The Rams' bye week comes at an optimal time, exactly halfway through the 2019 season. In the first of a three-part series this week, theRams.com takes a look at Pro Football Focus' top evaluations of Los Angeles' offense through the first eight games.
Best overall grades: Offense (70.2, 16th) and running (79.2, ninth).
L.A.'s offense continues to produce at a high level, grading out in the top half of the league. The running game, which has gotten contributions from Todd Gurley, Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson Jr., also grades out as one of the NFL's 10 best.
Perhaps coincidentally, the unit had its two best performances in each of the last two weeks, according to PFF, as the Rams have mounted a two-game win streak. Their offensive grade of 78.0 against the Bengals and 78.6 against the Falcons bested the previous top two marks of 77.5 against New Orleans in Week 2 and 75.2 against Seattle in Week 5.
Additionally, L.A. has a top-10 run game in the eyes of PFF despite facing four of the scouting service's top 10 run defenses so far this season: the Saints (83.5, fourth), the Buccaneers (80.8, fifth), the Seahawks (77.4, ninth) and the Falcons (77.1, 10th). Its top performances came against the Panthers in Week 1 (76.1) and Saints (73.8).
Top-graded individual performances
QB Jared Goff: at Seattle, 77.5 passing grade. Statistically, Goff finished 29 of 49 for 395 yards with one touchdown and one interception. With the Rams having their second-best performance of the season in the game contest, he was 20 of 29 with no pressure and 18 of 27 without getting blitzed.
RB Todd Gurley: at Cleveland, 79.5 run grade. Gurley tallied 14 carries for 43 yards, but his directional yards per attempt likely played a bigger role in the grade he received. He averaged 2.7 yards per attempt or better between the gaps and off the tight end lined up on the right side.
WR Cooper Kupp: vs. Cincinnati, 91.1 offensive grade and 91.3 receiving grade. A 90.0 or higher is considered "elite" by PFF. This was also the game that Kupp set a new career high for receiving yards in a single game with 220.
WR Robert Woods: vs. Tampa Bay, 83.4 offensive grade and 82.3 receiving grade. Playing a season-high 87 snaps, Woods caught every target thrown his way by Goff, finishing with 13 catches for 164 yards against the Buccaneers.
WR Brandin Cooks: at Cleveland, 76.4 offensive grade and 77.4 receiving grade. Cooks caught 8 of 12 targets for a team-high 112 yards with only one drop.
TE Tyler Higbee: at Seattle, 92.9 offensive grade and 93.8 receiving grade. Also received a pass-blocking grade of 77.4. Higbee hauled in all three of his targets from Goff for 47 receiving yards.
TE Gerald Everett: at Seattle, 90.1 offensive grade and 90.5 receiving grade. Everett grabbed 7 of 10 targets for a team-high 132 receiving yards. He was most effective between 10-19 yards from the line of scrimmage, collecting 90 of his receiving yards in that range with 47 yards after the catch.
The offensive line: pass blocking, at Atlanta, 89.0; run blocking at Seattle, 72.4. Goff compiled 291 passing yards and two touchdowns, but it was the third time this season that the Rams' offensive line didn't allow a sack. The Rams' run game averaged 4.6 yards per carry against the Seahawks, third-best in a single game this season.
