The one thing Rams safety Quentin Lake wanted to improve this season above all else was ball production. It's safe to say he's done that, leading the league with five pass breakups through three games, according to Pro Football Focus.
It was 3rd-and-7 deep in Philadelphia's own territory, and the Eagles drew up a shot play to jolt their offense out of stagnation. Lake had other plans.
He lined up in the slot but was the flat defender on the play. Quarterback Jalen Hurts' shoulders were tilted high when he started his throwing motion, Lake said, indicating that he was throwing downfield. Lake flipped his hips and took off, his eyes still glued to the backfield. Once Hurts let the ball go, Lake put his head down and sprinted toward the intended target, then whipped his head back around to make a perfectly-timed play on the ball without contacting the receiver first.
"When you're the flat player, you're always thinking deep to short," Lake told theRams.com. "In that down and distance... they're trying to get more than the sticks... honestly should have picked it, but the sun kind of blocked my vision, couldn't really see it, got my head around, made a play on the ball."
Wide receiver Jahan Dotson was in no-man's land, and Lake had no business making that play. His instincts and play recognition turned what would likely have been an explosive gain into a failed conversion that forced a punt, and he covered around 20 yards in three seconds to make it happen.
Lake has been one of the league's best slot defenders through three games, ranking first in yards allowed per slot coverage snap among qualified defensive backs (0.33), according to Next Gen Stats, but can line up deep as well. His football IQ, decisiveness and playmaking ability make that versatility possible.
There are plenty of relevant stats that show how dominant Lake's coverage has been. He leads all defenders who have been targeted 15-plus times in yards per target allowed at 2.4, according to Next Gen Stats, and four of his five pass breakups came against the Eagles last week, a single-game career-high.
The nature of Lake's position in the nickel/slot role places him around the ball a lot, said head coach Sean McVay. He's essentially a slot corner or a linebacker on most plays, despite his 6-foot-1, 196-pound frame. Regardless of his responsibility on a given play, Lake has been "outstanding" with pristine technique.
"I think if you just watch the way that he plays snap in and snap out, this guy's a dog," McVay said. "... He's so damn smart. He's so tough. I think technically he's playing really well in the coverage phases. He does a lot of different things where you're, in essence, in some of the traffic situations that inside linebackers are in. He's stout. He's a complete football player."
But the work that Lake puts in behind the scenes is what make those spectacular numbers a reality. His preparation hasn't changed since he started playing the slot role two years ago. He relies heavily on film study, so that when he sets up in coverage or chooses his leverage against a receiver, he's never truly guessing. But more experience and physical maturation has brought increased success, and it's showed.
"Getting an idea of route concepts, how they like to attack you, whatever their explosive plays (are), what formations they like to be in, what personnel they like being in," Lake said. "Who are their number one targets? In that, what receivers like to run certain routes? Really diving into that so that when you get to the game, it's never guessing but it's all about calculated anticipation."
After gathering certain information, Lake will adjust his alignment or expectations of what the route will be. He's also become more in-tune with the defensive scheme and tendencies of his fellow coverage players in the second year of defensive coordinator Chris Shula's defense.
Knowing where his help is at all times makes him comfortable enough to commit to denying a certain area of the field, because he has backup on the other side if he happens to be wrong. But with as much study as Lake does, he usually isn't.
"That's when you can really start playing fast, because you don't have to guard everything," Lake said.
Lake has been on the field for every defensive snap so far this season, just as he was last year (apart from an inconsequential Week 18 game, when he was among the resting starters), and his versatility is a big reason why. While he lines up in the slot most of the time, McVay said Lake is the deep safety in the Rams' base defense, and he's just as capable of making plays from that position. He proved that on Sunday.
Early in the first quarter against the Eagles, Hurts dropped back to pass with Lake in a deep zone at safety. As soon as he cocked back to throw toward wide receiver A.J. Brown over the middle, Lake planted his back foot and exploded forward. He met Brown as the ball arrived, leveling the 6-foot-1, 226-pound wide out in the process.
It was yet another example of Lake's elite concept trigger and playmaking ability, regardless of his positioning or responsibility on the play.
Oh, and Lake impacts the game as a blitzer and tackler as well, tied for the league lead in quarterback pressures as a defensive back with five, while his eight stops (tackle that results in negative Expected Points Added for the offense) are tied for 14th, via Next Gen Stats.
"He has great ball skills, he's a great tackler, he plays extremely hard," Shula said. "He's really good on perimeter control, and he just does a lot of stuff for us, and we love him as a player. He's just continuing to elevate his game."
That all-encompassing prowess will be put to the test on Sunday when the Rams face the NFL's leading rusher in Jonathan Taylor along with the league's third-leading passer in Daniel Jones. He throws three completely different types of receivers out of the slot in 6-foot-4 Michael Pittman Jr., speedster Josh Downs and rookie tight end Tyler Warren.
If anyone is versatile enough to cover all three players closely while also contributing in the run game, it's Lake. And he likes those types of matchups, as they let him flash his complete skill set.
"They mix-and-match guys in the slot, which is cool to me because you get different looks but at the same time it's a challenge because you'll have different feels of the game," Lake said.
