Jaime Martin---Decent Bye week fill in

[ffootball32 0]

What to Watch: New Orleans

Saturday, October 22, 2005

 

By Nick Wagoner

Senior Writer

 

1. Martin the Manager

 

With starting quarterback Marc Bulger out because of a shoulder injury, veteran Jamie Martin is the man that will take over the reins. Martin has made just three starts in his NFL career and has yet to earn a victory in those starts.

 

Martin knows the system as well as anyone because he has been in it for most of his career. The Rams insist that the playbook won’t be shaved for Martin’s benefit and they will ask him to make the same throws on the same routes they would run with Bulger at the helm.

 

“We are running the same offense and Steve is doing a great job calling plays and we were calling the same plays and going through the same reads,” Martin said. “It’s stuff we have been doing all offseason and training camp.”

 

Well, maybe the Rams are doing the same things, but many of those things Martin hasn’t done since the preseason. Rarely does Martin get repetitions with the first unit in practice and he hadn’t had any game action before replacing Bulger against the Colts last week.

 

Martin got off to a nice start in that game, but made a couple of key errors, throwing a pair of interceptions that set up easy Indianapolis scores. Martin says he felt good with his understanding of what the offense was doing against the Colts and he should feel fine again this week.

 

Martin even spent some extra time after practice working with the receivers to get a rhythm and rapport with the team’s top pass catchers.

 

“I am comfortable,” Martin said. “I am fine with it. It’s one thing knowing it, the other things is going out and executing on the field. I just need to go do that when it counts.”

 

In keeping that in mind, don’t be surprised to see the Rams ask Martin to do less than Bulger, not necessarily because he can’t but because it might be a better way to win the game. If Martin can manage the team, convert third downs, hit his check downs and limit his errors, it would go a long way toward an important victory.

 

2. Pound on the Ground

 

One certain way of limiting any possible errors in the passing game is to hand the ball to running back Steven Jackson early and often. Jackson had his best performance of the season against Indianapolis, running with speed, elusiveness, power and purpose.

 

Jackson helped set the tone against the Colts and he has the kind of ability to do it against a Saints team that ranks 26th in the league in rush defense, allowing 129 yards per game.

 

While Jackson remains in search of his first 100-yard game of the season, he isn’t hoping for the ball simply for selfish reasons. Jackson knows that by establishing the run he would help Martin get comfortable on the field.

 

“It’s going to be a game of possession and who can hold the ball the longest,” Jackson said. “That’s kind of what we are thinking.”

 

That isn’t a bad idea considering the way the Rams defense has performed in recent weeks. A strong running game serves many purposes, not the least of which is the fact that it would keep the struggling defense off the field and eat up plenty of clock.

 

The Rams offense has long been known for its high-powered passing attack, but has been searching for balance every week this season. That search has been slowed by the fact that St. Louis has fallen behind and then abandoned the running game when trying to get back in the game.

 

Without Bulger at the helm, it might be wise to show the kind of patience that would allow Jackson to do what he does against the Saints, regardless of how New Orleans stacks the box.

 

“One thing about the running game is we need patient players and patient coaches,” Jackson said. “The running game is not going to be able to score like a potent passing game, but it does two things. It keeps the defense off the field and it keeps their offense off the field. It helps you grind out the clock. It’s a patient game. You just have to deal with the 2-yard gains as well as the 15-yard gains.”

 

3. Look to Brooks

 

New Orleans quarterback Aaron Brooks has always been one of the most athletic signal callers in the NFL, but he has never quite been able to put it all together. One year he will be a threat with his legs and not so much his arm and the next he will dominate teams with his arm while he doesn’t take off on the ground much.

 

Things haven’t changed much this year in that regard, but maybe they have changed some from last season.

 

“Last year, he was a pocket passer,” defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy said. “He’s definitely running the ball more. We have to be accountable for him. You can’t just be out of your rushing lanes and give this guy a 20-yard scramble. You have to play disciplined football.”

 

While Brooks has struggled mightily with poor decision making that often results in turnovers, he has begun to go back to the form that made him one of the league’s best dual threat quarterbacks in recent years. Brooks isn’t sitting back in the pocket and forcing throws as much as he used to (though he still makes plenty of mistakes) and is taking advantage of his athletic ability more regularly.

 

In fact, Brooks is first among quarterbacks in rushing, averaging 7.8 yards per attempt. His ability to tuck and run is a dangerous weapon against a Rams defense that has struggled to slow down opposing running attacks in recent weeks.

St. Louis has struggled against mobile quarterbacks for most of the past year and Brooks has had a number of his best days against the Rams.

 

“We know all about him,” defensive lineman Tyoka Jackson said. “He is getting it done with his legs even more than last year. You can tell this new coordinator is allowing him to use his running talents. He presents a lot of pressure and problems for your defense. We understand what he is all about too. But it’s hard to run around when you’re on your back. That’s our task, to put him on the back.”

 

4. Timing the Takeaway

 

The Rams have been one of the worst teams in the league this season in creating turnovers and rank 31st in the league in turnover differential. Of course, the team that is No. 32 is New Orleans.

 

Both teams have a tendency to give the ball away on a consistent basis and neither had done a good job of forcing turnovers.

 

St. Louis started this season much better in forcing turnovers, getting seven in the first three games. But since that time, the Rams defense has been able to get its hands on just one turnover. Now, the defense looks more like the one that was minus-24 last year and had only 15 takeaways.

 

“You have to get more hats on the ball,” coach Joe Vitt said. “You have to run to the ball, get hats on the ball and strip the ball. They don’t come by accident, they come by design. You have to work on it and practice, which we have been doing. It’s always been my experience that once you get one or get two, they come in bunches and we have to work hard to get the first one. That’s what happened to them last night, they came in bunches.”

 

Fortunately for the Rams defense, the Saints seem more than willing to turn the ball over. New Orleans has given it away 19 times this year with 10 fumbles and nine interceptions.

 

Brooks does have the tendency to force throws and the Rams have to take advantage. The Rams have a somewhat bad habit of getting their hands on the ball and not making the play. That can’t continue against a team that will likely give them chances to make plays.

 

It’s no coincidence that the Rams have lost three games in a row while getting pounded in the turnover battle.

 

“Get turnovers,” defensive tackle Ryan Pickett said. “The last three games we lost we didn’t have any turnovers. Obviously that is a big part and that’s what we want to create. We have to get turnovers because we don’t win if we don’t get turnovers.”

 

5. Deep in the Trenches

 

The New Orleans defense doesn’t have much in the way of star power in its secondary or linebacker corps aside from cornerback Mike McKenzie, but the Saints certainly aren’t lacking talent on the defensive line.

 

While the Colts probably had the best front four the Rams have faced, New Orleans certainly boasts the deepest group. The Saints have about six or seven players that could start for many teams in the NFL.

 

On the end, New Orleans starts Darren Howard and Charles Grant, two capable pass rushers with Howard as the star. Behind that pair is former first-round pick Will Smith, who is also more than capable as a pass rusher and leads the team with three sacks.

 

In the middle the Saints rely on former Ram Brian Young and Willie Whitehead. Many Rams fans will remember Whitehead from the vicious blow he delivered to knock out Kurt Warner a few years back. Young is a top-level run stopper and continues to get better every year. Johnathan Sullivan, another former first rounder works into that rotation, provides even more beef up front.

 

“Up front, they’re strong and tough, and they’re physical,” receiver Kevin Curtis said.

 

The Saints’ depth makes it easy for them to keep fresh bodies in the game at all times, keeping the pressure on the opposing offensive line to keep a strong push up the middle in the run game.

 

There’s little doubt that New Orleans will put that front four to extensive use against the Rams, especially with Martin at quarterback. The Saints like to play the Cover 2 similar to Indianapolis, but they mix up packages and will work in plenty of looks to get after Martin and try to force him into mistakes.

 

The Rams have solidified the offensive line in recent weeks with the superb play of rookie right tackle Alex Barron and the addition of left guard Claude Terrell to the fray.

 

Steven Jackson knows there will be no punches pulled when the Saints defense is on the field.

 

“They’re big up front,” Jackson said. “Their front seven is pretty big. They’re not up the field as much as Indianapolis, so they kind of play to stop the run, and they’re really aggressive. They’re going to try and make it an all-out slugfest, so it’s something that we’re going to have to be able to do.”

[yojimbo81 0]

Go Saints! Martin stinks.

[Money Ball 0]

Definitely, he will manage the ball by handing it off 40-50 times. Maybe he will pass it, that will be interesting. Thanks to him, you start Jackson and Faulk and don't look back.