By Mark Schlereth
Special to ESPN.com
It's hard for a leopard to change his spots. Mike Martz is Mike Martz, and the Rams will do what they do against the Patriots.
Martz generally throws the ball first and sets up the run with the pass. He makes a few adjustments out of that method. To Martz's credit, the Rams are consistent. The players know how to execute his game plan. Every offense has basically the same blocking schemes and runs the same routes. But it comes down to the athletes being both talented and smart enough to execute.
Martz's approach has served the Rams well, but occasionally it has come up and bitten them. For example, the Rams played the Giants with a busted-up offensive line. Right tackle Ryan Tucker was hurt, and Michael Strahan was wreaking havoc. As I watched the game, I sat there in disbelief; they had Kurt Warner dropping back to pass with an injured Tucker blocking the best defensive end in football, and the Rams did nothing to help him in pass protection. They never really made an adjustment during the game.
I believe Martz was saying, "This is who we are, and I'm not going to make an adjustment." Against Philadelphia, however, he gave the ball more to Marshall Faulk in the second half, getting him more involved in the running game.
While Martz is a strong designer of plays, the majority of his success could be attributed to both his aggressiveness and the Rams' talent. At Media Day, I got into a discussion with a few Rams players about the offenses I played on in Denver and their offense. When I was with the Broncos, we would drive down the field in eight-to-10 plays and score a touchdown. For the Rams, they can go the distance in two or three plays because they have superior athletes. Put Faulk in the Martz's offense, the West Coast offense or the Giants' offense, and he will still be productive.
Martz said it in his press conference: We are about speed and attitude. You can't argue with him. The Rams play hard and believe they can win, and that belief starts at the top.
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By Mark Malone
Special to ESPN.com
Mike Martz gets a lot of the pub, and deservedly so, but he gets more than Bill Belichick because offense is sexier. Plus, when a team has as much talent as the Rams, it's easier to look like a genius.
The players, not the coaches, play the game, so this matchup is not about which coach will get the upper hand on the other. But as a former player and a student of the game, I am more interested in what schemes Belichick will design. He has the more difficult job of the two.
The Patriots' head coach has more on his plate this week. He is forced to be more innovative in determining a way to stop the Rams' offense. Clearly, Belichick is working with less defensive talent than the Rams have on offense, so his schemes will be critical.
If anyone could design a game plan to slow down the Rams, it would be Belichick. Again, he has to design the defensive game plan within the confines of the talent he has available. If the Patriots blitz Kurt Warner, break down the Rams' pass protection and get a hat on Warner, it's great -- in theory. But if the cornerback is left one-on-one with the receiver and he can't cover him, the Rams could still win 71-0.
Tampa Bay, the N.Y. Giants and Philadelphia had the most success against the Rams at keeping the points down and causing turnovers. However, I don't think Belichick will take those three games and try to copy what they do. He is smart enough to understand the players he has. Belichick will use a smattering of different defenses and looks, things the Rams probably didn't see in their earlier games.
The Patriots' defense has done a good job in the red zone all season, and that will be a bigger concern against the Rams than how many yards Kurt Warner can produce. Ultimately, it will be a matter of getting the Rams' offense off the field. I think Belichick can institute some subtle wrinkles that could be effective against the Rams.
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SB XXXVI Over/Under
