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Rams-Redskins: Matchup breakdown
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14305/rams-redskins-matchup-breakdown
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- A look at three individual matchups to keep an eye on when the St. Louis Rams and Washington Redskins meet at 1 p.m. ET Sunday.
Rams safety Mark Barron vs. Redskins tight end Jordan Reed
It's an old SEC rivalry with the former Alabama star Barron against the former Florida Gator Reed. The Redskins' offense has been stuck in the mud most of the season, but Reed has at least offered some hope with his recent productivity. He had nine catches for 123 yards against Indianapolis last week and appears to be fully healthy finally. Washington has good weapons on the outside in DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon but with Colt McCoy at quarterback, it seems he feels a bit more comfortable working with a safer outlet such as Reed.
The job of covering Reed falls to plenty of Rams other than Barron, but it's been interesting to watch how the Rams deploy him. He played 46 snaps last week against Oakland, which is the most he's been on the field since coming to St. Louis in a trade with Tampa Bay. Barron has become essentially a hybrid who spends much of his time near the line of scrimmage as a de facto third linebacker but also has the ability to drop and cover tight ends. It wouldn't be a surprise to see the Rams use him in similar ways against the Redskins with Reed as a regular counterpart.
Rams right tackle Joe Barksdale vs. Redskins left outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan
For the second week in a row, Barksdale find himself in an intriguing matchup. Kerrigan and Jason Hatcher are the Redskins' biggest defensive threats and Kerrigan has become one of the league's better pass-rushers. He has 9.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and 24 quarterback pressures and hits on the season. He's deceptively quick and is adept at converting speed into power, which makes him tough to handle in Washington's base 3-4 defense.
Barksdale had a good outing against Oakland last week but has had some trouble with better pass-rushers such as Kansas City's Justin Houston. Kerrigan is closer in class to Houston than many of the other pass-rushers Barksdale has seen, so it will be important for the Rams to find ways to offer him some help on the edge to keep Kerrigan at bay.
Rams defensive end Chris Long vs. Redskins right tackle Tom Compton
Compton replaced Tyler Polumbus about halfway through the season and has had his ups and downs since stepping into the starting lineup. Still, he's been an upgrade over Polumbus, who struggled mightily at the beginning of the season. At 6-foot-5, 314 pounds, Compton has more of a reputation for his work in the run game but not so much as a pass blocker.
Long, meanwhile, returned to action last week for the Rams after an ankle surgery, and immediately made his presence felt with a sack and a forced fumble. He played about half the snaps in his first game back and though the Rams will continue to be cautious with him, his role should continue at about the same level or perhaps a little more moving forward. Long and William Hayes make a strong tag team and they could make life very difficult for Compton and a Redskins' offense that has yielded the second most sacks in the league this season.
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14305/rams-redskins-matchup-breakdown
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- A look at three individual matchups to keep an eye on when the St. Louis Rams and Washington Redskins meet at 1 p.m. ET Sunday.
Rams safety Mark Barron vs. Redskins tight end Jordan Reed
It's an old SEC rivalry with the former Alabama star Barron against the former Florida Gator Reed. The Redskins' offense has been stuck in the mud most of the season, but Reed has at least offered some hope with his recent productivity. He had nine catches for 123 yards against Indianapolis last week and appears to be fully healthy finally. Washington has good weapons on the outside in DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon but with Colt McCoy at quarterback, it seems he feels a bit more comfortable working with a safer outlet such as Reed.
The job of covering Reed falls to plenty of Rams other than Barron, but it's been interesting to watch how the Rams deploy him. He played 46 snaps last week against Oakland, which is the most he's been on the field since coming to St. Louis in a trade with Tampa Bay. Barron has become essentially a hybrid who spends much of his time near the line of scrimmage as a de facto third linebacker but also has the ability to drop and cover tight ends. It wouldn't be a surprise to see the Rams use him in similar ways against the Redskins with Reed as a regular counterpart.
Rams right tackle Joe Barksdale vs. Redskins left outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan
For the second week in a row, Barksdale find himself in an intriguing matchup. Kerrigan and Jason Hatcher are the Redskins' biggest defensive threats and Kerrigan has become one of the league's better pass-rushers. He has 9.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and 24 quarterback pressures and hits on the season. He's deceptively quick and is adept at converting speed into power, which makes him tough to handle in Washington's base 3-4 defense.
Barksdale had a good outing against Oakland last week but has had some trouble with better pass-rushers such as Kansas City's Justin Houston. Kerrigan is closer in class to Houston than many of the other pass-rushers Barksdale has seen, so it will be important for the Rams to find ways to offer him some help on the edge to keep Kerrigan at bay.
Rams defensive end Chris Long vs. Redskins right tackle Tom Compton
Compton replaced Tyler Polumbus about halfway through the season and has had his ups and downs since stepping into the starting lineup. Still, he's been an upgrade over Polumbus, who struggled mightily at the beginning of the season. At 6-foot-5, 314 pounds, Compton has more of a reputation for his work in the run game but not so much as a pass blocker.
Long, meanwhile, returned to action last week for the Rams after an ankle surgery, and immediately made his presence felt with a sack and a forced fumble. He played about half the snaps in his first game back and though the Rams will continue to be cautious with him, his role should continue at about the same level or perhaps a little more moving forward. Long and William Hayes make a strong tag team and they could make life very difficult for Compton and a Redskins' offense that has yielded the second most sacks in the league this season.