Investing in a fullback could be a game-changer for the Rams Investing in a fullback could be a game-changer for the Rams

The Rams’ offense has been at the forefront of innovation since Sean McVay became head coach in 2017. Modern passing concepts, different formations, and the “Cooper Kupp” role have defined McVay’s system but it’s time for some improvements.

McVay’s offense was innovative because it was ahead of the curve and that curve was a pass-first NFL. In 2017, teams were airing the ball out, but not in the way they are now. The NFL had legitimate gunslingers launching bombs on a regular basis. It was a vertical attack that McVay exploited with a horizontal passing attack in contrast. As defenses prepared for vertical attacks, the horizontal attack was a counter concept that soon infected the league.

Many McVay disciples like Kevin O’Connell, Zac Taylor, Matt LaFleur, and Raheem Morris ran similar offenses after getting hired to head coaching roles. The Chiefs also modernized their attack with similar philosophies to McVay, leading to a combined four Super Bowl wins between the Rams and Chiefs in the last five years.

As a result, McVay’s offense isn’t as forward-thinking as it once was. The league always catches up and oftentimes, in order to go forward, one must go backwards.

The fullback was a staple in every offense up until the end of the 2000s. Players like Mike Alstott, Lorenzo Neal and Mike Tolbert made up the then-“modern” fullback – a massive, muscled-out monster with a short neck and a propensity to put people on their behinds. As the NFL adopted a stronger emphasis on the pass, players like that were no longer needed and the position has been on life alert ever since.

That was until Kyle Juszczyk came into the NFL. A slender, physically cut player with length, he was the opposite of what a fullback was supposed to look like and for good reason. The modern fullback must accommodate the needs of a modern offense and Juszczyk’s body type allowed for that.

For Baltimore and now San Francisco, Juszczyk serves as a fullback, blocking halfback in shotgun formations, as a tight end, receiver and in rare occasions, he’s used as an H-back in odd formations. The modern fullback is a Swiss Army knife of talents that can be flexible.

That’s why players like Patrick Ricard, Hunter Luepke, Scott Matlock, Michael Burton and Alec Ingold have found work around the NFL. The Rams need a player like that. A fullback would complement the Rams’ rushing attack perfectly.

The fullback is effective in these times because linebackers are built differently. Gone are the downhill brawlers like Jessie Tuggle and now there are the Fred Warners of the world – he coverage guys that shed blockers. Well, a fullback provides the second hit that eliminates a player like Warner from making a play after he sheds an offensive lineman. A fullback is the player that will set the edge on a toss. Faster than an offensive lineman, a fullback can get to the point of attack sooner than any other blocker.

In the McVay offense, a fullback would not only open up holes for Kyren Williams but on passing downs, a fullback could serve as a more effective blocker than a true running back due to a difference in size and frame.

A fullback would also allow for better red zone plays as not only would the Rams be able to more effectively run the ball inside the 20, but fullbacks are the perfect targets for play action, something Matthew Stafford excels at.

The Rams need to incorporate a fullback into their offense. They’re gritty, they’re tough and they make the play that sets up the play to win a game. The key block, the FB dive on fourth-and-short to move the chains, the blocker that picks up the blitz. They are an essential part of football and the fullback is where the NFL is going. It’s time to get ahead of the curve once again.

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Dane Cook: Fresh New Flavor Tour

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Kyren Williams is on a path to becoming the NFL's next premier RB Kyren Williams is on a path to becoming the NFL's next premier RB

When talking about the elite running backs that currently dominate the NFL, Kyren Williams’ name may not be mentioned among the Derrick Henrys and Saquon Barkleys of the world. But while most people believe the best running back in the NFC West is Christian McCaffrey, it is Williams who has been displaying the three A’s necessary to be great at the game of football: Ability, availability, and attitude.

A testament to his mother Taryn Williams, who is often spotted attending her son’s football games, Kyren Williams’ work ethic is second to none. While his mother advocated on her son’s behalf to prospective college programs, Williams could be spotted in his high school’s weight room at 5:30 in the morning, working towards what would be a scholarship offer from Notre Dame.

Williams has not forgotten his roots, displaying both a physical and mental toughness that can only be recognized among greatness. After not playing much during his rookie year and missing time mid-season last year, Williams returned with a vengeance. In his final six games of 2023, Williams ran for 688 yards (114.7 yards per game) and scored eight touchdowns on his way to his first 1,000-yard season.

Williams has maintained his blistering pace. After eight games in the 2024 season, Williams has 602 rushing yards and 10 total touchdowns. With another 1,000-yard season on the horizon, Williams would be the first Ram with multiple 1,000-yard rushing seasons since Todd Gurley.

While Williams sits outside the top 10 leading rushers in the NFL, it should be important to remember that no one ahead of him has had to deal with injuries to their offense’s two starting receivers, injured tackles and a replacement at center and left guard. Despite all these issues, Williams has remained productive as defenses centered their game plans around stopping the Notre Dame graduate.

Williams may have to wait his turn to become the running back king, but he will get his opportunity in the next few years. Henry is 30 years old, McCaffrey and Barkley both have documented injury histories and the new crop of backs show promise but only Jahmyr Gibbs and Chuba Hubbard have the jump-cut abilities of Williams.

Once the Rams get fully healthy and defenses have to cover multiple threats on the field, Williams will get his chance to embarrass people again. For those who forgot what Williams can do, he was 315 yards behind McCaffrey for the rushing title last season – and he played four fewer games.

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Rams will now face two interim head coaches in their final nine games Rams will now face two interim head coaches in their final nine games

Jeff Ulbrich isn’t the only interim head coach the Los Angeles Rams will face this season. We can now add Darren Rizzi to the list.

The New Orleans Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday after the team’s ugly loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 9, naming Rizzi the interim head coach. The Rams will visit the Saints at the Superdome in Week 13.

That game is three weeks before Los Angeles will face Ulbrich, who’s now coaching the New York Jets following the firing of Robert Saleh. So that’s two interim head coaches that the Rams will face in a four-week span.

Whether this trend is good or bad remains to be seen, because neither the Jets nor the Saints were doing anything productive under their previous head coaches. The Jets are still struggling under Ulbrich, though they did just beat the Texans on Thursday night to snap a five-game losing streak.

Barring a huge surprise, those are likely to be the only two interim coaches the Rams face this season.

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Rams Week 9 snap counts: Big change at TE, Corum gets 1 snap, safeties go 4 deep Rams Week 9 snap counts: Big change at TE, Corum gets 1 snap, safeties go 4 deep

It’s been a season of changes for the Los Angeles Rams and the adjustments continued on Sunday in Seattle. The Rams shook things up at tight end, had to adapt at wide receiver with Puka Nacua getting ejected and on defense, Chris Shula once again tinkered with his personnel.

The result was a big overtime win over a division rival, with the Rams beating the Seahawks, 26-20. Now at 4-4, the Rams are just a half-game behind the division-leading Arizona Cardinals and have a very realistic shot to make the playoffs in January.

Below, we look at the snap counts on offense and defense, analyzing exactly how the Rams got it done on each side of the ball in Week 9.

Offense

The most notable change on offense was at tight end. In each of the Rams’ first seven games this season, Colby Parkinson led the tight end group in snaps played. On Sunday, though, he was the No. 2 tight end with a season-low snap share of just 42%. He was out-snapped by Davis Allen, who played 55% of the snaps. Hunter Long played 34%, so he was involved in the game plan, too.

It’s unclear if Parkinson was benched, but the Rams were in 12 personnel in the fourth quarter and it was Allen and Long on the field, not Parkinson. That’s something to watch moving forward.

At wide receiver, the Rams were forced to adapt on the fly after Nacua was ejected. Cooper Kupp played 92% of the offensive snaps and Demarcus Robinson played 70%, but it was Tyler Johnson and Tutu Atwell splitting reps in place of Nacua. Johnson played 29 snaps and Atwell played 26, so both of them had opportunities on Sunday. Atwell still looks like the No. 5 receiver in the rotation, however.

Blake Corum had been getting more opportunities behind Kyren Williams in recent weeks but that wasn’t the case against Seattle. Corum played just one snap in the win, a carry that went for a loss of 1 yard. Williams played 76 of a possible 27 snaps, carrying it 22 times for 69 yards.

Rob Havenstein suffered an ankle injury in the second half and was unable to return, getting replaced by Warren McClendon Jr. for 19 total plays.

Defense

To match the Seahawks’ personnel groupings, the Rams used a lot of dime packages. Quentin Lake played every snap at safety as the signal caller, but he was one of four safeties who got meaningful snaps. Sean McVay said Kam Curl was banged up so he was limited to 40 of the 80 possible snaps, which opened the door for Kam Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough – each of whom had an interception. Kinchens played 41 snaps, McCollough played 56, which means all four safeties played at least half the game.

To go with that deep safety rotation, the Rams also utilized a bunch of different corners. Cobie Durant played all but one snap, Darious Williams missed only two plays and Ahkello Witherspoon played 67 snaps after playing just nine in Week 8. Behind those three starters, Charles Woods played seven snaps and Josh Wallace played three.

Because Shula used nickel and dime packages so often, the Rams typically only had one inside linebacker on the field Christian Rozeboom played 98% of the defensive plays, with Jake Hummel playing only 9% and Omar Speights playing 6%. The Rams’ versatility in the secondary allowed them to mix and match players without sacrificing yardage against the run.

At edge rusher, Jared Verse played 86% of the snaps, Byron Young played 81% and Michael Hoecht played 48%. Nick Hampton, not Brennan Jackson (inactive), was the fourth edge rusher, though he only played three snaps.

Along the defensive line, Kobie Turner once again led the group with a 74% snap share, followed by Braden Fiske (61%). The next-closest D-lineman was Bobby Brown III, who played 31% of the snaps on defense. Tyler Davis (25%) and Desjuan Johnson (12%) also got opportunities up front.

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Arizona basketball version of Devin Booker’s Book 1s out there

Arizona Wildcats guard Jaden Bradley revealed on his Instagram on Saturday that an Arizona-version of Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker Nike shoe Book 1s exist.

Looks like Book has Arizona Book 1s out here. pic.twitter.com/ZLgJXMj3uu

— Kevin Zimmerman (@KZimmermanAZ) November 3, 2024

The shoes are primarily have a white and gray makeup with a red Nike thread across the shoe and an Arizona logo on the back.

Booker’s signature shoe has made its way to other schools such as Michigan State, USC and Kentucky, his alma matter.

Mark Pope show off a special pair of “Kentucky” Book 1s

📸 @DylanBallard_UK pic.twitter.com/2t9fN4h9dF

— Complex Sneakers (@ComplexSneakers) October 30, 2024

Booker, who was born in Michigan, was seen wearing a special player edition of his Nike Book 1s, themed for the Spartans colors during a Suns preseason game against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 8.

BORN IN MICHIGAN 👟 pic.twitter.com/DbqBtyp0h0

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) October 8, 2024

Booker also seen donned the USC version of the shoe prior to the Suns season-opener versus the Los Angeles Clippers on Oct. 23.

Devin Booker warms up in “USC” Nike Book 1 PEs to open the NBA season 😮‍💨🔥 pic.twitter.com/B4Ukzl9sb2

— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) October 24, 2024

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NBA DFS Lineup Picks & Advice: Sunday (11/3)

Hey, FantasyPros family. Excited to have you here for tonight’s NBA DFS main slate for Sunday, November 3, 2024. With two matchups on tap — Atlanta at New Orleans and Orlando at Dallas — there’s plenty of potential for standout performances and strategic plays.

FantasyPros will be delivering the goods all year, so be on the lookout for daily picks and advice from our daily experts Nick Rodriguez (@NickIsInNet), Ryan Coleman (@ryancoleman_98) and Daniel E. Dobish (@danieledobish), who will be serving you all top-notch plays to elevate your game all season long.

With that said, thank you for joining us tonight. Let’s dive into our player recommendations and lock in those winning lineups.

• NBA Betting Advice
• Player Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
• First Basket Cheat Sheet
• Prop Bet Analyzer

View the best player prop bets for tonight’s slate with our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet

NBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer

NBA DFS Core Play

Kyrie Irving (PG – DAL)

• DraftKings: $7,900
• FanDuel: $8,500

Kyrie Irving is in strong form and presents a compelling case as a core play for tonight’s slate. Averaging 24.6 points per game with an efficient 47.9% shooting from the field and a stellar 59.4% from three, Irving is showcasing his scoring prowess while contributing across categories with 5.6 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.

Against the Orlando Magic, who rank ninth in points allowed but are vulnerable in key areas, Irving’s ability to produce in multiple categories makes him an ideal core option to anchor a lineup.

His presence as a proven scorer, combined with his multi-positional eligibility, allows fantasy managers to build a flexible lineup with high upside. Given that his price point is reasonable compared to some higher-tier players, Irving brings reliable value with the potential to exceed expectations.

Tonight, as he continues to shine alongside Luka Doncic, Irving’s balanced profile makes him a standout choice for lineups looking to secure consistent, high-floor production with the added upside of a core player who can help drive fantasy success.

Core Play Considerations

Brandon Ingram (SG/SP – NOP)

• DraftKings: $8,200
• FanDuel: $8,000

NBA DFS Cash Game Targets

Kyrie Irving (PG – DAL)

• DraftKings: $7,900
• FanDuel: $8,500

Irving has been on a strong run, showcasing his well-rounded skill set. Averaging close to 25 points per game with sharp shooting efficiency, he’s been a reliable scoring option and a capable playmaker with 5.6 assists per game.

His solid defensive contributions, including 1.4 steals, add multi-category value. His current form aligns well against an Orlando team with weaknesses he can exploit. At his current salary, Irving’s value on a slate with limited options makes him a prime choice to deliver across major and secondary categories.

His consistency and skill make him a prime choice for cash games tonight, where stability is key. While off-court narratives have sometimes clouded his reputation, Irving’s recent play has reaffirmed his place among the league’s elite. Averaging 24.6 points, 5.6 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game, Irving delivers reliable, well-rounded production.

Tonight, he offers managers a unique opportunity to leverage his versatility and high floor at a value price point. On this smaller slate, where star-stacking might be popular, Irving provides a strategic edge as a slightly contrarian choice with his ability to dominate multiple categories.

Given his dual-position flexibility and a matchup against a vulnerable Magic team, he’s an excellent choice for cash lineups seeking solid, dependable returns tonight.

Cash Game Target Considerations

Brandon Ingram (SG/SF – NOP)

• DraftKings: $8,200
• FanDuel: $8,000

NBA DFS GPP Targets

Luka Doncic (PG – DAL)

• DraftKings: $11,400
• FanDuel: $11,200

Luka Doncic’s elite playmaking and scoring ability make him an absolute powerhouse, especially in a matchup against the Magic. Averaging 27.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game, Doncic is a reliable multi-category contributor with the potential to rack up fantasy points across the board.

While his shooting percentages (38.7% field goal rate, 29.2% three-point rate) have been slightly off to start the season, he remains Dallas’ offensive engine and is positioned to break out of any early struggles, particularly against an Orlando squad that’s susceptible to high-caliber guards.

Doncic’s ability to stuff the stat sheet makes him a must-have. Tonight’s game provides a prime setup for him to take advantage and put up a huge night.

Doncic is the ideal centerpiece in a “stars-and-scrubs” approach, especially with his high upside in this favorable matchup. While many DFS managers might opt for a more balanced star-stack approach with attractive mid-priced options, locking in Doncic as your primary star could give you a competitive edge.

Pair Doncic with more affordable players to balance out your lineup and optimize salary allocation. With the Magic lacking the defensive strength to consistently limit high-scoring guards, Doncic is well-positioned to deliver a slate-breaking performance, particularly for managers willing to invest in his ceiling and bank on his star power.

GPP Target Considerations

Brandon Ingram (SG/SF – NOP)

• DraftKings: $8,200
• FanDuel: $8,000

NBA DFS Value Plays

Brandon Ingram (SG/SF – NOP)

• DraftKings: $8,200
• FanDuel: $8,000

Brandon Ingram offers excellent value on tonight’s slate, where his balanced, multi-category production comes at a bargain given the matchup. Averaging 23.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game with efficient shooting splits of 48.7% from the field and 40.5% from three, Ingram has been quietly delivering consistent performances.

Against an Atlanta Hawks team ranked 29th in points allowed and third in pace, he has an opportunity to exceed his price point while remaining a reliable option.

His salary is a bit too low given his potential upside in a favorable matchup against the Hawks, making him an attractive target for tonight’s two-game slate.

With a price point of $8,000 on FanDuel and $8,200 on DraftKings, some may overlook him for flashier stars. However, this is where his value shines. He offers an excellent return on investment potential without the premium cost, ideal for both cash games and GPPs.

Value Play Considerations

Yves Missi (C – NOP)

• DraftKings: $4,300
• FanDuel: $4,200

Yves Missi enters tonight’s fast-paced matchup against the Hawks as a prime value option with the potential to dominate in key categories like rebounds, blocks and steals.

As the Pelicans’ future big man, he’s set up well to deliver high-floor production on a slate with limited center choices. His budget-friendly salary allows for flexibility, making him an appealing contrarian play that opens up options for stacking other stars or mid-tier picks.

Javonte Green (SF/PF – NOP) 

• DraftKings: $4,500
• FanDuel: $4,000

Javonte Green’s efficiency in points per minute and his defensive versatility make him an intriguing under-the-radar value play against Atlanta. Though coming off the bench, his ability to contribute across categories gives him upside, especially in a high-paced game.

While his minutes may vary, Green’s potential for a multi-categorical impact could pay off as a strategic choice for managers looking to diversify their lineups.

Tristan Da Silva (SF/PF – ORL) 

• DraftKings: $3,400
• FanDuel: $4,600

With Paolo Banchero sidelined, Tristan Da Silva is primed to step up for the Magic, showcasing his potential as a multi-category contributor. He displayed promising upside against a strong Cleveland team in his last outing. Tonight’s two-game slate could further highlight his value.

At a budget-friendly price point, Da Silva’s versatility and untapped potential make him a compelling option to round out lineups, especially for those seeking hidden value in a thin player pool.

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