Rams’ defensive takeaway from first game is about resilience

THOUSAND OAKS — It was looking similar a disastrous commencement for Raheem Morris arsenic the Rams’ antiaircraft coordinator.

Instead, it turned into an aboriginal signature infinitesimal for Morris and the 2021 Rams’ defense.

On the 2nd play from scrimmage successful their play opener against the Bears connected Sunday, Chicago moving backmost David Montgomery took a handoff from backmost Andy Dalton, chopped to his close betwixt well-blocked antiaircraft linemen Aaron Donald and Sebastian Joseph-Day, evaded the agelong limb of extracurricular linebacker Leonard Floyd and burst distant from 5 pursuers. Only the hopeless velocity of linebacker Kenny Young, who shoved Montgomery retired of bounds, prevented a touchdown. The tally went for 41 yards, to the 12-yard line.

On the SoFi Stadium sideline, Morris didn’t get aggravated oregon intermission to fig retired what conscionable happened.

He said coolly into his coaching headset: “Let’s spell get a turnover.”

Just arsenic coolly, 3 plays later, the Rams’ defence got it.

Cornerback David Long’s extremity portion interception of a Dalton walk tipped by Young was 1 of a bid of first-half takeaways and large hits that enactment the shot successful the hands of Rams backmost Matthew Stafford and sent L.A. connected its mode to a 34-14 victory.

“I thrive connected adversity,” Morris said of the Bears’ 41-yard run, telling the communicative betwixt signifier sessions Thursday. “When it happened, I thought, ‘Good, let’s spell get a turnover.’ That was the archetypal thought that crossed my mind. And not due to the fact that of a cocky oregon arrogant thing. It’s conscionable that you’ve got to find ways to marque radical calm.

“If you get caught up successful the emotion of being upset, the adjacent happening you cognize you’re down 7-0 and you’ve got a problem.”

As the Rams (1-0) prepared to question to look the Indianapolis Colts (0-1) connected Sunday astatine Lucas Oil Stadium, they looked to amended their antiaircraft performance.

Although they held the Bears to a brace of touchdowns, the Rams gave up 108 yards rushing to Montgomery himself and 134 connected the crushed overall.

Coach Sean McVay blamed missed tackles and acknowledged that holding starters retired of preseason games mightiness lend to early-season rust.

“I deliberation we’ll spot betterment moving connected from Week 1 to Week 2, but that’s thing that we’ll decidedly person immoderate urgency addressing,” McVay said.

It’s particularly urgent due to the fact that the Colts person a beardown moving crippled led by Jonathan Taylor (1,169 yards and 11 touchdowns arsenic a rookie past season).

“I don’t cognize what was going connected retired there,” said Donald, who wasn’t immune to missing tackles. “I was letting plays gaffe retired of my hands. So I’ve been moving connected my grip each week, making definite everything volition beryllium good. I changed my gloves. They’re not getting distant nary more.”

To Morris, the occupation connected the 41-yard gut-punch of a tally wasn’t blown tackling but linemen’s nonaccomplishment to contention blocks and the secondary’s mediocre positioning.

“(Cornerback) Darious Williams should person been connected the near side, (safety Jordan) Fuller should person been connected the inside, and astatine astir the 41-yard tally is simply a 7-yarder,” Morris said.

But the momentary setback mightiness person helped the 45-year-old erstwhile Tampa Bay Buccaneers manager and Atlanta Falcons interim coach, hired past wintertime aft antiaircraft coordinator Brandon Staley became the Chargers’ coach, stamp his ain individuality connected a Rams defence that allowed the fewest points and yards successful the NFL past season.

Part of that individuality is the value of “make-a-difference plays” similar takeaways. The atrocious infinitesimal successful the archetypal infinitesimal of the play opener acceptable the Rams up to marque 1 of those plays. And past they made more.

Outside linebacker Justin Hollins forced a Dalton fumble recovered by Young connected 1 fourth-down effort by the Bears, and cornerback Jalen Ramsey knocked a walk escaped from Allen Robinson connected different 4th down.

It volition beryllium reassuring, erstwhile the Rams’ defence inevitably runs into occupation astatine times this season, to cognize that a calm dependable connected the headset volition beryllium expecting to find a solution.

There surely was nary panic successful Morris past Sunday.

As helium enactment it: “I wasn’t reasoning astir my bequest arsenic antiaircraft coordinator connected the 2nd play.”

NOTES

Defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day (knee), the lone Ram injured successful the triumph implicit the Bears, was a constricted subordinate successful signifier Thursday aft sitting retired Wednesday.