The Los Angeles Rams don’t blitz that often. Currently they send extra rushers on 30.7% of their plays. That ranks as the 21st most frequent across the NFL.
But LA’s defensive has grown more aggressive in recent weeks, partly because of the absences of Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald:
Week 1 vs San Francisco 49ers: 11.1%
Week 2 vs New York Giants: 35.3%
Week 3 at Denver Broncos: 31.4%
Week 4 at Philadelphia Eagles: 46.9%
The Rams have been rewarded as they’ve ratcheted up the aggressiveness. They absolutely stifled Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offenses after pretty much bottling up the Broncos and Bo Nix until the very end of Week 3. LA is learning that—with their revamped back-end coverage players—they can rattle opposing quarterbacks by sending the blitz. They are better for it.
But that could also walk the Rams into a trap of their own making. LA will host Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football in Week 5. Allen has been deadly against the blitz and is punishing defenses for sending extra rushers.
Blitz Josh Allen at your own peril.
Allen when not blitzed: 54/84 (64.3%) for 722 yards, 5 TD’s, 3 INT’s, 96.43 passer rating
Allen when blitzed: 25/35 (71.4%) for 317 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT’s, 108.87 passer rating
Allen ranks 18th in passer rating and 20th in completion percentage when he isn’t blitzed. Those rankings escalate to seventh and ninth, respectively, against the blitz.
Defenses know Allen is capable against extra rushers and play it safe. He faces a blitz at a rate less than 30%, which we know based on the Rams’ own frequency that this would place the opposing defense in the bottom third of the league.
We know Allen is one of the most unique and complicated quarterbacks to face. He will beat you with his legs. He will complete passes other quarterbacks simply don’t have at their disposal.
But if you sit back and remain patient, Allen will give you opportunities to create takeaways. He puts the ball in harm’s way at the sixth-highest rate among all signal callers. The Rams defense must take advantage. Ill-advised passes cannot fall harmlessly to the turf.
Beating Josh Allen is no small task. While the Rams have fared well with a more aggressive approach in recent weeks, they will need to be more patient on Monday night at SoFi Stadium.