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theramswire.usatoday.com] Analytics show how Rams CBs have fared in coverage this season
Skyler Carlin
December 11, 2021 8:25 am PT
When a quarterback takes the field against the Los Angeles Rams, there’s a good chance he’s surveying the defense to see where No. 99 and No. 5 are. Jalen Ramsey, who is sporting the No. 5 jersey this season, is someone that quarterbacks know not to target in the passing game, which is something that Trevor Lawrence got a preview of in Week 13.
Ramsey has not been targeted often this season, but when the All-Pro cornerback has passes thrown his way, teams aren’t having much success against him. Besides Ramsey, Darious Williams and David Long Jr. have seen the most snaps at cornerback for the Rams thus far, so how have they fared in the first 13 weeks?
The chart below uses completion percentage over expected and target rate to show how corners are performing in coverage, including Ramsey, Williams and Long Jr.
Completion Percentage Over Expected (CPOE) when targeted for corners, along with target rate (targets / coverage snaps) through Week 13 of this season.
CPOE model: nflfastR
Def Targets: Sportradar
Cov Snaps: PFF pic.twitter.com/6T4A2tUwLf
— Anthony Reinhard (@reinhurdler) December 9, 2021
Ramsey is in the elite section where quarterbacks are completing 8% less of their passes over expected as Ramsey has been targeted on fewer than 15 percent of his coverage snaps. Once again, quarterbacks are wise enough to know that putting the ball in the vicinity of Ramsey usually ends in a disappointing outcome.
Meanwhile, with Ramsey not seeing much action through the air, Williams is being targeted more often on the other side of the field. Williams has been targeted on more than 15% of his coverage snaps, but he has limited quarterbacks to a completion percentage about 4% lower than what is anticipated.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Long has struggled mightily in coverage, even though he’s rarely been targeted. The Michigan product has been targeted on nearly 12 percent of his coverage snaps while having quarterbacks complete around one percent more of their passes over expected.
Long has seen only 22 more snaps than Dont’e Deayon, who has replaced Long as a starter on defense. So if this graph was to be made in a couple of weeks, we’d likely see Deayon’s coverage numbers instead of Long.
Ahead of Monday night’s anticipated rematch with the Arizona Cardinals, the Rams will need Ramsey, Williams, and Deayon to be at their best versus Arizona’s slew of talented wide receivers.
