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Last season, the Los Angeles Rams improved noticeably on offense. They were much better and significantly more explosive with Matthew Stafford at quarterback, scoring from all over the field with big plays through the air.
The Rams went from 22nd in points scored in 2020 to seventh last season, seemingly getting better as the season went on. However, there’s always room for improvement – something Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and everyone else on offense will tell you.
According to Warren Sharp, the Rams were only tied for 15th in goal-to-go efficiency. In other words, they were just average when getting inside the 10-yard line on the door step of the end zone.
most productive teams in goal-to-go:
1. TEN
2. DAL
3. KC
4. SEA
5. CLE
6. MIA
7. NE
8. TB, BUF, PIT (tie)
11. GB
12. HOU
13. SF
14. CAR
15. LAR, BAL, DET
18. CIN
19. MIN
20. IND
21. NYG
22. LV
23. LAC
24. PHI
25. JAX
26. WAS
27. DEN
28. NYJ
29. ARI
30. NO
31. ATL
32. CHI— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) July 3, 2022
It wasn’t due to a high number of turnovers, either. Inside the 10, Stafford completed 50% of his passes with 22 touchdowns and only one interception. What hurt the Rams was poor production running the ball in the red zone. Sony Michel led the team with 24 rushes inside the 10, but he gained just 42 yards and only scored four touchdowns on those plays. Darrell Henderson Jr. had five touchdowns on only 13 rushes inside the 10.
The hope is that Cam Akers, with his physical running style, can help the Rams improve in goal-to-go situations. However, in 2020, he converted just two of his 21 rushes inside the 10-yard line into touchdowns. That’s not a great rate.
If the running game continues to struggle near the goal line, McVay won’t hesitate to put the ball in Stafford’s hands, especially knowing he has Kupp and Allen Robinson on the outside. Kupp was awesome inside the red zone, and Robinson is a big, physical receiver who can make difficult catches in traffic.
The Rams should get better in this area next season, and they’ll need to if they want to stop stalling out in the red zone.