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Aaron Rodgers is a major figure in Jared Goff's earliest football memories.While Goff was a little kid growing up in Marin County Dominique Easley Jersey , his father took him to games at Berkeley's Memorial Stadium, where he watched Rodgers' collegiate brilliance for California.That kid also got one of his first lessons in professional sports heartbreak when his favorite NFL team — the San Francisco 49ers — used the No. 1 pick in the 2005 draft on Alex Smith instead of Rodgers."Yeah, 10-year-old Jared was very upset when he found out they didn't take Aaron," Goff said.Once he grew up and filled out, Goff followed Rodgers' path to Berkeley. And 3陆 years after Goff became the No. 1 pick that Rodgers never was, they'll face each other for the first time when Goff's unbeaten Los Angeles Rams (7-0) host Rodgers' Green Bay Packers (3-2-1) on Sunday.A significant NFC showdown between the NFL's last unbeaten team and a perennial power is also a meeting of a rising quarterback star and one of his heroes, still in his prime. Both Golden Bears are excited by the opportunity."I've followed his whole career," Goff said. "Big fan of his. There are times where we're watching him play against the defense (the Rams are supposed to be scouting), and you get stuck on watching him. He's a great player. I've got a lot of respect for him, and it'll be fun to get a chance to go against him."The feeling is mutual for the 34-year-old Rodgers as he leads the Packers back to the venerable Coliseum, where their storied franchise won the first Super Bowl in 1967."I've gotten to know Jared a little bit over the last couple years, and being a Cal guy, obviously I'm pulling for him," Rodgers said."And he's played really well. They've put a lot on his plate with (checkdowns) and stuff at the line of scrimmage, and he does a good job with that. He's an accurate passer. He's making good throws. He's got some weapons to throw to, but he's been extremely accurate and efficient with the ball. That's what you need with the quarterback."Rodgers already has his own Coliseum memories: He tied an NCAA record by completing his first 23 passes for Cal against USC in their famous meeting in 2004 http://www.theramslockerroom.com/authent...suh-jersey , but the Trojans hung on for a 23-17 victory.More things to watch in the Packers' first appearance at the Coliseum since before the NFL left LA in 1994:LONG ODDSThe Packers are coming off their bye week, but they opened as 8陆-point underdogs for this matchup against the powerhouse Rams, who are 18-5 in the regular season since coach Sean McVay took over.That's the biggest betting disadvantage of Rodgers' career as Green Bay's starter, but nobody doubts Rodgers' ability to overcome it — including the Rams."He's got the ball placement, he's got the arm, he's got the competitive (attitude), he's got the heart," said Rams cornerback Marcus Peters, who also grew up in the Bay Area watching Rodgers at Cal. "Every time (Rodgers is) on that field for the Packers, they've got a good chance to win it."START ME UPThe Rams are off to their first 7-0 start since 1985. The franchise hasn't started 8-0 since 1969, when NFL MVP Roman Gabriel led Los Angeles to an 11-0 start followed by four straight losses.CLAY'S HOMECOMINGPackers linebacker Clay Matthews grew up in the Los Angeles suburbs, and he walked on at USC before becoming a star and a first-round NFL pick in 2009. He is playing at the venerable Coliseum for the first time since college.So is Nick Perry, who played at USC from 2009-11. "It'll be cool to go back out there, obviously," Matthews said. "It will be different being in the opposing locker room."GURLEY'S GAMEGoff aside, Green Bay's defense must figure out how to slow running back Todd Gurley John Franklin-Myers Jersey , who is putting up even more impressive numbers than he managed as the AP's Offensive Player of the Year in 2017. Gurley leads the league with 88 points, 686 yards rushing, 144 carries and 956 yards from scrimmage. The Packers' run defense is ranked 22nd in the league, giving up a hefty 4.5 yards per carry.SHIELDS SIGHTINGCornerback Sam Shields made the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2010, and he was a steady defensive contributor until he incurred his fourth concussion in the 2016 season opener.After nearly two years out of football, he joined the Rams this season . Green Bay cornerback Tramon Williams says he consulted with Shields regularly about his health during his absence."At one point I was on the bandwagon with him, like, 'Man, you need to call it quits,'" Williams said. "And on the other side, after he had some time off, his mind is cleared and he's back mentally ready to go." Coach Vance Joseph said Monday "everything's being considered right now" when asked if he's contemplating lineup changes or taking over the play-calling from defensive coordinator Joe Woods."It's all being considered. We're still watching the tape to figure out what's the best course of action, but it's all being considered," Joseph said a day after the Broncos' 34-16 loss to the New York Jets in which they allowed 512 yards, 343 on the ground.Cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said he has no inkling of the changes in store, except that "we've got to play better http://www.theramslockerroom.com/authent...ers-jersey , we've got to execute better as a defense, play with more awareness. They gave us a whole bunch of new looks in the run game that we've got to be prepared for in the future and try to clean up all of the mistakes."Harris said he's still confident in Woods."Oh yeah, we just watched the game and I can honestly say he had probably one or two bad calls," Harris said. "The rest is just poor execution."The Broncos (2-3) are mired in a three-game skid with the unbeaten Los Angeles Rams (5-0) coming in next week. This marks the return of Wade Phillips, whose contract wasn't renewed last year after he molded a championship defense in Denver.Phillips left because the Broncos wanted to promote Woods from secondary coach, but Woods hasn't had similar success.After cornerback Bradley Roby surrendered two long TD passes Sunday, NBC analyst Tony Dungy declared, "The 'No Fly Zone' is dead."Denver's defensive dominance is history, too.Despite the efforts of Harris and end Derek Wolfe, who had his first career interception Sunday, the Broncos have one of the worst defenses in the league — they're ranked 26th overall and 30th against the run.Star linebacker Von Miller has been quiet since a three-sack opener and hasn't come close to a sack in three weeks, but it's Roby's struggles that have been the most notable.The Broncos traded Aqib Talib to the Rams last offseason to clear both salary cap space and room for Roby, who got a pay raise this season from about $1 million to $8.526 million in the final season of his rookie contract.Roby's adjustment from nickel cornerback to starter has been an arduous one.After being criticized all season for giving too much cushion to the receivers, Roby allowed a 76-yard touchdown catch by Robby Anderson and was one of two unblocked defenders on Isaiah Crowell's 77-yard touchdown run Sunday.Afterward, Roby said ups and downs come with the position."I have confidence because I know my job is hard, I know that I'm always in man coverage without a lot of help Womens Aqib Talib Jersey ," Roby said.Asked if he'd prefer more zone coverage to help him out, Roby said, "I don't want to comment on that."Joseph said Roby has to play more confidently: "That's part of being an NFL starter. They go at you, they make a play or two and you have to go back out there and battle. And if you don't it looks like that."Roby hasn't developed the short memory necessary for a starting NFL cornerback."As a starting corner every play can be a big play," Joseph said. "That makes it a difficult position in this league because it's a passing league, obviously, and if you're not making plays on the ball, every play can be a big play."The Broncos' defensive troubles are exacerbated by an offense that's turning the ball over too often and not finishing drives in the red zone.Quarterback Case Keenum ranks 30th in the league with a passer rating of 78.1. He has just five touchdown throws and his seven interceptions match the total he had all of last year with Minnesota.The Broncos also got off to a good start last year only to tumble into a two-month funk, and linebacker Todd Davis said he's confident this team can turn things around to prevent another losing season."Absolutely, we definitely have the guys in this locker room that care about our team being great. So, I think we definitely have the willpower to turn this whole ship around," Davis said. "And that's what we're going to do this week is turn this whole thing around."Instead of reviewing the game film by position groups as they usually do, Denver's entire defense watched it together Monday with Woods leading the session."We're making everything open and honest about what happened and why it happened, so it keeps us all on the same wavelength," Davis said. "We're just trying to get back to playing our brand of football."Notes: Ace Kyle Freeland isn't the only one who didn't get a chance to take the mound in the Colorado Rockies' best-of-five NL Division Series sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers. Davis said he was slated to throw out the ceremonial first pitch Monday night in Game 4.