Throughout the 2025 season, no workforce used “13” personnel extra typically or extra successfully than Sean McVay and the Rams offense.
“13” means there’s 1 working again and three tight ends on the sector for a specific play. This usually forces the protection to match up with base personnel of three linebackers and 4 defensive backs as a result of the larger offensive our bodies would have a simple time bull dozing smaller DBs on any run play. The issues start for the protection when all of those huge guys may catch when referred to as upon.
With the standard within the Rams’ TE room, Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford can be shredding defenses all season.
On this specific play, you may see the host of choices Stafford has. The Rams may run Williams to the overloaded aspect or arrange a display screen there. They may ship any variety of TEs out on move routes. If Stafford likes his WRs’ possibilities in a one-on-one state of affairs out to his left, he can go there, or, on this case, that they had Terrance Ferguson movement left and had a submit wheel referred to as.
Most defenses have been constructed to depend on ‘nickel’ defensive schemes, or 5 defensive backs, to maintain up with the pace and lighter personnel packages that offenses usually deploy. They don’t have the depth at linebacker to place three high quality guys on the sector without delay, and on this case, with Fred Warner injured and out, the Niners had their Third- and 4th-string LBs from their depth chart on the sector for almost all of the sport. Evidently, the Rams feasted.
The choices don’t finish there. The Rams additionally run “13” out of formations sometimes utilized in “11” packages as nicely, with two or three TE’s cut up out. While you add the pre or on the snap movement movement McVay makes use of on nearly each play, the defenses are actually simply left guessing.
Wanting again on the field rating from this sport, what jumps out is the truth that all 4 TE’s caught passes for 144 yards in complete. Additionally, eight totally different gamers caught passes, and the duo of Williams and Corum ran for 129 yards. With 36 move makes an attempt and 30 rushes, this was about as balanced an offense as you possibly can ask for.
You’ve seen it a thousand instances. A brief yardage state of affairs and the offense brings out the heavy bundle. The protection sees this and counters with their very own heavy guys, as talked about, their base protection. However what does the defensive coordinator do when the heavy bundle for the offense is on the market more often than not?
Kyle Shanahan saved his base on the sector for the higher a part of the day, and Stafford shredded them over the center. One other workforce might choose to stick with nickel. The massive our bodies will merely steamroll them whereas Kyren Williams and Blake Corum run all day. In both state of affairs, there’ll all the time be an space or a weak spot that Stafford can exploit, and if McVay loves the participant matchups on the sector, he can go to a free hurry-up, leaving no time for defensive personnel modifications.
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 12: Linebacker Fred Warner #54 of the San Francisco 49ers runs to the sidelines through the first half of an NFL soccer sport in opposition to the Los Angeles Rams, at Levi’s Stadium on December 12, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. (Picture by Brooke Sutton/Getty Photos) Getty Photos
With McVay’s play-calling and Stafford’s skill to learn defenses, the sky’s the restrict for this offense. I went again and watched the Jacksonville sport final 12 months because it was the primary time they used “13” greater than a handful of instances, and the Jaguars had no reply for it. Stafford hit seven totally different receivers within the first quarter alone, and the Rams rolled. The scary half? The sport plan was cobbled collectively that week as a result of Puka Nacua was damage and would miss the sport.
Stafford factors out within the clip that they’d had zero snaps within the preseason utilizing “13”, that they principally modified their offensive philosophy, mid season!
With a full offseason for McVay to create new terrors for defensive coordinators, I’m actually trying ahead to what’s to come back.
