With Puka Nacua set to miss a second straight game, the Rams may have to find their edge somewhere other than the passing game when they face the Broncos in Week 3. Davante Adams and Terrance Ferguson helped carry the load last week, but Denver’s secondary is a different kind of problem. That puts the spotlight on Blake Corum and what the Rams can get done on the ground.
Adams was excellent against the Giants, proving he can still function as a WR1 when needed. His chemistry with Matthew Stafford showed up in a big way, with the two connecting eight times for 195 yards and two touchdowns.
But a repeat against Denver won’t come easily. The Giants were working with a thin secondary, while the Broncos can throw Patrick Surtain at Adams.
The two have faced off four times before, back when both were in the AFC West, but those meetings came closer to Adams’ prime and Surtain has since won a Defensive Player of the Year award.
That’s why the run game looks like the clearest path for Los Angeles. Denver’s defense has only two games of tape this season, and Week 1 may have been an outlier.
Against the Chiefs, the Broncos gave up 173 rushing yards and a touchdown to Kenneth Walker on 23 carries, and Walker forced 15 missed tackles by himself. They were better against the run in Week 2, but Corum brings a similar kind of elusiveness.
Through two weeks, Corum has forced 0.32 missed tackles per rushing attempt, which ranks second in the NFL behind Walker. Denver’s defense leads the NFL in missed tackles at 0.32 per rushing attempt, so that matchup jumps off the page.
There’s also a schematic angle here that favors Los Angeles. The Broncos have allowed a 72.7 percent rushing success rate against 13 personnel this season and have given up 0.19 EPA per rush out of their base defense.
The Rams use 13 personnel to force defenses into base looks, so that could matter.
And the Rams are not a one-note rushing team. Most of their carries come from man/gap blocking, but 28.1 percent have also come from zone.
On man/gap runs, they’re averaging 5.5 yards per carry with a 64.7 percent rushing success rate. Denver has been vulnerable there, allowing 6.4 yards per carry to man/gap runs, the fourth-most in the NFL, while its 53.6 percent rushing success rate allowed ranks 21st.
Corum has fit that style well. He’s averaging six yards per carry on man/gap concepts, which ranks seventh in the NFL, and his 64.3 percent rushing success rate out of those looks is tied for seventh.
The Rams’ backfield has also settled into a close split this season, with Williams carrying 23 times and Corum 22. Corum has actually been more efficient, with seven more yards on one fewer carry.
Still, the pairing works because each back brings something different. Williams gives the offense a pass-catching element and helps keep things moving, while Corum has the burst to turn a good play into a bigger one.
Offensive coordinator Nate Scheelhaase put it this way: “They're such great complements to one another. They’re guys that regardless of who's out there, you don't flinch.
You know that they can make plays,” said offensive coordinator Nate Scheelhaase. “Sometimes it looks a little different from one to another, but you feel confident in the schemes that we run and their ability to have success and their ability to create outside of even what's blocked for them.”
That balance showed up last week, when Corum and Williams combined for 24 carries and 164 yards. If the Rams are going to handle Denver, they may need that again, or more.
The passing game can only do so much against a tough secondary. Corum’s ability to force missed tackles and his production in man/gap schemes give the Rams a real chance to lighten the load on Stafford and make life harder on the Broncos.
Against a defense that has already shown some cracks against the run, Corum could end up being one of the most important players on the field Sunday night.
In Other News...
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Sean McVay Added To Rams Frustration After Brutal Collapse
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Sean McVay only added to the frustration afterward with a notably short postgame press conference, a move that did not sit well with the team's beat writers and left the mood around the team even sharper. He is expected to address it more fully at the next media session before the Rams turn their attention to the Eagles, where the pressure to reset quickly will only grow. [Read more 🡒]