10 takeaways from Rams thrilling overtime win

Rams rookie Braden Fiske takes over against Seahawks and other takeaways from the win

The Los Angeles Rams got an exciting win against the Seattle Seahawks, coming out on top 26-20 in overtime. After starting the season 1-4, the Rams have climbed back to .500 and are looking like the team many expected to start the year. Here are my 10 takeaways from the Rams win over the Seahawks.

1. Braden Fiske and Jared Verse wreacked havoc

Throughout Aaron Donald’s time with the Rams, he continuously had big games against the Seahawks. That trend continued with Braden Fiske and Jared Verse on Sunday. To say Fiske took over this game would be an understatement. He had one pressure that led to pushed Geno Smith into a sack and then had three more sack contributions. Fiske finished with a career-high six pressures in this game and Geno Smith is now having nightmares about 55 instead of 99. A lot was said during the draft how the Rams gave up too much for Fiske or that it was some sort of extreme overpay. Fiske is showing that he was worth the price tag.

Since the bye week, it seems like we are talking much more positively about Jared Verse than earlier in the season. Watching Verse early in the year was frustrating because of the missed opportunities. However, it was clear that once he started to figure it out, he was going to be a force to be reckoned with. That’s exactly what has happened.

Verse took advantage of another mismatch against the Seahawks and had six pressures with a 15.4 percent pressure rate. It was his second consecutive game with a sack contribution. Had the secondary been able to get a stop, we’d be talking about his deflected pass to set up fourth down on the Seahawks final possession in regulation. Jared Verse is very good and the sky is the limit.

2. Rams need to get healthy on offensive line

How Mike Macdonald attacked the Rams offensive line was how I expected Brian Flores to attack it last week. The Seahawks blitzed Stafford on 29.5 percent of his dropbacks and made things very difficult for the Rams offensive line. There were a lot of miscues that led to free pass rushers and Stafford just not able to get comfortable. In the run game, the interior was not able to get a lot of push and Kyren Williams barely averaged three yards per carry.

The Rams have found some good depth players in Justin Dedich, Beaux Limmer, and even Logan Bruss to an extent. They have played admirably at times. However, it’s tough to rely on those players every single week. Players like Steve Avila and Jonah Jackson are needed back in the lineup to add some consistency to that group.

3. Demarcus Robinson stepped up with Puka Nacua ejected

With both Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua out earlier in the season, Demarcus Robinson didn’t step up how many would have liked. It became very clear that Robinson is much better as a complementary piece than a featured one. That has become evident over the last two weeks with Kupp and Nacua back in the lineup.

However, with Nacua ejected at the end of the first half, Robinson became the de-facto WR2 in the offense. He finished with six catches for 94 yards and more importantly two touchdowns. His walk-off was an impressive one-handed grab with Riq Woolen draped over him in the end zone.

Over the last two weeks, Robinson has four touchdowns. He consistently has come up big for the Rams offense in important moments such as his catch in overtime or third downs. He and Stafford clearly have a connection and that’s evident with how the Rams quarterback trusts him in iso situations.

4. Rams lack of talent on the boundary at cornerback shows

The Rams defense has one glaring weakness and it remains at cornerback on the boundary. Darious Williams and Ahkello Witherspoon have put duct tape over what is a much larger issue. Since returning, Williams has provided a level of trust at cornerback, but still gave up four receptions on six targets, including a long touchdown pass. Witherspoon has been an upgrade over Tre White, but has also shown why the Rams didn’t initially bring him back. He allowed three catches on four targets, including a deep pass on 2nd-and-24 during the Seahawks final drive. Witherspoon was in good position to make a play, but misjudged the ball.

Cobie Durant has been fine in moments, but is still inconsistent. It was Durant in coverage on Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the fourth down conversion and again on the game-tying touchdown. The Rams may not make a trade for a cornerback at the deadline. With that said, it is the most glaring need on the roster.

5. Kam Kinchens shows playmaking ability

Throughout his rookie season, Kinchens has been inconsistent and despite being drafted in the third-round, hasn’t been the most impressive rookie safety on the roster. That would go to Jaylen McCollough. He still needs to improve in space and that was seen again Sunday when he gave up a 3rd-and-16 as the deep safety that was called back due to a holding penalty. There is plenty that Kinchens needs to improve on to get more playing time.

However, he certainly showed why the Rams drafted him in the third-round by displaying some of his play-making ability. Kinchens had two red zone interceptions, including a 103-yard pick six. The 103-yard returned tied Pete Barnum of the Columbus Tigers for the longest interception return touchdown by a rookie in NFL history. It’s a record that’s stood since 1926. Without Kinchens’ turnovers, the Rams don’t win this game.

6. Despite lack of success, McVay didn’t give up on the run

The Rams struggled to get much going on the ground throughout the game. Kyren Williams had 43-yards negated by penalties and struggled to find much space between the tackles. These are the types of games where McVay has abandoned the run in the past. However, he stuck with it and it paid off.

Williams had seven carries for 33 yards on the opening drive of the second half that resulted in a touchdown. The Rams running back had just a 31.2% success rate while averaging -1.5 rush yards over expected per rush and -5.0 EPA per rush. McVay’s willingness to stick with the run opened things up in the play action passing attack. In fact, 43.2 percent of Stafford’s dropbacks were play action, including the overtime winner.

7. Safe to say defense has turned a corner

The Rams defense was one of the worst units in the NFL to start the year. However, since the bye week, that has changed. They’ve gotten healthier with Darious Williams and Omar Speights has provided a small boost against the run. However, this is also a defense that is starting to find its footing and discover their roles within Chris Shula’s scheme. Since the bye week, the Rams defense ranks second in the NFL in EPA per play.

Not many would have expected to say that the Rams would win a game because of their defense this season. However, that is exactly what happened against the Seahawks. The defense has now scored in three separate games this season.

Outside of the final minute of the first and second halves, the Rams defense completely dominated the game and took over in the fourth quarter. Had the offense been able to drain some clock, the Seahawks likely don’t even get close on the final drive. Despite giving up the late touchdown, it would have been easy for that unit to think back to the Detroit Lions game in Week 1 when they gave up a touchdown. Instead, they stepped up and got two crucial stops

8. Matthew Stafford showed up when it mattered

The Seahawks made things really difficult for Matthew Stafford and Sunday certainly wasn’t his most impressive game. Of Stafford’s 44 passing attempts, 27.3 percent were considered “tight window” throws which was the second-highest for any quarterback in Week 9. Macdonald took away the middle of the field and forced Stafford to attack the boundary.

Prior to Sunday’s game against the Seahawks, the Rams were 4-10 when Stafford threw the ball 40 or more times in a game. The Seahawks took away the run game and baited Puka Nacua into an ejection. Macdonald forced Matthew Stafford to beat his defense and the Rams quarterback did just that. The win marked Stafford’s 46th game-winning drive which ties Matt Ryan for the sixth-most in NFL history. It was his 10th since joining the Rams and third against the Seahawks.

9. Wins like this show how much Rams have grown

This win against the Seahawks is the type of game that the Rams have lost several times earlier in the season. There have been several times where the Rams have out-played their opponent, but kept them in the game too long only to end up losing.

That was once again the case on Sunday. The Rams should have been up by more than three points in the final minute of the first half. Unfortunately, the offense was simply unable to find rhythm. Instead of leading or being tied at the half, the Rams were down 13-3. They fought back and despite giving up a late-score, made plays in overtime to get a win. These are tough wins that build character within a team. Winning in Seattle when a lot of things are going against you is no easy task. This young Rams team is maturing and winning ugly like they did against the Seahawks is a perfect example of that growth.

10. Rams set up well for second half of season

Not too long ago, the Rams were sitting at 1-4 and the discussion was whether or not the Rams would trade Cooper Kupp or even Matthew Stafford. Three weeks later and the Rams are back at .500. They are a half game back of the division lead and are now 2-1 in the NFC West. They control their own destiny at this point which is right where you want to be.

There is a lot of season left and it is way too early to start thinking about playoff scenarios. However, despite an early hole, the Rams have dug themselves out of it. They are in the mix and will be playing meaningful football in November and December.