Rams' Cobie Durant: 'We Gotta Come to Play' vs. Bengals
An extremely young and inexperienced secondary facing off against arguably the best-receiving trio in the NFL is almost always a spell for disaster.
That scenario will come to life on Monday night, but the Los Angeles Rams secondary and the Cincinnati Bengals offense haven't lived up to their respective expectations after two weeks. The 1-1 Rams defense/secondary has been among the best in the league, while the 0-2 Bengals offense is yet to get going.
Nevertheless, Rams defensive back Cobie Durant explained that despite Cincinnati's rough start, he's still treating them as a threat.
"We gotta come to play," Durant said in the locker room after practice. "They have big-time receivers—(Tyler) Boyd, (Ja'Marr) Chase and (Tee) Higgins—it's probably one of the best-receiving cores that we're gonna face this year. We have to showcase what we got over here against them."
The Rams have allowed the NFL's fourth-fewest passing yards allowed per game thus far (150.5 yards) and are hoping to continue the trend ahead of Monday night's matchup. Durant revealed how Los Angeles has shocked millions in that category.
"We just really want to get to the ball," Durant said. "You don't really see anybody loafing and that's what we preach on the sideline. "Whenever the ball is thrown, no matter if it's deep, let's get to the ball because you never know what can happen. We need tips and overthrows, as we take that chance to make a play on that ball."
Durant admitted that "there's a lot more room for improvement," but the 25-year-old has really gotten a grasp of his new role at the STAR position and has "taken advantage of the opportunity."
"I'm at the point now where I'm teaching (rookie cornerback) Tre (Tomlinson) things about the STAR. When you get to a point where you can coach a position, you can really control that spot. The role plays a huge part in the defense because you're really like another linebacker out there, but just playing at corner."
As Durant continues to thrive in his new role, Bengals superstar quarterback Joe Burrow re-aggravated a calf strain in Week 2 that he suffered during training camp. Teammates like Chase have urged Burrow to sit the 2021 Super Bowl rematch out, as he doesn't seem to be 100 percent healthy.
However, The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported this morning that Burrow was "going through a workout."
"I'm told there's optimism he will play and his status for tonight is trending in the right direction, per sources," Russini wrote. "Burrow is campaigning with the coaching staff and trainers to play, however, his status is still uncertain."
As previously stated, Burrow and the offense are yet to get going this season and are starting to tread in dangerous waters. Nevertheless, the 26-year-old has proven many times in the past that he's able to show up when it matters most. It's likely the main reason why Durant has stressed that the secondary needs to "showcase" their abilities on Monday night as well.
