Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Crossover Thursday - Patriots-Rams GAME DAY - 12/10/2020

Episode Date: December 10, 2020

It’s Crossover Thursday on the Locked On Podcast Network. Join hosts Mike D’Abate of Locked On Patriots and Sosa Kremenjas of Locked On Rams as they preview this Thursday night showdown between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA on Thursday, December 10, 2020.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order.MyBookieINVEST IN YOUR INTUITION. USE PROMO CODE LOCKEDON AND DOUBLE YOUR FIRST DEPOSIT. NEW PLAYERS GET UP TO $1,000 IN FREE PLAY - DESIGNED TO ADD MORE EXCITEMENT TO THE SPORTS YOU LOVE AND THE GAMES YOU BET. YOUR WINNING SEASON BEGINS TODAY...ONLY AT MYBOOKIE!BuiltGoVisit BuiltGO.com and use promo code “LOCKED,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order.BetterHelpI want you to start living a happier life today. As a listener, you’ll get 10% off your first month by visiting our sponsor at BetterHelp.com/LockedOnDoorDashRight now, our listeners can get $5 off and zero delivery fees on their first order of $15 or more, when you download the DoorDash app and enter code LOCKEDON. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you Foxborough faithful. You are now locked into the Lockdown Patriots podcast. Today is Thursday, December 10th, 2020, and it is not only crossover Thursday here on the Lockdown Podcast Network, but it is game day for your New England Patriots as they get set to take on the LA Rams. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.

And folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed and very much appreciated. Feel free to share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there giving the game day gander to the Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Pats Nation, a double special treat in store for you today here on Locked On Patriots.

Not only are your New England Patriots in action on Thursday night football against the LA Rams tonight, but it is also crossover Thursday, which means that to get you ready for tonight's kickoff, my man Sosa K, host of the Locked On Rams podcast, will be joining me here on the hot seat. We'll be breaking this one down from a Patriots perspective, from a Rams perspective, and of course, because it's game day, keep a sharp ear out to the conclusion of today's pod, where I will be providing my final notes and game prediction. An action-packed game preview episode here

of the Locked On Patriots podcast coming at you bright and early today as Sosa and I attempt to get you ready for kickoff tonight, 8.25 p.m. Eastern, 5.25 p.m. Pacific, SoFi Stadium in Englewood, California, as the Patriots and the Rams get set for Week 14 NFL action. This game, of course, being broadcast by Fox, so check your local affiliates to ensure you do not miss a second of the action.

Joe Buck handling the play-by-play duties, Troy Aikman providing the color commentary, and, of course, Aaron Andrews and Christina Pink will work from the sidelines. For those of you that stream on Amazon, Andrea Kramer and Hannah Storm will be calling the action of this game. All you Amazon listeners can check out the stream on that. And of course, if you're looking for a little local flavor, I highly recommend my good friend and good friend of the program doing the play-by-play.

Of course, I'm talking about Bob Sose calling the action alongside former Patriots quarterback and New England legend Scott Zolak providing the color analysis. And because I seldom get the opportunity to do pregame shows on the day of the game itself, I want to give a well-deserved shout out to my friend Mark Capello, who does a brilliant job producing all these games for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Bob and Zoe, alongside Mark's production, provide a great listen for all Patriots Nation. And of course, the Patriots are coming at you fresh off of a 45-0 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. The Rams are also coming into this game fresh off of lighting the scoreboard with a win,

a 38-28 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. And how can we forget that this is the first time that the Patriots and the Rams have faced each other since their 13-3 Super Bowl 53 victory February 3, 2019 in Atlanta. And these two teams come into this matchup pretty healthy, at least according to Wednesday evening's injury report. The Patriots have not ruled anyone out and have not listed anyone as doubtful, but there are a handful of Patriots that are questionable. If you're wondering which ones on whom you should have your sharp eye on as the Patriots will probably release their inactives about an hour

before the game, our cornerback JC Jackson listed with a hip and a knee injury, cornerback Jonathan Jones listed with a neck injury, and of course Ryan Izzo, hi Claire, Ryan Izzo is listed on the injury report with three different injuries, hamstring, hand, and neck. If Izzo is unable to go, my guess is that Dalton Keene takes on the tight end one roll, and maybe Devin Asiasi finally sees some snaps. I'm particularly concerned about Jackson and about Jones. If either of these players is unable to go, or worst case scenario, both, the Patriots secondary might be ripe for the pickings. So bottom line, keep a sharp eye out about an hour

prior to game time for the Patriots inactives. That should be telltale, and it will definitely give you an indication on the type of game plan that the Patriots might employ, especially on defense. For the Rams, no players listed is out, no players listed is doubtful, which means Cam Akers, who is the star rookie running back for the Rams, is likely to give it a go in this one. That means that the Rams are going to be relying heavily on the rushing attack, especially on early downs. The Patriots' front seven in their run defense is going to have to be prepared to face not only Cam Akers, but also Daryl Henderson and even Malcolm Brown.

The only player listed as questionable for tonight's game for Los Angeles is kicker Matt Gay with a shoulder injury. Keep an eye on that one, folks. It could get interesting if the Rams have to enter this game without a kicker. Might we see Johnny Hecker take those duties? Now, I know the Rams would never want to pull double duty, and my gut reaction says that Matt will give it a go tonight. But if he can't, things could get awfully interesting for the field goal unit of the LA Rams.

But now that the logistics are over with, and we've taken a walk down the walking wounded path for both teams, it is time to cross the streams. And in just a moment, my man Sosa K, host of the Locked on Rams podcast, will join me here on the hot seat. We'll talk Jared Goff, Aaron Donald, Cam Newton, Damian Harris. I'll even do my Belichickian duty and throw in a question about Rams punter Johnny Hecker. And of course, keep a sharp ear to the conclusion of today's pod for my game prediction.

All this and more when this crossover Thursday episode between Locked On Patriots and Locked On Rams continues. Of course, Locked On Patriots is presented today by Pepsi, made for football watching. Thanks to a lack of natural athleticism or commitment or overbearing sports parents, fewer than 1% of 1% of 1% of people will ever play professional football. But instead of entering the NFL, they've joined another league, the League of Football Watchers. This football season continues to be different, and Pepsi is here to get you ready for game day, no matter how you watch.

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Let's go. Los Angeles and Boston, two cities that have a rich history steeped in rivalry when it comes to professional sports, the Celtics and the Lakers, the Red Sox, the Dodgers. But today we're talking gridiron, and that means the Los Angeles Rams and the New England Patriots, two teams that have also met with championships on the line. But tonight's matchup will be a great one in L.A., and since it's crossover Thursday here on the Locked On Podcast Network, we will give you some insight on that matchup. 8.25 p.m. Eastern, 525 Pacific, SoFi Stadium in Englewood, California, tonight.

I'm Mike DeBate, host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, and joining me is my friend and colleague Sosa Krimenjahs, host of the Locked On Rams podcast. Sosa, it's always an honor, always my privilege to join you on the mic for these crossovers, especially when it's a game day edition. Yeah, it's a little bit unique for us in this week's episode. This is my first year, obviously, hosting the Locked On Rams podcast. So this is also my first time hosting a Thursday edition of the crossover game edition of the podcast. So it's a little unique, but, you know, I'm excited for it. It's going to be a good

game. I think two teams that are fighting for playoff, you know, hopes here and the Patriots are looking pretty hot at this point in time. the Rams are obviously a very dangerous team and one of the better teams in the NFC I think and it's going to be a very good game I anticipate something similar to you know what we saw maybe a few seasons back in the Super Bowl there but that's why they play the games and you know you look at the Patriots performance last week it was very impressive and they get to stay in LA and play in SoFi Stadium for a second time in two weeks so I'm expecting a good game and it should be very entertaining yeah I know both teams are hoping for a Hollywood ending in this one so so no question about it but the Patriots are trying

to write their own script of redemption but LA's script has been excellent this year I mean the Rams have really defied a great deal of odds. Eight and four, tied for first in the NFC West. An explosive, versatile offense and one of the best defenses in the league both against the pass and especially against the run. So, let's start there, my friend. I said yesterday on my pod, Locked on Patriots, that

Aaron Donald is a big reason for the Rams' run defense prowess. He's just a big reason for their defensive prowess as a whole, but he really does help to make that run defense what it is, but he's not alone in making it the third best run defense in the league. Sebastian Joseph Day is in the middle. Michael Brockers plays the end opposite Donald in the Rams 3-4 front. That's about as good as you can get in the first three in a 3-4 front, so the Rams have been very good in that department this year. And the linebackers have really, I think, played very well inside, filled in effectively

as well. Troy Reeder, Kenny Young, I think, have done a very good job. So watching this defense, they present a lot of problems, especially for a Patriots team that is predicated on running the football to establish their offense. So Sosa, in your estimation, what might we see from the Rams tonight in hopes of stopping guys like Cam Newton, Damian Harris, and the rest of the Patriots' ground attack? I think it's going to be more of the same of, you know,

what we've seen throughout the first 13 weeks. And like you mentioned, you know, the Rams have a very stout front seven. It's something that I didn't really expect coming into the season. I thought, you know, they might be a little bit subpar in that unit, looking at the edge rushers, looking at the inside linebacker position, but man, they've played great. And like you mentioned, they've got a lot of depth up front. We didn't even get to guys like A'shaun Robinson, who the Rams paid handsomely in free agency. And he did miss, you know, the first eight or nine weeks of the season on the NFI list, but he's now starting to get his feet under him a little bit. He's starting to, you know, get a little bit more

snaps in the run game there at nose tackle. Like you mentioned, obviously, Sebastian Joseph Day's been taking a big step in his development this season. You look at guys like Greg Gaines coming off the bench, providing, you know, a lot of energy in their 10 to 15 snaps every game. And I think, you know, defensive coordinator Brandon Staley is doing a great job at scheming these guys into good positions to help stop the run. He's running a lot of tight fronts, a lot of different stuff that you don't typically see in NFL defenses, more of the college game, I would say. And it's working. It's working very good. You got a lot of beef up there. Typically, you don't see guys like Michael Brockers on the end, like you mentioned, who's, you know, 335 pounds. But the Rams are interested in stopping the run. And they've shown that by way of their personnel and their scheme. And it's worked very well for the Rams so far. And I don't see why they would change in this game. Like you mentioned, the Patriots are obviously a very good rushing attack. It's how they, you know, operate offensively. So the Rams are going to have to stop the run more than ever in this game. And I expect that to be the case in this game.

I think, you know, Michael Brockers, he is a little bit of a question mark coming into this one. He did get hurt in week 13. Sounds like he's going to be a game day decision. But outside of him, the Rams still have a lot of depth up front. We didn't even really talk about Aaron Donald, who, you know, he's not stout in terms of standing up a guard and two gapping. But he might be the best penetrator in football right now. And that's how he makes plays and tackles for losses. So, you know, I think the Rams have been very good against the run. I don't know who's going to win the battle just yet, but I expect the

Rams to come with their A game for sure. Yeah, without question. Rams third ranked run defense in the league, as I said, allowing 93 yards per game, 3.9 yards per carry. That's tops in the league, folks. And they held Kyler Murray and company, a very good rushing team in Arizona. It's only 92 yards rushing last Sunday. So Patriots definitely have their work cut out for them, and it's not going to be an easy task for the Patriots to run the football on this defense. Staying on the defense for just a second, Sosa, L.A. isn't much easier to throw against, so the Patriots are not looking at this saying, well, if you can't run the ball, let's just chuck

it up through the air. The numbers really back that up. The Rams secondary, led by Jalen Ramsey, of course, he's the crown jewel of that, but I think Troy Hill has been excellent, spent some time in New England, so Patriots fans know his name a little bit. John Johnson, Jordan Fuller have been excellent in the back and the safety all season long. They've limited passing attacks to 198 yards per game. That's third in the NFL. Five and a half yards per pass play. That is a tough pass defense to try to penetrate.

And some of the Patriots' worst outings of 2020, if I'm being honest, have been when they have problems moving the ball on first and second downs. If the Patriots are forced into third and long situations, that's when the passing attack struggles. Cam has a tendency to hold the football a little bit longer, has problems picking up the blitz, and then teams can get after the quarterback and they can't attack him. And that's where Aaron Donald may come into play. How will the Rams look to find success into forcing Cam Newton into those obvious passing situations to prevent the Patriots from finding an early rhythm? Yeah, I think we touched on it a little bit in that first question there. And it's that the Rams have to be ready to stop the

run on first and second down, right? If they can win those downs and force the Patriots into second and long third and long situations, obvious passing downs, that's exactly where they're going to want to have them. And I think that that's what they're going to try to scheme into. And then, you know, when you look at the secondary of the Rams, it's definitely the best part of their defense. They are absolutely littered with talent at every position across the board back there. All five starters are talented. And, you know, it's funny that you didn't even get to mention a guy like cornerback Darius Williams, who might actually be the best player in that secondary right now, which is pretty crazy to say, when he's playing across a guy like Jalen Ramsey, who could, you know, be in most people's

minds, the best corner in football. So you look at that secondary, they're very instinctive. They're very productive. They're very good at forcing turnovers, they're sticky in coverage. They're very versatile. I think that's maybe the biggest key of their unit there is that everyone's really interchangeable. You're going to see guys like Jalen Ramsey line up in the slot. You're going to see him line up outside. Same as Troy Hill. You see the difference in safeties. These guys can both kick down into the box. Like you mentioned, John Johnson and Jordan Fuller. They can play single high structures on the back end. They can play two safety looks. I mean, there's really nothing that the Rams can't do. And one of the reasons that they've been so successful as a secondary

is that their versatility allows Brandon Staley to kind of vary their coverages in the back end pre and post snap. So they're going to present something pre-snap and they're going to rotate right out of it as soon as the ball is snapped. And I think it's making quarterbacks hold the ball just a little bit long. And then, like you mentioned, there's obviously that guy, number 99 up front. And if quarterbacks are holding the ball a little And I think it's making quarterbacks hold the ball just a little bit long. And then like you mentioned, there's obviously that guy number 99 up front. And if quarterbacks are holding the ball a little bit too long, you know, he's going to get home at some point. And it's all kind of worked and gelled out very well for the Rams. You look at their cornerbacks,

they're performing very well. And that's why they're arguably the best secondary in football right now. I think they probably are. And with that being said, you know, I look at the Patriots passing offense. They don't attempt many deep pass attempts, they only have thrown 23 pass attempts of 20 plus yards this season. That's second fewest in the NFL. So I think these guys, the cornerbacks in specific are going to be sitting on a lot of these routes. And I think you're going to be try, I think you're going to try to, you know, jump some of these routes and be a little bit more instinctive than usual trying to get, you know, cam forcing him into a mistake or two so that's my expectation i think that's you know pretty fair to expect in this game but it really depends on what's going to happen on first and second down

yeah absolutely and i i like the fact that you expounded on your answer earlier and saying that by doing that it allows this coverage unit which by the way is the best coverage unit that the patriots will have faced i believe this season in terms of cover corners and cover safeties. These guys can really blanket some of the passing attack that the Patriots have. Their pass catchers have not been all that prolific this year. They've been serviceable as of late. Jacoby Myers has developed a nice little relationship rhythm with Cam Newton. Demir Bird has been a little bit better. Gunnar Ryszelski has come out and played well last week, but by and large, they haven't seen a cover

unit like this Rams unit, and I think it's going to be an interesting awakening for a lot of people, including the Patriots pass catchers. Flipping over to the offense, and this Rams offense has plenty of firepower around Jared Goff. Jared's coming off an impressive performance against the Cardinals on Sunday, throwing over 350 yards.

Cooper Cup, Robert Woods played some very impressive football in my estimation. First and second on the team, both in receptions and receiving yards. Up front, I think the team has missed offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth a little bit, but they still look good both in pass protection and in run blocking. So there really isn't a whole lot of weakness to this Rams offense either. And running the ball has been a clearly effective part of their game as well. We're not sure if Cam Akers is going to be able to go tonight, at least at the time we're recording this, folks. But Malcolm Brown, Daryl Henderson, definitely more than capable of carrying the load if for any reason Cam can't give it a go. The Pats defense has been known to confuse quarterbacks.

We talked a little offline about this. Bill Belichick has been known to be able to confuse young quarterbacks at the line of scrimmage, show some exotic looks, and get them into making throws they're not comfortable making. But Jared Goff is not exactly a young rookie anymore. He's not green in that area. He's been around a little bit longer, so he's seen these looks a little bit more. In your estimation, my friend, what is it about this Rams offense that makes them capable of potentially overcoming those problems if Jared does struggle?

And most importantly, if he is effective, how can he take apart this Patriots defense? I think probably the most important thing for the Rams to take into this contest is going to be going back to their contest against the Miami Dolphins. As you guys know, former defensive coordinator Brian Flores

is now the head coach there. And, you know, a lot of these disciples of Bill Bilicek's coaching tree, guys like Matt Patricia in Detroit a few seasons back, Joe Judge with the New York Giants this season. Like I mentioned, Flores, they all gave Sean McVay and specifically Jared Goff a lot of troubles on offense this season. And in the past few years, you even look back to the Super Bowl,

the Rams look completely clueless on offense. And so that's something that worries me for sure. It's something that I've taken note of. You know, it's something a lot of Rams fans are definitely concerned about. Like you mentioned, Bill Bilicek is a genius, man. The guy knows what he's doing on defense. He's going to confuse quarterbacks. He's going to force them into mistakes, essentially. And that's something that I'm definitely concerned about with Jared Goff in this game. We've seen it multiple times this season where he'll just have one of those games where he throws two or three interceptions, fumbles once or twice. And I'm concerned that that might be the case in this game. Now, with that being said,

if the Rams are going to be prepared for this game, it's because they dove back into that Dolphins tape and figured everything out because the Dolphins ran a ton of cover zero pressures in that game. They knew Jared Goff's weak point as a quarterback is when he's under pressure, when he's forced to get rid of the ball quickly, or when he's forced to hold the ball way too long. And he did that way too often in that game. He wasn't looking at open receivers.

He wasn't looking at his hot receivers. They weren't probably IDing blitzers at the line of scrimmage. And it just led to a brutal day on offense. And so I'm kind of expecting something similar to that in this game. I think Bill Bilicek is going to want Jared Goff to prove that, you know, he is capable of beating a defense like that. And that's definitely a concern because that's not how the Rams want to play.

They're not a very explosive offense in the passing game. They're very methodical in terms of trying to run outside zone, trying to stay ahead of the chains, trying to keep it in third and manageable situations for Jared Goff, where he doesn't have to hold the ball too long. Like you mentioned, Andrew Whitworth isn't there. The offensive line can't really hold up for, you know, five or seven step drops that long.

And so that's kind of how the Rams play. Very methodical, very one play after the next, very organized. But as soon as things start to get off track, that's when you can see the offense sputter a lot. So that's something I'm very concerned about. And I think Bill Bilicek is probably going to have a lot of success knocking the Rams off track and kind of putting them behind schedule in the chains and in, you know, third and long distances. Yeah, without any question.

I mean, you definitely need the players to make the plays on the field. But from a New England Patriots perspective, it might be the hoodie who ends up being the MVP in this game. If the Patriots are successful, that type of scheming is something he's going to have to be on his game. And I'm sure Bill took careful notes of what Brian Flores did in the Miami Dolphins game. That's something that the Patriots were able to give Jared some difficult, you know,

looks to in Superbowl 53 and Brian Flores was the de facto defensive coordinator in that game for the Pats. Last but certainly not least, my friend, I would not be doing my Belichickian duty if I didn't ask a question about Johnny Hecker. We know Bill Belichick is absolutely glowing in his praise for Johnny Hecker, and he remains one of the best punters in the game. I love Jake Bailey here in New England, but Hecker is in a league of his own. It's not often that a punter can change the complexity of a game. We saw it a couple of years ago in Super Bowl 53, a great head-on-head matchup between Johnny

and then-punter Ryan Allen, and Bailey can definitely match kick for kick. How much of a weapon is Johnny Hecker to this team from the perspective of someone like yourself that covers them on a daily basis? Yeah, he's a major weapon. And like you mentioned, some games are going to be ugly, right? And we talked about this a little bit off air. I expect this game to kind of be an offensive struggle for both teams. And if that's the case, like it was in the Super Bowl two years ago, I mean, field position is going to be very, very important, right? And you look at a guy like Johnny Hecker, and he's just got obviously a cannon of a leg.

There's really no distance that he can't hit. He's very accurate. He's very good at placing the ball inside the 20, inside the 10-yard line, giving his gunners a chance to go and down the ball and, you know, very close to the goal line. And that's why he's arguably the best punter in football right now. I think it's probably pretty fair to say that he is the best punter in football. And he's been a huge weapon for the Rams. He's been there for roughly about a decade now, almost. He's, I believe off the top of my head, the longest

tenured player with the Rams now, alongside long snapper Jake McQuaid, who's also part of that special teams unit. Now, you know, there's a lot less fakes going around with the special teams unit this year as the Rams moved from John Fossil, the former special teams coordinator who is now in Dallas with former Rams kicker Greg Zerline, and the Rams hired John Bonamago, who is in his first season with the Rams here. They seem a lot less risky when it comes to, you know, running fakes and things that we've kind of gotten used to when it comes to Johnny Hecker in that punting game. But he's still got a strong leg. The Rams still like to utilize him in a field position battle, and he's still got the capability

of pinning teams deep in their own end zone there. So I think when you look at, you know, how strong the Rams defense is this season, it's more than ever that they like to actually play the field position battle now because they know that the defense is not typically going to allow offenses to, you know, string together 12 or 15 play drives. And so it feels more important than ever to try and field, you know, teams very deep into their own territory there. And Johnny Hecker is obviously where that all begins and ends.

Absolutely. And so you have provided a great amount of insight when it comes to the L.A. Rams, and you probably made Bill Belichick happy if he's listening by talking glowingly about Johnny Hecker. I kid folks. I don't know if Bill listens to this show, but Hey, who knows he might,

but this wouldn't exactly be a true crossover unless we flip the script and you put me on the hot seat. And just a moment, folks, my friend and colleague Sosa Cremendous of locked on Rams will take over the command and he will seek my insight on all things New England Patriots. More on this Thursday night showdown between the Patriots and the Rams when the Locked

On crossover Thursday continues. Locked On listeners, this football season continues to be different, and Pepsi is here to get you ready for game day, no matter how you watch this season. Maybe the thrill of the tailgate or the roar of the crowd has been replaced by your favorite comfortable chair, your big screen TV giving you the sharpest resolution possible, your favorite snacks right by your side, and of course, the best part, Pepsi, which is the refreshment that you need to power through any game day and become a member of the League of Football Watchers. These passionate fans are the real generational talent that Pepsi fuels.

Because Pepsi isn't made for those who play the game, it's made for those who watch it. Go to madeforfootballwatching.com to check out the latest football watching content from Pepsi. Made for football watching. Locked on listeners, the wait is almost over. The 2020-2021 NBA season is almost here. And the Locked On NBA podcast will get you ready with a special week of shows beginning December 14th. Get previews of every team, division by division,

from all 30 of our Locked On local NBA experts, plus waiver wire editions from Locked On Fantasy Basketball, rookies to watch from Chad Ford, and predictions on each division from rejecting the screen. Subscribe to Locked On NBA wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back to the final segment of this Thursday crossover edition of the Locked on Rams and Locked on Patriots podcast. As my colleague Mike DeBate mentioned in the former segment.

I am Sosa Cremendous, your host of the Locked On Rams podcast. I'm joined by Mike DeBate, the host of the Locked On Patriots podcast. And now we're going to flip the tables here. He asked me his questions as they pertain to the Los Angeles Rams. And now Rams listeners, we got to get you guys a little bit of info as it pertains to the Patriots because as we all know the Patriots are very very different specifically on offense even defense when you look at all the COVID opt outs for the first time in many years obviously they're not going to have Tom Brady at quarterback and for the first time in nearly two decades it's a very different offense very different team

a lot of different coaches included and so it's going to be crucial here that we kind of learn more about the team. And with that being said, I got to start at the offense. We got to look at that passing attack. I know the Patriots are obviously a much different offense than they were, you know, with the former quarterback, Tom Brady, very methodical, very, you know, boring, but we'll take it. We'll take it kind of plays there from Tom Brady. Now they have Cam Newton, a very different style of quarterback, a big guy, a running threat, a powerful runner, a guy with a strong arm. But, you know, I look at the numbers and really the passing attack hasn't been all that prolific, especially when you compare it to the former offenses, which, you know, it's no surprise there. With that being said, is there kind of a reason as to why they've been so subpar, I guess,

as a passing attack this season? I think it's a good combination of both, or I should say a bad combination of both, depending on how you look at it. Good for the Rams, bad for the Patriots. I think in a lot of ways, the Patriots have suffered from that type of malaise that you have when you change quarterbacks, essentially changing quarterbacks that have differing styles, like you said. Tom Brady, pure pocket passer, very efficient, very workmanlike in the way he went about doing his business and ran this offense in a certain way.

Now, all of a sudden, Josh McDaniels has a guy like Cam Newton at his disposal, where for all of Tom Brady's strengths, being able to get rid of the ball very quickly, picking up the blitz, never being confused at the line of scrimmage, those are areas where Cam has struggled. He's able now to pick up the ball and run with it. He's able to utilize that RPO. He's able to utilize the zone reads to his advantage and make it a little bit more difficult for the Patriots to defend

because you simply have to account for a couple of different options every time Cam gets the ball in his hand. With Brady, you pretty much knew. You weren't really expecting him to tuck the ball and take off unless he was wide open and had no other alternative, and then you'd see Brady scramble for a couple of yards. But Cam can definitely do it. We saw it last week against the Los Angeles Chargers

where it looked like he was handing off to Damian Harris. He decides to keep the ball, fakes Joey Bosa completely out, and runs for 14 yards in the first and really helped to set up a touchdown play at that level for the Patriots. So that's the type of complexity, that's the type of difference that Cam has brought. The problem is that I don't believe he's had the prep time to be able to develop that type of relationship he needs with his pass catchers. And his pass catchers, for lack of a better term, I think are doing the best they can with the skill set that they have. Jacoby Myers is turning into a pretty good receiver here in the NFL, but he's not going to be a pro bowler. And I think a lot of people have to recognize that he's very good at what he does, but he's not going to be a pro bowler and I think a lot of people have to recognize that he's very

good at what he does but he's a solid number two at best Nikhil Harry has basically underwhelmed since being the first round draft pick a couple of years ago Patriots fans have really hoped to see him come into his own and quite honestly it just hasn't worked out until that point now Damir Bird has been a nice pickup he's got a relationship with Cam from having played with him in Carolina. So there are members of this team that are capable of making plays, but the absence of a guy like Julian Edelman in this offense has been huge. Julian was always that straw that stirred the drink. You could always count on him for yardage, get compact catches, maybe even go out and make a big catch downfield, was never afraid to go over the middle. Patriots don't have that element right now. And even though Edelman was a favorite of Brady's,

you could still see in the second game of the season that Julian was more than capable of being a great complement to Cam Newton, receiving for well over 100 yards there. And unfortunately, injuries have kept him off the field. Another big part of it, Sosa, is the lack of a tight end. The Patriots have not had a competent tight end, a pass-catching tight end, all year long. Poor Ryan Izzo has been doing the best he possibly can. He's been solid as a blocker, but he's just not a receiving tight end that can give you

yardage that you need. So, Patriots have had weapons problems all year long. That's why they've relied heavily on the short pass, out- play action, usually on third down out of the backfield. James White's been solid in that regard, but it's really been about Damian Harrison getting this offense going. So the reason why they haven't been so prolific downfield is a lot of reasons, but the most important is I think a lack of prep time with maybe a lack of depth at the position as well. Yeah, you kind of touched upon, you know, my next question here. I look at, you know, where they lack in terms of the passing offense. And it's the complete opposite of a story when you look at the rushing offense. I mean, they rank inside the top three in total rushing yards. They rank inside the top six in explosive rushing yards, which are rushes of 10 plus or more.

And obviously, you know that has a lot to do with cam newton at that quarterback spot like you mentioned earlier a little bit of the zone read stuff a little bit of the rpo stuff uh you look at a guy like damien harris who's kind of come out of nowhere and looked awesome as the starting running back now so um so you know you see the offense struggling as a pass offense but they've been really good as a runoff. And so what do they kind of primarily like to do there? And where are they at their best? And, you know, how do they operate within their best confines there? The best way that the Patriots can hope that this game goes tonight, or really any game, is to get and win the battles on first and second down.

Get into short yardage situations on third down. we talked a little bit actually about this in the previous segment that's where the Patriots are at their best they know how to read they know how to be able to get the yardage that they need in short down situations when you force them into third and long cam's holding onto the ball way too long he's getting confused he's getting into situations where he either has to try to throw the ball into coverage, which he's done a few times, and he's done it not so well, I guess is the best way for me to put it. I'll be diplomatic. Some of those throws have not looked good. But at the same time, you can't put that all on Cam because the pressure that he's facing a lot of times has been very difficult.

I think any quarterback would struggle regardless of who it is in the back there. We saw Brady struggle with it last year when you're not able to pick up the blitz and you're not able to make efficient throws you find yourself under pressure more often than not the running game is what helps that so Damian Harris getting involved on first and second down carrying the ball getting big yardage takes a lot of pressure off cam in the third down situations then he can make the decision about whether or not he wants to utilize play action for a quick, short underneath pass, those crisp, efficient passes that he's very good at, or he can tuck the ball and he can run on third down and really surprise everyone

and get big yarded, sometimes into the end zone if it's close enough to the red zone. So that's what the running game does for the New England Patriots. It just motivates and puts everything into motion. They've had the good fortune of having production out of a lot of good running backs this year. Harris has been their running back one, and he will continue to be. He's their best runner. Rex Burkett had a great year until going down a couple of games ago with an ACL injury. Now you're seeing Sonny Michel step into that role,

and he didn't really play a huge role against the Houston Texans a couple of weeks ago, or I should say against the Arizona Cardinals a couple of weeks ago, but he did play a pretty big role in the game against the Chargers on Sunday. So maybe you see him carry the ball on second down a little bit, and then of course, all else fails. You've got James White in the back on third and fourth down, one of the best pass-catching backs in the league. So the Patriots definitely predicate themselves on the running attack, and it's run first, and it's run primarily. And that's so odd to say in a team that had Tom Brady under center for 20 years, but that's the type of dynamic that Cam Newton brings to this team, too.

Yeah, like you mentioned, it is a little weird to get used to, especially as an outsider. But, you know, as different as their offense has been which is you know very different i look at the other side of the ball and the defense might even have more new names and more new players there which is pretty crazy i think off the top of my head if i can recall they had seven starters lost due to the covid opt-out slash free agency i believe that might be incorrect or correct i'm not sure but when you look at the defense uh and I kind of look at the average yards per play allowed, they rank 21st in the NFL at 5.8 yards per play allowed. So about average ish there. How does the defense being able to fare without all of these names that they've lost? Like we talked about off air,

you know, they lost a lot of key contributors. A lot of it is next man up, and I know that sounds simplistic, and I know it sounds like I'm just spouting off a catchphrase that New England Patriots love to use, but it truly is. I mean, you look at their front seven, gone are Kyle Van Noy, gone are Jamie Collins, gone are Landon Roberts, Danny Shelton in the middle of that interior of the defensive line is gone. That's a pretty big decimation for any type of defense to be able to sustain. The Patriots have done it, and they've done it with players that are coming in and playing meaningful roles. Byron Coward, second-year guy that is really a backup interior defensive lineman, has come in and played very well in the middle of that defense. Also,

you get guys like Carl Davis and even Isaiah Mack, who they brought in that are capable of playing that nose tackle role. Akeem Spence is someone that's come in in the last couple of weeks and played a big role for the Patriots. So they're able to find guys that can plug that hole and be able to do what Shelton did. In the linebacking core and in the edge rushing core, that's where they've really struggled a little bit. But as of late, they've been doing a little bit better. That's thanks to the play of Adam Butler in the interior of the defensive line, but mostly due to two young guns that they have at the linebacker and edge rusher positions, Chase Winovich, Josh Uche.

These two kids can get after the quarterback. They both have very high motors, extremely high football IQs. Uche, as a rookie, is actually involved in some play calling, and I can tell you that's not something that Bill Belichick usuallyche as a rookie is actually involved in some play calling. And I can tell you that's not something that Bill Belichick usually does with a rookie. That's very seldom. The last time we saw him do that was Juwan Bentley in place of Dante Hightower. And of course, Hightower opted out. Bentley's been the main man in the middle, but Uche is really taking on a major role there as well. So the Patriots front seven has had good fill in and good production

from guys that have really stepped up into their role. They struggled earlier this year, but they're coming into their own. And in the secondary, you know, they've had great play from guys that can step up and help out, whether it be Adrian Phillips coming in at the safety position, who's been great. He's played the hybrid linebacker role as well as anyone leads the team in total tackles. Kyle Duggar at the safety position has come up and helped be that tight end eraser that the Patriots were missing with Patrick Chung. So for all of the opt-outs and for all of the free agent departures, there were guys waiting in the wings that can plug and play. Got to give a lot of credit to Bill Belichick and this defensive brain trust in New England for filling the gaps

effectively and finding players that could do the job. Very nice. I've got one last question for you. And this is kind of for Reims listeners. They definitely are curious and myself too. As you know, we talked about this a few weeks back. The Patriots waived former Ed Rusher, Derek Wavers, who they drafted a couple of years ago out of Youngstown State. A guy that I was really high on coming out of college there. I thought he was going to be a target for the Rams in the second round many years ago. Why don't you kind of just enlighten Rams fans as to who they added as the Rams obviously claimed him. He did play, I believe, three snaps in this past week, his first time being active for the team.

What are they getting in a guy like Rivers? They're getting a guy with an incredible nose for the football i was so excited when the all in 20 early on but early enough to turn a head or two and i know a lot of people looked at it and thought uh this guy could really be a steal He could really be an incredible linebacker, edge rusher, hybrid for New England, especially playing under the tutelage of Bill Belichick. I think that's something that a lot of people looked at as a marriage possibly made in heaven. to the team he was so dedicated to trying to get out on the field and give 110 it's not uh due to any type of a lack of uh of prowess or a lack of skill uh this guy possesses both and you're going to see that in los angeles i think coming in under um an la regime that's going to be able to utilize his talents effectively i think you're going to see a guy that can get after the quarterback you're going to see a guy that can get after the quarterback. You're going to see a guy that plays his role as assigned. That's something that Bill Belichick loved about Derek Rivers. And I think they really would like to have had him back. I

think they were forced into a corner. They needed to make a cut based on roster availability and credit the Rams for having the smarts to be able to pick up on this kid. You saw, you know, played a handful of snaps on defense last week against Arizona, 16 on special teams. He can do both. He's very good at special teams coverage as well, and he's also very good at being able to fill in on defense. Do not expect or do not be surprised or don't expect to see him active

in this defense right off the bat. And who knows, he might get some looks tonight that you may look at it and say, wow, you know what, this definitely is a good thing for the Los Angeles Rams. So again, the injuries are always going to be a concern with Derek Rivers. I would caution Rams fans right now to take a wait and see approach when it comes to his health. But if he's healthy, he'll definitely be a contributor to this defense. And I think he'll definitely be able to help out both in the run and even against the pass. He's got the versatility to be able to drop back and even play that hybrid safety role. I've seen him do that in practice a couple of times.

Really, I got a lot of glowing things to say about Derek and just one of the all around great guys that I've covered in this business as well. I wish him nothing but the best. And I think LA is a really good spot for him. That's awesome news. I know Rams Nation is going to be very excited to hear that stuff as well as myself because I was very high on him and he seemed like a great kid coming out. So hopefully, you know, he can get that injury luck turned around here in LA. And like you mentioned, you know, he could very well factor into the Rams plans pretty

quickly with all the injuries that they've had at that edge position. But Rams listeners, Patriots listeners, thank you guys for tuning in on this crossover edition, pregame edition of the Thursday night football matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and the New England Patriots. You guys can find our work at Locked on Rams and Locked on Patriots. And you can also find us on Twitter at QBsMVP. That's myself. And you guys can find Mike at MDABATEFPC on Twitter.

Thank you guys for listening. Enjoy the game. And we'll be back on Friday with our post-game recaps. And so, Patriots fans, it is almost time to walk you right up to tonight's kickoff between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams. But first, I'm going to open my sharp-eye notebook and give you my final thoughts and, of course, my game prediction. First, we'll start on defense, where the Patriots will clearly have their hands full

with quarterback Jared Goff and company. We already said earlier on in the pod that Jonathan Jones and J.C. Jackson are both questionable for tonight. That can definitely present a problem if the Patriots decide to try to force Jared Goff to beat them over the top, meaning making Jared Goff try to beat them downfield, throw the ball deep. That's not something he's done with a whole lot of consistency this year. When he's done it, he's had mixed results. Now, the Patriots are clearly catching the Rams offense off of a hot

performance against the Arizona Cardinals. But you know when else they faced the Rams when they were red hot? Super Bowl 53. That Los Angeles defense came into that game red hot and they ran into a defensive buzzsaw that held Jared Goff and company to zero touchdowns. Now I'm well aware that that was a different time, different personnel. Patriots don't have the same talent in the front seven that they had the last time these two teams faced off. However, Bill Belichick is very good at making good quarterbacks look average, and he does it the same way, showing unorthodox looks at the line of scrimmage, preventing the quarterback from getting into any type of rhythm as a passer, and as a result, it throws the offense

out of sync. If the Patriots want to have any success in doing so, they're going to have to do that very quickly tonight, which means the front seven is going to have to be active. The interior of the defensive line, meaning Adam Butler, Byron Cowart, Lawrence Guy, have to be solid in run defense and in pass defense. The linebackers and the edge rushers have to stay aggressive, which means a lot of Dietrich Wise, John Simon, Chase Winovich, Josh Uche, they all have to step up and try to get after the quarterback. If they do that, they might be able to neutralize Jared Goff's attack.

However, if he starts hitting his targets deep, especially if either Jones or Jackson or both are out tonight, that could be a problem for the Patriots. When the Pats are on offense, they have to run the ball early. Establish their game plan on first and second down. They can't get Cam Newton into third and long. If the Rams are going to try to force the Patriots, especially Cam Newton in obvious passing situations, Cam hasn't handled that all that well as a whole this year. Granted, he was much better on Sunday. I look for that to continue, but it's not a given. The key is for the Patriots to continue the momentum that they started on Sunday against the Chargers.

Run the ball early, run the ball often, utilize play action, give Cam both the comfort and the ability to either take the ball and run it himself or be able to utilize short, crisp passes out of play action. The best way to ensure that happens is to keep Aaron Donald in check. The last time the Patriots played Aaron Donald in Super Bowl 53, they neutralized him by double teaming him at first and then handing the reins over to Joe Tooney, who was really excellent in executing those one-on-one blocks. Tooney is still very much a part of this Patriots offensive line, so they can employ the same type of strategy that they did a couple of years ago. Keep in mind that

Donald is a better player and is going to be expecting that, but I believe the Patriots can do enough to keep Aaron Donald at bay and therefore give Cam Newton the time he needs. The big wild card in this is Cam must get rid of the ball quickly. He's either going to hand it off or he has to make quick, decisive passes. He does not have Tom Brady's speed of getting the ball out, so it's not going to look exactly like it did in Super Bowl 53. A lot of this is going to depend on Cam stepping

up his game. I have confidence in him, and I think he does that tonight. So in the final analysis, I think this is going to be a very low-scoring, very difficult game for teams to find offensive rhythm. Sosa and I both agreed on today's crossover that these two teams are going to play each other very tough, and as a result, I think you may see a lower scoring game than most people are anticipating. This will not be an easy game. The Los Angeles Rams are a very talented team on both sides of the ball, but I think the Patriots are playing with a little bit of magic right now.

And until somebody tells me otherwise, I'm going to continue to believe in my boys from Foxborough. I think the Patriots pull off the upset tonight by a final score of 21-17 at SoFi Stadium in Englewood. But what do you think, Patriots Nation? What are your final score predictions? What do you think is going to happen tonight? Well, if you're listening to this podcast and there's some time to spare before kickoff,

drop me a line at MDABATEFPC on Twitter or reach out to the Locked On Patriots Twitter account at LO underscore Patriots. We'd love to hear your predictions for tonight's game. And of course, don't forget, tomorrow we will be back to bring you all the news notes and analysis you can handle as the Patriots wrap up their two game road trip in Los Angeles, hopefully with a victory, but we'll be coming at you win, lose, or draw. So to ensure that you do not miss a single second of the action, subscribe to and follow the Locked On Patriots podcast on platforms such as Stitcher, Spotify, Google Podcasts,

Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. Just make sure that you're staying locked in to Locked On Patriots. Until tomorrow, Pats Nation, stay safe, stay well, always be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone, and enjoy the game tonight.