The Los Angeles Rams will play in the first divisional game of the weekend on Saturday which is good news for nervous Rams fans and players who do not want to wait to play. In the game, the Rams seemingly have a darkly daunting task in having to defeat quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in their house. In other words, the Rams have to beat the team with the best record in the entire NFC, with an offense operating at a diminished capacity due to injuries to what is essentially the heart and backup heart of the offense in Jared Goff and John Wolford.
However, all is not lost as the Packers have key weaknesses that line up against the strengths of the Rams so the game is much more evenly matched than at first glance. Here is a game plan that maximizes Green Bay’s weaknesses while minimizing exposing the weak spots of the Rams. If planned correctly, the Rams could pull off the upset, even with an injured Goff starting.
Goff Starting: How Rams Beat Packers On Saturday
Game Plan Targets With Goff Starting
Before jumping into the nuts and bolts of any game plan, it is important to identify the big goals and the intended result. The first goal of the game plan should be to minimize the best offense in football. The second goal is to keep the Rams quarterback out of the play calling as much as possible. The third goal is to not beat oneself by choosing the more difficult path. The fourth and biggest goal is to force the Packers to play in a new way in order to win.
Defense
If the defense does not hold back the Packers, they will win. If the defense comes out flat and sloppy, the Packers will win. If even one starting defender misses snaps with injury, the Packers will most likely win. In fewer words, the defense needs to be all hands on deck and playing at 110 percent because of how good the Green Bay offense is.
Schematically, the Rams’ best chance would be to take on the Packers like some teams took on the New Orleans Saints in 2019 when quarterback Drew Brees, wide receiver Michael Thomas, and running back Alvin Kamara were firing on all cylinders. Defensive coordinator Brandon Staley needs to double team the number one receiver and play man-coverage against every other receiver. This is because the Packers have amazing top-end talent in wide receiver Davante Adams.
However, behind Adams, the Rams have better matchups in the secondary. If Jalen Ramsey and Troy Hill double-team Adams and take him out of the game, Rodgers will have to throw towards one of the depth pieces who will either be tightly covered or the unusual number of targets leads to dropping the ball.
Statistically, the top two receivers are Davante Adams and tight end Robert Tonyan. Adams has 118 receptions for 1,374 yards and 18 touchdowns. Behind Adams, Tonyan is the next lowest piece and has 52 receptions for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns. Thus, outside of these two players, who should see Jalen Ramsey and Darious Williams shadowing for the entire game, every other receiver is lacking.
Where The Game Will Be Won Or Lost
If the Packers struggle to pass the ball, it is only a matter of time until they decide to run the ball. Forcing the Packers to run the ball does four things. First, it truly tests running back Aaron Jones and asks him to prove if he is playoff material and can win a playoff game on his own.
Second, it tests Rodgers’ patience. In other words, it asks him if he can stand by and watch someone else win a game for him.
Third, it puts pressure on the offensive line of the Packers as they’ll need to repeatedly beat pass rushers Aaron Donald, Leonard Floyd, and Michael Brockers. Additionally, in light of the injury to left tackle David Bakhtiari, this task is now much harder than it was a month ago. However, the Rams have a huge advantage in this spot.
Fourth, if Aaron Jones runs the ball a lot, then Rodgers is not quickly throwing touchdowns that the Rams cannot match. Also, this is largely doing the Rams’ offensive job for them in keeping Rodgers from throwing (more on that later).
If the Rams follow this defensive gameplan, the Packers could be in trouble. The ultimate goal of this game plan is to hold the Packers to 21 or fewer points and not allow it to become a shootout.
“Simply put, the defense needs to be great in order to win this game.”
Offense
Simply put, the defense needs to be great in order to win this game. However, the Rams offense still needs to shoulder some of the load and has to be able to move the ball and score points. Also, they need to soak up the clock and keep Green Bay off of the field. This means there should be a lot of running the ball.
They need to stay ahead of the chains because if they find themselves in long third downs repeatedly, they’ll be in trouble. The biggest workload for the offense will be early in the game. To start, Head Coach Sean McVay will need trick plays in order to steal a quick and cheap lead.
In the second quarter, the Rams will need to run the ball for basically a full drive which could eat up most of the quarter. The ultimate goal is to enter halftime with a lead at all costs. Statistically, the Rams have never lost with Sean McVay as a head coach when leading at halftime. If the Rams are leading at halftime, the defense should be able to hold back the Packers.
Then, in the second half, the goal should be to just have one or two drives with the foot stomped on the pedal in terms of aggression and then score just one touchdown minimum to ice the game and not take too many risks.
Projected Results With Goff Starting
The ultimate goal of the game plan would be to hold the Green Bay offense to 21 points or less while scoring 24 or more points, just to state the obvious. The Rams should be looking for a 17-7 lead at halftime and then score one more touchdown to add a cushion or potentially ice the game while letting the defense control Green Bay.
It won’t be easy, but with this defense, it is certainly doable.
