Landman season

[GoldenRam]

132 tackles, 2.5 sacks tied for 2nd, 1 back of Joey Bosa with 4 forced fumbles and had 2 fumble recoveries. I'd say that is a solid start to his Rams career.

[NorCal RF]

It was a damn good signing and Speights was ok also contrary to what some may think………

[brasilrams]

It was a damn good signing and Speights was ok also contrary to what some may think………

I was surprised to see speights rates really well in coverage ( also good against the run but that much I knew ) . Like you said , the problem with this team is not the front 7 ( although I do think our pass rush is weak at some points , they rank 12th in sacks ) but the real problem is the secondary . We have absolutely zero talent there ( outside lake who was hurt forever ) and a DC that is learning on the job and can't scheme well to hide this weakness.

[DVA_ram33]

Landman has disappeared and missed a few tackles since being paid.

[Rams fan since 1973]

I do agree Landman’s play has dropped off late in the season. Maybe tired or a little banged up?

[RonMac]

Nice addition IMO - Tough guy D player was needed & recent drop may be physical fatigue ? Extension seems at a good value for Rams.

[NorCal RF]

It was a damn good signing and Speights was ok also contrary to what some may think………

I was surprised to see speights rates really well in coverage ( also good against the run but that much I knew ) . Like you said , the problem with this team is not the front 7 ( although I do think our pass rush is weak at some points , they rank 12th in sacks ) but the real problem is the secondary . We have absolutely zero talent there ( outside lake who was hurt forever ) and a DC that is learning on the job and can't scheme well to hide this weakness.

My friend Shula could scheme until he is blue in the face and it is not hiding the lack of coverage talent in this secondary……….

Yes I would like to have more sacks, but this front seven has consistently put pressure on the QB, sometimes hitting the QB while throwing the ball, only to have a receiver running completely free for a completion……..

The eye test says Speights has been fine. When some were calling out an upgrade here last week I SMH. What we want first team all pros everywhere. Unrealistic n definitely bigger needs on D………

[SoCalRam78]

Speights had literally zero impact plays. No INTs, sacks or TFLs. Only one PD. Why you can’t tell if he’s on the field. Great for O linemen, not great for LB. He’s okay. Not Troy Reeder esque. But some obscure PFF pass defending stat is not going to change my mind.

[NorCal RF]

Speights had literally zero impact plays. No INTs, sacks or TFLs. Only one PD. Why you can’t tell if he’s on the field. Great for O linemen, not great for LB. He’s okay. Not Troy Reeder esque. But some obscure PFF pass defending stat is not going to change my mind.

I guess doing your job and just making tackles is not making an impact…….

We have complained in here, not saying you, about this team’s ILB play, especially against the run, we finish top 10 against the run, but………

Who do we think had the biggest “input” in approving that stat. I’ll help the 2 ILB………

Unless you are creating TO’s………

And you are not going to change my mind……..

[SoCalRam78]

I’ll use the agree to disagree here. Not expecting all pros. Can improve on margins. I’m not expecting an undrafted guy to be something special. Ram made a small FA investment in Landman and paid off. Simply a position they feel they get by on the cheap. Why EJ left. Didn't want to extend him. Yet they’re dropping 10 mil on atwell and spending a 4th on a RB.

And TFLs are big. Especially for a LB. Better ones all register here. INT may be flukey but Speights literally never tackled a guy behind the LOS once in 2025.

[brasilrams]

I was surprised to see speights rates really well in coverage ( also good against the run but that much I knew ) . Like you said , the problem with this team is not the front 7 ( although I do think our pass rush is weak at some points , they rank 12th in sacks ) but the real problem is the secondary . We have absolutely zero talent there ( outside lake who was hurt forever ) and a DC that is learning on the job and can't scheme well to hide this weakness.

My friend Shula could scheme until he is blue in the face and it is not hiding the lack of coverage talent in this secondary……….

Yes I would like to have more sacks, but this front seven has consistently put pressure on the QB, sometimes hitting the QB while throwing the ball, only to have a receiver running completely free for a completion……..

The eye test says Speights has been fine. When some were calling out an upgrade here last week I SMH. What we want first team all pros everywhere. Unrealistic n definitely bigger needs on D………

He needs to dial more blitzes, sometimes when the font 4 is having issues ( and it happens) he needs to attack with more blitzes because since the secondary is horrible, he knows that if even bad qbs have time in the pocket they are gonna carve them up.


But why is the secondary this bad? Did McSnead simply fail to properly address the unit and assume internal development would be enough? At this point, it looks like a clear case of poor talent evaluation.

In my opinion, this roster was poorly constructed, with too many questionable decisions during the process. And this goes beyond the secondary. The lack of proper planning at offensive tackle is another major concern. AJ has well-known durability issues, and his primary backup is D.J. Humphries. If AJ doesn’t fully recover, Humphries would be our starting left tackle — which is a frightening scenario.

I understand there are salary-cap restrictions, but that can’t be used as a blanket excuse. There were opportunities to address cornerback either through the draft or by targeting a mid-tier veteran in free agency. Neither happened.

On top of that, the organization waited far too long to move on from Blackburn. Hiring him in the first place was a major mistake — his résumé raised red flags from day one. How many losses we had because of special teams? We lost the first seed and bye to Seattle because of STS.

When you put all of this together — poor talent evaluation, questionable roster construction, slow corrective action, and an overreliance on internal development — the results we’re seeing on the field shouldn’t be surprising.

[brasilrams]

I’ll use the agree to disagree here. Not expecting all pros. Can improve on margins. I’m not expecting an undrafted guy to be something special. Ram made a small FA investment in Landman and paid off. Simply a position they feel they get by on the cheap. Why EJ left. Didn't want to extend him. Yet they’re dropping 10 mil on atwell and spending a 4th on a RB.

And TFLs are big. Especially for a LB. Better ones all register here. INT may be flukey but Speights literally never tackled a guy behind the LOS once in 2025.

I understand norcals point but I also agree here. Speights is just serviceable, he does ok. That is it. He can't blitz, he cant penetrate and make a tackle behind the Los. But he also doesn't miss many tackles, so he is serviceable....I would like an upgrade for sure. But the area that needs a complete 360 is the secondary

[NorCal RF]

My friend Shula could scheme until he is blue in the face and it is not hiding the lack of coverage talent in this secondary……….

Yes I would like to have more sacks, but this front seven has consistently put pressure on the QB, sometimes hitting the QB while throwing the ball, only to have a receiver running completely free for a completion……..

The eye test says Speights has been fine. When some were calling out an upgrade here last week I SMH. What we want first team all pros everywhere. Unrealistic n definitely bigger needs on D………

He needs to dial more blitzes, sometimes when the font 4 is having issues ( and it happens) he needs to attack with more blitzes because since the secondary is horrible, he knows that if even bad qbs have time in the pocket they are gonna carve them up.


But why is the secondary this bad? Did McSnead simply fail to properly address the unit and assume internal development would be enough? At this point, it looks like a clear case of poor talent evaluation.

In my opinion, this roster was poorly constructed, with too many questionable decisions during the process. And this goes beyond the secondary. The lack of proper planning at offensive tackle is another major concern. AJ has well-known durability issues, and his primary backup is D.J. Humphries. If AJ doesn’t fully recover, Humphries would be our starting left tackle — which is a frightening scenario.

I understand there are salary-cap restrictions, but that can’t be used as a blanket excuse. There were opportunities to address cornerback either through the draft or by targeting a mid-tier veteran in free agency. Neither happened.

On top of that, the organization waited far too long to move on from Blackburn. Hiring him in the first place was a major mistake — his résumé raised red flags from day one. How many losses we had because of special teams? We lost the first seed and bye to Seattle because of STS.

When you put all of this together — poor talent evaluation, questionable roster construction, slow corrective action, and an overreliance on internal development — the results we’re seeing on the field shouldn’t be surprising.

Not a big thread starter but I’m going to start one on the secondary here in a minute. Please chime in when completed………….

I think salary cap restrictions play a bigger role than you may be giving it credit for……………

I could care less if Blackburn was/is here or not. We saw yesterday that the ST unit still has issues. Hell we watched the Pitt/Balt game……..

[bigklein]

There is a lot to like about Speights, and the defense was definitely better when he returned from his one game injury absence, just comparing the game w/o him to the next game with him.

That said, it is odd that he has never recorded a sack—not with Oregon State or LSU or in these first two seasons with the Rams. Sacks aren’t everything, I know, but not even one—ever—seems odd.

Maybe he’ll be used differently against Carolina to surprise Bryce Young. Or maybe that’s just not in his skill set.

Maybe year three will be magical for Speights’s all-around game, but there should be some great choices in the draft for ILB.

[brasilrams]

He needs to dial more blitzes, sometimes when the font 4 is having issues ( and it happens) he needs to attack with more blitzes because since the secondary is horrible, he knows that if even bad qbs have time in the pocket they are gonna carve them up.


But why is the secondary this bad? Did McSnead simply fail to properly address the unit and assume internal development would be enough? At this point, it looks like a clear case of poor talent evaluation.

In my opinion, this roster was poorly constructed, with too many questionable decisions during the process. And this goes beyond the secondary. The lack of proper planning at offensive tackle is another major concern. AJ has well-known durability issues, and his primary backup is D.J. Humphries. If AJ doesn’t fully recover, Humphries would be our starting left tackle — which is a frightening scenario.

I understand there are salary-cap restrictions, but that can’t be used as a blanket excuse. There were opportunities to address cornerback either through the draft or by targeting a mid-tier veteran in free agency. Neither happened.

On top of that, the organization waited far too long to move on from Blackburn. Hiring him in the first place was a major mistake — his résumé raised red flags from day one. How many losses we had because of special teams? We lost the first seed and bye to Seattle because of STS.

When you put all of this together — poor talent evaluation, questionable roster construction, slow corrective action, and an overreliance on internal development — the results we’re seeing on the field shouldn’t be surprising.

Not a big thread starter but I’m going to start one on the secondary here in a minute. Please chime in when completed………….

I think salary cap restrictions play a bigger role than you may be giving it credit for……………

I could care less if Blackburn was/is here or not. We saw yesterday that the ST unit still has issues. Hell we watched the Pitt/Balt game……..

The Rams have tied roughly 90% of their money to the offense and only about 10% to the defense. We’re one of the teams with the least financial investment on the defensive side of the ball, and that’s simply not smart roster construction.

And it’s not just the secondary. Special teams alone cost us at least three games this season because the Rams hired an incompetent coach ( terrible resume ) and then took forever to fire him. That’s poor decision-making and slow corrective action.

In my opinion, the secondary is just one of several issues. The Rams had clear, pressing needs — cornerback, left tackle, among others — and chose not to address them in the last draft, opting instead for luxury picks.

I like Ferguson, but we already had three tight ends capable of getting the job done. A cornerback should have been drafted in the second round, and a left tackle should have been drafted in the next round .

As much as I like McSnead, they’ve been making too many mistakes across the board. Roster construction, positional prioritization, and resource allocation have all been questionable

[NorCal RF]

Not a big thread starter but I’m going to start one on the secondary here in a minute. Please chime in when completed………….

I think salary cap restrictions play a bigger role than you may be giving it credit for……………

I could care less if Blackburn was/is here or not. We saw yesterday that the ST unit still has issues. Hell we watched the Pitt/Balt game……..

The Rams have tied roughly 90% of their money to the offense and only about 10% to the defense. We’re one of the teams with the least financial investment on the defensive side of the ball, and that’s simply not smart roster construction.

And it’s not just the secondary. Special teams alone cost us at least three games this season because the Rams hired an incompetent coach ( terrible resume ) and then took forever to fire him. That’s poor decision-making and slow corrective action.

In my opinion, the secondary is just one of several issues. The Rams had clear, pressing needs — cornerback, left tackle, among others — and chose not to address them in the last draft, opting instead for luxury picks.

I like Ferguson, but we already had three tight ends capable of getting the job done. A cornerback should have been drafted in the second round, and a left tackle should have been drafted in the next round .

As much as I like McSnead, they’ve been making too many mistakes across the board. Roster construction, positional prioritization, and resource allocation have all been questionable

“ As much as I like McSnead, they’ve been making too many mistakes across the board. Roster construction, positional prioritization, and resource allocation have all been questionable”

We will agree to disagree which again is ok…………….

[RAMFAN71]

Nice pickup....playoffs again, and we clinched 3 weeks ago. I say they are doing just fine.

[Rampager66]

It was a damn good signing and Speights was ok also contrary to what some may think………

I was surprised to see speights rates really well in coverage ( also good against the run but that much I knew ) . Like you said , the problem with this team is not the front 7 ( although I do think our pass rush is weak at some points , they rank 12th in sacks ) but the real problem is the secondary . We have absolutely zero talent there ( outside lake who was hurt forever ) and a DC that is learning on the job and can't scheme well to hide this weakness.

Sacks are not the beat all ranking metric AFAIC. You don't get sacks against dink and dunk offenses. The Rams played many, w/o quality DB's.
M. Jones 2x, Darnold 2x, D. Jones with Indy, Slough with NO, Ward with TEN, Young with CAR,, Hurts with PHI, Cooper Rush with BAL.
They take shots but don't generally throw downfield, it's run, dink and dunk. I'd like to see both O and D YAC totals by each team for the season.
I'll bet our D is near the most surrendered and some of these teams O's have almost as many if not more total YAC Yards than Net Passing Yards.
Look at the 9ers, I think CMC is their leading receiver out of the Back field, many check downs/hitches.
They've gotten by most of the year w/o a deep threat. Kittle is their best current downfield threat ffs.
The league is so watered down that teams can't stop what they have tons of game field on and know is coming. We're a good example of that.

[ocram23]

I like Landman but this team has to get faster at the LB position. Hopefully they can do so in the offseason.

[Cornell29]

I like Landman but this team has to get faster at the LB position. Hopefully they can do so in the offseason.

I agree but you can't move on from Landman bc he just signed a long-term deal. Speight been solid, and is the ILB that only plays 63 percent of the time bc he gets taken off the field when Rams go small.

The only fulltime ILB is Landman (plays over 80 percent), I doubt the Rams replace him already.

[ocram23]

I like Landman but this team has to get faster at the LB position. Hopefully they can do so in the offseason.

I agree but you can't Landman signed a long-term deal. Speight been solid, and is the ILB that rarely plays and gets taken off the field when Rams go small.

The only fulltime ILB is Landman, I doubt the Rams replace him already.

didn't say that all I am saying is they have to add talent to the LB core...have to get faster for sure

[Cornell29]

I agree but you can't Landman signed a long-term deal. Speight been solid, and is the ILB that rarely plays and gets taken off the field when Rams go small.

The only fulltime ILB is Landman, I doubt the Rams replace him already.

didn't say that all I am saying is they have to add talent to the LB core...have to get faster for sure

Yeah depth is never a bad thing, I thought you were referring to drafting a ILB high in draft

[ocram23]

didn't say that all I am saying is they have to add talent to the LB core...have to get faster for sure

Yeah depth is never a bad thing, I thought you were referring to drafting a ILB high in draft

I was.....I absolutely love Styles from OSU.....we need more than just Landman...I think the LSU CB would be a great pick but I don't think he will be there at 13