PFF grades: Rookie linemen among the best on offense vs Raiders

Matthew Stafford was LA’s lowest-graded player on offense

A Week 7 win over the Las Vegas Raiders moves the Los Angeles Rams to 2-4 on the season. They have a quick turnaround before their next game as they host the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football.

Can LA take their next two games against the Vikings and Seattle Seahawks to work their way back to .500? LA is on the verge of a lost season and the margin of error has never been tighter.

Here’s who stood out against the Raiders according to Pro Football Focus (PFF) grading:

Top five grades on offense:

1 – Beaux Limmer, C: 73.3

The Rams allowed just four pressures to a talented Raiders defensive front. These pressures were attributed as follows:

Rob Havenstein: 1

Kyren Williams: 1

Kevin Dotson: 2, including a sack

That means rookie center Limmer did not allow a single pressure, though PFF gave him a pass blocking grade of just 26.0 because he was flagged for holding.

Limmer was more effective in the run game and posted a grade of 78.5.

2 – Xavier Smith, WR: 73.2

Smith rushed two times for 30 yards, including a long of 24 yards that gave LA a fresh set of downs at the goal line. He played five snaps total, so the Rams were intent on getting him the ball when he was on the field for the offense.

3 – Blake Corum, RB: 72.2

Corum played just six snaps. One came in pass protection and he earned a mark of 72.4. The rookie rushed three times for 11 yards (3.7 average), though he was quickly pulled for Kyren Williams.

4 – Tutu Atwell, WR: 71.8

Atwell continues to be the Rams’ most consistent pass catcher in the absence of Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, though it’s fair to question why he wasn’t in the mix while both Kupp and Nacua were healthy. It’s absolutely clear that Atwell is a more talented and effective player than Demarcus Robinson at this point, and he should remain in the starting lineup as LA returns to full health.

Atwell caught six of nine targets for 51 yards. He was second on the Rams in receiving behind Tyler Johnson, who ripped off a long catch and run of 37 yards.

5 – Justin Dedich, LG: 70.0

Dedich did not allow a single pressure in his first career start. He earned the nod over third-year guard Logan Bruss coming out of the bye week. Dedich was the Rams’ highest graded pass protector (78.9) and earned a positive run grade at 65.0.

Other notes on offense:

Matthew Stafford was the lowest graded individual on offense against Las Vegas. His traditional stats were 14/23 (60.9%) for 154 yards and an interception. He was sacked a single time and posted a QB rating of 62.6. PFF credited Stafford with one big-time throw, a turnover-worthy play, and an offensive grade of just 48.9. His adjusted completion percentage was 70.0% and notably higher than his raw rate, which suggests there were throwaways that are reflected in the traditional measures.

Of all quarterbacks with more than 155 dropbacks, Gardner Minshew (54.1) is the only QB ranked lower than Stafford on the season (56.5). Minshew turned the ball over four times versus LA.

Top five grades on defense:

1 – Cobie Durant, CB: 94.6

Durant posted impressive pass rush and coverage grades of 93.7 and 93.0. He stripped the ball away from Minshew and posted a sack on his only pass rushing attempt. Durant played an important role in slowing down rookie phenom Brock Bowers, though Durant left the game with cramps and Bowers then did some damage against LA’s linebackers. The rookie TE finished with 10 catches for 93 yards.

This was easily Durant’s best game of the season and was the best of his career. With this being Darious Williams’ second game back from injury, are we watching Durant settle into a role and turning a corner?

Durant played 10 snaps in the slot.

2 – Jaylen McCollough, DB: 85.0

The rookie UDFA returned a pick-six of Jordan Love last week versus the Green Bay Packers, and then against the Raiders he picked off Minshew twice—including an interception that sealed the game and ended the Raiders’ comeback attempt.

McCollough played only 18 snaps as they experienced with taking the off-ball linebackers off the field at times. There were nine plays where neither Troy Reeder or Christian Rozeboom were on the field. In those instances, Lake called signals from the secondary and Hoecht arranged the defensive line.

It’s also worth noting that third round rookie Kamren Kinchens played only two snaps on defense, so McCollough has passed one of LA’s top draft picks on the depth chart.

3 – Quentin Lake, DB: 80.9

This was one of Lake’s best games on the season. He forced a key incompletion late in the game on third down to end a Raiders drive. PFF credited the defensive captain with seven tackles. In coverage he was targeted four times and allowed just two catches for 10 yards.

4 – Ahkello Witherspoon, CB: 74.0

Witherspoon has been a welcome mid-season addition and an obvious improvement over Tre White. He played 47 snaps in this game with 41 coming on the outside. Most of these likely were in replacement of Durant who left with injury and played in the slot some. There were five plays where Witherspoon was the nearest defender in coverage, and on those plays the Raiders completed three passes for 29 yards. Witherspoon also broke up a pass.

5 – Kamren Curl, DB: 73.6

It’s been an up-and-down season so far for Kamren Curl. Outside of the opener versus the Detroit Lions, Week 7 was the veteran’s best performance on the season. He earned two pressures on five blitzes, took down ball carriers seven times without a missed tackle, and held Vegas to just three catches on five targets for 29 yards. Curl also broke up a pass.

Other notes on defense:

Just missing out on the top five, Jared Verse and Michael Hoecht posted defensive grades of 71.6 and 71.1, respectively. Verse led the Rams with seven pressures and Hoecht posted three of his own. Byron Young pressured Raiders QB’s four times, though overall he was ranked 17th of 19 players on defense.