Ground Game Is Broken, but Why Repair It?
“Nowhere to run to, baby, nowhere to hide.” It’s been the Rams’ theme song this season in a startling football role reversal in which a former league rushing power has been rendered practically helpless on the ground.
Dallas, ranked 24th against the run before Sunday’s 35-31 loss to the Rams, should move up in the rankings after holding Los Angeles to 78 yards on the ground.
Somehow, though, the Rams keep escaping, thanks to a few nervous-breakdown finishes and the gifted arm of quarterback Jim Everett.
Ram Coach John Robinson knew the pendulum was swinging from run to pass with the arrival of Everett and the departure of Eric Dickerson, but he never imagined losing the run as a major weapon altogether.
But the Rams have been held to fewer than 100 yards rushing in seven of 13 games. And tailback Greg Bell, who started the season so brilliantly with 512 yards and a 5.12 average through the first five games, has been held to 315 and a 2.16 average in the last eight.
So it’s Bell’s fault, right?
No, Robinson said, and he’s not considering a tailback switch at the moment, even with two first-round picks--Gaston Green and Cleveland Gary--riding the pine.
“To say you’re not running the ball because your runners aren’t running isn’t accurate,” Robinson said. “In the group they’re failing--I’m in the group--we’re all failing in this area. But I think it’s ridiculous to say, ‘I confess, the runner did it.’ ”
The problems are numerous and complicated, but are no doubt related to the overwhelming success of Everett and the Ram passing attack.
Trailing so often in the second half, and with their quarterback bombing away, the Rams haven’t had the time to run.
Bell, the starter, hasn’t had more than 20 carries since mid-October. He has carried 15, 11, 11 and 14 in his last four starts.
“I think the problem is with the whole thing,” Robinson said. “Like anything, when that happens you become vulnerable. I think (Bell is) frustrated, and I think we’re frustrated. I think he can get back in stride, if we get our rhythm back.
Right now, the Rams are running on two left feet and a passing attack that’s driving the league crazy. The Rams seem to feel now that they need to pass to win.
“Your personality begins to change, no question,” Robinson said. “The problems are real when you’re strong in one area.”
Problems? What problems? The Rams are 9-4 and still in the playoff hunt. And that’s the problem. The lack of a running attack is perplexing Robinson, but he’s not sure what to do. As long as his team keeps winning, who cares?
Opponents insist on rolling out game plans designed to stop the run, not Jim Everett, “which I find astounding,” Robinson said. “We’re getting to the point where we’re saying, ‘OK, we’re just going to throw it. If you show it to us, we’ll throw.’ ”
Robinson just hopes all those people who have called him inflexible all these years are watching now.
“I think you have to be what you are,” he said. “I think a lot of you at times have been surprised that I have not gone back into a tight T (formation) and put on my Ohio State hat and become Woody (Hayes), my patron saint.
“My philosophy is not that. My philosophy is to use what you have. It always has been, and I’ve never varied from it. I find myself personally frustrated in that one area, but I like the fact we’re scoring and doing well.”
Miracles aside, this is how good Everett has been in the clutch this season:
He has led his team on five fourth-quarter comebacks--against San Francisco, Buffalo, Minnesota, New Orleans and Dallas--giving the Rams the lead each time in the final minutes.
In those five fourth quarters, plus the overtime period against New Orleans, Everett has completed 66% of his passes for 748 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions.
“That’s how legends are made, right?” Robinson wondered.
More bad news on the defensive front: Mike Piel’s dislocated left elbow will sideline him for at least the rest of the regular season, the Rams are saying, but the news on Doug Reed’s ankle sprain is even worse. Most were expecting him back for the 49ers, but now there’s a chance he won’t be back at all.
“There’s some question as to whether Doug Reed will come back this season,” Robinson said. “He’s got an ankle injury that’s still quite sore, a rather severe strain.”
Reed was hurt against Phoenix on Nov. 19, and the injuries to the Rams’ starting defensive ends leave the team with three down linemen, Shawn Miller, Alvin Wright and rookie Bill Hawkins.
“We have Miller, Wright and Hawkins,” Robinson said. “And their backups are Miller, Wright and Hawkins.”
The chance of signing another lineman at this point are slim, so the team is contemplating two options: playing more Eagle defense, which requires only two down linemen, or activating second-round linebacker Brian Smith from injured reserve and moving him to defensive end, the position the Rams are projecting for him if he can ever add enough weight to his 6-foot-6 frame, which carries 242 pounds.
It’s definitely a new era in San Francisco when it comes to injuries. Coach George Seifert has announced already that 49er quarterback Joe Montana is probable for Monday night’s game despite his tender ribs.
Under Bill Walsh, the 49ers liked to keep the Rams guessing.
“If Bill was coaching, we might have him listed as near death,” said Robinson, who expects to Montana to play. “Those kinds of guys play in these kinds of games.”
Ram Notes
If the playoffs started today, the Rams would play host to the New York Giants in the wild-card game. . . . Henry Ellard (hamstring) and Cliff Hicks (strained knee) are both expected back this week, although Robinson said veteran LeRoy Irvin would start at right cornerback ahead of Hicks for the time being. “I’m just filling in,” the pessimist Irvin concluded. Hicks was still confined to a knee-brace in his Monday workout.
Coach John Robinson was calling his team’s performance on special teams “abysmal” and “atrocious,” for allowing the Dallas Cowboys a 26-yard average on six kickoff returns in Sunday’s win. Returner Ron Brown also fumbled a kick at his own two-yard line, which led to a Dallas touchdown. Robinson, amazingly, isn’t anticipating any personnel changes. “If I don’t murder some of them, the ones that survive will continue to play,” he said. “It’s not going to be a happy place today.”
THE RAMS BY THE NUMBERS
HIGHLIGHT
JIM EVERETT
As the National Football League’s best quarterback, Joe Montana has become legendary for his fourth-quarter heroics. Give him the ball with his team trailing by less than a touchdown with two minutes to play, and you can bank on the San Francisco 49ers winning. But, the newest rival to Montana’s reputation is the Rams’ Jim Everett. For the second consecutive week, the fourth-year pro brought the Rams back from apparent certain defeat, this time behind by 10, 31-21, to the Dallas Cowboys with 4:20 to play. He hooked up with Ron Brown (39 yards) and Aaron Cox (23) for touchdown pass plays and the Rams’ ninth victory was assured.
SEASON TO DATE
Thirteen-game totals
FIRST DOWNS
RAMS: 256 OPP: 243
RUSHING YARDS
RAMS: 1,420 OPP: 1,318
PASSING YARDS
RAMS: 3,349 OPP: 3,065
RUSHING
RAMS
ATT AVG TDs 374 3.8 14
OPP
ATT AVG TDs 335 3.9 11
PASSING
RAMS:
ATT CP TDs 436 260 23
OPP:
ATT CP TDs 449 268 17
PUNTS / AVERAGE
RAMS: 62/38.1 OPP: 68/42.0
PENALTIES / YARDS
RAMS: 90/716 OPP: 71/575
FUMBLES / LOST
RAMS: 20/6 OPP: 29/12
INTERCEPTIONS
RAMS: 15/236 OPP: 16/192
SCORING BY QUARTERS
1 2 3 4 OT TOTAL RAMS 95 96 47 96 3 337 OPP 43 74 76 85 2 280
POSSESSION TIME
RAMS: 31:01 OPP: 29:04
