WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – The pocket collapses in less than two seconds, flushing Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew out of it.
As Rams outside linebackers Jared Verse and Byron Young close in, Minshew is forced to throw a deep pass across his body for wide receiver DJ Turner to avoid the sack. However, it's too high for Turner to reach, instead landing in the hands of safety Jaylen McCollough for the game-clinching pick.
Whether it's Verse, Young, Michael Hoecht, Kobie Turner or Braden Fiske, similar pictures have unfolded consistently for Los Angeles' defense over the last three games.
Defensive coaches like to say that you have to earn the right to rush the passer, and the Rams have been high-achievers in doing so.
According to Next Gen Stats, entering Week 10, Los Angeles' defense is generating the highest pressure rate – defined as the percentage of dropbacks where at least one pass rusher affects the quarterback before the pass is thrown, resulting in a hurry, hit or sack, according to the NGS Pressure Probability model – in the NFL, causing pressure on 42.8% of dropbacks. L.A. is also in the top 10 in team sack rate: 7.8% is 8th-highest in the league.
"They've been excellent," defensive coordinator Chris Shula said of the Rams' pass rush. "(Defensive line coach/run game coordinator) Giff (Smith), (assistant defensive line coach) AC (Carter) and (outside linebackers coach) Joe Coniglio have just done a great job of that group. I think we've put ourselves in more positions to rush a little bit more. When you do that, now you can get in a little bit more rhythm, maybe they're not quite as tired when they're rushing. I think those guys are getting a feel for rushing off each other and what they do well. I think we're starting to understand what they do well and that's really putting all the plans together based on what the offense does. [We are] just trying to put our players in the best position to do what they do best."
When asked what he attributes the Rams' pass rush putting together some of its best performances in recent weeks to, defensive end Kobie Turner first points to the ownership each individual player is taking.
Whether third-and-long or another known passing situation, the accompanying mentality that scenario brings out the best in each player.
"It's different from when you're calling base nickel, whatnot," Turner told theRams.com. "But once we get them in the third-and-long, and you have Hoecht coming in off the sideline, or whatever OLB is out and the DB running out, it's like, it's a mentality thing. So that's really awesome that we've been able to each take our individual piece and grow in that, and be able to really build up a confidence over these weeks to be like, this is unstoppable, right? Like, obviously teams will have answers, and teams will get first downs and whatnot, but we genuinely feel like when we get them into those third-and-long situations, the advantage shifts to our favor."
Los Angeles has thrived at getting into optimal pass rush situations, and set themselves up to use that package, over the last three weeks, namely because of the improvement in defending first downs.
After giving up three runs of 10-plus yards on first down against the Raiders in Week 7 – tied with five other teams, including the Raiders, for third-most that week – the Rams allowed zero of those runs on first down against the Vikings in Week 8, tied with five other teams for fewest that week. Their 4.8 rush yards per play allowed against the Raiders on first downs, which was 14th-most that week, dropped to 3.0 against the Vikings, which was 7th-lowest.
Moreover, they were in the top 10 in rushing yards before contact allowed per attempt (0.46, 7th) and rushing yards after contact allowed per attempt (2.54, 9th) on first downs in Week 8, further evidence of both the penetration they were getting and limiting explosive runs to establish known passing downs like second or third-and-long.
While the rushing yards after contact allowed on first down swung in an unfavorable direction in Week 9 against the Seahawks, the Rams had the second-lowest yards before contact allowed per attempt on first down of any defense (-0.33).
To reinforce Turner's point, Los Angeles heads into Week 10 allowing the fewest passing yards per game on third-and-long (seven or more yards to go) at 7.8.
"I think we've found what everybody's good at, and so we're putting us in spots where we know what we're doing and advantageous for each person, and because we can all kind of do some different things, and kind of put me out there at middle linebacker (in that package), we can dictate some protections," Hoecht told theRams.com. "And more than just allow them to go 4-for-3 slide, you know, we're able to get 5-0, get people one on ones and just go win 'em."
As each player makes plays with their rushes, the teammates who rush alongside them gain confidence. It sounds simple, but it's what outside linebacker Byron Young brought up when asked what they've learned about each other as they've rushed alongside one another more and more.
"Knowing that you have good rushers beside you, and knowing if you don't get there somebody going to get there," Young told theRams.com. "Like, I'm not gonna say risky, but you're more, 'Okay, let me go ahead and win, but I know if I don't get there, this person will get there. I can take some chances sometimes.'"
"You gotta know the person next to you, I think that's the biggest thing," Verse told theRams.com. "Obviously, you go up against (others) in OTAs, but you're going against the same people every day, all that stuff, you kind of learn their tendencies, so it's kind of you're more learning the offense versus the person next to you. Now that we're playing the actual games, I'm able to learn, 'Okay, here's what Kobie's probably going to do. Kobie's able to learn, alright, Jared's about to do this move, he's going to do this.' Or we'll just vocally be able to say, 'Hey, I'm seeing this, do this.' I trust him, so I'm going to follow what he says.'"
Those pass-rushing opportunities in turn have translated to multiple critical turnovers created by L.A.'s defense.
Young, whose four turnovers caused by pressure leads the league per Next Gen Stats, had a hand in bringing the heat that led to safety Kam Kinchens' 103-yard pick six against the Seahawks last week.
Fiske and Hoecht's pressure off the right edge forced the errant throw that led to Kinchens' second interception, which, like the first, also came as the Seahawks were in the redzone.
In Week 8, it was Young who translated his pressure into the game-clinching safety in a 30-20 Thursday Night Football win over the Vikings. Earlier in the fourth quarter of that game, Verse and Hoecht teamed up to sack quarterback Sam Darnold for a seven-yard loss on 2nd-and-8; the ensuing 3rd-and-21 failed because of an incomplete pass and forced Minnesota to punt at the end of a critical possession with 4:18 remaining.
The impact has also been felt in complementary ways.
In Week 7, Hoecht and Verse's pursuit of Minshew on 3rd-and-9 with 4:55 to go in the first half led to an interception by cornerback Cobie Durant; the Rams took their first lead of the game four plays later via a 13-yard touchdown run by running back Kyren Williams. Verse and Young's pressure on Minshew with 1:20 remaining in the fourth quarter, and as the Rams clung to a five-point lead, led to an errant throw that safety Jaylen McCollough intercepted to clinch the victory.
The Rams will need more performances like those out of their pass rush against an explosive Miami Dolphins offense on Monday Night Football, and that unit will look to carry that momentum into the primetime showdown.
Fiske said the more reps the group has gotten over the course of the season, the more they've all gotten to know each other and what to expect on certain situations, such as when someone's going to rush inside or outside, when to cover each other, when each person has their own play opportunities. That collective and individual learning has been crucial to unlocking the pass rush's potential.
"It's kind of learning yourself within the defense as well, maybe not just rushing together, but also what the play call is, and finding your your opportunity to make a play," Fiske said. "I mean, that's kind of where we've all grown the most. It's just each individual kind of finding their opportunity to make plays. And then also, if it's not your play opportunity, also knowing and honing in on your details that, okay, you have a certain job here to cover the person that's got a play opportunity. I think we've done a good job so far. We're just all growing, and it's gotten a lot better."
