Johnson said after the Green Bay game<\/a>. \u201cSome people say it\u2019s not sustainable. I don\u2019t know. The takeaways are that\u2019s who we are on defense and on offense. It\u2019s explosive plays. That\u2019s kind of what we\u2019ve done all year long, and coming up in big moments. As a team, it\u2019s just resiliency and knowing that late in the fourth quarter, that\u2019s really when we\u2019re at our best as a football team. We\u2019ll keep striving to be better earlier in games, and starting faster and all that, but that gives us something to work towards. I can\u2019t be any more proud of that crew than I am now.\u201d<\/p>\nHere are three ways McVay, Matt Stafford and the Rams can prevent themselves from being another notch on the \u201ccardiac Bears\u201d belt.<\/p>\n
Disciplined Defense<\/p>\n
One of the primary trends in Chicago\u2019s comeback wins has been the ability to dial up explosive plays when needed most.<\/p>\n
It all begins with Williams.<\/p>\n
Most often, these moments come from Williams\u2019 ability to use his legs to keep plays alive. He\u2019s proven he can pick up huge chunks on the ground \u2014 as evidenced when he ran for 52 yards in the fourth quarter in the Bears\u2019 come-from-behind win over Cincinnati in week 9 \u2014 or navigate life outside the pocket to buy time for his receivers.<\/p>\n
Chicago\u2019s ability to create explosive plays when needed is a major trend in their comeback wins. Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
For Los Angeles to limit the explosive plays, Chris Shula\u2019s defense must be disciplined at the line of scrimmage. They must stay in their gaps, where keeping Williams in the pocket is much more effective than letting him improvise outside the tackles.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis playmaking ability, explosive plays,\u201d McVay said of Williams in late game sitiuations.\u201d When you look at it, the other day\u2026 he was making some critical plays off-schedule. His ability to be able to make plays within the pocket, drive the ball to all parts of the field, but then be able to extend plays, keep his eyes down the field, and be able to make unbelievable throws off-platform or create with his legs. He\u2019s an explosive play waiting to happen. It\u2019s why they can get back in games and finish the way that they have.\u201d<\/p>\n
Special Teams Miscues<\/p>\n
A midseason signee, Rams kicker Harrison Mevis could play the biggest role come Sunday. With inclement weather expected to make scoring a premium, Mevis\u2019s ability to drive the ball through the wind will play a factor.<\/p>\n
Special teams mistakes must be nonexistent in the late game. AP<\/p>\n
It will be vital for the Rams to continually put points on the board, whether it comes from a touchdown or a field goal, never allowing Chicago or its crowd to feed off miscues.<\/p>\n
Apart from the kicking game, Los Angeles must make sure to execute every other part of the kicking game. From the onside kick team to punt formation, mistakes must be nonexistent late in the game.<\/p>\n
Long Drives<\/p>\n
The best way to break an opponent\u2019s spirit late in the game is to have long sustained drives that eat up the clock. If the Rams find themselves with the lead and the ball late in the game, establishing a rhythm on offense will be vital.<\/p>\n
If the offensive line is physical and establishes its dominance, Stafford and dynamic duo Puka Nacua and Davante Adams can really shine. Getty Images<\/p>\n
The offensive line must be physical and establish its dominance against an aggressive Bears defense. Opening up running lanes for continued four-yard gains will play a massive role, especially because it\u2019ll open up the passing lanes on play action with the linebackers crashing.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where Stafford and his dynamic duo of Puka Nacua and Davante Adams can really shine, where they thrive in yards after the catch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Ben Johnson first took over as head coach of the Chicago Bears nearly a year ago, he…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":678097,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2079],"tags":[1036,391,7,1014,58,2444,2611,32,6,84,424,3307,9],"class_list":{"0":"post-678096","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles-rams","8":"tag-caleb-williams","9":"tag-chicago-bears","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-los-angeles","12":"tag-los-angeles-rams","13":"tag-losangeles","14":"tag-losangelesrams","15":"tag-matthew-stafford","16":"tag-nfl","17":"tag-nfl-playoffs","18":"tag-rams","19":"tag-sean-mcvay","20":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115896743616809323","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678096\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}