January 20, 2021 - Jourdan Rodrigue and Rich Hammond

The Late Night Happy Hour with Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

The Late Night Happy Hour welcomes Jourdan Rodrigue and Rich Hammond of The Athletic. They cover the Rams, and host the "11 Personnel" podcast. And they were kind enough to go in for a deep dive into the 2020 season, and what's coming this offseason and beyond.

We start with a review of the loss in Green Bay. How much of the damage done by Green Bay to what had been a dominant defense was tied directly to Aaron Donald's health? How much was the brilliance of Aaron Rodgers? What needed to happen for the Rams to win that game?

It wasn't a great ending for Brandon Staley, but nonetheless it was a tremendous season... which is why he's now coaching the Chargers. So what changes next year with (presumably) Raheem Morris as defensive coordinator? He is, notes Rodrigue, an excellent coach. But he's different than Staley, and that means new personnel and a new system for the third straight season.

Back to the offense, and that means questions about Jared Goff. Is there any real chance he's not the starting QB next year? Does Sean McVay really believe in John Wolford as an option going forward? Would they sit a QB making eleventybillion dollars? Because releasing him is a VERY tough pill to swallow from a salary cap standpoint. But it leads to a great question from a viewer -- Does McVay think Goff is holding him and his offense back?

From there, it's a look at free agency. The Rams are in a tough spot, with important players poised to leave and limited ability to fill those spots through the Draft and free agency. So is this going to be a doomsday summer?

Can Cam Akers be a truly special, transformative running back?

Finally, as is always the case when Jourdan comes on the show... it's bird talk! Tonight, we play a round of Rate That Bird.