The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
FALCONS BEAT TEAM WARY OF RAMS DESPITE 4-8 RECORD
Los Angeles is averaging NFL-low 284 yards, 15 points.
FLOWERY BRANCH — Yes, the Falcons have their issues.
They must rebound from a tough loss. They have to find a way to get Julio Jones involved in the red zone offense. They have to stop hemorrhaging yardage on defense.
However, you can bet the Falcons and coach Dan Quinn don’t want to trade places with the Los Angeles Rams and coach Jeff Fisher.
The Rams (4-8) have dropped seven of their past eight games. In their first season back on the West Coast, the Rams host the Falcons (7-5) on Sunday at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
“We are looking forward to another challenge defensively as far as the quarterback is concerned and an Atlanta Falcon offense that is very, very explosive,” Fisher said Monday.
Despite the spiraling record and a growing suspicion that the team may have selected the wrong quarterback in the last draft — Jared Goff over Carson Wentz — Rams general manager Les Snead and Fisher signed two-year contract extensions this season.
Fisher, who has had just six winning years (173-164-1) over 22 NFL seasons, is one loss away from tying Dan Reeves for the most losses in NFL history.
Reeves, the only coach to guide the Falcons to the Super Bowl, posted a 190165-2 mark from 1982-2003.
Goff, who infamously struggled just to make NFLstyle calls in training camp while filmed by HBO’s “Hard Knocks,” will be making his fourth start.
The Rams average 284 yards and 15 points, last in the league in both categories.
The Falcons lead the league in scoring (32.2 points per game), but are 1-4 when they don’t score 30 points or more.
The Rams finished strong last season at 7-9 and were projected to lean heavily on second-year running back Todd Gurley, the former Georgia star, while developing Goff. But the Rams have not been able to spring Gurley (3.2 yards per carry) and their respectable defense has had to spend too much time on the field.
Gurley was named the NFL’s offensive rookie of the year after rushing for 1,106 yards and 10 touchdowns last season.
But he has gone 15 consecutive games without rushing for more than 100 yards and had a season-low 11 carries in a 26-12 loss to the Patriots on Sunday.
Gurley has rushed for 679 yards on 211 carries, 56.6 yards per game.
“So, we have to improve in the run game,” Fisher said. “We have to improve in the pass protection. We have to improve on third down, scoring and so that’s where our problems lie.”
The Rams went 3-1 down the stretch last season to fuel some optimism as the team moved from St. Louis to Southern California.
Fisher believes the Rams can finish strong again.
“If we get guys back in the lineup and Jared keeps progressing,” he said.
The Rams are hoping to get injured defensive end Robert Quinn (concussion), receiver Tavon Austin (chest), offensive lineman Rodger Saffold (hand) and cornerback E.J. Gaines (quad) back Sunday.
The Falcons have to respect the Rams’ defense, which is led by defensive tackle Aaron Donald and linebacker Alec Ogletree, a former Georgia standout from Newnan.
“Their front is impressive,” Dan Quinn said. “The way that Donald plays, the way Quinn plays. Mark Barron is always somebody who, I thought whether if he’s a linebacker or a safety, is very physical.”
The Rams rank 10th in the league in fewest yards allowed (345) and have yielded 69 fewer points than Atlanta. The Falcons don’t want to underestimate their offensive skills.
“They have speed outside,” Quinn said. “Gurley, in terms of his toughness and size that he plays with, Tavon is a guy who plays in the slot and has return ability, we’ll have our work cut out for us. It will be a challenge that our team will be very much looking forward to, I promise you that.”
This is the fourth game out West for the Falcons, who have won at Denver and Oakland. They also lost a fourth-quarter lead in Seattle.
“You understand that you’re going out there for one purpose and guys buy into that,” Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan said. “There is something that comes with that, where we have that us-against-the-(world) mentality. Hopefully, we’ll be able to re-create that.”