COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL JANUARY 30, 2019
5B
BIG GAME Preview
The Rams Go
Marching In
In a nail-biting, overtime
victory, the Los Angeles Rams
punched their ticket to Super
Bowl LIII. While Jared Goff
and company didn’t lead the
NFC Championship game un-
til the clock ticked zero, they
defeated the Saints after an
incredible 57-yard fi eld goal
from kicker Greg Zuerlein.
The Championship game in
New Orleans set the stage for
a rematch from Nov. 4, 2018.
In the previous matchup, the
Saints handed the Rams their
fi rst loss of the season with a
45-35 victory. The Los Angeles
Rams would go on to complete
the regular season with only
three losses.
They now aim to bring a Super
Bowl trophy back to L.A. for
the fi rst time since the Raiders
won it all in 1984.
Little Worry
While most of the sports nation
feared the Rams had burned out
with two late-season losses, the
team adamantly studied their
opponents and made a success-
ful playoff push.
After closing out the regular
season with dominant victories
over the Cardinals and 49ers,
the Rams would obtain their
fi rst playoff win since 2004
against the Dallas Cowboys.
Their hard-fought victory over
the Saints proves their offense,
defense and special teams can
show up when everything is on
the line.
Big Moves
The Los Angeles Rams relied
on several key additions to win
The Big Game Matchup
the crown of NFC Champions.
Here are a few of the key ad-
ditions and free-agency moves
that paid off.
Brandin Cooks: The Rams
acquired Cooks from the New
England Patriots and instantly
added a downfi eld threat to
their stellar offense. He ended
the 2018 regular season as 14th
for most receiving yards at
1,204.
Ndamukong Suh: The over-
sized defensive lineman
added a new level of terror for
opposing offenses. Teaming up
with powerhouse Aaron Donald
has proven to be a successful
mixture of distraction and
yard-stopping tackles. His
regular season stats include 36
solo tackles.
C.J. Anderson: While star-run-
ning back Todd Gurley was
dealing with a knee injury,
the Rams signed the veteran
Anderson on Dec. 18. After
unsuccessful stints with both
the Panthers and Raiders this
year, Anderson became a
key contributor to the Rams
offense, creating an interesting
depth alongside Gurley.
Running Back
Matchups
Both the Rams and Patriots
have extensive weapons when
it comes to passing. Tom Brady
and Jared Goff relied on an
impressive stable of receivers
to reach Super Bowl LIII.
The Patriots added depth to
their stellar offense when
choosing Sony Michel as the
31st overall pick in the 2018
NFL Draft. The Rams also
have a balanced running game
thanks to Pro-Bowler Todd
Gurley and the recent acquisi-
tion of C.J. Anderson.
While the competing quarter-
back’s arms may get much of
the glory, don’t count out the
importance of the impressive
stable of running backs.
Sony Michel
Michel’s fi rst season as a pro-
fessional was limited after suf-
fering a knee injury in training
camp. In addition to missing
the entire preseason, he wasn’t
cleared for action until Week 2,
when the Patriots were upset by
the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Two weeks later, the running
back would become the fi rst
rookie RB for the patriots to
top 100 yards on the ground.
Then, during the regular season
match-up against the Kansas
City Chiefs, he would add
two-rushing touchdowns to the
high-scoring 43-40 victory.
His role in the post-season was
just as impressive as he would
rush for 129 yards and score
three touchdowns against the
Los Angeles Chargers in the
Divisional Playoff game. In the
AFC Championship game, he
was able to put up 113 yards
and two touchdowns against
Kansas City’s defense.
He should have a good match-
up against the Los Angeles
Rams, who were ranked 23rd
for their rushing defense.
Gurley and Anderson: A Pack-
age Deal
Todd Gurley had an impressive
outing in the regular season,
racking up over 1,200 yards. A
nagging injury caused him to
miss the last-two games of the
year and seemed to limit him
in the victory over the Saints in
the NFC Conference competi-
tion, where he only rushed for
10 yards on four attempts.
In late December, the Rams ac-
quired C.J. Anderson to provide
insurance while Gurley healed.
In the Divisional Championship
game, he achieved 123 yards
and two touchdowns.
His performance against the
Saints was limited to 44 yards
while never making it in the
endzone.
The Rams will be faced with
creating a strategy to employ
both running backs to keep
up with Brady’s high-octane
offense.
Both the New En-
gland Patriots and
Los Angeles Rams
fought diffi cult
battles during their
Divisional Champi-
onship games. While
the Rams’ game fea-
tured a potentially
controversial missed
call for pass inter-
ference, the team
earned its way into
Super Bowl LIII.
The Rams’ impres-
sive 8-0 beginning
into the season showcased their adversity
on the fi eld in both offense and defense. It
was special teams who really shined during
the NFC Championship game after a fake
punt led to a fi rst down and a booming
57-yard fi eld goal clinched the win in
overtime.
The Patriots struggled early in the season
with a few losses that embarrassed them
and led many to believe their reign as a
dominant force in the NFL was threat-
ened. It didn’t take long for the team to
pull together and beat out enough of the
competition to secure a playoff berth and a
fi rst-round bye.
Now that the stage is set for Atlanta, here
are a few exciting factors that the teams
must overcome to hoist the trophy.
Experience
The New England Patriots are well-versed
in the Super Bowl experience, while most
of the forces behind the Rams will be mak-
ing their fi rst visit.
There are vast differences in age and foot-
ball experience between both quarterbacks
and coaches. It should give an interesting
edge to how each team calls plays and
executes.
One person the Rams can look to for
guidance is their knowledgeable defen-
sive coordinator, Wade Philips. He was a
contributor to the Broncos’ victory in Super
Bowl L.
Defense
The Rams have a powerful entity on
their defensive line in Aaron Donald and
The Battle Under Center
The stage is
set for Super
Bowl LIII in
Atlanta. After
a historical
night in which
both confer-
ence champi-
onships went
into overtime
for the fi rst
time in NFL
history, the
Los Angeles
Rams will
face
off against the
New England
Patriots.
The Rams
will be faced
with unfamil-
iarity with a
game of this
magnitude, while the Patriots will go into
the game with experience. With both teams
featuring explosive offenses, it will be up
to the defense to maintain the quarterbacks
under center.
Here’s a look at how the two competitors
led their teams to Super Bowl LXIII.
Brady Does it Again
Tom Brady is no stranger to late-fourth
quarter comebacks in big games. In the
Conference Championship game, he found
his team trailing to the Kansas City Chiefs
with just under two minutes left.
After strategically picking apart the de-
fense with short completions, the Patriots
would ultimately score and lead the game
31-28. In an incredible turn of events, the
Chiefs were able to tie the game with a
fi eld goal in under a minute.
Going into overtime, the 41-year-old quar-
terback received the ball and steadily sent
his team downfi eld, eventually scoring a
game-winning touchdown with the efforts
of his running back.
Brady’s ability to fi nd open receivers and
his time-management skills make it impos-
sible to count him out.
After two embarrassing losses early in the
season, critics and fans had already begun
dismissing the Patriots as Super Bowl
contenders. However, after a steady stream
of impressive wins, Brady and company
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clinched their
10th straight
AFC East
division title and
will fi nd them-
selves on the
grandest stage
on Feb. 3.
Tom Brady
fi nished the reg-
ular season with
4,355 yards and
29 touchdowns.
Jared Goff’s
First Super
Bowl
Goff gained the
reigns of the
Los Angeles
Rams in 2016
and quickly
led his team to
a playoff run
in 2017 before
winning the conference championship this
year.
It will be interesting to see how the pres-
sures of the big game and experience of
the opposing quarterback will affect his
performance.
In the NFC Conference game, the Rams
didn’t lead the Saints until the game-win-
ning fi eld goal in overtime.
However, Goff had an impressive night
under the lights of national television with
297 yards and a passer rating of 83.0. The
quarterback and coach combination for
both teams should be widely acknowledged
as each team featured seasoned veterans or
fi rst-time contenders.
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Ndamukong Suh.
The Patriots line
will have trouble
keeping them
contained to give
Brady enough time
to execute the pre-
cision passing he is
known for.
On the other side,
New England
found a way to put
pressure on Patrick
Mahone during its
championship com-
petition, ultimately
sacking him four times.
Kicker
Big games sometimes come down to the
leg of a kicker. This year, the season was
plagued with missed opportunities, like
Cody Parkey from the Chicago Bears and
the now infamous, “Double Doink” kick
that eliminated them from playoff conten-
tion.
The Rams’ Greg Zuerlein proved himself
to be effi cient under pressure by knock-
ing in a 57-yard winner. New England’s
Stephen Gostkowski has been with the Pa-
triots since 2006 and proved to be valuable
under pressure.
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