The Los Angeles Rams knocked off the Washington Commanders on Sunday, 20-13, winning their third straight game and fifth of the season. The defense carried the team once again, shutting down the Commanders by allowing just one touchdown and only 16 first downs.
The Rams' offense did just enough to win the game after a painfully slow start in the first half again, scoring two touchdowns in the second half to pull ahead.
Pro Football Focus' grades show just how much better the defense was against the Commanders. The highest-graded offensive player was Puka Nacua, and he still had a lower grade than the fourth-best defender, Omar Speights.
Here's a breakdown of the best and worst grades (min. 10 snaps).
Top 5 offense
- WR Puka Nacua: 78.9
- LT Alaric Jackson: 72.5
- RB Blake Corum: 70.6
- LG Steve Avila: 64.3
- RB Kyren Williams: 61.1
Nacua was outstanding, with 14 catches for 150
yards and a touchdown, as well as two rushes for 20 yards. However, he did have two drops, which definitely lowered his grade.
Jackson allowed two pressures, but both of them were just hurries and he didn't give up a QB hit or sack.
Corum forced two missed tackles on his way to rushing for 58 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. Williams didn't force any missed tackles but he did have a 71.1 pass-blocking grade.
Avila was perfect before getting hurt, allowing zero pressures in the win.
Top 5 defense
- OLB Myles Garrett: 93.3
- CB Emmanuel Forbes Jr.: 90.6
- DT Aaron Donald: 90.1
- LB Omar Speights: 82.3
- LB Nate Landman: 78.3
Garrett's 93.3 grade is the highest of any defensive player in the NFL for Week 9, showing just how outstanding he was in his return. He had eight pressures and three sacks, with a forced fumble.
It's fitting that Forbes had one of the best games of his career against his former team, earning his third-highest grade ever on Sunday. He allowed six catches and a touchdown, but that was on 10 targets for a total of 19 yards.
Donald was second on the team with four pressures, but he did miss a tackle and only had one assisted tackle in the win. His impact as a pass rusher was felt, though.
Speights and Landman both played well. They were terrific in coverage and only missed one tackle combined, allowing a total of two catches for 21 yards.
Bottom 5 offense
- WR Tutu Atwell: 54.5
- LG Beaux Limmer: 54.1
- WR Konata Mumpfield: 53.0
- TE Davis Allen: 48.8
- TE Tyler Higbee: 47.6
Atwell dropped a pass over the middle on third down (though PFF didn't count it as a drop) and had just two catches for 16 yards.
Limmer replaced Avila at left guard and allowed one pressure, which was a quarterback hit.
Mumpfield had two catches for 20 yards and graded out at 35.8 as a run blocker.
Allen and Higbee both struggled in this one. Allen didn't catch a pass and Higbee ran a poor route on third down that resulted in an incompletion.
Bottom 5 defense
- LB Shaun Dolac: 56.0
- S Kamren Kinchens: 50.0
- DB Quentin Lake: 47.6
- DT Larrell Murchison: 37.7
- OLB Wesley Bailey: 28.4
Dolac played 10 snaps and was credited with a sack, but he also had one missed tackle.
Kinchens finished without a tackle and gave up two catches on two targets for 17 yards.
Lake had a rough game, missing three tackles and allowing four catches for 79 yards on six targets.
Murchison and Bailey both played limited snaps and neither had a single pressure. Bailey missed two tackles, as well.
Other notables
- DL Braden Fiske: 70.1
- OLB Byron Young: 65.6
- QB Matthew Stafford: 60.9
- RG Kevin Dotson: 60.3
Fiske was credited with a half-sack and two pressures, taking advantage of Garrett's return with a solid performance as a run defender and pass rusher.
Young had three pressures and two stops with one missed tackle and a QB hit.
Stafford struggled, making just one big-time throw with one turnover-worthy play, which was his ugly interception on a throw that he forced to Nacua.
Dotson allowed two pressures and had a 54.7 run-blocking grade.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams PFF grades: Best and worst performers in win vs. Commanders
