In classic Los Angeles Rams fashion, they didn’t make it easy on Sunday against the Detroit Lions. With a chance to clinch the playoffs, the Rams just needed a win against a team that’s given them problems over the last two years. While they fell behind 24-14 in the first half, quarterback Matthew Stafford had his MVP moment and led the Rams back to secure the win. The Rams are now 11-3 and one of two teams officially in the playoffs. Let’s jump into this week’s 10 takeaways.
1. Early mistakes put Rams in hole
During the early portion
of this game, it seemed as if it was going in the same direction as the Panthers game two weeks ago. The Rams were riding momentum and driving into the red zone. A Matthew Stafford interception on a tight end screen gave the Lions the ball in the red zone at the other end of the field. On the next play, Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown had the Lions in the lead, connecting in the end zone on a post route.
While the Rams took the lead back, they were struggling to slow down David Montgomery on the ground and the defense couldn’t get a stop. Nacua had an early drop and Stafford just missed a wide open Terrance Ferguson. After Stafford was sacked on 3rd-and-5, the Lions scored a touchdown on another explosive play to take a 10-point lead. Early on, it was the Lions defense making the key plays with interceptions and getting stops in big moments. This was always going to be a game in which the defense that did just enough was going to be a difference. The Rams had a slow start and fell behind because of it.
2. Defense with another slow start
The Rams defense has had a few games this season in which they’ve started slow. They allowed 17 first-half points against the San Francisco 49ers back in Week 5 and against the Panthers in Week 13. This is a defense that allowed 20 points in the second half to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3 and 26 if you count the field goal returned for a touchdown. The story is almost always the same.
Against the Lions, the Rams needed to get pressure on Jared Goff. For much of the first half, they were inconsistent, especially from the interior. Jared Verse and Byron Young were getting to Goff from the edges, but without interior pressure, the Lions quarterback was able to step up and make plays. On 10+ yard throws, he was 6-for-6 for 161 yards and two touchdowns. In total, Goff finished the first half 14-for-20 for 221 yards and three touchdowns. The secondary looked every bit of the unit that many had concerns about coming into the season. Cobie Durant got beat for touchdowns twice while Josh Wallace had a few rough moments.
3. Not enough is said about McVay’s evolution
Sean McVay deserves his flowers in this game. While some may call it reckless, McVay went for it on 4th-and-4 and 4th-and-8 in the first quarter. The Rams converted both and turned that drive into a touchdown. Later in the game, he went for it on 4th-and-1 from midfield. Blake Corum strained through the play and fell forward to pick up the first down. On the touchdown drive in the first quarter, Puka Nacua lined up as a fullback inside the five. The Rams may have gotten cute on their second touchdown, but McVay settled down and called a run play to score.
In the second quarter, the Rams were down by 10 points and this was a pass-heavy game-script. Stafford may have thrown the ball 38 times, but the Rams called 28 run plays which included 26 by their running backs. On the opening drive of the second half, trailing by seven, McVay called five runs to five passes. McVay’s play-calling and game management are more aggressive. In a game that might have snowballed and gotten out of control in the past, McVay managed and stayed balanced. He slowed the game down instead of speeding it up. Not enough is said about McVay’s growth this season and it’s worth mentioning in a game like this. He out-coached Dan Campbell.
4. Points before the half were huge
Heading into the second half, the Rams were facing a worst-case scenario. Not only did the defense give up a late score, but they gave up a touchdown with 30 seconds left. Instead of keeping the game within one score going into the half, it looked like the Rams were going to take a 10-point deficit into the locker room. However, any time is too much time for Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua.
Stafford hit Nacua for 37 yards to put the Rams in the red zone in two plays. While they didn’t score a touchdown, they brought the game back within one score. That was huge as they got the ball back to start the second half. The Rams were one of six teams to come back from a 10-point deficit on Sunday and this sequence was a big reason for that.
5. Chris Shula’s adjustments pay off
Chris Shula and the Rams defense were getting lot of deserved heat and criticism after the first half. They had allowed 24 points and didn’t look close to being able to slow down the Lions offense. With that said, Shula has earned the right to be given time. He’s proved several times in the past that he’s excellent with in-game adjustments. There aren’t many defensive coordinators who adjust in-game as well as he does.
To put this in perspective, the Lions had 168 yards of offense in the second quarter. With the help of a penalty, the Lions offense traveled -5 yards in the third quarter. Shula may have gotten it wrong initially, but he was able to fix it. Those adjustments were a big reason for the offense scoring two touchdowns within 1:58 of each other. The Rams did a better job getting interior pressure on Goff and forcing third-and-long situations. Kobie Turner’s sack in the third quarter seemed to be a turning point. The defense had three consecutive drives in which they forced a three-and-out. It was night and day from the first half. Shula’s adjustments played a huge role in the Rams coming back in this game.
6. Williams and Corum are a perfect duo
The Rams may have one of the best running back duos in the NFL. This is a game in which you can watch what the Rams did on offense and come away with the fact that Williams and Corum were two of the most impressive players. Williams did what he does well and kept the offense on track while scoring twice in the red zone. Late in the game when the Rams needed to run out the clock, Williams was there to finish the game. Corum showed off his ability once again to bounce plays outside. He also picked up a crucial first down on 4th-and-1 in the second half. Corum brings an explosiveness that the run game has lacked in recent years.
This is a thunder-and-lightning combination that works great. As a duo, Williams and Corum combined for 26 carries for 149 yards and three touchdowns. Williams now has 13 total touchdowns and became the sixth player since 2000 with at least 13 touchdowns in three of his first four seasons. It’s the third consecutive game that they’ve had 140 yards or more rushing between the two of them. Being able to run the ball this late in the season is extremely important. That’s how games are won in December and January. The Rams should be able to ride Williams and Corum into the postseason and hopefully as the No. 1 seed.
7. Colby Parkinson has Gerald Everett moment
Back in 2018 with the Rams trailing 51-47, Jared Goff hit Gerald Everett down the right sideline to take the lead for good. While that play happened late in the fourth quarter, Colby Parkinson had his Everett moment on Sunday. With the Rams trailing 24-20, Stafford hit Parkinson down the right sideline for a touchdown. It also gave the Rams the lead for good.
Parkinson scored two touchdowns in this game, bringing his season total to six. He had four touchdowns in the previous five years combined. He had a career-high 75 yards receiving and has stepped up admirably with Tyler Higbee on injured reserve. Many had been waiting for the Parkinson breakout to happen after the Rams signed him as a free agent last year. It’s finally happened.
8. Puka Nacua. What else needs to be said?
As a rookie, Puka Nacua had nine receptions for 181 yards in his first career playoff game against the Lions. On Sunday, Nacua tied his career-high in receiving yards with nine receptions for 181 yards against the Lions. Nacua had a big drop early, but made up for it with two big catches on fourth down. It was Nacua’s 37-yard catch that put the Rams in field goal range before the half. Nacua is simply on another level right now. Whenever the Rams need a play, Nacua is there to make it.
Nacua now has 102 receptions and 1,367 receiving yards this season. He is the fifth player all-time with at least 100 receptions and 1,200 receiving yards in two of his first three seasons. Nacua has 17 career games with at least 100 receiving yards which is the fourth-most such games by a player in their first three seasons. I’m not done. The Rams wide receiver has seven games with at least 150 receiving yards and surpassed Lance Alworth and Randy Moss for the second-most such games by a player in his first three seasons in NFL history.
9. This was Matthew Stafford’s MVP game
Some of the MVP award is about narratives. On a day in which Matthew Stafford went up against his former team, he passed Jared Goff for the fourth-most passing yards in franchise history. He did that with Goff on the other sideline. Stafford brought the Rams back from 10 points down as he went 24-for-38 for 368 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The Rams trailed 24-14 as Stafford was 11-for-19 with an interception. He finished the rest of the game 13-for-19 for 222 yards and two touchdowns. Stafford hit big throw after big throw in a game in which the offense relied on him to do that. It was an MVP moment and performance.
If Stafford wins the MVP, this is the game that we’ll look back on at the end of the season. The Lions blitzed Stafford at a 51.2 percent rate which was the second-highest rate in a game this season against the Rams quarterback. He went 14-for-19 for 202 yards and two touchdowns. It’s true that the Lions were injured in the secondary. However, this was a game in which Stafford’s defense struggled to get stops. The game required Stafford to lead an offense to score 40 points and that’s what he did. The Rams put the ball in Stafford’s hands and he delivered against a team where doing so means a little more.
10. All eyes on the No. 1 seed
The Rams are the only team in the NFC to be guaranteed a playoff spot heading into Week 16. Now, the focus shifts to the No. 1 seed and that is now incredibly important to achieve. The Rams were already managing an injury to Quentin Lake and hoping to get him back for the playoffs. It now seems as if Adams is going to miss some serious time with a hamstring injury. Depending on the seriousness, Adams could miss 4-8 weeks. The divisional round would be the five-week mark. The Rams are navigating a few injuries and those players need time. A bye week would almost certainly mean that this Rams team is at its healthiest.
A Philip Rivers-led Colts win on Sunday would have been huge, but it wasn’t meant to be. The No. 1 seed could come down to the Thursday Night Football game between the Rams and Seahawks. According to The Athletic, the Rams have a 56 percent chance at the No. 1 seed. With a win against the Seahawks, that jumps to 92 percent. However, a loss would drop it to 22 percent and puts the 49ers back in the mix. The Rams have clinched a playoff spot. Their next goal should be the NFC West and the No. 1 seed.
