Rams Opponent Profile: Falcons Come To Los Angeles Needing Win
By Sam McPherson
The Los Angeles Rams are playing for pride at this point of the 2016 NFL regular season, as their 4-8 record means the team will once again miss the postseason and not achieve a winning year. However, the Rams still can play spoiler to an old division rival from the past this weekend, as the Atlanta Falcons arrive in town desperately needing a victory for their own playoff aspirations.
The two teams were once division rivals from 1967 to 2001, and although the Falcons and the Rams have only played a handful of times in the last 15 years, the past for these two teams runs deep through the annals of the Los Angeles franchise's memory. After all, the last time the Rams made the playoffs (2004), the Falcons beat them by 30 points in the divisional round, and the Rams have not been back to the postseason since then.
Season Record
Atlanta is tied for first place in the NFC South with a 7-5 record, but the Falcons have lost some very close games this year. Atlanta has lost four games by a touchdown or less this year, while three of the losses have been by a combined six points. Needless to say, the Falcons could easily be 10-2 right now with a little better late-game execution, especially on defense.
Then again, Atlanta has won three games by a TD or less as well, so the team has been effective at times during crunch time in the fourth quarter. The Falcons have wins over the Oakland Raiders and the Denver Broncos this season, so they've been able to beat the better teams in the NFL, although the overtime loss to the San Diego Chargers stings a bit right now.
Falcons On Offense
There have been whispers about Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan for the MVP award this season, and the numbers don't lie. With a 112.3 QB rating, Ryan has tossed 27 TDs this year and only seven interceptions. These are the best numbers of his career, and Ryan leads the NFL with a 9.2 yards-per-attempt mark right now, meaning the Rams defense will be on its toes the entire game.
Ryan has one of the best receivers in the NFL to throw to in Julio Jones, who already has 1,253 yards receiving this season. Meanwhile, the running back duo of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman has combined for over 1,000 yards rushing and over 650 yards receiving while scoring 16 times between them. It's a dangerous and diverse offense that leads the NFL in scoring right now (32.2 points per game).
Falcons On Defense
While the offense has thrived all season, the Atlanta defense has not. Giving up 27.9 points per game has the Falcons ranked 29th in the NFL currently. The unit is led by a trio of young players: Safety Ricardo Allen (69 tackles), linebacker Deion Jones (74 tackles) and safety Keanu Neal (79 tackles). The top nine tackles on this defense play linebacker or in the defensive backfield, so Atlanta lacks the punch up front to truly disrupt an opposing offense. This could be an opportunity for Rams RB Todd Gurley to bust loose and finally have a huge game in 2016.
Falcons Players To Watch
LB Vic Beasley leads the team with 10.5 sacks, and no one else on the Falcons defense has even half as many QB burials. The Los Angeles offensive schemes will want to account for Beasley on every passing play. If the Rams can do that, they may have a chance to score some points on the Atlanta defense.
On the other side, WR Taylor Gabriel has been sneaking up on too many opposing defenses lately as the secondaries focus on Jones and the RBs out of the backfield. He has the ability to hurt teams with his speed and shiftiness in the open field.
Outlook
After losing to the New Orleans Saints and the New England Patriots by a combined 44 points in the last two games, Los Angeles gets to face yet another crazy-good offense. It's tough to imagine the Rams slowing down the Falcons offense right now, and with Atlanta needing a victory more than L.A., look for the Rams to drop another game by a large margin. The Falcons will win, 42-21.