Here’s Bret Stuter…
Little Fix III for Week 5: Give Robert Rochell and Terrell Burgess a much larger rotational role
The Rams made an educated guess and got it wrong. They did the same thing when initially deciding upon benching Brian Allen in favor of starting Austin Corbett at center and Bobby Evans at right guard. Getting it wrong is perfectly fine and acceptable. Blindly sticking to an initial error in judgment is where the problems begin. Taylor Rapp has an abysmal 58.0 grade from Pro Football Focus this year. David Long Jr.’s is not much better, as PFF has graded him 61.3.
Enough with awarding bonus points for Rock’em Sock’em Robots in the secondary. The Rams need guys back there who actually defend passes. If they don’t get it right the first time, at least play somebody who can learn from their mistakes for the next time. The Rams need to get both Robert Rochell and Terrell Burgess actively involved in this defense in Week 5 and grow their roles throughout the season.
I’m not out to burn anyone at the stake here. Rapp and Long Jr. have established roles as competent contributors in a nickel or dime defensive package. But for the day-to-day pass defense? I am not sure what the heck the coaches are seeing, but it’s not showing up on my television screen. And it will only get worse if the Rams fail to act now.
