“They weren’t pressed for time, even though there wasn’t a lot of time on the clock. So you can expect more runs, and balls in the middle, and stuff like that. But well-executed drive; guys were playing their assignments and getting guys down on the ground. One thing we didn’t want to do was just be overly aggressive, and the ball starts flying too far down the field.”
Attacking the middle worked all night for the Rams, and they utilized it to perfection when they needed it most. According to Next Gen Stats, overall, Stafford finished between the numbers with 22-for-30 for 275 yards and two touchdowns.
“(Defensive coordinator) Ejiro (Evero) had a really good plan for trying to get pressure on (Stafford) early on,” Canales said, “and then they picked up the blitzes, and he hurt us a couple of times over the middle on some third downs, and so we had to play a little bit more coverage right there.”
For Jackson, there was one play in particular over the middle that will haunt him into the offseason.
“I ain’t have to let 12 catch the ball,” Jackson admitted, referring to an 18-yard catch by Puka Nacua that moved the Rams to the 30-yard line. It was the only catch Jackson allowed all night, but the corner knows it was a costly one.
“I was lined up too deep. I couldn’t get my feet set, so it was just like, I feel like that’s on me. That’s something I got to work out, work on in the offseason, being able to get your feet set as quick as possible in two minutes when everything’s going fast.
“It was going fast. I was already lined up deep, so I should have just slowed down my feet.”