Stakes were high for the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night Football. A win would give them first place in the NFC conference. They got off to a fast start against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers—leading early 21-0— and never looked back. The final score of 34-7 extends LA’s win streak to six games and moved them to 9-2 on the year.
This was a total team effort. It feels nitpicky to single out any negative performances from this game; however, through the frame that LA just lost three starters for at least four games, it’s worth zooming in and questioning whether the Rams will feel these losses moving forward.
Who helped lead the Rams to victory, and which players should we be concerned about moving forward?
NFL award races are won and lost in primetime games, and Matthew Stafford made the most of his opportunity in Week 12. He tossed two early touchdown passes to effectively finish the game in the first half. It was a masterclass, even though much wasn’t required from him over the final two quarters. In some ways it feels we were robbed of a classic game because the Buccaneers weren’t remotely competitive.
Stafford completed 25 of 35 passes (71%) for 273 yards and three touchdowns. He never put the ball in harm’s way, though he did take a sack and drew an intentional grounding play on fourth down.
Cobie Durant & Emmanuel Forbes, CB
The Rams have gone from having serious questions at outside corner to deploying a formidable, playmaking duo in Durant and Forbes. Durant got the defensive feast started by stealing the ball away from Cade Otton and returning 50 yards for a touchdown. Forbes also secured an interception on a hail mary attempt just before the half, though even more impressive was his four (!) pass breakups on the evening. Forbes has made the most of his long arms over the last few weeks and has a knack for fighting back into the play and forcing incompletions.
If Durant and Forbes can maintain this level of play, it’s a huge improvement from where the Rams started the year and makes the defense very difficult to face into the back stretch of the season.
It’s not overly surprising, but Warren McClendon was stingy on the right side of the line in replacement of Rob Havenstein. McClendon has performed better than Havenstein when given the chance, and it’s possible that if/when Havenstein returns from injured reserve that this is McClendon’s job for the foreseeable future.
Do the Bucs have a daunting pass rush, especially in light of Haason Reddick missing this game? Not really. Still, McClendon is far from a weak link.
Kobie Turner, DT & Jared Verse, EDGE
It felt like nearly everyone on defense made a big play at some point. Kobie Turner and Jared Verse—while they have not enjoyed high sack totals this year—lived in the Tampa Bay backfield and each recorded two sacks (each with one on fourth down).
Verse drew a tough matchup in Tristan Wirfs and still was consistently effective on Sunday night. There are few defenders who give Wirfs trouble, but he certainly had his hands full with Verse.
While this was Harrison Mevis’ third game with the Rams, it became the first time we’ve seen him attempt a field goal. The “thicker kicker” nailed all four of his extra point attempts and converted his first two field goals with a long from 52 yards out. All attempts went right down the middle of the uprights. The Rams should have confidence in Mevis moving forward.
It’s clear and obvious that Quentin Lake was a key player for this defense, and his value was even more apparent in the team’s first game without him. Josh Wallace primarily filled in for the captain and there were some challenging moments.
While Wallace didn’t seem to have any significant lapses in coverages that the Buccaneers were able to capitalize on, he was flagged twice for penalties. One flag wiped out a sack by Byron Young.
This wasn’t an effort that would lose the game for the Rams; however, it does raise questions about how stark the dropoff is from Lake to Wallace.
By my count Roger McCreary played a single defensive snap before suffering a hip injury and not returning. The Rams acquired McCreary from the Tennessee Titans via trade, and he was a potential option in replacing Lake. Wallace was the preferred candidate to start the game. If the Rams need to see McCreary perform well in practice before he is more involved in the rotation, then this injury could cloud his status moving forward.
Terrance Ferguson was on the field often in replacement of Tyler Higbee, though he did not make much of an impact through the air. The rookie was targeted only a single time and dropped an incredibly well-threaded pass from Stafford.
The early indication in Higbee’s absence is that we will be seeing more of Davis Allen and Colby Parkinson.
The Rams refuse the cut Josh Karty because they believe he still has potential in the NFL. It’s a fair thought process because we often see kickers cut at their first sign of trouble in the league, and then they go on to find success elsewhere. Still, I have to wonder whether sunk cost fallacy plays a role in keeping Karty around. The team spent draft capital on a kicker that simply has not worked out, and now they have a real alternative in Mevis.
There is no good reason to keep Karty on the roster after watching Mevis nail six kicks in primetime.
