Rams Week 13 snap counts Ernest Jones vaults Troy Reeder, Terrell Lewis' role disappears

[theramswire.usatoday.com] Rams Week 13 snap counts: Ernest Jones vaults Troy Reeder, Terrell Lewis' role disappears


Cameron DaSilva
December 6, 2021 8:11 am PT

The Rams underwent an identity change on offense Sunday against the Jaguars. They plugged in Sony Michel as the starter, used 13 personnel (1 RB, 3 TE, 1 WR) for the first time all season and even put Joe Noteboom on the field as an inline blocker, completely changing up their philosophy compared to their previous three games.

The result was a 37-7 win over Jacksonville, helped by a dominant performance by the defense, too. Raheem Morris’ unit experienced some adjustments, too, with Ernest Jones taking over as the top linebacker and Terrell Lewis having his role completely disappear.


With the Rams pulling away in the fourth quarter, they opted to pull many of their starters and give the backups some run. So when looking at the snap counts, there’s a much bigger mix of players than we’re used to seeing.

Offense



Sony Michel was on the field for all but two snaps, only coming off late in the game when Mekhi Sargent took over in garbage time. Darrell Henderson Jr. was active but he wasn’t fully healthy and the Rams didn’t see a need to risk further injury by playing him in a game where Michel looked really good.

At wide receiver, Cooper Kupp played all but four snaps, and Van Jefferson was on the field for 78% of the offensive snaps. Odell Beckham Jr. was also active like Henderson but he was limited to only 53% of the snaps. Ben Skowronek played 16 snaps as the fourth receiver behind the starters.

Brycen Hopkins played 14 snaps, the most of his career. He wasn’t targeted but he did contribute as a blocker in the Rams’ heavy packages with three tight ends on the field. Kendall Blanton also played 10 snaps and Joe Noteboom played 16, partly as a sixth offensive lineman and also in relief at the end of the game.

Brian Allen left the game with a knee injury after just one play and was replaced by Coleman Shelton. David Edwards also exited on the first drive but he wound up missing just four plays, which was good to see.


Defense

Darious Williams played every snap except for one, leading the defense with a 98% snap share. Jalen Ramsey got a few plays off, as did Taylor Rapp and Jordan Fuller, who each played 92% of the defensive snaps. Dont’e Deayon was the third cornerback, playing 71% of the snaps, while Robert Rochell only got on the field for one play as the fourth corner – a somewhat surprising development with David Long Jr. out.

One of the best adjustments the Rams made was pushing Ernest Jones ahead of Troy Reeder at inside linebacker. Jones played 56 snaps compared to just 29 for Reeder, vaulting ahead as the primary linebacker on just about every play. Reeder struggled against the Packers so this was likely a demotion for the linebacker.

At outside linebacker, Leonard Floyd and Von Miller played 48 and 47 snaps, respectively. Ogbonnia Okoronkwo played 16 snaps as the rotational edge rusher, followed by Jamir Jones’ seven snaps as the fourth option. What’s puzzling is that Terrell Lewis didn’t play a single snap despite being active and healthy. His role has been on the decline since Miller arrived, but he went from playing 27% in Week 12 to playing zero snaps on Sunday.

Aaron Donald and Greg Gaines were once again the top defensive linemen, playing 52 and 48 snaps, respectively. A’Shawn Robinson was out there for 33 plays as the defensive end, but Marquise Copeland is eating into his playing time with a 27% snaps share.

In mop-up duty, Michael Hoecht, Terrell Burgess and Bobby Brown III played five snaps each. Even with Long out, Burgess couldn’t find a way onto the field and it didn’t help that he missed a tackle on Tavon Austin toward the end of the game.