Terrance Ferguson Injury Could Force Rams to Change Their Offensive Identity

The Los Angeles Rams received some injury updates on Monday following their loss on Sunday night to the Denver Broncos. During the game, tight end Terrance Ferguson left with an ankle injury while Colby Parkinson was clearly hampered.

“Colby didn't have any setbacks with his knee injury, but he did have an AC sprain to his shoulder. We’ll see what that looks like,” said head coach Sean McVay. “Terrance Ferguson had a medial sprain to his ankle. We'll see what that looks like moving forward for him.”

McVay added that the expectation is for Ferguson to miss the game in Week 4 against the Philadelphia Eagles.. With Parkinson, he’ll likely be one to monitor on the injury report throughout the week.

The Rams’ offense shifted dramatically without Ferguson on Sunday against the Broncos. They went from operating out of 13 personnel at a 45.7 percent rate in the first half to just a 27.8 percent rate in the second half. For the most part, it was simply because the Rams didn’t have the personnel to operate the offense the way they wanted. That was despite the offense averaging 0.11 EPA per pass out of 13 personnel compared to -0.34 EPA per pass out of 11 personnel in the second half.

Rams Could Be Forced Away From 13 Personnel

If the Rams are without Ferguson, especially if Parkinson is also out, the offense may not be able to operate out of 13 personnel as they would like. It puts even more importance on the Rams getting wide receiver Puka Nacua back in the fold. With Nacua, the Rams can at least operate out of 12 personnel if they want to use heavier tight end sets.

They can also feel more comfortable operating out of 11 personnel with three wide receivers. With Nacua available, the Rams can operate out of 11 personnel with him, Adams, and one of Mumpfield, Whittington, or Smith. That’s a much better situation than they were in during the second half when they had only four wide receivers available and lacked depth.

Puka Nacua’s Return Becomes Even More Important

The Rams remain optimistic that Nacua will be able to play this week against the Eagles after missing the last two games. While the Rams easily could have gone 2-0 without Nacua, they should be pleased to have at least split the two games he missed.

“It sounds like he had a good workout before the game,” said McVay. “We'll continue to see, but if he is able to progress the way that we hope, there's optimism that he'll be able to play this week.”

Without Nacua, the Rams have leaned heavily into 13 personnel over the last few weeks. With Ferguson expected to miss time, that could force McVay to change some of the structures on offense. Having Nacua available will give the Rams more flexibility to make that adjustment and get back to using more 11 personnel without sacrificing their ability to create mismatches in the passing game.

Other Notes

While injured reserve isn’t on the table right now, cornerback Jaylen Watson is likely to miss Sunday’s game against the Eagles with a dislocated shoulder. McVay noted that Watson has dealt with the injury before and didn’t provide a clear answer on whether the team would add anybody at cornerback before Sunday.
McVay said on Monday that Myles Garrett is making good progress. While Adam Schefter reported that Garrett could be out six weeks, McVay still didn’t put a timeline on it. “He's making good progress,” said McVay. “I haven't had any sort of timelines placed on it. I think it's not necessarily fair to him.”
Rams media asked McVay about his thoughts on the penalty against Josh Wallace. In order to avoid a fine, McVay didn’t say too much. Still, reading between the lines, it was clear McVay didn’t think it was a penalty. “I wouldn't have any additional coaching points for how Josh plays through the cycle of the snap,” said McVay.

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