2021 Dynasty/Fantasy Game Analysis Week 13: Rams 37, Jags 7
No one was surprised by this outcome. It was kinda close/back and forth a bit, neither team playing all that well, until 2-minutes before the half…when LAR got the ball for a 2-minute and raced down for a field goal to take a two-score lead. The Rams then came out of halftime and went right down and scored and the floodgates opened. The Rams did not play well, but I assume they were a bit sloppy because they knew they were winning that game all along. The Jags are a helpless lot.
The Rams are now (8-4) and playing a huge MNF game vs. Arizona. Win, and division title hopes abound. Lose and they are in the wild card chase for the rest of the season. I believe they get beaten soundly this week (14) but will hit 10 wins, at least, and get a wild card (where hopefully they will be trounced…I hate what the Rams are doing in 2021, sorry).
The Jaguars are now (2-10) and are sinking to the top laughingstock team in the NFL. Urban Meyer has proven to be the worst personnel manager, the worst in-game tactician, and the worst personality of all the NFL head coaches – quite a triple crown feat for his first year. The fact that ownership put up with his bar incident and everything else means the Jags are now the clear worst ownership in the league…the Jets and Bears can rejoice! This team is a full-on disaster, and they are so over their coach that the once kinda good things about them (blocking, D-Line) developing in the middle of the season are starting to collapse.
The Jaguars play the Jets and Texans ahead, but I would bet they lose to both and thus have a chance to secure that #1 pick…which won’t matter, because they’ll butcher it.
Fantasy Player Notes…
-- The most interesting thing about this game, for me, was the RB situation for Jacksonville…not the Rams DHendo injury/Sony Michel start.
Early in the game, James Robinson (8-24-0, 1-11-0/4) fumbled and was essentially benched. JRob has been fighting a heel issue the past few weeks to even work his way into playing, and the Jags best offensive weapon pushed through again this week…and for that, he got benched for fumbling…and was brought back in to start the 2nd-half, and then out again for stretches of time – but then a mild controversy erupted this week because JRob was brought back in for touches late in the game down 30 despite that being a good time to rest the heel issue. He’s basically got treated like a jobber…after fighting to play through a heel issue.
The players are noticing this Urban mismanagement (that Urban passive-aggressive ‘blamed’ on the RB coach) and are full scale quitting on the head coach…they hate him, you can see it their play…and now even milquetoast Trevor Lawrence is chirping a bit on the JRob situation.
All that to say: Robinson still has a heel issue. He was limited Wednesday. He didn’t practice Thursday, but did practice full Friday. I wonder how much JRob is inclined to fight his way back into the lineup for this sinking ship that just disrespected him? Something to watch if you’re a Robinson owner…and that Carlos Hyde has some deep-sleeper grab and hold appeal, maybe. The Jags stink, so their main RB can only be so good. We are taking down JRob’s projections for the rest of the season.
-- There’s an RB (mild) controversy with the other team in this game, as well. Darrell Henderson got hurt and didn’t play Week 13, while Sony Michel (24-121-1, 3-8-0/4) ran for 100+ yards against the quitting Jags…which is good enough for the media/fans to fire up an RB controversy.
No achievement is greater for fans than a running back rushing for 100+ yards in a game. (95 yards is boring, no big deal. BUT 100+ is pure football bliss and clinches your greatness as a player…for that week, which is all that matters to the media/fans. Doesn’t matter it took 24 carries and was against the Jags.
The big question is – was Sean McVay sucked into this too, as he often is? I don’t know…I don’t think so. McVay usually blathers on to the press about things he loves or doesn’t. With Michel he’s been more patting him on the head.
Henderson is not 100% but should play this week. If he does, I suspect Henderson will be the lead as usual but Michel will sprinkle in and could got hot and steal more time/touches, but that intent is to push Henderson if fully healthy…is my read of this situation. Henderson not being 100% can alter that. We’ll see if he practices fully this week or not.
-- Can I just say how awful Trevor Lawrence (16-28 for 145 yards, 0 TDs/0 INTs) is for a ‘generational QB’. What a scouting malfeasance, once again, by your trusted football gods.
Zach Wilson was better this week vs. Philly than Lawrence will ever be in his career, and Wilson is not close to hitting his stride yet.
Lawrence has 1 TD pass in his last 5 games. He can’t even garbage time a TD pass. The Jaguars have scored 10 or fewer points in a game in four of their last 6 games.
So, Laquon Treadwell (4-62-0/5) is rising in targets here for the past few weeks, but you won’t get much more than 10 PPR points in a game because the odds he catches a TD pass are so low.
-- You’re better off with Rams #3 WR Van Jefferson (6-41-1/8)…who is still plagued with drops issues, but he plays for the Rams who have Matt Stafford and OBJ, whom the media adores, so it doesn’t matter because everything Rams is golden (for the media). All the attention Kupp-OBJ get is a beautiful thing for Van J. to be able to get open on lesser coverage and make plays/FF points in this offense despite his issues catching the ball recently
-- Three IDP notes…
1) CB Nevin Lawson (7 tackles) is now starting for the Jags at CB. Could be temporary through their DB injuries. But he is starting and has 6.5 tackles, 0.50 PDs in his two recent starts.
2) Rudy Ford (6 tackles, 1 TFL, 0.5 sacks) is the apple of Urban Meyer’s eye…the only guy Urban seems to have a connection with. Ford went from newfound starter to part time player over the past 4 weeks, but Ford started this game and put up some IDP numbers in his joker-type position he plays. If Ford is starting, he’ll put up decent IDP numbers…but we don’t know what his status is now, it changes every 2 weeks it seems.
3) As I touched on earlier, when Sean McVay ‘likes’ something he blabbers it to the press every chance he gets. He’s the most loudmouth coach in the NFL. His new love affair (I hope Matt S. isn’t jealous) is with rookie LB Ernest Jones (9 tackles, 1 PD, I INT, 0.5 sacks).
McVay has moved/traded Kenny Young, and quasi-benched Troy Reeder to now push this rookie…that’s something for IDP.
I can tell you as a scout, I don’t get it…not at all. I didn’t see anything with Jones in college and haven’t seen anything great from him in the pros…not enough to warrant this red carpet treatment. He’s got the mindset and effort, but not the talent/athleticism in my book. We’ll see if he changes my mind ahead but right now, I don’t get it – and it’s a problem for this defense, but good for his IDP hopes.
Snap Counts of Interest:
64 = Kupp
53 = Van J
36 = OBJ
16 = Skowronek
29 = Hyde
26 = JRob
55 = Treadwell
49 = Marvin J
31 = Shenault
16 = T Austin
3 = Mickens
