After one of the most exciting offseasons in NFL history, there is no doubt that the Cleveland Browns were one of the most talked-about teams entering the 2019 NFL season.
With the addition of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the firepower of quarterback Baker Mayfield and wide receiver Jarvis Landry, it makes for a tough matchup for the Los Angeles Rams as they get ready for their Week 3 matchup on Sunday night.
Beckham and Landry made a formidable duo in college as each managed to put up over 1,000 receiving yards in their third and final year at LSU.
After starting their careers elsewhere, they both have managed to reconnect in Cleveland, not quite picking up where they left off in college. Although Beckham Jr. currently has the fifth-most receiving yards in the young season, Landry is down at 64th overall.
Despite that, the Rams defense is ready to take on two of the most talented players in the league. Cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman knows that these two can make plays that many receivers simply cannot, via Stu Jackson of TheRams.com:
“You’ve got to understand that these guys are great players, and they’re going to make great catches,” Robey-Coleman said. “They’re going to do something irregular things that we don’t traditionally see in a regular receiver. So knowing that, it helps us be on top of the details a little bit more and fight for four quarters, because those type of guys, it only takes one play for them to go off.”
“On top of that, don’t try to let them get into an early rhythm. Keep them off rhythm.”
Through two games, the Rams have had one of the better defenses in the NFL. They have allowed the fifth-fewest yards overall, giving up just 587 total.
Although they stopped New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara throughout their last matchup, that game could have looked very different had quarterback Drew Brees stayed healthy. Going up against a talented roster such as Cleveland’s might be the Rams’ hardest test of 2019.
Much of that test will be on the team’s cornerbacks, Robey-Coleman, Marcus Peters and veteran Aqib Talib. Talib feels that the gameplan should not change in order to stop the Browns:
“You can’t change nothing,” Talib said. “Just execute, man. Good technique, and executing.”
While Talib has been starting as expected, Robey-Coleman has only been seeing time off the bench. So far that time has been put to good use, recording six solo tackles and one pass defended. Talib, Robey-Coleman and the rest of the Rams will take on the Browns in Cleveland this Sunday at 5:20 p.m. PT.
