Yet when the Los Angeles Rams have one of the top offenses (No. 2) in the league Authentic Tyler Higbee Jersey , the ability to score in the red zone can get overlooked. More specifically the ability to score touchdowns in the red zone, which is the main objective for offenses. The Rams offense scores a touchdown on 56 percentof their red zone trips, which is 16th-best in the league, according to FootballOutsiders. It doesn’t seem like that big of an issue. Sure, it’s not a great stat. But it’s certainly not a big problem. The Rams score plenty. They’re 8-1. So, who cares? Former New England Patriot Rob Ninkovich was asked during training camp what the most important practice periods Bill Belichick was going to run. His answer: the red zone. The Patriots are currently No. 10 in the league in red zone touchdown scores. “If the Patriots have four possessions and the other team has four possessions and the Patriots are four-for-four in the red zone and the other team is kicking field goals, it’s already out of reach,” Ninkovich said, according to NBC Sports Boston. “The game is over, you know? I think that there’s going to be a big emphasis on the red zone, like there always is.”For the Rams, four of the last six games were decided by seven points or less. Sure, a win is a win. But the offense is leaving valuable points on the table. Broncos-Rams Week 6. Rams won by three.Red-zone touchdown scores: 2-of-5On third-and-six, Denver goes with a nickel package. The defensive backs are playing everything underneath and the Broncos expect the pass. Rams go empty backfield and shift Gurley to WR. LA sends everyone but Robert Woods into the end-zone with no slant routes in the flat. Goff forces a pass and is off-target.On third and goal, the Rams need six for the score. The play falls apart almost immediately after the snap. John Sullivan collapses and can’t get to the second level and Robert Havenstein lets up on his block. Von Miller roams back inside and hits Gurley. There was little, if any, chance of the score here. Unlike Brian Schottenheimer, the Sean McVay is rather successful with his shotgun play-calls near the goal line. But it’s not always a given. Sometimes the Rams go with shotgun when the previous plays saw them record as many or more yards than they need on the current drive. Seahawks-Rams Week 5. Rams won by two.Red-zone: 4-of-6The Seahawks have most of the flat covered, but Brandin Cooks gets separation, which Goff doesn’t seem to notice. He chooses Gurley, who is shadowed. The ball is deflected and picked off. This is second-and-goal from the 2-yard line. The play before, Gurley rushed for three yards in a single back formation. The Rams go single-back on the following drive and score from the 2-yard line. Go figure. The last two weeks have arguably been the toughest on the Rams. The loss against the Saints magnified the problems we already knew existed on the defense. The second half saw the Rams nearly pull off a big comeback. They were three-of-five from the red zone during that game. The Green Bay game was a great example of how important the red zone is because of how rare they were in the first half. The Rams couldn’t get into the red zone during the first five drives of the game. It wasn’t until the very end of the first half that they came inside the 20-yard line. Josh Reynolds runs a slant and cuts back outside, which gives him the separation he needs for the catch. This was the first red zone trip and the Rams scored a touchdown when they needed it most. Without this touchdown, who knows how the Green Bay game would have played out. The Rams offense is great. It’s a unit that’s put up at least 30 points in seven of its last nine games. But LA is not always going to be able to rely on it’s defense to hold the line. With teams like Seattle (touchdowns scored on 72 percent of red zone trips), Kansas City (touchdowns scored on 70 percent of red zone trips), and possibly New Orleans again in the playoffs (touchdowns scored on 71 percent of red zone trips), it’s imperative that LA execute in the red zone. The Denver Broncos may have lost a respected voice when they traded former captain Demaryius Thomas to the Houston Texans on Tuesday Youth Michael Brockers Jersey , but they certainly didn't lose any of their gift of gab."I don't flinch from situations like this," declared rookie receiver Courtland Sutton , whose emergence as a big-play threat made the 30-year-old Thomas more valuable to general manager John Elway as trade bait than a tutor.Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr., who credited Thomas with helping to make him the superstar he's become, will spend Sunday trying to snarl DeAndre Hopkins when the Broncos (3-5) host the Texans (5-3) in Thomas' hurried homecoming.If Harris finds himself covering Thomas, who's replacing Will Fuller (ACL) in the Texans' lineup, the advantage goes to ..."Oh, me," Harris said matter-of-factly.Why's that?"I'm that good."The same can't be said for the Broncos overall.They've lost five of six despite a backfield that's the best in the business, averaging an NFL-high 5.3 yards per carry but just 18th in rush attempts per game.Offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave is doing what Mike McCoy did in Denver before getting fired last year: spreading out the offensive formations despite a good ground game and left tackle Garett Bolles' holding habit.Case Keenum has been sacked 22 times, 20 of which have come with him in the shotgun, to go with a league-high 10 interceptions.Defensively, the Broncos have been stumped by cornerback Bradley Roby's slide after his promotion from nickel back following the trade of Aqib Talib. In a contract year, they expected him to flourish as a starter. Instead, he's been giving his man too much cushion or getting fooled by quarterbacks burning him for big plays.Middling drafts prior to this year's crescendo has left coach Vance Joseph (8-16) without the option of benching Bolles or Roby, although cornerback Tramaine Brock's return from a pulled hamstring and solid play over the past two weeks could foretell a return to some nickel back snaps for Roby.Elway insists the Broncos can turn things around over the second half and avoid the franchise's first back-to-back losing seasons since 1971-72.If not, Joseph could be out of a job.Texans coach Bill O'Brien was feeling the heat himself before J.J. Watt and DeShaun Watson rounded into form, leading Houston on a five-game winning streak, something only four other teams in the Super Bowl era have done after starting 0-3.The Texans were devastated last week when receiver Will Fuller (32 catches, 503 yards, 4 TDs) tore an ACL, ending his season.Enter Thomas (36 catches, 402 yards, three TDs) ."It's going to be great" having Thomas alongside Hopkins, Watson said. "Nothing really should stop the train. D.T.'s a veteran guy that can do a lot of different things and he's played a lot football. So it's a great opportunity for all of us to get on the same page and continue to put a lot yards in the air and put a lot points on the board."Other subplots Sunday when Thomas returns to Denver for his first look at the visitor's locker room and gets a peek at the "Thank you" banner being added to his 10-story-high image on the north side of Mile High Stadium:KEENUM-O'BRIENKeenum and O'Brien are mutual admirers, but they have a different view of their brief time together in Houston.In his book, Keenum wrote that when the Texans signed Ryan Mallet and cut him http://www.ramsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-johnny-hekker-jersey , "Coach O'Brien looked right at me and told me I'd never be more than a third-string quarterback in the NFL."Not so, said O'Brien."In all my years of coaching, I've never said anything like that to any player," O'Brien said, adding, "I have a great, great amount of respect for Case Keenum."Keenum didn't back down, saying he "outlined it in my book," but he did return the praise."I've got so much respect for Coach O'Brien. I learned so much ball from him, just how to study defenses, what type of leverages and coverages, just dissecting defenses. He taught me so much ball," Keenum said."Whatever it was that was said motivated me. Every coach I've ever had, they've gotten me to where I am now. I've got the utmost respect for him and the whole Texans organization."WATT A COMEBACKWatt has shaken off two years of injuries to return to superstardom with eight sacks, 10 tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits and four forced fumbles. He's started all eight games this season after playing in just eight games combined over the previous two seasons because of a bad back and a broken leg."I can't sit here and get too mad at people who thought I might be washed up or thought I might be done because I was sitting in that same boat when I was sitting at home with a cast on my leg and not being able to walk, thinking, 'Man, will I be the same again?'" Watt said."I still don't think I'm there yet. I still think I'm working and trying to get back there, but it's been fun to play, it's been fun to win, it's been fun to just go out there and make some plays."YOUTH SERVEDSutton isn't the only Broncos rookie making a huge impact. Edge rusher Bradley Chubb , the No. 5 overall pick in the draft, leads all rookies with seven sacks and is won Defensive Rookie of the Month honors for October. Undrafted running back Phillip Lindsay leads all rookies with 531 yards rushing.
