my hat to the Teacher, but he would soon learn -- his pupil had grown up.
What could have been the type of drive that sparks a team to a big win, hardly registered on the Rams sideline. From the 45-yard line, behind the Rams bench just 16 rows back, I saw McVay say a few words to Wade and then disengage.
A quick view of the Rams defense showed them chatting on the Rams bench.
No bowed heads, no exaggerated responses.
The guy in front of me turns around and says “you are in for a long day”.
I told him, “if you were actually good at predicting the future, you wouldn’t have bought that Mack 52 jersey”
I told him, “I’ll hear from someone that is wearing a jersey of a player that actually plays for the Raiders to predict the future” as his credibility was shot wearing a Bears player to the game.
He turns back mumbling “f you”.
I tell him, “Save your breath bro, you will need it to blow up your next date”.
He turns around again, sees Tom staring at him, then sits back down.
The first half plays out mostly like I expected it to. A bit rusty on offense which can be expected with an offense that is based on timing and rhythm.
That said, even with the rusty plays, you could see players breaking open here and there on offense and you knew, it was just a matter of time.
I must admit, I was surprised with how Dave Casper er eh, I mean Jared Cook was not only burning the rams (rams getting smoked by TEs has been a tradition for many years) but also how hard he was playing. When he trucked Talib for a first down, I almost didn’t recognize the guy. But, knowing he was a turd, it was only a matter of time before he did something stupid which he did when he loafed on the Peters pick 6.
The Rams special teams – particularly Hekker was unbelievable. The hangtime that guy gets, the way he flips the field, the consistency, its truly amazing. Its nice that with so many stars on this team, he now is not our sole focus for praise.
What I was most interested in, however, and why I travelled to Oakland was to see how this team interacted with each other. So-called “dream teams” on paper don’t always mesh. I wanted to see what type of comeraderie the team would show, how the coaches interacted with the players and how the players reacted with each other.
Other than an unexplained freak out by Marcus Peters in the 3rd Quarter on the sidelines – where he was engaging with a Raider player on the field in a VERY HEATED fashion, I saw a very workmanlike and professional team with clear lines of leadership.
The freak out however, proved to be instructive.
The thing with Marcus, he does appear to be a very emotionally volatile person. A few minutes before the big blowup he was engaging with fans near my section. However, it was none other than Aqib Talib who ultimately got into Peters face and backed him off the sideline and away from whoever he was engaged in on the field.
Another book referenced by McVay (I read all the books he mentions) is Extreme Ownership a book based on the leadership principals of the Navy Seals. The whole idea behind the book and leadership style is that you must take 100% ownership of your actions and decisions in order to be an effective leader of men. You hear McVay referencing ownership all of the time, this is what he is talking about and while Marcus apparently isn’t there yet, Talib is.
Talib is the leader and he demonstrated it to me right there and showed why he earned the Captain’s C. He took extreme ownership of his defense and shut the nonsense down.
When the Rams went into halftime, I told my buddy Tom, the Rams owned the 3rd Quarter almost all of last year. When you send in luminary like Wade with a genius like McVay inside at halftime and give them 12 minutes to craft a response to your actions, in most cases, the opponent is in trouble.
What we saw in the 3rd Quarter is a sign of things to come.
While this Raider team is not that good, their crowd was UP. The decibel reader at the stadium was consistently reading above 100 decibels for crowd noise. They were trying to will their coach and team to victory. It was the type of emotional game an underdog can win.
The Rams were having none of that.
Slowly but surely, the amazing amount of talent which has suddenly coalesced at Rams park, asserted itself. The defense rattled and confused Carr to the point where some of the fans were clamoring for AJ McCarron who had been signed a week earlier.
The oline was creating 1999 like pockets for Goff to throw from. He had time and could step into his throws. Some of the long balls missed by mere inches. In a few weeks, those will be backbreakers to the opposing teams.
What was most evident, however, and why I wanted to post following this otherwise workman like game, was the joy and love the players were showing for each other on the sidelines. It was clear that they like each other and know there is something special here.
After the Peters pick six, literally the entire bench, coaching staff, trainers etc, gave Marcus some love. They knew he was playing at home, in front of his family and what it meant to him.
Big Whit went to so many different players and hugged them. He and Goff stood embraced for probably over a minute.
It was cool to see.
After the pick six, most of the Raider fans hit the gate, so I was able to move to the first row behind the Rams bench.
I note that Goff’s uniform doesn’t appear to have any grass or dirt stains whatsoever, in fact, it looks like he was the backup QB and hadn’t played.
I take my shot: “Jared, you don’t even need to wash that uniform before the Cards game”.
He turns around, puts his hands on his shoulder pads and runs them down the entire front of his clean uniform showing the remaining rams fans that he agrees with the assessment.
We all cheer and Big Whit gives us a military salute.
Its just a start, but I for one, am going to savor what I hope is going to be a very long ride.
As I walked back to my car – through the pot filled air and scary Oakland streets, not a word of smack was spoken.
Even the guys dressed in the circus costumes and star wars get ups knew there was nothing to be said.
The student was now the Master.
I mean, what are the odds of that?
While we as fans were basking in that glory, remarkably, around the same time, a young kid from Georgia, was riding on a bus to a 49ers game with Grandfather’s football team. Seated on the team bus next to Jesse Sapolu, no one outside his family really realized how much football meant to him.
On one of those trips, a Monday night game in Atlanta, that young boy was thrilled that he found himself on the sidelines of the 49ers game where future hall of famer Steve Young tosses him a towel before heading back out onto the field with his team.
Many of us were probably watching that game, not noticing and certainly not realizing, what a prominent role that young child would play in our futures.
Those within his family understood, however.
They recall the young teen working his way through a book that was given to him. The book, “Finding the Winning Edge”, was written by Bill Walsh, the mastermind of the great 49ers dynasty.
Given the boy’s obvious love of football and the fact that his grandfather had worked as Walsh’s GM, it seemed natural that he may be interested. The massive book covered all aspects of how Walsh built a championship organization from the top down and the bottom up -- but it wasn’t the type of book written for the casual fan. It was a how-to book, a book steeped in details and minutiae and designed for junkies and those deep into the game.
His father Tim noted that each night, before going to bed, that young boy would read a few pages from the book before going to sleep, eventually working his way through all 550 pages. In some way, it seemed that all the boy was interested in was learning about football.
Each step along the way to his ultimate destiny, this child found himself connected to influential football people until January of 2018, when that young kid, at age 31, took the podium for the Los Angeles Rams to become the youngest coach in NFL history.
Sometimes, you can see great things coming.
Before Sean McVay became the Rams coach, I knew very little about him. After he was hired, I learned of his history, his family, and the fact that he was a student of the game.
When he brought in Wade Phillips to Coach the Defense, I saw he was already light years ahead of coaches who bring in “their guys” even if they are not qualified or the best people for the job. When he retained “Bones”, I knew he got it. When he convinced Kromer that LA was the place to be, I knew he was practicing the philosophies of “Finding the Winning Edge” and “The Score Takes Care of Itself “– another of Walsh’s books he referenced when he was hired.
Surround yourself by great people, let them do their jobs, the score takes care of itself.
Heading to Oakland, I knew I should have been concerned. After all, it was Jon Gruden’s return to Oakland after a 16 year hiatus. He was an integral part of that McVay history – Gruden was the Master to McVay’s student.
I’ve watched enough movies (and saw the Redskins game the year before) to know that sometimes the Master @#$%& slaps the student reminding the student, that even a Master cannot share all of his knowledge and wisdom.
Raider fans knew that this could be one of the last home openers ever in Oakland and they wanted to welcome in their own Savior right. Black regalia abound as I strode into the stadium. I was happy to note a small but strong and proud contingent of Rams fans wearing the new wave of jerseys – Donald, Gurley, Peters, Cooks, Kupp, Goff, Woods.
Not a single Warner jersey to be found.
The new era was upon us.
Understanding I was still in Oakland and trying to build good Karma, I invite a close friend with me. He is a true raider fan and also the strongest and most intimidating person I know. A winner of many strong man competitions, whose mother was an arm wrestling world champion – Tom is a gentle grizzly who can turn quite ugly when people move into his personal space or threaten his friends.
With Tom seated next to me, I knew I had the necessary cover to administer whatever type of counter-smack was necessary.
Just before Kickoff - Howie Long is introduced to inaugurate the new season. The crowd is going crazy.
Yet I wasn’t nervous.
I thought back to Florida Rams post on this board letting the board know why he wasn’t nervous following it with pictures of Donald and Suh, with Wade and Sean, with Gurley and Cooks, Peters and Talib and I too realized there is too much talent here, too many playmakers . . . over 60 minutes with those players and that staff, sooner or later, it would show itself.
When the Rams deferred and the Raiders chose to take the ball, I was curious to see our vaunted new defense. When the Raiders drove down the field for a season opening TD my heart rate did not elevate even a bit which is extremely unusual.
The replay board showed a Rams player hooked onto Lynch’s leg getting dragged 5 yards into the end zone.
No doubt about it, even with people pushing the pile “Beast Mode” Lynch is a very strong man.
That said, I figured Gruden had months to plan this drive, understanding that the Rams didn’t know what he was going to run and given his absence from the NFL. I tip my hat to the Teacher, but he would soon learn -- his pupil had grown up.
What could have been the type of drive that sparks a team to a big win, hardly registered on the Rams sideline. From the 45-yard line, behind the Rams bench just 16 rows back, I saw McVay say a few words to Wade and then disengage.
A quick view of the Rams defense showed them chatting on the Rams bench.
No bowed heads, no exaggerated responses.
The guy in front of me turns around and says “you are in for a long day”.
I told him, “if you were actually good at predicting the future, you wouldn’t have bought that Mack 52 jersey”
I told him, “I’ll hear from someone that is wearing a jersey of a player that actually plays for the Raiders to predict the future” as his credibility was shot wearing a Bears player to the game.
He turns back mumbling “f you”.
I tell him, “Save your breath bro, you will need it to blow up your next date”.
He turns around again, sees Tom staring at him, then sits back down.
The first half plays out mostly like I expected it to. A bit rusty on offense which can be expected with an offense that is based on timing and rhythm.
That said, even with the rusty plays, you could see players breaking open here and there on offense and you knew, it was just a matter of time.
I must admit, I was surprised with how Dave Casper er eh, I mean Jared Cook was not only burning the rams (rams getting smoked by TEs has been a tradition for many years) but also how hard he was playing. When he trucked Talib for a first down, I almost didn’t recognize the guy. But, knowing he was a turd, it was only a matter of time before he did something stupid which he did when he loafed on the Peters pick 6.
The Rams special teams – particularly Hekker was unbelievable. The hangtime that guy gets, the way he flips the field, the consistency, its truly amazing. Its nice that with so many stars on this team, he now is not our sole focus for praise.
What I was most interested in, however, and why I travelled to Oakland was to see how this team interacted with each other. So-called “dream teams” on paper don’t always mesh. I wanted to see what type of comeraderie the team would show, how the coaches interacted with the players and how the players reacted with each other.
Other than an unexplained freak out by Marcus Peters in the 3rd Quarter on the sidelines – where he was engaging with a Raider player on the field in a VERY HEATED fashion, I saw a very workmanlike and professional team with clear lines of leadership.
The freak out however, proved to be instructive.
The thing with Marcus, he does appear to be a very emotionally volatile person. A few minutes before the big blowup he was engaging with fans near my section. However, it was none other than Aqib Talib who ultimately got into Peters face and backed him off the sideline and away from whoever he was engaged in on the field.
Another book referenced by McVay (I read all the books he mentions) is Extreme Ownership a book based on the leadership principals of the Navy Seals. The whole idea behind the book and leadership style is that you must take 100% ownership of your actions and decisions in order to be an effective leader of men. You hear McVay referencing ownership all of the time, this is what he is talking about and while Marcus apparently isn’t there yet, Talib is.
Talib is the leader and he demonstrated it to me right there and showed why he earned the Captain’s C. He took extreme ownership of his defense and shut the nonsense down.
When the Rams went into halftime, I told my buddy Tom, the Rams owned the 3rd Quarter almost all of last year. When you send in luminary like Wade with a genius like McVay inside at halftime and give them 12 minutes to craft a response to your actions, in most cases, the opponent is in trouble.
What we saw in the 3rd Quarter is a sign of things to come.
While this Raider team is not that good, their crowd was UP. The decibel reader at the stadium was consistently reading above 100 decibels for crowd noise. They were trying to will their coach and team to victory. It was the type of emotional game an underdog can win.
The Rams were having none of that.
Slowly but surely, the amazing amount of talent which has suddenly coalesced at Rams park, asserted itself. The defense rattled and confused Carr to the point where some of the fans were clamoring for AJ McCarron who had been signed a week earlier.
The oline was creating 1999 like pockets for Goff to throw from. He had time and could step into his throws. Some of the long balls missed by mere inches. In a few weeks, those will be backbreakers to the opposing teams.
What was most evident, however, and why I wanted to post following this otherwise workman like game, was the joy and love the players were showing for each other on the sidelines. It was clear that they like each other and know there is something special here.
After the Peters pick six, literally the entire bench, coaching staff, trainers etc, gave Marcus some love. They knew he was playing at home, in front of his family and what it meant to him.
Big Whit went to so many different players and hugged them. He and Goff stood embraced for probably over a minute.
It was cool to see.
After the pick six, most of the Raider fans hit the gate, so I was able to move to the first row behind the Rams bench.
I note that Goff’s uniform doesn’t appear to have any grass or dirt stains whatsoever, in fact, it looks like he was the backup QB and hadn’t played.
I take my shot: “Jared, you don’t even need to wash that uniform before the Cards game”.
He turns around, puts his hands on his shoulder pads and runs them down the entire front of his clean uniform showing the remaining rams fans that he agrees with the assessment.
We all cheer and Big Whit gives us a military salute.
Its just a start, but I for one, am going to savor what I hope is going to be a very long ride.
As I walked back to my car – through the pot filled air and scary Oakland streets, not a word of smack was spoken.
Even the guys dressed in the circus costumes and star wars get ups knew there was nothing to be said.
The student was now the Master.
