Each weekday, theRams.com will be taking a look around the internet for the top Rams headlines of the day. Here's a look at what's out there for Monday, January 14th about your Los Angeles Rams.
C.J. ANDERSON'S DIVISIONAL ROUND
Running back C.J. Anderson earned Offensive Player of the Week honors in Peter King's Football Morning in America rundown after his Divisional round performance against the Cowboys. Anderson joins Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and Saints receiver Michael Thomas in the category. Here's what King had to say about the Rams late-season rushing surprise:
C.J. Anderson, running back, Los Angeles Rams He'll be playing in the NFC Championship Game. Fairly amazing. In nine months, three teams that went 6-10, 7-9 and 4-12, respectively, fired Anderson, and he was on the street till the Rams signed him as Todd Gurley insurance 27 days ago. Now Anderson is one of the redemptive stories of the NFL. Subbing for an injured Todd Gurley in the last two games of the season, Anderson had 167 and 132 yards, and then, in his first playoff game with his new team, rushed 23 times for 123 yards.
To view King's full FMIA for the Divisional round, click here.
DEFENSE IN THE DIVISIONAL ROUND
NFL.com's Herbie Teope listed 12 lessons learned from the Divisional round and for the Rams, he says defense could be the difference maker. Teope touched on running backs Todd Gurley and C.J. Anderson's big day and quarterback Jared Goff's solid outing against the Cowboys in his recap, but said another defense performance like Saturday's could get the Rams to Atlanta.
"Running back Ezekiel Elliott, who won the 2018 rushing title with 1,434 yards, found the going very tough and finished with just 47 yards on 20 carries, averaging a paltry 2.4 yards per attempt. On the game, the Cowboys managed 50 yards on 22 carries, which placed the game squarely in quarterback Dak Prescott's hands. If the defense combined with a devastating rushing duo of Gurley and Anderson can repeat Saturday's performance in the NFC Championship Game, the Rams could very well be on the way to Atlanta."
For more on the Rams' big win over the Cowboys and news from across the Divisional round, click here.
HOW TO BEAT THE SAINTS
In ESPN.com's Dan Graziano's early look at the conference championship matchups, the Rams are early underdogs according to ESPN's FPI projection giving New Orleans a 62.1 percent nod. However, Graziano says the Rams can pull the upset if things go like they did Saturday night against the Cowboys — keeping Saints quarterback Drew Brees off the field.
Rams' best chance to win: "Run the ball the way they did Saturday night against the Cowboys. In their 45-35 loss to the Saints in Week 9, the Rams had just 92 rushing yards on 19 carries. Part of the reason was the Saints built a 35-14 second-quarter lead and the Rams had to throw to get back into the game (which they did, by the way, tying it at 35-35 in the fourth quarter). But that just serves to underline the importance of establishing the run early and getting some control of the game."
For the entire early look at the conference title games, click here.
