Each weekday, theRams.com will be taking a look around the internet for the top Rams headlines of the day. Here's a look at what's out there for Thursday, June 27 about your Los Angeles Rams.
CHRIS LONG CALLS AARON DONALD IS THE BEST IN THE WORLD
Former Rams defensive end Chris Long played with Aaron Donald for the first two years of the defensive tackle's career — back when Donald won AP Defensive Rookie of the Year in his first season out of Pitt. Now the recently retired Super Bowl champion has declared Donald the best there is right now, calling Donald, "the best football player in the world, in my opinion."
Long made the comments while on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s “Huddle Up with Gus” podcast.
"I would like to credit myself with being the first person know he was going to be amazing," Long said on the podcast, apparently tongue-in-cheek. "We used to joke his rookie camp that he was going to be in the Hall of Fame, but I kind of wasn't joking."
"I've never seen anybody work so hard, who had so much talent and play so violent and play with such tenacity," Long would continue. "This guy would fight you on the field at the drop of a hat, and I respect that about him, and outworks everybody.
"I would be the last person in the film room usually at the end of camp, and I would go in there and watch tape once everybody was at home. I started going in there an opening the door and turning the lights on to find my pen or notebook, and he was in there every night."
Donald put up 20.0 sacks and 40 tackles for loss in the two seasons he shared with Long on the defensive line. In all, Donald has recorded 59.5 sacks, 97 tackles for loss, and 149 quarterback hits in his first five pro seasons. He became only the third player in history to earn back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards, joining Houston's J.J. Watt and Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor.
In eight seasons with the Rams, Long recorded 54.5 sacks, 73 tackles for loss, and 102 quarterback hits.
Check out the full podcast by clicking here.
FEWEST PERSONNEL GROUPINGS?
If you've followed the Rams over the last couple years, you likely know that the Rams spend the vast majority of the time on offense in 11 personnel — with one running back, one tight end, and three wide receivers.
Now NFL Next Gen Stats has revealed just how unique Los Angeles has been over the last two years when it comes to who's on the field.
In two years, the Rams have used just five personnel groupings — that's seven fewer than the No. 31 team in the Chiefs. But clearly that hasn't hampered Los Angeles' offensive production, as the club has finished No. 1 and No. 2 in scoring in the last two years, respectively.
It just goes to show that there's certainly more than one way to win in the NFL.
