If there is one guarantee about the 2025 version of the Los Angeles Rams, it’s that they are going to make games more interesting than they need to be. That was once again the case on Thursday Night, but
this time, playing with fire burned them as they lost to the San Francisco 49ers in overtime, 26-23. Despite blowing a 26-7 lead two weeks ago, this loss may be the most disappointing one in the Sean McVay era. Let’s get to our 10 takeaways.
1. Rams came out with no energy
If Thursday night proved anything, it’s that you cannot underrate any team in this league. You have to show up ready to play. This game was as if the Rams had read the injury reports and thought they’d be able to cruise to a win. The NFL is more than just about showing up. The fact that the Rams came out in primetime against a division rival at home with no energy is a cause for concern. Those are the games you get up for during the season.
The offense didn’t show up for the first quarter and the defense didn’t find its stride until the fourth. Special teams was a disaster for most of the night as a high snap and poor protection led to a missed field goal and an extra point was blocked. Everything was very lackadaisical and just going through the motions too often this game and it was costly.
2. Defense played too passive
For a majority of this game, the Rams defense wasn’t a unit that I recognized. They seemed ok just letting Mac Jones complete pass after pass underneath. Jones was more than ok with that as he threw for 342 yards. This is a 49ers wide receiver group that can create after the catch. Kendrick Bourne had 142 yards receiving. The Rams forced a 1st-and-15 and 1st-and-20 on the opening drive in combination with a 3rd-and-8 on the second drive. In all three cases, the 49ers converted and ended up scoring two touchdowns.
This defense played like the one of the last few years. They were ok allowing 10-15 play drives and giving up yards. However, they were going up against a team more than ok playing that way. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that the Rams finally started to force the issue and the pass rush finally showed up.
3. Cornerbacks remain a big issue
The Rams will have 10 days to decide whether or not they want to trade for a cornerback. We witnessed tonight what the Rams defense looks like when the pass rush can’t get home. This is a defense predicated on being able to get to the quarterback. That is their entire identity. However, if they can’t get to the quarterback, the cornerback position simply doesn’t have the talent to hold up over time.
Darious Williams simply doesn’t have it anymore and while Cobie Durant is fine, his size is an issue on the perimeter. It’s unfair to call the Emmanuel Forbes experiment a failure, but he’s also not making a positive impact in the way that the team had hoped. When Kendrick Bourne goes for 142 yards, there’s an issue. This isn’t to say that the Rams need a star cornerback, but they need a player that can hold their own on the outside.
4. Matthew Stafford played out of his mind
This isn’t to say that Stafford didn’t have his misses. He missed an open Tutu Atwell that would have continued the opening drive. There was also a throw to Jordan Whittington (read as Whittingham) that was more difficult than it needed to be. However, Stafford threw for 389 yards and three touchdowns with a passer rating of 111.0. He got the Rams back in this game as he put on a quarterback clinic. For the first time this season, the offensive line consistently allowed Stafford to settle in the pocket and he took advantage.
Stafford’s 389 yards are the most in his Rams career, beating his 375 yards last week. At 37 years old, Stafford is playing some of the best football in his career. It’s only a shame that this performance ended in a loss and the ball was taken out of his hands when it mattered.
5. Field goal problems need fixed yesterday
The field goal unit is a disaster. On Joshua Karty’s first miss, the snap was high, disrupting the operation and the 49ers rush got through on the left side. Had Karty not missed right, the kick probably gets blocked. Karty then had a kick blocked on an extra point as the rush came through right up the middle.
That operation cost the Rams four points in a game that they lost by three. They have already cost the Rams one game and an argument can be made that it cost them this game as well. Again, the Rams have 10 days and this should be a top priority to get fixed. This isn’t to say that Karty needs to be replaced. The issues aren’t solely on him. However, the 49ers had a make from 59 yards out. Those are plays that the Rams are incapable of making at the moment.
6. Kyren Williams fumbled game away
At some point, things start to become a trend. Kyren Williams’ fumble last week had some context to it as he got hit almost immediately after getting the ball. This is not the first time that Williams has fumbled in a big spot, and at this point, it’s fair to assume it won’t be the last. This is someone the Rams extended and is a leader on the team. That mistake simply cannot happen in that spot and he needs to be more mindful there. He now has 11 fumbles in just over two years. Since Week 4 of the 2023 season, which is 33 games, Williams has fumbled the ball 11 times. That’s an average of one fumble every three games.
It’s fair to say that a lot of players made mistakes and that the loss was much more than Williams’ fumble. At the same time, no mistake was bigger or came in a bigger spot than that one. For as much as Sean McVay may value Kyren Williams in pass protection and keeping the offense on track, he likely also values protecting the ball. The Rams have a Kyren Williams problem and because of the extension, they’re stuck with it.
7. Tutu Atwell showed up again
If there is a positive in this game, it’s that Tutu Atwell showed up once again. Atwell has six games in his career with over 75 yards receiving. Three of those games have come against the 49ers. He had a 34-yard reception to set up a touchdown that put the Rams within six points in the second half. Atwell had another 38-yard reception in overtime that put them in scoring position.
It’s no coincidence that Atwell got involved in a game that Matthew Stafford was protected and had time to allow deeper routes to develop. Atwell showed up in a big way on Thursday night and it’s only disappointing that it resulted in a loss.
8. Fourth down play call was questionable
Sean McVay showed a lot of conviction in his decision to go for it on 4th-and-1 from the 11-yard line to try and win the game. In that spot, the Rams can either go for the win or risk losing the game by giving the ball back to the 49ers in a sudden death situation. It was absolutely the right call to go for it. Still, the play call was the wrong one.
In this game, Matthew Stafford had thrown for 389 yards. Additionally, Puka Nacua has come up in big moments several times throughout the season and is playing like the best wide receiver in the NFL. The Rams signed Davante Adams in free agency to excel in the red zone. Instead, the ball went to Kyren Williams.
There is some context needed here. The Rams had a 4th-and-1 earlier in the game and converted by running the ball. They had 15 rushing attempts by running backs and only one of them didn’t gain a single yard. The one that didn’t was the last one. It’s also fair to expect your run game to get a yard against a depleted 49ers front. At the same time, against light boxes, the Rams are first in success rate. However, against stacked boxes, that drops to 19th. With the game on the line, it makes sense to put the ball in the hands of your best players. With the game on the line, McVay should have put the trust in his quarterback instead of his backup right tackle and Kyren Williams.
9. Proud of the fight, but shouldn’t have been in that spot
There are no moral victories, especially in this loss. At the same time, it is commendable how the Rams fought back. This was a 14-0 ball game in which nothing was going their way. When they got things going on offense, they either had a fumble or missed kick. Josaiah Stewart nearly had an interception. What looked like a 49ers fumble was called back because of ‘forward progress’.
Still, this is a game that never should have gotten to where it did. The Rams were 8.5-point favorites at home against a division rival. If they take care of business and come out ready in the way that they were expected to and how they should have, they are never in a spot where they need to come back.
10. This loss is inexcusable
The disappointing part about both Rams losses this season is that they were in position to win both of them. This is a team that very easily could be 5-0 and first place in the NFC West. Losing to the Philadelphia Eagles was excusable in a sense because it was on the road and against the defending champions. It was a quality team that played up to their potential and erased a 26-7 deficit.
This one is inexcusable. The Rams lost to a division rival at home in primetime. That division rival was without their starting quarterback, their All-Pro tight end, their top three wide receivers, and Nick Bosa. It simply cannot happen. The Rams are absolutely still contenders, but this might just be the wake-up call that they needed. They were out-played, and in some ways out-coached. The Rams can hang their heads on this loss or they can respond in a positive way in 10 days.
