RamView year in review: Coaching staff

NFL.com

Jeff Fisher: B-

Fisher wins as a leader and motivator who gives his team its identity, but not necessarily as a tactician. Getting away from what his teams have done best on offense for a month, without the players or the offensive coordinator to make the new approach succeed, looms as a major tactical error that probably cost the Rams the playoffs. If not that, it most certainly was the Rams' woeful 1-5 division record, a deep disappointment after 2012's 4-1-1, 4 games against NFC Championship teams or not. Fisher also took far too long to "get involved" in defensive play-calling. That shouldn't have taken the months of ineffective blitzing and repeated abuse from mediocre wide receivers that it did. Fisher's team plays tough and believes in itself, a big turnaround from the last two regimes, but in Carolina and in Seattle, Fisher was clearly not in control of his team, and that is unacceptable. The Rams must cut back on the ludicrous amount of penalties they commit and keep their composure much better for Fisher's grade to improve. Fisher also needs to call timeouts when they need to be called. If your defense has 10 men on the field near the goal line, call a timeout. If you have a fake punt on, but the opponent left its starting defense on the field expecting it, call a timeout. If Justin Blackmon is right in front of you and you see no one on your defense covering him, call a timeout. Jeff Fisher clearly knows how to assemble a good coaching staff and a talented roster. He isn't forced to be a master strategist as a result, and he isn't one. But he's missed some opportunities when the Rams have needed him to be an above-average strategist.

Brian Schottenheimer: D+

Wasn't going to be this tough on Schotty originally, but the Rams’ failure at the start of the season to institute a dynamic passing game started them 1-3 and cost them the playoffs. I think we can officially fail Schotty as a coach who can design and run a creative passing game. And his running game is even less creative, since all the Rams did was run up the middle all year. It took way too long to get Tavon Austin into the offense, though once he did, he got some good payoffs. Schotty’s not a dumb coach. He’s certainly smarter than Josh McDaniels. His game plans match up with what his players do best (though that was a flaw in early 2013). He stays smart and sticks with what’s working in a given game. Though he was better in 2012, he's been a very good red zone and goal line tactician. He's established, though, that he's just not a coordinator who's going to elevate an offense to a new level. How fitting that Kellen Clemens ran the system well the second half of the season; if Schotty were a QB, that's who he'd be. A game manager. Those aren't exciting, and continuity is not the most exciting reason to keep an offensive coordinator around, but for Schottenheimer, it'll have to do.

Tim Walton: D-

The Rams’ fantastic front four was severely let down by awful defensive schemes. It was a defense that at times seemed designed to give up first downs on third-and-long, with much-too-soft pass coverage paired with ineffective blitzing. Walton compounded that by getting fooled badly at times at the goal line, going light up front to defend the pass just to have someone waltz through a huge gap for an easy TD on the ground. What made Walton look really bad was the spread of the news of Fisher taking a bigger role in play-calling late in the season, which was followed almost immediately by some of the Ram defense's best games. And, as I finished that last sentence, word came that the Rams fired Walton and will replace him with bounty boy Gregg Williams. Well, THAT ought to help cut back on the penalties.

John Fassell: B-

Has crafted excellent kicking and coverage games. Hekker and Zuerlein were his guys all along and he deserves credit for making those calls. Special teams still has plenty to clean up, though. Their penalty record was awful, they didn't block a kickoff return well all year, and they failed big-time on two fake punts, getting outschemed by Dallas and out-executed by San Francisco. Those are coaching fails, and why the hell were they punting to Devin Hester in the Chicago game? Fassell should get this grade up to A pretty quickly.

Paul Boudreau: B

Had an A grade before I realized I didn't give any of his players a grade higher than C. His line was usually effective despite a plague of injuries that made week-to-week consistency and chemistry nearly impossible to attain. Saffold's move to guard worked like magic and Barksdale was credible at RT. The line struggled badly out of the gate, though, and coach Boudreau needs to coax Pro Bowl-quality play out of Jake Long again before I'm completely convinced.

Mike Waufle: A

Just doing what he always does. Show up at a team and lead their d-line to the top of the league in sacks. Rams use a lot of wrinkles up front, too; Waufle doesn't just surf on the waves created by his players.

Frank Bush: A

The Rams usually got good games from the linebackers and Alec Ogletree's development is on the fast track.

Chuck Cecil: C-

If soft zone defense is to be a viable defensive strategy for the Rams, their DBs have to play it a lot better than they do. There are a lot of mistakes in the back, with young players not seeming to have their heads in the game all the time and possibly regressing. McDonald's development at safety was promising.

Ben Sirmans: B+

Thinking about it, the Rams played a rookie 5th-round pick and a rookie free agent and had a credible running game. Would have gotten an A had Stacy made the starting lineup sooner.

Ray Sherman: F

Rams wide receivers ran sloppy routes, failed to get open, had poor footwork, let passes into their body, concentrated poorly, had poor hands, didn’t take care of the ball when they actually did catch it, didn’t adjust properly on blitzes or adjust well when the QB was in trouble. The Rams’ best receiver from 2012 regressed pretty badly, the rookies took a long time to become effective and Quick, the top-picked WR from 2012, showed little sign of progressing into a quality NFL player, and WOW, is a lot of this coachable. And though Sherman isn’t the tight ends coach, when you see Jared Cook show all of those traits, and realize that he worked out with the wide receivers in training camp, something has to tell you everything Ray Sherman touches turns into something, and it ain’t gold.

Frank Cignetti: C

Ram QBs don't have any technical flaws, and Cignetti probably deserves some credit for the quality of Clemens' play the second half of the season, as he executed well in a system he fit well. The guy in Sam Bradford's ear the most has got to get it out of him to lift his performance to an elite level in 2014.

Rob Boras: B

Having blamed Cook on Ray Sherman, I'll credit the Rams' blocking TE success to coach Boras. Most encouraging is that Harkey has become a borderline elite fullback.

Looking ahead: Bah, I should have realized the minute Williams became available from Tennessee's coaching purge that Walton's days in St. Louis would be numbered. Remember how quickly the Rams let a rookie coordinator go while they tell us we need to be patient with some of their badly-underperforming young players. With Schottenheimer finishing third at best for the Vanderbilt job, I don't see any (more) turnover on Fisher's staff. They're all his guys.

-$-

NFLPA Collegiate Bowl 2014

Associated Press

Dick Vermeil continues to be the dominating force of the NFLPA Collegiate All-Star Game. All three times it's been played, he's led the Nationals to victory, beating the Americans and Dennis Green 31-14 on January 18^th. It's an effort he, all the other coaches and all the players take seriously, no doubt.

The question is, who else does, or should. The stands are empty. Par for the college all-star game course, almost all the scouts watch the practices and get out of Dodge before the game’s even played. The most audacious projections have a quarter of the players from this game getting drafted, which would double the success of last year’s rosters. For both years they’ve had the game, ESPN wasn’t too concerned about pre-empting it with a Missouri Valley Conference basketball game or having anything close to professional announcers call it. (Play-by-play was ok, but Todd McShay and Bill Polian are well out of their element in a live booth.) The game organizers are so eager to get it over with that the clock does not stop in the fourth quarter. Realistically, NFL teams are looking at this game mainly for camp bodies and possibly late-round draft picks. Current Rams Tim Barnes and Brandon Washington have played here; ex-Rams to make the main roster from the game include Josh Hull (2010) and Kevin Hughes (2011). I’d say the most successful rookies from last year’s game were Seahawks TE Luke Willson and Bucs RB Mike James.

But if that's still enough to take the NFLPA game seriously, here's RamView’s thoughts on some of this year’s prospects, with measurements provided by NFLDraftScout because nobody cared, or wanted to have them, on the game’s website:

QB: The most interesting QBs at the game, quite honestly, were the ones who didn’t play much. Brendon Kay (Cincinnati, 3-7-51, TD) threw a perfect 26-yard TD in the 3^rd but was very spotty with accuracy in the game and in practices. Despite that, he seemed to get a majority of the Nationals’ snaps. James Franklin (Mizzou, 5-8-77, INT) was as inconsistent as ever, though maybe improved over practices and the Cotton Bowl. He started with a poor quick screen and a pass tipped at the line for an INT but also made a couple of good downfield passes. Kolton Browning (La-Monroe, 3-5-15, INT) had a really bad underthrow picked off before halftime. Connor Shaw’s (South Carolina, 5-6-70, INT) game was also mixed. Deep throws looked fine but weren’t completed due to bad routes or defensive penalties. He looked fine on the quick, short stuff.  Having to improvise under pressure in the 4th, though, he threw a terrible INT well over the head of any possible receiver he had. Sean Schroeder (13-17-138, TD) did complete a deep ball for 35 off a good play-fake, and, being a Hawaii QB, was very comfortable in the 2:00 and quick-passing offenses. He didn’t always have enough arm, though, to make even intermediate throws. If he’s to be a pro, it will be in a very specific, very limited role.

If the Rams bring in a QB from this game, despite their stats, I’d hope for UNLV QB Caleb Herring (2-6-8) or Dustin Vaughan (2-5-38), from the QB factory that produced Keith Null, West Texas A&M. Vaughan is big (6'5” 232) and can really “spin it”, but was sadly wasted in this game. He was hardly on the field and had a beautiful 30-yard deep out dropped by Isaiah Burse. The two did connect on another beautiful throw, down the sideline inside the 5 to set up a TD. He’ll need to show better decision-making when his first option is covered and better touch on his shorter throws. Herring may be an all-airport player, but he had the strongest arm there. He looked good on his drops, made some nice, strong throws his receivers really should have caught. With his arm and mobility, if you had enough time, you might be able to get Colin Kaepernick out of him.

At other positions:

RB Roy Finch, Oklahoma, 5’7 170
Of course the player I probably liked the least during practice week was one of the game's best players. A classic selection for this game, Finch (14-60) is seriously undersized but plays with a ton of moxie. He’s got speed to turn the corner, uses his blocks well and has superb field vision, which he showed on a draw play in the 1st (came back due to holding behind the play). Finch is also surprisingly strong (something you’d never get to see watching practices on TV) and willing to put his shoulder into a defender to finish off a run. Rounding out the package, he had a big kick return in the 3^rd, breaking a tackle and hitting up the sideline for 55 yards. A very poor man’s Darren Sproles, Finch got himself a minimum of a camp invite with his performance.

USA Today

FB J.C. Copeland, LSU, 5'11 285
No doubt the most interesting player in the game, the 285-lb fullback just crushed American team LBs and won the game MVP.  That size going up against undersized rookie free agent level LBs? Unfair. He scored two goal-line TDs due to simple physics. No one there could bring him down. He muscled through a crowd for the first one and carried DT Donnie Owens for a second. He opened up Anthony Wilkerson’s TD run by destroying Mizzou LB Andrew Wilson with a massive block. He doesn't miss a run block, and he’s got some cred as a receiver and at protecting the QB. Overall athleticism and ability to control his weight are going to be major issues, however.  (Not to mention remembering not to curse during live interviews.)

DT Jamie Meder, Ashland, 6'2” 306
One of my favorite players in the game, Meder looked good in 1-on-1 drills and kept it up during the game. He got very good push and deflected a pass for an INT on his first series. He whipped Karim Barton and pressured Kenny Guiton into a turnover later in the 1^st. You want a clutch play? How about 4^th-and-2 in the 2^nd, he rag-dolled the center and took fullback Kiero Small down single-handed to get the ball back. Meder added another run stuff in the 3rd and was probably the defensive player of the game. I hope the guys at Rams Park will be busy this week reviewing their Ashland tape, if there is such a thing.

DT Johnnie Farms, Memphis, 6'2” 305
Another DT who had one of the day’s stronger individual games. Was really able to outquick anyone he went up against. Had a tackle for loss and contributed on the game’s last sack by beating a good blocker, Brian Clarke. He whipped another good blocker, Kevin Danser, so badly in the 1^st Danser had to drag him down by his jersey, which got flagged and took away a long Finch run. Another tackle who thrived on his quickness off the ball, and his tape should be a lot easier to find than Meder’s.

Associated Press

WR Isaiah Burse, Fresno State, 5'10” 185
(4-50) Had an AWFUL drop of a beautiful long throw from Dustin Vaughan, but caught well and looked quick on quick screens and drags, running well after the catch. He beat (corrected) Brian Dixon deep a couple of times, drawing a DPI and making up to Vaughan with a long catch inside the 5. Dangerous punt returner, (13.7 avg on 3 attempts) uses his blockers well and has plenty of speed to make the corner, but will also do the chicken-with-its-head-cut-off return where he thinks he can beat everybody and runs 30 yards to gain 1. Still, a prototype slot receiver who can get open deep and be a key contributor on special teams is worth a good, long look.

CB Kenneth Acker, SMU, 5'11” 193
Didn’t flash anything like he did in practices, and got beaten deep by Gerald Ford, but was step-for-step with receivers on other deep balls and reacted well on run plays. Opinions likely didn’t change that Acker was the best DB at the game.

OT Erle Ladson, Delaware, 6'5” 355
Very likely kicking inside in the pros. Mauling run-blocker, a powerful down-blocker who will flatten people. Had a pancake block in the game and dominated in practice for stretches. Quite a bit of trouble with quickness and speed in pass pro, but if he gets his hands on you, you're dead.

DT Donnie Owens, Winston-Salem State, 6'1” 305
Looked quick, looked effective when he had some room. Got good penetration against good blockers like Jared Wheeler and Jonotthan Harrison-Nelson to slow down runs. Burned D.J. Morrell with a spin move for a sack.

OL Josh Wells, James Madison, 6'5”, 315
Strong run blocker. Wiped his guy out on a long James Sims run and had a very strong and very overlooked interior block on Wilkerson’s TD run.

RB Franklin Quiteh, Bloomsburg, 5'9” 208
(10-48, TD) Showed great change of direction on 20-yard TD run, pivoting from a middle run to the outside so quickly he got the whole defense off balance and scored easily. Appeared to have good size and didn't get caught from behind. Looks to have buildup speed moreso than natural quickness. Showed some cut-blocking skill in pass pro and broke some tackles. Isn't going to power through a tackle but can break one in space.

LB Shaun Lewis, Oklahoma State, 5'11” 225
Around the ball a lot, had an early INT, stuffed a couple of runs and defended a screen well late in the game. Tackled poorly on one of Finch’s long runs and played Quiteh’s TD run poorly. Got fooled into stepping up into the line and would have been beaten around the corner with ease even if the safety hadn’t gotten in his way. Still looks like a player who can go places with good coaching.

OL Karim Barton, Morgan State, 6'3, 315
Held his ground well a lot of the time but also got whipped by Meder to pressure a turnover. Blocks every play to the whistle and had a strong practice week. Phone booth/tree stump type of lineman with potential.

WR Corey Washington, Newberry, 6'4” 207
There was a lot of fuss from the ESPN analysts throughout the week for not-related WRs Tony Washington (Appalachian State) and Corey Washington (Newberry); I didn’t think either lived up to it. In particular, Corey didn’t look like any kind of a deep threat and struggled with throws over his head that a professional receiver needs to be able to catch.

WR Greg Hardin, North Dakota, 5'10” 173
Played in the game much better (2-52) than he appeared to practice. Had a 17-yard sideline catch and beat Love for a 35-yard bomb. Really trucked Tyree Mills as a downfield blocker on Quiteh’s TD run. Nice all-around game.

WR Gerald Ford, Valdosta State, 6'3” 219
Also looked shaky in practice but solid in the game (2-32), with a pretty, deep catch from Franklin, a nice hands catch with very good sideline footwork, and he beat Acker to do it. I doubt he will end anyone’s long national nightmare at WR, but a good rebound for him in the game all the same.

OG D.J. Morrell, Old Dominion, 6'5” 327
Good run blocker. Got Wilkerson enough room to pop a 13-yard draw and wiped his guy out to help get Sims a big run. Got beat by Owens for a sack on a spin move.

FB Ray Agnew Jr., Southern Illinois, 5'9”, 246
Hey, I’m not going to ignore the Rams family if I can help it. Agnew had two catches, including a dumpoff he turned into a 17-yard gain.

S Mark Joyce, South Florida, 5'10” 179
Didn’t look good against the run. Got out of position and in the LB’s way on Quiteh’s TD, got run over once by Finch, flirted with a late hit out of bounds on Herring.

Special teams: None of the kickers in this game except maybe Cairo Santos from Tulane even belong in a training camp. Didn’t see many punts crack 40 yards. Cal kicker Vincenzo D’Amato shanked kicks in practice, pushed a 39-yard attempt wide right before halftime and came up fat on a PAT that nearly didn’t get over the line.

CB Jordan Love, Towson, 5'11” 177
Sorry. Love may have been the worst player in the game. He was 10 yards off Deonte Spencer (McNeese State) in the 2^nd and still got burned for an 18-yard TD due to his awful tackling. Gave up the long completion to Hardin after biting mega-hard on play-action. Had another tackle broken by Spencer, who is 5’9” 162, to turn a no-gainer into a 10-yarder. There’s a lot Love has to do a lot better to make it to the pros based on this game.

Takeaway: As Rams fans, we're likely watching these all-star games to find ways to improve at WR and get deeper at QB; there wasn't a ton there for us in this game. However, Les Snead finds good rookie free agents every year; it wouldn't be a surprise to see a couple of players from this game faring well at Rams Park this summer.

-$-

NFC Championship: Seattle 23, San Francisco 17

ESPN.com

Buckle up your chinstraps and get your mouthguard in for the rubber game of the fight for bragging rights in the NFC West. Mobile quarterbacks, physical defenses, less civil debating after every play than Taiwan's legislature and 70,000 insane fans. How can this not be fun?

Joe Buck and Troy Aikman call the game for Fox; Gene Steratore refereeing.

FIRST QUARTER
The 49ers kick off and I assume deferred; Buck never told us. The first play keeps him too busy to, anyway; it's a complete disaster for the Seahawks. Russell Wilson play-fakes, rolls left, and Aldon Smith is on him in a flash, spinning him, knocks the loaf of bread, er, ball, loose, and beats him to the fumble to give the 49ers the ball at the Seattle 15 TEN SECONDS into the game. You never saw a guy cover five yards faster than Smith did there.


Frank Gore left for 2, then Bobby Wagner holds Michael Crabtree to 2 on a quick pass from Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick runs a designed draw on 3rd-6; I like the call but Wagner shed Vernon Davis and held that short. S.F. takes the free 3 from Phil Dawson, but that could have gone a lot, lot worse for Seattle. 49ers should have gone for the end zone on 1st down. 49ers 3, Seahawks 0

Doug Baldwin only out to the 15 on the kick return. Wilson play-fakes again, rolls right this time and hits Zach Miller for 7. NaVarro Bowman, Glenn Dorsey and others deny Marshawn Lynch on 2nd down, and do it again on 3rd down, with Bowman slicing into the backfield unblocked like he did EVERY PLAY against the Rams this year. Better get a hat on him if you're planning to do any running today, Seattle.

49ers at their 19 after holding on the punt return. Gore gets stuffed for 1 but Kaepernick rolls on 2nd down and hits Vance McDonald for 13. Apparently a designed sweep right for Kaepernick for 17 out to midfield behind typical solid blocking by Gore. Brandon Mebane and Red Bryant blow up Gore for a loss. Seattle flushes Kaepernick on 2nd down but he runs up the middle for 8. No contain up the middle at all. ANOTHER QB draw on 3rd-3, but Wagner and Kam Chancellor stop it short. Jim Harbaugh will go for it on 4th-and-1 at the SEA41, hopefully with something besides a QB draw. No, they just tried to get Seattle to jump offside and failed. On comes Andy Lee.

Perfect work by Kassim Osgood to down the punt at the 1. Wilson hard-counts Aldon offside and Lynch battles for a first down on two carries. Wilson overthrows Jermaine Kearse, who was open behind Carlos Rogers. Wilson gets flushed on 3rd-and-7, then gets shit lucky not to get picked off by Eric Reid. Baldwin catches it behind him for 22. Deep play-action pass over the middle for Luke Willson is broken up by Donte Whitner, but he gets 15 for a, um, shoulder-to-shoulder hit. Garbage call, Gene. Seattle at midfield now. 49ers have been getting constant pressure on Wilson with just 3- and 4-man rushes and draw a hold. 49ers actually bring a blitz on 3rd-9, which is usually a bad move, but Bowman runs past the occupied tight end and buries Wilson to end the quarter.

SECOND QUARTER
Hey, the first quarter was as high-scoring as New England-Denver. And ooh, this punt. LaMichael James tried to field it, muffed it and got DESTROYED by Ricardo Lockette with what looked like a clean hit, till he pulled James' helmet off at the end. That should have been 15, Gene; kindly wake up out there. Rookie Darryl Morris saved S.F.'s ass by falling on the loose ball at the 14. Morris owed James that much for losing Lockette in coverage. Meanwhile, Fox shows us Jeremy Lane taking a shot from somebody in a sweatsuit on the 49er sideline, I assume an inactive player. Might have been Mike Tomlin.

Anquan Boldin DROPS a back-shoulder throw at the 30 on his first target. Gore gets stuffed by Malcolm Smith and Chancellor. Chris Clemons nearly sacks Kaepenick on 3rd-and-9 but Richard Sherman holds Michael Crabtree to let the 49ers off the hook. Clinton McDonald next engulfs Gore for a loss. Frank must think he's still on my miserable excuse of a fantasy team. Seattle flushes Kaepernick yet again but he scrambles out to the 33. Seattle's middle containment has been garbage so far. And here goes Colin again! With center Jonathan Goodwin pancaking Mebane, Kaepernick has plenty of room to step up, outrun two LBs to midfield, break Sherman's ankle tackle at the 40 and get all the way down to the 10 before Chancellor catches up to him. A 58-yard sprint.

Seattle is doing everything on defense fundamentally wrong and you'd think they'd know better, having a mobile QB of their own and facing Kaepernick twice a year. Even the Rams on a bad day don't make Kaepernick look this good, because they know how to contain rush. The Seahawks are just losing their collective defensive minds right now.

Gore up the middle for 2, then he gets down to the 1 before he gets clocked by Earl Thomas. True to Gore's FFL form, Anthony Dixon gets the dive attempt on 3rd-and-goal. He's called in, but review should move it back out a foot, where his arm came down. I expect Harbaugh to go for it anyway. I would, and I'd bootleg Kaepernick all the way. Play-action bootleg. You don't see it a lot any more, but it scored Steve Young a lot of TDs. Nope, they give Dixon a SECOND attempt to vulture the TD, and he crowd-surfs his way across the goal line. Mike Iupati's down after the play. He's helped off and not able to put weight on his left foot. 49ers 10, Seahawks 0

Quick screen to Baldwin for 7. The 49ers blitz on 2nd down and force a throwaway from Wilson though Lynch was wide open a few yards downfield. Golden Tate makes his first catch on a quick out for 5. Two plays later, the lucky horseshoe up Wilson's ass finally kicks in. He rolls right, gets forever to scan the field, gets flushed back to the middle by Dorsey, then rears up and fires deep for Baldwin, who has gotten behind inexcusable coverage and gets down to the 12. 51 yards. Seattle badly needed that play, though Baldwin goes down after it. Blitzing more than usual tonight, S.F. gets Dan Skuta free around right tackle for the third sack of Wilson. Lynch still going nowhere, gains 2. Wilson misses Kearse badly on 3rd-and-13 on a route that would have been lucky to gain 5. Steven Hauschka gets Seattle on the board. 10-3

DROP by Boldin, his second, to start the next 49er drive. Michael Bennett stops an option run for a loss. Useless 2-yard drag to Quinton Patton is lucky not to be called a fumble for the 49ers, who take their first 3-and-out. Osgood shuts Tate completely down on the punt return at the 37, and in honor of Washington's legalization of pot, we hit the 4:20 warning.

Lynch gets rare running room for 7. Good blocking on the left end by Miller. Lynch gets the 1st down off left tackle. Ahmad Brooks blows up the next run and Justin Smith swallows up Lynch for no gain, but Lynch stutter-steps across midfield for 8 at the 2:00 warning. Niners then luck out and get a false start call on Kearse, because they had two blitzers in the neutral zone. No matter, Wilson makes a tough slant pass to Baldwin for a first down. 1:30. Play-action, Ray McDonald blows up the backfield and Wilson runs around 40 yards to gain 2 down to the SF40. Wilson wants to go deep on 2nd down but gets tripped up by A.Smith for the 4th 49er sack. On 3rd down, Wilson drops back about 20 yards under heat from A.Smith and Skuta and shovels a pass to Miller that gains 2. 0:27, 4th-and-6 at the SF38. A punt seems the right move here, but Pete Carroll's going for it. Huge pressure from J.Smith, who was held with no call, flushes Wilson and forces a bad throw to Tate, but Rogers gets flagged for pushing him too far out of bounds. It's a crap call because Tate was actually still in bounds, but it's a dead-ball foul and the ball goes back to the 49ers to kneel out the half. Phew.

Seahawks.com

HALFTIME
Neither team is running well but the 49ers are winning the line of scrimmage. As Rams fans, we know what happens when you play the 49ers and can't run or stretch the field. They eat you alive. Seattle can't stretch the field and has to establish the run in the 2nd half or they're done. The good news for them is they were already adjusting late in the 1st half and got Lynch going some.



Whatever strategy the Seahawks had for containing Kaepernick clearly is not working, and it's shocking to see DC Dan Quinn doing so poorly after his superb work against the Saints last week. If they're going to spy Colin, they'd better do it with Chancellor, because they've got no LB who can stay with him. They also have to do a far better job of holding the middle of the field. They HAVE to give Kaepernick resistance when he steps up. That's on Wagner and Mebane and the other DTs to do better.

Of course, Kaepernick is the 49ers' only offensive weapon of any kind so far. Gore's done little, all Boldin has is two drops and I don't think Vernon Davis has even been targeted yet. With Sherman's attention probably devoted to Crabtree, it's up to Boldin to step up in the 2nd half. I'd think Greg Roman can help his passing game by rolling Kaepernick out. S.F.'s strategy to blitz Wilson more in the first half has been pretty brilliant, and I think they've got the secondary to make that strategy continue to stand up. Even if not, they've been getting impressive straight-up pressure anyway. Keep it up and they'll be facing a much-less mobile QB in a couple of weeks.

THIRD QUARTER
Ha, I had no idea Kaepernick only threw five passes in the first half. They'll start the 2nd half at their 21. Make it the 20 after Tony McDaniel swallows Gore up. Boldin hangs on to a quick slant for 6. Kaepernick scrambles left and Crabtree makes a tough catch in traffic for 12. Byron Maxwell down after the play. Kaepernick and Gore nearly blow the exchange on 2nd-10; Gore hangs on but loses 6. Seattle gets away with a 3rd-and-long blitz and Heath Farwell (?!) flushes Kaepernick into a wild scramble and a bad throw.


Seattle at their 40. Lynch bulls up the middle for 11. They run a lot better when they get a hat on Bowman. Lynch breaks a tackle off LT for 5 more. Smoke route to Baldwin leaves 3rd-and-1, which Lynch converts, and then some! It's raining Skittles in Seattle as he busts loose for a 39-yard TD. A fine block by Miller on A.Smith gave Lynch a big cutback lane, James Carpenter walled off both Bowman and the VERY quiet Patrick Willis, Eric Reid overpursued badly to allow Lynch to break the play wide open, and Tramaine Brock lamely tried to pop the ball out instead of attempting a tackle. And RamView once again nails a halftime adjustment. 10-10 If I could just do that without using a pause button for half an hour, I might have a future in this business.

Seattle's momentum continues as James gets jammed at the 16 on the return. Gore sweeps right for 9 but has to leave the field. Fox gives us no idea why because they're running a promo. Kaepernick finds Crabtree, who makes a slick grab, at midfield. Colin then bootlegs for another 22, getting a solid downfield block from Crabtree. Sweet misdirection play, totally looked like a run right. Gore has returned, btw. My guess is there was a problem with his helmet. S.F. gets away with one the next play. Bennett whips Anthony Davis and gets the sack-and-hack, but they botch the recovery and shoot it over to Goodwin, who picks it up and actually gains a couple. That pays off huge thanks to vintage Kaepernick on the very next play. McDonald burns Adam Snyder to flush Colin, but he scrambles, crow-hops and fires a rocket from the 30 to Boldin for a TD over Earl Thomas' extended hand. Nice pushoff by Anquan, as usual. 49ers 17-10

Whee, what happened to this game all of a sudden? Baldwin brings the kickoff back 69 yards. S.F. lost containment right away thanks to great work by J.R. Sweezy and somebody named Lemuel Jeanpierre on the wedge, and a downfield block by Michael Robinson to spring him down the near sideline.


Seattle at the SF33. Quick screen to Tate for 13. See how Seattle's ability to run the last drive has loosened things up for the short passing game again. Lynch gets 4 on 1st down, but Brooks makes a big play to blow up a sweep for a loss on 2nd. Hmm, I wonder if "Ohio" is Wilson's "Omaha". Maybe not, his center false started. Another blitz on 3rd-and-long, bringing Willis and Rogers, nearly buries Wilson and nearly draws a grounding penalty, but Wilson was just out of the pocket. Hauschka hits from 40 with 4:00 left in the 3rd. 49ers 17, Seahawks 13

49ers have been pretty unconventional blitzing on long-distance downs tonight. It's been a key to their success. McDaniel and K.J. Wright swallow up Gore for no gain at the SF20. He's averaging about 4 feet per carry. Not yards. Feet. Chancellor LIGHTS UP Vernon Davis to break up a pass, pretty tough price to pay on your first target in 3 quarters. Bennett beats A.Davis yet again on 3rd down to fluster Kaepernick into another wild throwaway. S.F.'s inability to run has come back to bite them in the butt as Uncle Mo has clearly jumped on Seattle's bandwagon.

Oh boy, Pete Maragos ran into Lee on that punt and got running into the kicker from Steratore, but Mike Pereira says it should have been roughing the kicker, and first down 49ers, because he ran into the plant leg. Instead we have Lynch thumping out a first down at midfield on two carries. Reid and Whitner break up a deep moon ball attempt to Kearse, but Wilson hits Baldwin on a comeback for 14. We should now have grounding on 2nd-and-6. Brooks about drove Breno Giacomini into Wilson, A.Smith collapsed the pocket, forcing Wilson back at least 10 yards, and his throwaway didn't make the line of scrimmage. They'll start the 4th quarter with third-and-about-Canada.

FOURTH QUARTER
3rd-22 at midfield, and a dumpoff to Miller gets 15 and puts Seattle in FG range. Carroll decides to go for a 53-yard FG, but Hauschka doesn't seem so sure, is way late going onto the field and Seattle burns a timeout. I'd thought that's well within his range but he's being babied like this is a 63-yard attempt. NOW the Seattle offense is back on the field, 4th-and-7.

Oh, hokey smokes. Aldon Smith, lined up at LDT, jumps offside, giving Wilson a free play to fling one into the end zone. Seattle's almost running a Hail Mary, trips across all running straight into the end zone, and Wilson perfectly places a pass inside of Kearse that Carlos Rogers can't get to for a 35-yard TD. Hauschka may get POTG for pussing out on a long FG. Seahawks 20, 49ers 17

And the 49ers are now trailing in a game they've pretty much dominated. And they start at their 11 after a hold on the return. Vernon Davis makes his first catch, for just 4, and Boldin converts on 3rd down on just his 3rd catch of the night and immediately woofs about it. Congratulations, you finally have more catches than drops tonight. Kaepernick sweeps left for 7 to make it 3rd-and-1 at the 34. Ouch, delay of game makes it 3rd-and-6.

And after that, it looks like we can send the Seahawks to the Super Bowl. Bennett and Cliff Avril both burn A.Davis and Goodwin to flush Kaepernick, who should run but slowly pulls up instead, and the terrible pocket presence burns him when Avril pulls off the sack-and-hack. Fumble bounces right to Bennett, who returns it down to the 6-yard line. Seattle ball with a serious chance to put the game away. 10:00 left.

Aldon Smith and Willis combine to stuff Lynch at the 6. And now a false start proves RamView spoke way too soon. Pass way over Tate's head at the goal line makes it 3rd-and-goal. And now, more fun. Wilson hits Kearse with a bullet inside the 5; Willis holds him up and Bowman strips the ball. He appears to have clear possession and is down by contact. Unfortunately, that contact is a pileup that bent his left leg grotesquely and I think he let go of the ball in reaction. It's a replay most people, including me, won't want to watch a second time, but it ought to be 49er ball.

No mercy, says Pete Carroll, going for it on 4th-and-goal inside the 1. Screw you, Pete, says KARMA, as Wilson and Lynch blow the exchange and the ball caroms back out to the 15 before Seattle can corral it. The 49ers didn't just dodge a bullet there, they dodged that Indiana Jones giant boulder.

Hunter works off a good A.Davis block for 11. Uh-oh, Bennett is down. Uh-oh, Kaepernick is awful, making a just-terrible throw Chancellor picks off at the SF40. That really was a what-the-hell-was-that throw. 7:30 left.

The 49ers force Seattle into 3rd-and-8, but Tate, dancing back and forth across the first-down line several times, ends up with 10 to extend the drive. Wilson and Lynch screw up ANOTHER exchange but The Beast somehow turns a big loss into a 2-yard gain. Seattle has to blow a timeout to prevent a delay of game. Bad play coming? Almost. Wilson drops the snap but recovers, wheels and throws the pass away. Seattle still gets an OPI. I'll note here that this game has been a FG from cracking the over since early this quarter, and both teams are going out of their way not to score. Ray McDonald stops Lynch to leave 3rd-and-15. Slant to Tate gets Seattle to the 29, sending in Hauschka. It should be wrong that I'm so tense about this FG. Phew, Hauschka hits from 47, and RamView is not getting skunked today. Seahawks 23-17

49ers at their 22, 3:33 left. The 49ers amazingly tried to start this drive with James sweeping and throwing back to Kaepernick, but he kept the ball on the sweep and ate it for a loss. Might want to step up the pace, eh?  8 to Boldin, 2:40. Chancellor jumps a slant to Crabtree and breaks it up at the 2:00 warning. I'd say Crabtree got alligator arms there, but it was more like he got alligator body with Chancellor lurking.


4th-and-the-season for San Francisco. Bootleg Kaepernick now? It's their best play. Hoo boy, here's some Kaeper-magic, too, as C.McDonald flushes him left but he calmly finds Gore sneaking past Wagner for 17, out to the SF47. The referees added a second to the clock before the play, so we get the actual 2:00 warning now at 1:53.

Kaepernick scrambles and breaks a tackle for 4. They have all three timeouts. Pass to Boldin for another 4. This is taking a long time. Rope to Crabtree at the sideline for 16, down to the SEA29. Though he was right by the sideline, Crabtree stayed in bounds, and the 49ers used their first timeout. 0:55. Kaepernick guns to Vernon Davis at the 18. 0:30 at the next snap, and oh man, should the 49ers have called another timeout. Kaepernick tries to hit Crabtree in the end zone, but Sherman has him blanketed, tips the throw and Malcolm Smith is right there to send Seattle to Super Bowl XLVIII.

In typical fashion, Sherman uses a postgame interview with Erin Andrews to classlessly call himself the best in the game and trash-talk Crabtree. It's going to be a long two weeks of him seeking media attention.

Final score: Seahawks 23, 49ers 17

ESPN.com

POSTGAME SHOW
This game was so tense I didn't get much chance to think about POTG. I'd like to give it to Hauschka since he kept me from going 0-6 today by STUPIDLY picking the road teams. But because Seattle won with so many lucky-shit plays, the POTG goes to the team of Russell Wilson and the lucky horseshoe up his butt. He didn't play a great game, but they'd never have won without him, either. There was the 51-yard chuck to Baldwin to set up the 1st FG. He avoided a sack to preserve the 2nd FG. And the key sequence that gave Seattle the lead they'd never lose - the 15-yard completion to Miller on 3rd-and-22 followed by the TD laser to Kearse on 4th-and-7. Well-played, Mr. Wilson. Nods to Lynch for his big TD run and Bennett for relentless pressure on Kaepernick.

That leaves us Seattle and Denver for the Lombardi Trophy. Do you pick youth (Wilson) or experience (Manning)? Offense or defense? Lucky or good? Is this the worst coaching matchup in Super Bowl history? Both teams can stop the run. Seattle's secondary vs. Denver's receivers ranks as an all-time best matchup in a Super Bowl. Both teams have very good special teams. Which way to go? The opening line is Denver by 1 1/2, O/U 47.5. The way both teams are playing right now, I just think Seattle's going to run into some kind of trouble they can't luck their way out of, not against the Broncos. Tentative vote right now for the Broncos and the over, though the Manning cold-weather factor looms.

The 49ers are definitely in best-player-available mode in the 2014 draft, and something as simple as good health at fullback might have gotten them to the Super Bowl. Couple of other key things I can think of are Bowman's injury and Boldin's pending free agency. Little doubt the NFC West is going to continue to be a load for the Rams.

As usual, no recap planned here for the Super Bowl. Enjoy the game and try to ignore the commercials.

-$-

AFC Championship: Denver 26, New England 16

ESPN.com

One more game for the ages between two QBs for the ages, Manning and Brady. Peyton's at the wheel of the highest-scoring offense in NFL history; Brady's got the head-to-head edge, a potent running game to back him up, and a banged-up Bronco secondary to attack. Fate may be shining on Peyton; the QB who's had bad times in cold playoff weather has gotten a sunny, 60-degree day in Denver in January.

Jim Nantz and Phil Simms on the call for CBS, with Tony Corrente refereeing.

FIRST QUARTER
Denver won the coin toss and deferred. The Patriots come out passing, Brady to Julian Edelman for 5. LaGarrette Blount is collared on 2nd down by, believe it or not, former Ram Paris Lenon for no gain. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie knocks away a slant for Austin Collie, and the last way I'd expected this game to start was a 3-and-out.

Out comes Peyton. Plenty of time on 1st down to hit Julius Thomas on a cross at the DEN19 for 5. Inside handoff to Knowshown Moreno for 3. OMAHA! Peyton bobbles the snap on 3rd-2 for about a 4-count, but Eric Decker's open at the 30 to move the chains. The crosses are getting better and better, this time Decker gets 21 across midfield. Quick out to Wes Welker for 6, but D'o'n't'a' Hightower blows up a Moreno sweep for a huge loss. Marshall? OMAHA! Decker gets open by a step deep down the near sideline but Peyton can't hit him. This really was not the postseason to ride the over, was it?

Patriots at their 20. A second former Ram sighting as MATTHEW MULLIGAN gets 6 on an out route. The Broncos are all over Blount again, though, with Terrance Knighton stuffing him for 1. Amendola time? No, Brady goes deep for..... Jackie Slater's kid Matthew?!?!? It's broken up by Tony Carter for Denver's 2nd straight 3-and-out. The NFL really does hate us over bettors, doesn't it?

Guess how Denver starts this drive, a crossing route to J.Thomas for 6 at the 24. Moreno makes a 1-handed catch on a well-set-up screen and follows Zach Beadles out to the 42. N.E. finally figures out how to stop a crossing route as Jamie Collins breaks up a pass for Montee Ball. A handoff to Ball gets nowhere, with Collins stopping him again. The Patriots bring a late blitz - dumb time for that, Belichick - Manny Ramirez picks it up and Manning hits Demaryius Thomas deep over the middle for 30. Decker's then open at the 10 on a deep dig; 1st-and-goal. Devin McCourty gets away with holding and who-knows-what-else defending J.Thomas on a fade route. Another dumb 2nd-and-10 run goes nowhere. Good but not great pressure by Chandler Jones convinces Peyton to throw the 3rd down pass to Aurora. Matt Prater gets Denver on the board. Broncos 3, Patriots 0

Patriots start at their 20 again while Simms appears to be taking some kind of perverse glee in pass interference not being called on the Patriots earlier. Speaking of glee, hooray for global warming - the Denver cheerleaders aren't in winter gear today. N.E. gets their first 1st down after DRC gambles and loses on an interception attempt in the flat, letting Shane Vereen get away for 24. Brady goes deep again next but misses Edelman on a deep corner. Stefan Ridley sweeps left to midfield. Brady gets lots of time on 3rd down while Edelman loses Carter on a comeback for 18. The drive stalls there after a 3rd-down OPI on Illini Mike Hoomanawanui. After a quick screen to Edelman, Belichick's actually going for it?!?! on 4th-and-16, or at least it looks like it as the quarter ends.

And of course two of the greatest QBs ever would combine to get us exactly 3 points in the 1st quarter.  

SECOND QUARTER
As if the whole idea of people watching the Super Bowl for the commercials isn't insulting enough, especially the way the quality of the commercials has tumbled in recent years, now we get PREQUEL commercials to Super Bowl commercials? Eat it, InBev.

The Patriots do in fact go against Nantz' idiotic pre-commercial intimation and punt, pinning the Broncos at the 5, where they don't stay for long after Moreno pops for 13 off LG. Collins fills the lane the next play to stuff Moreno for 1. D.Thomas DROPS the pass on Denver's 100th crossing route of the game. Aqib Talib down after the play. DBs are dropping like flies; DRC went down at the end of the last series. A weird pass from Manning, a 14-yard out with about 3 seconds of hangtime, goes to Welker for a 1st down. ANOTHER 2nd-and-long handoff goes to... Virgil Green?!?!?, who breaks Jones' tackle and goes up the middle for 7. 3rd-1, HURRY HURRY! A swing pass is a mile over Decker's head, but Denver gets a belated holding call on Logan Ryan and another 1st down at their 47. OMAHA! Swing pass to Ball for 12 to the NE39. Get this audible on 3rd-and-10: Red Montana Batman OMAHA!, which equals a draw to Moreno. He gets a huge hole from Manny Ramirez, hurdles a diving Patriot and breaks another tackle to get 28. Ball rolls all the way down to the 2 off Louis Vazquez' block. Jones meets Moreno off LT to make it 3rd-and-inches outside the 1. Hightower keeps Ball out of the end zone but Montee gets the 1st down inside the 1. Classic play from there - Peyton rolls right, Jacob Tamme fakes a down block left and curls at the goal line for the TD. Broncos 10-0

If Brady's got an answer, now's probably a good time. Denver's drive was 15 plays, 93 yards, 7 minutes. Aaron Dobson open off play-action for 27 is a good start for New England. Vereen's wide open out of the backfield for 13 behind blocking by Dobson and Illini Mike. Blount still hasn't done much; Danny Trevathan stops him at the DEN35 for 2. Tough catch at the 20 by ILLINI MIKE after Brady double-pumps. Blount cuts back smack into Knighton for no gain. Shaun Phillips down after the play. 4:44 till halftime. DRC's back in the game, but Talib has checked out due to a rib injury. Trevathan blows up Edelman on a cross to make it 3rd-and-8 and the 18. Robert Ayers swims inside Nate Solder for the game's first sack, dropping Brady for a huge loss. Stephen Gostkowski still hits the 47-yarder. Broncos 10, Patriots 3

2:54 left, and as Trindon Holiday appears to lose track of this kick in the sun, maybe there won't be so many kicks out the back of the end zone in the 2nd half. Surprised the genius Belichick hasn't picked up on this already. Draw play from the 20? Really? Sealver Siliga (which I spelled right on the first try!) blows that up for a loss, and holding on Chris Clark on 2nd down moves the Broncos back to their 10 at the 2:00 warning. No problem for Peyton, though, he finds D.Thomas on a deep post for 26 and a similar crossing route for another 28. Hey kids! What does prevent defense prevent? Comeback to Andre Caldwell (?) for 11. OFFICIAL REASON TO ROOT AGAINST THE PATRIOTS FOR THE REST OF TIME: JON BON JOVI IN ROBERT KRAFT'S BOX. 0:52 left at the NE26. Two quick outs net a big 5 yards; 3rd down at 0:40. Great open-field stop by Logan Ryan on Moreno makes it 4th-and-1. That was yet another very wide throw not very far downfield. Denver surprises me a little and settles for a 35-yard chippie. Riverboat Ron was totally going for that! Broncos 13, Patriots 3

0:25 left for Brady, as John Fox may yet live to regret taking a timeout before the field goal. Brady way overthrows Collie on 1st down and misses an open Edelman deep on 2nd, so Belichick gives up with a 3rd down run. Tom Brady has been far from accurate with his deep ball today.

DenverBroncos.com

HALFTIME
Yes, of course teams averaging 28 and 38 points apiece this season would combine for 13 at halftime against one another. Denver had 24 by themselves last time these two met. Of course, the Patriots have 3 points total in their last two first halves against Denver, so there's your problem.



I think New England should be a little scared at halftime. They're not running at all and Brady hasn't been effective enough downfield to exploit Denver's shaky secondary. Brady has had his chances in the first half, too. What if they invited two legends to a conference championship and only one showed up? I don't think Denver's going to stop keying on Blount, and... snicker... the Patriots now have to rely on... snort... the brilliant Josh McDaniels... collapsing in uncontrollable laughter... to make the halftime adjustments to get his team to the Super Bowl. HA! Gasp. Oh, the fun. If I know Josh, he's just going to send everybody deep downfield the whole 2nd half, whether or not they can get open or Brady can hit them, and let Denver just tee off on Tom for 30 minutes. Hey, it's what he did in St. Louis! At least do Tom a favor and use a lot of play-action. Also, paging Danny Amendola. Where you at?

For Denver, rush four, keep seven deep and don't let anybody behind you. On offense, keep running up the middle, where Ramirez and Beadles are dominating again, and keep pouring it on with those crossing patterns till the Patriots prove they can stop them. Take care of the ball and be ready for Belichick to turn up the blitzing dial.

Nothing about this game is over until Brady and Manning say it is, so we should be in for a cracking second half.

THIRD QUARTER
CBS shows Colin Kaepernick rockin' a... Freddy Krueger sweater? on his way into CenturyLink Soccer Park. I look to be behind about half an hour right now, sorry.


Gostkowski should kick this short and make Holliday find it in the sun. No, they're still blasting it out the back. Missed opportunity by the genius; the sun should be gone by the next time they kick off. After they get offsetting interference penalties on one another on one play, Decker beats Ryan for 18 on a corner route. OMAHA! Quick drag to D.Thomas for 15, and the Broncos are quickly at the NE40. Ball stutter-steps through Collins' tackle for 4. Quick screen to Decker for 9 off a draw fake. Manning takes a timeout with 3rd-3 at the 20. Bad play coming?  Nope, quick dig to J.Thomas for 5. Moreno Omahas off RT for 7. Pancake block by Vasquez. Ball uses Beadles and Ramirez to Omadraw down to the 3. Easy TD to D.Thomas from there as he beats Alfonzo Dennard at the line with a wicked inside move. 80 yards, eight minutes, big Broncos lead. 20-3

Patriots need to do something RIGHT NOW. Dinks to Dobson, Vereen and Collie get them to the 36, then Ridley works for 5 off blocks by Solder and Logan Mankins. Amendola DROPS a first down on a quick drag. Broncos blitz on 3rd-5 but Brady hits Collie on the sideline across midfield. Dobson appears open deep after a fake draw and a fake end-around, but Brady throws it over everything. Not as open as I thought it looked. Predictable draw on 2nd-10, but Vereen muscles his way through the Denver D for 9. Brady sneaks across for a 1st at the DEN36. Ridley bounces outside right for 8. Knighton then makes a sweet play to shed Ryan Wendell and drop Ridley for no gain. Vereen goes over the middle on 3rd-2 but gets popped by Trevathan for his efforts, and an incompletion. Belichick going for it on 4th-and-2. No, he needs a timeout first. NO, Fox actually beat Belichick to the timeout. Those things are burning a hole in Fox's pocket. Only one left for Denver now. No matter, on 4th-and-2, Knighton whips Mankins right off the snap and slings Brady down for the sack and the ball. We have a POTG candidate. 5 and a half minutes, and nothing.

That may be the only time the Patriots get the ball in the 3rd quarter. Kyle Arrington blows up a screen to Ball, but a swing pass to J.Thomas gets 15 out to midfield. Peyton Omahas one down the far sideline to D.Thomas, who goes up over Dennard for 30. Ball cuts back for 8 down to the 11 as the 3rd quarter comes to an end, which is also rapidly happening to New England's season.

FOURTH QUARTER
Holding on Julius Thomas pushes Denver back to the 21. He then makes up for it by embarrassing Ryan in the flat with a deke and rumbling down to the 8. Corrente calls another hold on a run to open up Belichick conspiracy theories across America. But Welker's wide open at the 10 after squaring out and gets down to the 2. Hightower stops J.Thomas on 2nd-goal on a shovel pass. J.Thomas whiffs on an Omaha from Peyton that should have been a TD. That was only the 2nd pass of Peyton's last 21 to hit the ground. Prater extends Denver's lead. 23-3 I think that was a 6-minute drive.

Well, if anybody can pull off the miracle comeback now, it's Brady and the Patriots, but it's asking for a lot. They're going to have to figure out a way to score quickly. Brady hits Illini Mike for 18 as Carter gets hurt on the tackle, and that looked ugly. If that was ONLY his shoulder popping out, he'll be "lucky". Dig to Collie for 20. Edelman takes a quick drag and slaloms for another 17, and we have another Bronco down, Sylvester Williams. DRC and Mitch Unrein nearly get Brady on a blitz, and they're BOTH down after the play after forcing an incomplete. Brady shot puts to Vereen for 6, nearly got sacked again. Malik Jackson nearly gets there on 3rd down and forces a quick throw incomplete. 4th-and-the-season for New England. 1st down as Brady hits Vereen again on an out route down to the 7. After overthrowing him badly while open in the end zone on 1st down, Brady gets Edelman on a slant for a must-have TD. Broncos 23, Patriots 10 That took just 2:30, the quick score New England needed.

If the Broncos 3-and-out here, a lot of throats are going to tighten in the Rockies. And omigod, THIS CENTURY, make up your own damn movies. Robocop? Really? Sure, NOW Belichick pooch kicks, with the sun down and at Holliday's back anyway. Um, let's keep the clock running, huh, Andy Reid? Incomplete pass on 1st down. ANOTHER pass, but J.Thomas burns Collins down the near sideline for 37. Patriots need a turnover badly as I'm happily imagining Bill Simmons staring helplessly at his TV. Moreno gets injured on the second of two handoffs after Julius Thomas fell on him. Peyton can't hit Demaryius on a deep route, but Prater's 54-yard bomb is good, and more than likely enough to send the Broncos to New Jersey. Broncos 26, Patriots 10 

Trevathan blows up a stupid screen that was a bad idea to begin with. Two passes to Edelman get them to the 38, but they took a long time just getting there. 5:50 left. Draw to Vereen for 9. 12 more to Edelman. Carter nearly jumps a dig to Illini Mike that would have been a pick 6. Vereen draws for another 10. Ball's at the DEN30 at 4:20 left. Quick drag to Collie down to the 12. What does prevent defense prevent again, kids? Under no rush whatsoever, Brady hits Edelman again, at the 5. Brady gets a wide open running lane, takes it and embarrasses the hell out of Unrein by running right through him for a 5-yard TD. The two-point conversion fails, though, because Shaun Phillips gets through and grabs Vereen by the foot. Phillips definitely saved the score there. Broncos 26, Patriots 16

Decker fields the onside kick attempt cleanly, and with 3:06 left, it's time for the Denver police to go on alert. Even though it looked like his arm fell off earlier, Carter is being treated for a concussion. Manning's THROWING on 2nd down, and Tamme's wide open in the flat for 23. 400 yards now for Peyton. I think  we definitely have our POTG now. Moreno's out with a chest injury, so Ball burns off New England's last timeout at 2:41. It'll be 3rd-and-2 at the 2:00 warning, and Denver's in easy FG range again anyway.

The Patriots hold on 3rd-and-2, but Ball follows a massive block from UNREIN at fullback to clinch the game and send the Broncos to the Super Bowl.

Final score: Denver 26, New England 16

ESPN.com

POSTGAME SHOW
The NFC game has started by now, so I'll try to make this quick. 400 yards, 2 TDs and a legacy extended makes Peyton Manning an easy winner of the POTG. Nods to Terrance Knighton, Danny Trevathan and the interior line of Louis Vasquez, Manny Ramirez (not THAT one) and Zach Beadles.

A big fat stinking 0-3 for a RamView stupid enough to pick the Patriots outright. Don't gamble on sports, kids. A big thank you to the Broncos, though, for guaranteeing a Super Bowl Rams Nation will be able to bear watching.

It'll be interesting to see how the Patriots fare next season if they can get Gronk back healthy and don't have anybody convicted of murder in the offseason. I wonder if they'd think about making a splash for a field-stretching wide receiver, if they have the cap space. Could be worth taking one last shot while Brady's still around.

On to the Battle in Seattle!

RamView year in review: d-line

Associated Press

Robert Quinn (57 tkl, 19 sacks, 7 forced fumbles, 1 fumble return for TD): A+

What other grade can possibly go to the Rams’ best player? He nearly led the league in sacks and set a (nod to Deacon Jones) St. Louis Rams record in the process. He made the Cardinals’ and Saints’ starting LTs look so bad they got dumped or benched. Even double-teaming wasn’t effective against Quinn as a pass-rusher; he’d often burst through or hit a sick spin move and sprint by. He gets the highest grade possible for being more than a one-dimensional pass-rusher. That kind of player isn’t as physically strong as Quinn proved this season and isn’t interested in stopping the run. Quinn, though, was one of the league’s best run defenders this season, too, certainly the Rams’. A complete player who changed games with his presence, Robert Quinn just completed one of the best individual seasons in Rams history.

Kendall Langford (49 tkl, 5 sacks): B

Got off to a slow start and was a liability against the run until really turning it on the second half of the season. Had strong run games against Seattle and Tennessee and that seemed to feed the rest of his season.

Michael Brockers (46 tkl, 5.5 sacks): B

A career clearly on the upswing. Brockers drew loads of double-teaming attention while still proving able to get after the QB. What's weird is, some of his best games, where he's an absolute monster, came in division games where the rest of the line was ineffective. How does that work?

Chris Long (40 tkl, 8.5 sacks, 1 fumble return for TD): C-

Rams sure have a lot invested in a guy who can't beat Eric Winston. Blocked MUCH too easily by tight ends in the running game. Want to know why this team could get gashed in the running game the way it did at times? How about Long getting blocked by TE Jason Witten ALL GAME in Dallas. Obviously, there's never going to be a problem with Chris' motor, and he's an impressive bull-rusher who can really set the table for his linemates when he gets it revved up. But I had little patience for Long's inability to shed the damn tight end early in the season, and it's hard to understand games where he disappears even though Quinn or Michael Brockers are the one getting double-teamed. Long can't let opponents get away with that in 2014.

William Hayes (28 tkl, 5 sacks): B-

Nice playmaker as a spot pass rusher but will wear down against the run if he's needed to take significant snaps. The Rams have him in his ideal role, and he's delivered very well at it.

Eugene Sims (27 tkl, 2 sacks, 1 safety): D+

Really a lightweight against the run. Susceptible to bad penalties. Valued role on special teams actually keeps his grade up.

Jermelle Cudjo (11 tkl): D

Made some plays against the run but also committed some stupid penalties.

Matt Conrath (7 tkl, 1 sack): D-

Struggled with injuries again and was never an impact player. Right now I'd have to say the Rams will be in serious trouble next year if either starting DT gets hurt.

Gerald Rivers: Incomplete

After I doubted him in training camp and he made the main roster, I'm now hoping Rivers doesn't turn out to be The One That Got Away, after Jacksonville claimed him when the Rams tried to sneak him onto the practice squad late in the season. Kid showed some excellent raw pass rush skills and likely would have given Sims a run for a roster spot this summer. 

Looking ahead: Only thing that's going to beat this line next year is themselves, and hopefully not injuries, tight ends or Eric Winston. The DEs are all locked up, though Quinn's contract runs out after 2015 and may well be a point for offseason discussion. Another point will be the idea that the best player available when the Rams draft in MAY will be Jadeveon Clowney. It's fair to say DT depth is an issue, and I wouldn't say no to one anywhere if the BPA calculus works out.

-$- 

NFLPA Collegiate Bowl practice notes

Before I get to reviewing either of this weekend's college all-star games, there's actually eight hours of ESPNU coverage of team practices for the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl to run down. ESPN offered a little more on-the-field action than last year, but they're still nowhere close to NFL Network's in-depth coverage of Senior Bowl practices. A little 11-on-11, very little 1-on-1 pass-blocking drills or receiving drills. ESPN covers the coaches of this game almost as much as the players and spends a lot of time rehashing its analysts' ratings, laughing at its own jokes and having Bill Polian tell us how the NFL is the ultimate meritocracy. Here then, are some Rams-focused notes and opinions from taking it all in...

* Dick Vermeil is coaching the Nationals team again this year, going for his third straight win. He once again brought Jim Hanifan in to coach o-line, Terry Shea as QB coach and offensive coordinator and Frank Gansz Jr. on special teams. John Bunting is the DC and LBs coach. DV also had Billy Long do the “gotta go to work” shtick, for both teams. No Isaac Bruce this year, though; Charlie Joiner was on staff to work with wide receivers instead. Taking it a generation further, Ray Agnew, Jr., a fullback out of Southern Illinois, is on the Nationals' roster. Amp Lee is coaching the Americans' running backs again this year, this time under head coach Dennis Green.

* The quarterbacks for this game are a very mixed bag. Brendon Kay (Cincinnati) threw behind receivers in a simple 7-on-0 passing drill. Kolton Browning (Louisiana-Monroe) gets the ball out quickly, and he'd better, because he throws it like a shot put. He threw bad out routes, was picked off at least once and near-picked a half-dozen other times. Ohio State backup Kenny Guiton got good reviews from the analysts despite a terrible semi-Tebow throwing motion of his own. Popgun-armed Sean Schroeder (Hawaii) had a nice Wednesday nailing shorter throws but struggled Thursday when he had to test his arm. James Franklin (Mizzou) was so bad at the end of Thursday's practice, throwing nose-down passes and terrible interceptions, that Denny Green gave him a quick hook, and the ESPN guys started suggesting he should be a WR or even a RB instead. Wow. Also, almost every QB there has his durability questioned because of being slight-framed, and they're mostly described as pretty-accurate short-to-intermediate range throwers without very good deep balls. Should be thrilling night of screens and checkdowns when they play the actual game, huh.

* It does get a little better at QB. RamView likes South Carolina QB Connor Shaw, for a lot of the reasons I liked Austin Davis a couple of years ago. He holds all his school's passing records. Threw 24 TDs last year vs. 1 INT. Mentally and physically tough and got better every year in college. Steve Spurrier said Shaw's the best QB he ever coached. He's mobile, though he needs better pocket presence. He also threw one of the prettiest balls we saw on TV the whole time on a deep corner route to TE Asante Cleveland. And though it isn't considered his strength, Shaw showed nice accuracy on everything I saw. McShay said Dustin Vaughn, an heir of the West Texas A&M QB factory that produced Keith Null, was the QB who impressed the scouts the most. He's a big 6'5” 220, throws a tight spiral with good technique, has a strong arm and a quick release and picked up the offense quickly. Set the Division II season passing record last year. Could be a sleeper to watch. Caleb Herring of UNLV had the best deep ball but could be an adventure at times.

* Other players who stood out:

- Kenneth Acker, CB, SMU. Intercepted one pass in 11-on-11s and broke up several others. Had 7 INTs last season. Good size at 6'0 185. Excellent instincts and closing speed, very sticky in man coverage. Best DB there, getting 3rd-4^th round projections from McShay.

- Isaiah Burse, WR, Fresno State. 6'0 187. Productive slot receiver and daredevil punt returner. No fear going over the middle, natural hands catcher. As Mike Mayock would say if he were here, “quicker than fast,” but he ran excellent routes (better than most Rams WRs). Very fluid, good after the catch, and has a high football IQ. Looked good on WR screens. I'd like to think I'd say there's a lot of Isaac Bruce in his game even if he didn't have a very similar name and wear #80. McShay listed him as one of the players who had the best practice weeks.

- Khyri Thornton, DT, Southern Miss. Dominated 1-on-1 drills. Also cited for having one of the best weeks in practice. Showed impressively strong hands and ability to recover pass pressure after an initial punch. McShay also credited him for his raw power and quick first step.

- Brian Clarke, G, Bloomsburg. Was both a wall and a mauler in 1-on-1s and opened up a big hole for teammate Franklin Quiteh during 11-on-11. Never beaten in 1-on-1s.

- Tony Washington, WR. Made tough catches and one of the prettiest catches on either broadcast. While well-covered, turned for a deep catch at the goal line, made a great adjustment, a better hands catch and got down in bounds for a TD. The only problem: I didn't mention his school till now because it's Appalachian State, Brian Quick's alma mater. How long's it going to take this AppState product to learn on the job? ESPN says he's the most natural receiver in this game, that he has great body control and runs good routes.

* My “please avoid” list:

- Jake Metz, DE, Shippensburg: got good reviews from the TV crew, even got compared to Grant Wistrom, but blew tackles and got pushed around and pancaked in 11-on-11.

- Roy Finch, RB, Oklahoma: no. Just no. ESPN wouldn't shut up about him. He's like 5'5. He almost didn't take any run where it was supposed to go. On one sweep in 11-on-11, he tried to launch himself into a safety but bounced off and landed hard and flat on his back. He's so herky-jerky and hard to find I'd try him as a punt returner, but that's about it.

- WR Gerald Ford, Valdosta State, or Greg Hardin, North Dakota. Drop machines. Ford dropped at least two passes, including one that would have been a TD.

- Vicenzo D'Amato, K, California. Duck-hooked a short FG attempt at the end of Wednesday's practice.

RamView actually skipped a few players, believe it or not, and if we went just on all-star game practices, Ziggy Ansah wouldn't even have gotten drafted last year, so the next step will be to review this actual game. I hope to have that and the East-West Shrine Game recapped before the holiday weekend's over.

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Draft notes, 1/17

Todd McShay offered some interesting nuggets during the coverage of this week's NFLPA Collegiate Bowl practices regarding the top players in the draft. His top 5 players:

Jadeveon Clowney
Jake Matthews
Greg Robinson
Anthony Barr
Sammy Watkins

Teddy Bridgewater was the only QB in McShay's top 10, and even he only came in at 10th. Johnny Manziel, who Mel Kiper currently mocks at #1 overall, wasn't even in the top 10. McShay acknowledges that teams needing QBs are going to take them well ahead of where he rates them.

CBS Sports

McShay says Matthews, who's played both RT and LT, is the most polished tackle but that Robinson has the tools to be the best tackle from this class 2-3 years from now. Robinson's name hasn't come up much in the discussion for the Rams' first pick, but at a minimum, the Rams aren't necessarily screwed at tackle on draft night if they trade down and miss out on Matthews.

USA Today

The ESPN panel also had a discussion of Watkins, with Desmond Howard saying he needs work with his route-running because Clemson doesn't really emphasize that. Uh-oh. He's an explosive vertical threat who can score from anywhere but can't run the route tree. Uh-oh. So if you draft Watkins, who is in the #2 pick talk here in St. Louis despite Les Snead's ludicrous suggestion the team doesn't need a #1 receiver, you're either getting Calvin Johnson, or you're getting Brian Quick. RamView currently prefers Marqise Lee, who Howard called more polished and from a system that requires the receivers run good routes. I don't know how much more patience I have waiting for receivers to develop. But hey, it's early. Plenty of time to change my mind a half-dozen times.

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