The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 24-9 to move to 4-4 on the season.
The Rams have two winnable games on deck against the Washington Commanders and Arizona Cardinals to potentially put together a four-game win streak and move to 6-4.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s put a cap on the team’s win over the Chargers. These are the Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades from the game with important notes.
Top five grades on offense
1 – Steve Avila, LG: 86.1
PFF counted four pressures on Matthew Stafford across 26 dropbacks. The quarterback
was sacked only a single time. The offensive line was credited with only one of these pressures, which suggests Stafford was inviting pressure with his play.
Steve Avila did not allow a single pressure. He was also effective in the run game with a grade of 82.9.
2 – Kevin Dotson, RG: 79.0
Dotson also did not allow a pressure. He posted a run grade of 79.9. This was by far his best grade of the season, which is encouraging because he has not looked like himself. Dotson has strung together two positive performances and could be trending in the right direction.
3 – Puka Nacua, WR: 78.4
The offense runs through Puka Nacua. He caught 11 of 12 targets for 80 yards with a score. 65 of his yards came after the catch point, and he averaged nearly six additional yards per catch. With a 1.5 average depth of target (ADOT), Nacua was doing the hard work for nearly every yard he gained.
4 – Coleman Shelton, C: 76.9
Shelton received a poor pass protection grade of 57.5 with no pressures allowed. He shined in the run game at 79.5.
5 – Warren McClendon, RT: 74.7
McClendon is the only lineman to allow a pressure. Still, he finished with a strong pass protection grade of 70.8 with even better marks in the run game at 74.6.
Other notes on offense
The Rams had 110 yards after the catch point in the passing game. Matthew Stafford had 157 passing yards on the day. Just 30% of his yardage total on the game were “air yards”, which underscores how suffocated the passing game felt at times. Stafford finished with an ADOT of just 3.8 yards down field with a 2.26 second time to throw. That is about as short and fast as it gets.
Top five grades on defense
1 – Trent McDuffie, CB: 86.6
McDuffie intercepted Justin Herbert and nearly returned for a defensive scheme. He made five defensive run stops from the secondary with nine total tackles. Herbert looked his way often with eight targets. McDuffie allowed six receptions for 47 yards, of which 45 came after the catch with a long of 30.
2 – Omar Speights, MLB: 85.6
Speights’ best work came this week in pass coverage with a grade of 91.5. He allowed three catches on four targets for 14 yards.
Nate Landman is still the starter in the middle of the defense. He played 42 snaps, and that suggests his role as an every-down player is diminishing. Quentin Lake was the “green d0t” guy. Speights played 35 snaps.
3 – Tyler Davis, DT: 83.3
The interior defensive line continues to step up without Poona Ford and Kobie Turner. Tyler Davis was the emerging player this week, and he ranked third on the defense in run grade behind McDuffie and Jaylen Watson. He also added two pressures as a pass rusher.
4 – Quentin Lake, DB: 77.9
Lake snatched the first of two Justin Herbert interceptions on the day. In total he allowed three catches on four targets for 30 yards. Lake did not miss a tackle on six attempts. He rushed the passer on three occasions.
5 – Emmanuel Forbes, CB: 75.9
Jaylen Watson suffered a shoulder injury and played 41 of the total 61 defensive snaps. Forbes was the biggest recipient of this additional playing time with 17 snaps. The corner was targeted one time and allowed just one catch for a yard, including five yards after the catch.
Other notes on defense
Aaron Donald, Braden Fiske, and Byron Young were the three lowest graded defenders this week at 54.9, 53.1, and 49.7, respectively. That doesn’t happen often. It’s still encouraging that someone other than the usual suspects stepped up in a stifling defensive performance.
