Vinny B: The clutch performance off the bench (Jamil Demby)

[theathletic.com]

The clutch performance off the bench that helped the Rams find their groove



By Vincent Bonsignore Sep 15, 2019 4
LOS ANGELES — It’s not like Jamil Demby is trying to be a stalker or anything. He understands the unwritten rule about personal space and not awkwardly crowding too far on someone during a conversation.

He’s not that guy by any means.

But being a backup in the NFL sometimes means going to every length possible to be prepared. And when you’re literally one play away from being on the field, well, unwritten rules go right out the window.

So it’s not surprising that the Rams’ reserve offensive lineman sometimes needs a friendly reminder to give his coaches a little bit of space while standing alongside them throughout the game. Demby is merely trying to absorb as much useful information as possible in case he has to enter the game, and the closer he can attach himself to his coaches the better.

What he can’t see, he tries to hear. What he can’t hear, he hopes to visually retain.

“You have to be locked in,” Demby told The Athletic on Sunday. “Because if your number is called — and you have to go in if you don’t know the adjustments — that’s on you.”

But even he knows, his persistence can be a little much.

“I’m near the coaches to the point they have to tell me to back up sometimes,” Demby said laughing. “I’m ball-hawking on them and standing on their hip to see any adjustments they might be making, so that if I get in there, I’ll be ready.”

As unnerving and strained as that sometimes might be — for all the right reasons, of course — the next-level diligence isn’t just appreciated, but it also can pay off in a major way. Sunday’s NFC Championship Game rematch with the New Orleans Saints was a major case in point.

Midway through the second quarter, Demby was suddenly pressed into duty when right guard Austin Blythe went down with an ankle injury. One second the 2018 sixth-round pick is watching from the sideline, the next he is lining up between center Brian Allen and right tackle Rob Havenstein and bracing for hand-to-hand combat against the very active and very talented Saints defensive front.

It took a play or two to get settled, but once Demby’s world slowed down from Mach 2 to, oh, Kyle Busch gunning it on a practice run at Daytona, he delivered a more than respectable performance to help the Rams beat New Orleans 27-9 to improve to 2-0.

Going into the season, the Rams’ biggest concern was their remade offensive line featuring two first-time starters. The aforementioned Allen replaced John Sullivan at center and Joe Noteboom took over for Rodger Saffold at guard. Behind them are rookies David Edwards, Bobby Evans and Demby, a second-year reserve from Maine who played exactly zero snaps last year while splitting time between the Detroit Lions and the Rams’ practice squads and active rosters. Only Demby and Edwards have dressed as backups this year as part of the 46-man game-day roster.

In other words, outside of Blythe, left tackle Andrew Whitworth and Havenstein, the Rams are incredibly young and inexperienced along the offensive line. That is a dicey proposition, especially for a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Besides counting on Allen and Noteboom to make seamless transitions to the starting lineup, the Rams need to be sure their untested backups can deliver when called upon.

Demby did just that in a most critical moment. The Rams and Saints were in a 3-3 standstill when he rushed onto the field to replace Blythe, and by no means was he stepping into some high-powered offensive machinery.

In fact, Jared Goff and the offense had struggled trying to untangle the surprising defensive scheme the Saints threw at them. There was no rhythm to speak of, and the Rams’ body language and demeanor seemed forced and uncomfortable. To make things worse, they had just lost one of their most valuable linemen to an injury and had to lean on an unproven reserve.

It was a dicey time to be sure. Demby, though, provided some much-needed stability.




“He did a nice job,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said. “To be able to lose a player of Austin Blythe’s caliber, that’s a big loss for us. But he (Demby) seamlessly stepped in.”

Goff and the offense eventually found their footing with a 21-point second half and turned a close game into a blowout. Goff finished with 283 yards and a touchdown on 19-for-28 passing, and Todd Gurley and Malcolm Brown combined for 100 yards rushing and one touchdown on 22 carries.

“A bunch of adjustments” is how Goff explained the turnaround.

“I think we were kind of shooting ourselves in the foot there for a while,” Goff said. “We had the good touchdown to Robert (Woods) that got called back. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen it yet, but we thought it was a good play. That would have changed the narrative in the first half, but it’s OK. I think anytime you win 27-9, you’re happy about it.”

Yes, Saints quarterback Drew Brees sat out most of the game with an injured right hand, and, clearly, he is a difference-maker. But on the flip side, Goff and the Rams’ offense finally their groove — an important development in the big picture of their season — and, in the process, they seem to have found a viable replacement for Blythe, who might be sidelined for a bit.

“That’s the way you get in there and wreck it, huh?” Rams safety Eric Weddle shouted to Demby, interrupting a postgame interview to lay into his teammate with an appreciative slap to the shoulder.

“I got you, man!” Demby told him.

“Come on, let’s go!!” Weddle said walking away.

A few feet away, Whitworth smiled broadly at Weddle.

“E-Dub!” Whitworth shouted.

“What’s up, babe?” Weddle shouted back.

“What’d I tell you in camp?” Whitworth asked.

“You did!” Weddle answered.

“Who’d I say we might need at some point?” Whitworth said.

“You did!” Weddle said.

It was quite a moment for Demby, not just being ready when called upon but also earning the respect of his teammates by delivering. By no means was he the main reason for the Rams’ win on Sunday, but given the closeness of the game, the quality of the opponent and his minimal amount of experience, Demby could have been the weak link that ultimately broke the Rams.

Instead, he blended in perfectly.

“We didn’t miss a beat,” Allen said. “We moved the ball. There weren’t any bad drives or anything. Whenever (someone) jumps right in like that, it’s good to see.”

It’s a testament to the diligence Demby put into being prepared for the exact situation that unfolded on Sunday. And that included adhering to a dedicated sideline routine throughout the game to keep his body loose, following his coaches around like a puppy dog and watching intently when the five starters took the bench after each series to go through whatever adjustments they might be contemplating for upcoming series.

Demby isn’t a starter, obviously. But he prepares during practice, meetings and game days as if he is one. You never know when a teammate might get injured and all of a sudden the coach points at you and says, “You’re up.”

Coming off the bench isn’t the easiest thing to do, either. Allen was in that position last year, along with Noteboom, as two offensive line reserves on the 46-man roster.

“It’s tough, just coming off the sideline cold,” Allen said. “You’re focusing on what the calls are on the sidelines, you’re just going through the game in your head, and then all of a sudden you’re in there. It’s a little different. It’s kind of like being a DH in baseball. You’re sitting around all this time, and then you’re up.”

So you better be ready. And when Blythe went down on Sunday, Demby was prepared.

“When I saw what happened, I just went up to coach and said, ‘Should I go in right now?'” Demby said.

“You’re in” was the response.

“And that’s what I did,” Demby said. “I didn’t blink. I didn’t think. I just stayed locked in the whole time.”

And nobody was telling him to back up.