Johnny Hekker and his wife Makayla deliver supplies fire victims, The Stage Is Set, Rams play the Philadelphia Eagles at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Playoff Picture, FOX Sports’ Pregame at Coliseum, Todd Gurley, Pharoh Cooper, Greg Zuerlein, Johnny Hekker lead Pro Bowl Votes
The 10-2 Philadelphia Eagles head to Los Angeles and actually, the team never even left the West Coast this week. That scheduling was brutal because they played against the Seahawks on Sunday night. They practiced at the old Ram Stadium down in Anaheim all week.
I wanted that loss the Eagles had against the Seahawks last week. It was very odd rooting for the Seahawks. I did not watch one play in the game. I basically made my pick while telling some friends what I was up to (and they scolded me too for even remotely rooting for Seattle) and then I closed my eyes that night to see later on that the Eagles lost 34-10 or something like that. It looked like Seattle dealt and handled them big time.
The reason BTW, why I wanted Seattle to win is because we get to play them next week. I feel we can beat that team. And then as we all know, we have the Eagles on Sunday this week. I want to come out of that game with a great win tying our records at 10-3. That way we have the upper hand come playoff time as far as home field advantage. I just do not want to step into the city of Philadelphia on January 19th or 20th to have to play in Lincoln Field in what could be freezing cold weather with a rawkus crowd that wants their team to make it to the Super Bowl.
That was my M.O.
And so we will see how that pans out.
Phase one is complete.
The Rams must now handle the Eagle team.
The Rams Defense must not only stop the run game on Sunday, they really must also stop the runs up the middle.
That is where the Rams have gotten creamed over the last few weeks. Right up the middle.
The rest of the defense is perfect.
The middle parts that D that control the run have been playing awful as of late. They must adjust and they must deal with that very issue.
Now having Connor Barwin out has hurt in that regard and then Alec Ogeltree went out of last weeks game with an elbow injury. However, that was after he caught an interception that he ran back for a touchdown before doing a flip in the end zone. That was not what injured him but still, no pun meant because its a huge gap to fill in every regard. Plus, I think some big runs happened with him in the game un-injured let alone he played the entire New Orleans game and that guy ran rampant up the middle all day.
They must stop the run game and they must clog the middle of the field on D.
They do that; they will win handily this weekend.
It looks like (Alec) Ogletree along with Robert Woods, Connor Barwin and Lamarcus Joyner have not practiced at all this week. I assume they are all out of Sunday's game.
The team can clinch Sunday / this week if the Lions lose or tie. And if the Packers lose or tie. And the Cowboys have to lose or tie. Oh and the Panthers have to lose and the Falcons have to lose too.
That is setting aside that the Rams must win vs the Eagles while those teams must lose and therefore, for the Rams to clinch a playoff spot this weekend, we must see wins by the Saints, Vikings, Giants, Browns, and Buccaneers and again, vs. the teams I mentioned above that must lose this week.
Regardless of it all, I cannot wait for that game. I can't wait.
IF THE PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY:
At 9-3, L.A. is in a favorable position to host a playoff game in January. As the No. 3 seed in the NFC, the Rams would host the No. 6 Panthers in the Wild Card round at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
CURRENT NFC PLAYOFF PICTURE
| Seed | Team | Comment | Record vs. NFC | Next | |
| 1 |  | Vikings(10-2) | Minnesota kept rolling with a 14-9 win over the Falcons in Week 13. With a better strength of victory, the Vikings jumped over the Eagles for the No. 1 seed. | 8-1 | at Panthers (8-4) |
| 2 |  | Eagles(10-2) | Philadelphia lost to Seattle, 24-10, falling from No. 1 to No. 2. The Eagles still hold a four-game lead in the NFC East. | 8-1 | at Rams (9-3) |
| 3 |  | Rams(9-3) | The Rams beat the Cardinals, 32-16, securing their first winning season since 2003. With the victory, L.A.holds onto its one-game lead in the NFC West. | 6-3 | vs. Eagles (10-2) |
| 4 |  | Saints(9-3) | The Saints defeated the Panthers, 31-21, to establish a one-game lead in the NFC South. | 7-2 | at Falcons (7-5) |
| 5 |  | Seahawks(8-4) | Seattle's win over the Eagles kept the club one-game behind Los Angeles in the NFC West, and put the club above the Panthers and Falcons in the Wild Card race. | 6-3 | vs. Jaguars (8-4) |
| 6 |  | Panthers(8-4) | Though the Panthers lost last week, they still hold a one-game lead over Atlanta for the final NFC Wild Card spot. | 4-4 | vs. Vikings (10-2) |
In the Hunt:
7. Atlanta Falcons (7-5)
8. Detroit Lions (6-6)
9. Green Bay Packers (6-6)
10. Dallas Cowboys (6-6)
11. Washington Redskins (5-7)
12. Arizona Cardinals (5-7)
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-8)
As of Wednesday, the Thomas Fire in Ventura County has affected nearly 65,000 acres of land and still has zero percent containment, according to ABC 7 News. As such, thousands of families have been displaced and hundreds of homes have been lost. 8. Detroit Lions (6-6)
9. Green Bay Packers (6-6)
10. Dallas Cowboys (6-6)
11. Washington Redskins (5-7)
12. Arizona Cardinals (5-7)
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-8)
The brush fire is just one in a series of blazes that has erupted in Los Angeles this week. And with the devastation, thousands across California have begun to reach out and lend a helping hand — including Rams punter Johnny Hekker.
On Tuesday during the players’ day off, Hekker and his wife Makayla arrived at the Red Cross Shelter at the Ventura County Fairgrounds to deliver supplies to the fire victims — passing along a truck load of clothing, undergarments, socks, toys, and baby supplies.
“Really, just walking out the door there, I couldn’t grab enough stuff. I want to go back and buy out the whole place because people are in need of so much. It’s moving” — Johnny Hekker @CVRamsClub
Lending a helping hand is not out of character for Hekker, McVay said on Wednesday. He said that it didn’t surprise him at all as to how Hekker spent his day off, describing the Pro Bowl punter as both empathetic and genuine.
“I think that example just demonstrates and represents who Johnny really is,” McVay said. “He’s a great person, great leader. I bet you he’d be the first to not feel like he needs any sort of credit for something like that.”
FOX Sports’ Signature Pregame Show Broadcasts Live From Coliseum
NEW YORK – This Sunday, Dec. 10, FOX NFL SUNDAY leaves behind the friendly confines of Studio A on the FOX lot in Los Angeles’ Century City, in favor of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, site of NFL Week 14’s highly anticipated AMERICA’S GAME OF THE WEEK matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams. The announcement was made today by John Entz, FOX Sports President of Production & Executive Producer.
The NFL’s most-watched pregame show, FOX NFL SUNDAY, kicks off its on-site special broadcasting from the Olympic Cauldron at the Coliseum at Noon ET with co-hosts Terry Bradshaw and Curt Menefee, analysts Howie Long, Jimmy Johnson, Michael Strahan and the NFL’s premier NFL insider Jay Glazer. The OT, FOX Sports’ NFL postgame show, closes the day’s action on-site at the Coliseum. This Sunday’s visit marks the second time this season that FOX NFL SUNDAY has gone on the road with the first being its broadcast from Naval Station Norfolk in honor of Veterans Day.
“This Sunday’s game is arguably the biggest game of the season in the NFC,” said Entz. “Having a marquee matchup this late in the season taking place in our backyard lends itself to this kind of unique on-site visit for our pregame show.”
FOX Sports’ top broadcast crew of play-by-play announcer Joe Buck, game analyst Troy Aikman and sideline reporter Erin Andrews call Sunday’s Eagles vs. Rams matchup, airing on FOX at 4:25 PM ET.
FOX NFL KICKOFF, the network’s early NFL pregame show hosted by Charissa Thompson with analysts Tony Gonzalez, Michael Vick, Dave Wannstedt and Colin Cowherd, which immediately precedes FOX NFL SUNDAY each week during the NFL season, will remain in FOX Sports’ Century City studio this Sunday, airing at its regular 11:00 AM ET time slot.
--FOX SPORTS--
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, with 562,958 votes, leads all players in balloting as of Dec. 6.
New England quarterback Tom Brady (499,727votes) ranks second overall, while Pittsburgh running back Le'veon Bell (499,042 votes), Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Brown (487,170 votes), and New Orleans’ quarterback Drew Brees (439,079 votes) round out the top five.
Gurley and quarterback Jared Goff are among the top ten vote-getters thus far, coming in at No.6 and No.9 with 427,782 and 363,243 votes overall.
Fan voting for the 2018 Pro Bowl will continue online and on web-enabled mobile phones at therams.com/probowl until Thursday, December 14.
» The 2018 Pro Bowl, will be televised live from Camping World Stadium on ESPN and simulcast on ABC. Players for the game are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third toward determining the 88 All-Star players who will be selected to the Pro Bowl.
NFL players and coaches will cast their votes on Friday, December 15 while final Pro Bowl rosters will be announced on Tuesday, December 19 live on NFL Network’s Pro Bowl special “NFL Total Access: Pro Bowl Players Revealed” at 5:00 PM PT.
The Rams will play host to the Philadelphia Eagles at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Week 14. The game will pit two of the best teams in the NFC against each other and should have big implications for the playoffs. It will be broadcast live on FOX with a kickoff time set for 1:25 p.m. PT. Check below for all the information you need to watch Sunday’s game:
BROADCAST INFO
- TELEVISION: The game will be available live on Fox with play-by-play provided by Joe Buck and color analysis from Troy Aikman. Erin Andrews will be the sideline reporter.
- RADIO: Sunday’s contest will be broadcast on Sports USA National Radio with play-by-play and analysis from Larry Kahn, Hank Bauer and Troy West. It will also be available on ESPN LA English Radio on ESPN 710 AM and 93.1 Jack FM (Play-by-play provided by: J.B. Long, Maurice Jones-Drew and D’Marco Farr). Plus, tune into 1330 AM for ESPN Deportes' live Spanish broadcast of the game with Troy Santiago and Ricardo Lopez on the call.
- ONLINE: The game will not be available live via NFL Game Pass*. However, fans will still be able to watch replays of every game and so much more! Click here to sign up for your FREE 7-day trial and start getting unprecedented access to every game, all year long.
*For domestic subscribers NFL Game Pass does not include live regular season, playoff, or Super Bowl game broadcasts, as well as some preseason games broadcasts. Access to these games is available within NFL Game Pass on an on-demand basis in the NFL Game Pass archives. International subscribers are able to watch both preseason and regular season games as they happen with certain restrictions. Audio feeds may be subject to availability. 2009-2011 games are temporarily unavailable. For a full description of features, requirement, limitations, and other information, visit our FAQ at NFL.com/help/GamePass.
Diary Of A Ram Fan. A satirical look at more than 75 years of Football's Rams history, combined with discussions of American Exceptionalism and almost 50 years of personal experience in the life of a Rams Fan. The history parallels and intertwines life to form a humorous, yet serious look at American History, World History, an American Football team, and Political Science.
