As frustrated as Sean McVay has been over the Los Angeles Rams’ never-ending issues on special teams, he’s becoming equally irritated by his team’s repeated penalties. It’s not so much the in-play mistakes that players are making.
It’s the pre-snap infractions that are entirely in players’ control that bother McVay so much – things like false starts and illegal shifts.
Those penalties were a problem again on Sunday in the Rams’ win over the Chargers, and it’s gotten to the point where McVay is just about out of answers. After the game, he once again lamented the Rams’ pre-snap infractions, saying that it’s usually reliable players who are making these mistakes.
“We did have some procedural issues that I can't wrap my head around,” he said. “I thought
we had it cleaned up last week and they came to bite us a little bit today. It’s from conscientious guys that have been reliable.”
According to NFLPenalties.com, the Rams have committed 13 false start penalties this season, which is tied for the seventh-most. The Rams had four false starts on Sunday alone, two by Tyler Higbee. One was by Alaric Jackson, and the other was committed by Omar Speights before a punt.
The Rams overcame Higbee’s second false start by scoring a touchdown on that same drive. However, one play after his first false start, Matthew Stafford threw an interception on third-and-6; had it been third-and-1, the Rams might’ve run the ball.
Jackson’s false start came on third-and-10, making it third-and-15, which resulted in an incompletion and a punt.
The Rams also had an illegal shift early in the game on a pass to Puka Nacua that lost 4 yards, so it didn’t wind up mattering. But still, the fact is that the Rams still can’t get out of their own way after it seemed like they cleaned up those issues in the win over the Raiders last week.
There’s no question coaches are harping on these mistakes, but there’s only so much they can do. It’s now on the players to correct it and stop pushing the offense back with senseless penalties.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Sean McVay baffled by Rams' repeated penalties: 'Can't wrap my head around' it
