The Seahawks guard D.J. Fluker made some noise this week about the Rams defensive line. The Rams said they’ll take care of business. I love this stuff.
There’s an old adage in sports: never give your opponent material for their bulletin board. I’m not positive about this, but I think this was first said by Thag the Triceratops before facing Slag the Tyrannosaurus. Pretty silly, considering the Tyrannosaurs couldn’t have reached a bulletin board with those ridiculously short arms. Seahawks guard D.J. Fluker also thinks it’s a silly rule, as he gave plenty to the Rams before their upcoming game in Los Angeles.
Before we get to the Rams responses – yes, that is plural – what exactly did Mr. Fluker say? Just to be clear, he said this after the first game, not just this week. So this wasn’t typical pregame hype. I’d say it was a pretty matter-of-fact statement of how he saw the contest. Okay, enough of me. Here’s what Fluker had to say:
"“The thing about it is, everybody gets terrified with 99 and 93,” Fluker said of Donald and Ndamukong Suh after the game. “We weren’t terrified. We weren’t scared. We’re offensive linemen. We’re built to do this. We go out there and grind, every single day. “They haven’t seen a team that plays physical. They want to be pass-rushers. They haven’t seen a team actually go out there and take it to them every single play. They haven’t seen that. We’re going to keep grinding, keep building our foundation and keep going.”"
Of course, you can find this from multiple sources. I chose Lindsey Thiry’s ESPN blog on the Rams. The fun part kicks in with the responses from the guys he’s talking about. From the same article, here’s what Aaron Donald had to say:
"“We just going to go out there and play our game,” Donald said with a hint of a grin after practice. “Let our play speak for us.”"
Donald also posted his opinion of Fluker’s comments on Instagram:
Just to add to the fun, Todd Gurley and Brandin Cooks chimed in on Donald’s post:
"“@mikedavisrb you in trouble Sunday bro,” Todd Gurley wrote in a comment to Donald’s post. “Talk to emmm,” Brandin Cooks added."
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So let’s clarify a few things. Anyone who thinks Fluker was trash-talking the Rams isn’t thinking clearly, at all. Everything he said is true. You can tell some teams are intimidated by the Rams defensive line. They’re very good, and they can indeed be intimidating.
But as Fluker said, he and his teammates on the line are “built to do this”. It’s their job to “go out and grind”. Fluker literally said that the Seahawks line wasn’t scared. He didn’t say the Rams were overrated.
What Fluker did say was the Rams hadn’t seen a team go right at them. Regardless of the reputation of their defensive line, it’s a fact that Los Angeles just hasn’t very good on defense this year.
They’re ranked 14th in passing yards and 13th in rushing yards allowed. They’re 16th in the league in touchdowns allowed through the air and on the ground. By far their best stat is they’re 10th in points allowed. The Rams defensive line is plenty good, to be sure. But they’re still just 17th in sack percentage. The Seahawks are 10th in the league. Which line is getting the job done?
In case you were wondering, the Seahawks are 5th overall in points allowed. You know, the team that’s retooling/revamping/re-anything-but-building. Yes, I know the Rams have played an extra game, smartypants. Per game, Los Angeles has given up 22.2 points; Seattle has allowed 19.5. So who has the intimidating defense? By the way, can you guess which defense is ranked 4th in the league in passer rating allowed, and which is ranked 24th? That would be Seattle 20 places ahead of Los Angeles. Hmmm… maybe our guy was right.
A few more facts supporting our favorite bulldozer, D.J. Fluker. The Seahawks offense hasn’t exactly been great; we all know that. The one time they managed to break 30 points this season? Of course, it was against the big bad Rams defense. The Seahawks have allowed over 30 just once – and yes, it was against the stinking Rams. Hey, I never said their offense wasn’t great. The Rams defense gave up 31 to Seattle, 31 to Minnesota, and a sparkling 45 to New Orleans. That isn’t a defense that should scare anyone. Fluker was absolutely right.
The whole concept of bulletin board material in the NFL is ridiculous anyway. Professional athletes will find motivation to play their best, no matter what an opponent says or doesn’t say. Unless they play for the Raiders, apparently. I’m happy that the Seahawks have a player who clearly states he won’t be intimidated by anyone. Now let’s just hope Fluker can play.