Ndamukong Suh had his pick of teams when the Miami Dolphins released him last month. The dominating defensive lineman chose the Los Angeles Rams Youth Josey Jewell Jersey , who have suddenly become a desirable destination.
Whether it’s the proximity to great weather, smart coaches or Super Bowl contention, NFL stars have been eager to land in LA during the Rams’ intriguing offseason. The 300-pound Suh is the biggest one yet, in every way.
”I think everybody looks at everything on paper, and I would say we’re in pretty good shape on paper,” Suh said Friday.
”But we have a lot of things to prove, and really myself. I always play with a chip on my shoulder, and my focus is to come in here and put in a lot of work and prove my worth. … There were a lot of other great teams that I had offers from, but I think this was the best fit for me.”
Rams coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead formally introduced Suh, who agreed to a one-year, $14 million deal to team up with AP Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald on a potentially ferocious defensive line in Los Angeles.
The 31-year-old Suh said Donald was ”definitely a plus” in his decision, since it’s almost certain to prevent opponents from constantly double-teaming either star. But Suh was equally excited by the presence of defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, whose ability to put talent in positions to succeed has been a major attraction since his arrival last year.
”Being able to be fortunate enough to watch film with the coaches on my visit was important for me,” Suh said. ”Each place I took a visit to, I (would) watch film and talk to the coaches and see how they see me fitting in.”
Suh will be the Rams’ nose tackle in their base 3-4 defense Authentic Kemoko Turay Jersey , and he sounded excited about trying a new primary position. Phillips will move around Suh, Donald and Michael Brockers to create trouble for offensive lines, and Suh was attracted to the challenge of forming new skills in his ninth NFL season.
”Over the last five years or so, between Miami and Detroit, to get me out of double teams and kind of being in the trash, I’ve played every single position, every single technique that’s really possible,” Suh said.
The entire NFL watched last season when McVay and Phillips transformed a team that hadn’t had a winning season since 2003 into an 11-5 champion of the NFC West. The Rams’ offense went from 32nd to first in the NFL in points, while the defense became exciting and effective despite lacking ideal personnel for some of Phillips’ schemes.
The Rams have addressed those personnel issues aggressively with the additions of Suh and elite cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib. While Suh’s contract is a financial splash, McVay and Snead felt the expense was worth it for a player of Suh’s extraordinary ability.
The Rams released cornerback Kayvon Webster to make room for Suh’s contract under the salary cap. Although Los Angeles is interested in re-signing Webster, who started 11 games last season, he might not be ready for the new season after undergoing surgery on his torn Achilles tendon.
Donald still hasn’t been given a long-term contract by the Rams, but Suh is eager to begin the process of building teamwork during their offseason workout program. Suh has never reached a Super Bowl, but he joined the Rams knowing they intend to contend immediately.
”They had a very successful year last year in the regular season,” Suh said. ”And I believe I can be of help to get them over some of the humps.”
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The general belief is there are four contenders for the Super Bowl in the NFC Cheap Dante Pettis Jersey , two in the AFC.
Let’s see if Tennessee or Jacksonville can prove that theory wrong this weekend.
Both AFC South representatives are significant underdogs, the Titans at New England on Saturday night, the Jaguars at Pittsburgh on Sunday. For weeks, it’s been presumed Steelers vs. Patriots will decide who goes to the Super Bowl from the conference.
The Titans and Jaguars want to have their say.
”They’re the champs and these are the types of teams you’ve got to beat if you want to be the champs,” says Tennessee coach Mike Mularkey, who is 0-5 against the Patriots. ”You’ve got to beat these teams at their place.”
Jacksonville already has done that, routing the Steelers at Heinz Field 30-9 in Week 5.
”We did beat them the first time, so to have all the confidence coming out of there is interesting,” Jaguars DT Malik Jackson says. ”They got a bye week, so they’re probably feeling really confident. We’ll see Sunday.”
Tennessee (10-7) at New England (13-3), Saturday
All the numbers favor the Patriots extending their record of consecutive title games reached to seven. They are, by far, the more experienced side: 14 Patriots players have played at least 10 playoff games. That’s more such players than the 11 other 2017 playoff teams combined (13). Tom Brady has a 6-1 career record against the Titans, throwing for 13 TDs and one interception. He’s 11-2 in 13 divisional-round games since 2002 and has completed 316 of 509 passes for 3,700 yards and 28 TDs in those games.
And amid reported turmoil involving Brady Authentic Kolton Miller Jersey , owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick, the quarterback isn’t likely to lose focus.
”We do what we always do. We show up to work and try to do the best we can do,” the All-Pro quarterback says. ”We know there’s a lot at stake and I think everyone’s put a lot into it. It doesn’t really matter what happened outside of this facility.”
Tennessee has lost six in a row to New England, but comes off a stirring second-half rally at Kansas City from 18 points down, the largest postseason comeback on the road in the Super Bowl era.
Jacksonville (11-6) at Pittsburgh (13-3), Sunday
Ben Roethlisberger had the worst game of his career in that October loss to the Jags. Pittsburgh lost only once after that, at home to the Patriots in a game that decided the AFC’s top seed.
While Roethlisberger probably will play far better than that, the biggest challenge for Jacksonville could be stopping Le’Veon Bell in the running game. The Jaguars ranked first stopping the pass, but 21st against the run.
”I feel great, especially not playing these last two weeks, not going to (training) camp earlier in the year,” Bell says. ”I can’t complain. I like where I am. This is the freshest I’ve ever been going into the playoffs so we’ll see how it goes.”
Pittsburgh also gets back receiver Antonio Brown, like Bell an All-Pro this season.
Jacksonville needs far better passing from Blake Bortles. He gained more yards running than throwing vs. Buffalo in the wild-card round.
Atlanta (11-6) at Philadelphia (13-3), Saturday
Although Philly is the No. 1 NFC seed, the Falcons are favored. Part of that owes to Atlanta’s impressive work in winning at the Los Angeles Rams last week. Part has to do with the Falcons nearly winning the Super Bowl last February.
And part has to do with Nick Foles being the Eagles’ quarterback instead of the injured Carson Wentz.
Foles Davante Adams Jersey Elite , though, has had some success in Philadelphia.
”It’s just going out there and playing and staying in the zone and trusting my instincts,” Foles says. ”I’ve played this game a long time. There’s a reason I’ve been able to do what I’ve been able to do. When I play my best and I’m most comfortable, I just go out there and play.”
By contrast, Atlanta’s Matt Ryan has a passer rating of at least 100 in five straight postseason games, tied for the second-longest streak in league history. Only Joe Montana had a longer string with eight.
New Orleans (12-5) at Minnesota (13-3), Sunday
Minnesota easily handled New Orleans in the season opener, eons ago in NFL terms. The Vikings had a different quarterback then in Sam Bradford. Case Keenum has put together a superb stretch of games since replacing the injured Bradford.
The Saints’ RB tandem of Mark Ingram and rookie Alvin Kamara wasn’t quite in place yet, either. And the New Orleans defense didn’t come to fruition until Week 3.
Minnesota’s D is balanced from front to back, so how Drew Brees deals with it could be the decider here.
”There’s no doubt about it,” Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards says, ”you have a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback that does an excellent job of going out and executing their game from week to week. Our work will be cut out for us keeping them contained and hopefully giving them some things that can cause them some problems.”
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