The NFL season for the Los Angeles Rams was an up-and-down rollercoaster this season. Many analysts, players, and fans thought that this season would be a season to forget after just having a 5-12 season placing 3rd in the NFC West. A part of me thought that this would be a repeat of last year, but I was very hopeful.
Week 1: The Los Angeles Rams shocked the NFL world by blowing out the division rivals the Seattle Seahawks in a game that resulted in a 30-13 win for the Rams at Lumen Field. A team that was supposed to have a bad season projected to win 4-6 games blew out a team projected to a 9–12-win season. This win would set the tone for the Rams for the rest of the season. Rams rookie, Puka Nacua, had an electric game to start his young career.
Week 2: The Los Angeles Rams would play the San Francisco 49ers at LA. A close loss to the Rams with the final score being 30-23 in a tough loss. The Rams kept it toe to toe at halftime, then only kicked two field goals after that. Puka Nacua once again went off and had an insane game.
Week 3: The Rams had to travel to Cincinnati for a Monday night game. This game was such a close game. The Rams had what should have been a touchdown comeback which was a huge setback for the Rams. At the end of the day, the Rams were outplayed in the bad weather and had lost 19-16.
Week 4: An important game to get back to a .500 in the win/loss category. The Rams did win but the game became closer than it should have. The Rams dominated the whole game; however, the Colts didn’t go down without a fight. The Colts had put up 23 points in the 2nd half. The game was tied going into overtime, the Rams had a chance to win the game. Quarterback Matthew Stafford had an electric legacy drive proving why he is still top 10. The whole game, Puka Nacua had put up huge numbers yet still had not scored a touchdown this season. That was about to change because Puka Nacua not only scored his first touchdown but did it in the biggest moment, in overtime. The final score was 29-23 for a tight win for the Rams.
Week 5: The Los Angeles Rams faced off against the Philadelphia Eagles, the defending NFC champions. The Rams were just overwhelmed by the Eagles defense and offense. The Eagles simply dominated on both sides of the ball. The Rams could not handle the defensive pressure that they were facing from the Eagles. The final score was 23-14 for the Rams. This had put their record at 2-3.
Week 6: The Rams faced off against the divisional rival, the Arizona Cardinals. The game for a time was just field goals. The Cardinals were up by 3 points going into the half. The Rams must have flipped a switch or maybe Kyren Williams did. Kyren Williams had broken out and it couldn’t have happened at a better time. The Rams had shut out the Cardinals in the second half which led to the final score being 26-9.
Week 7: The Rams faced off against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Rams and the Steelers were going back and forth in scoring, but the Pittsburgh Steelers pulled through and won 24-17.
Week 8: The Rams play the Dallas Cowboys. There’s not much to say other than the Rams got crushed. Injuries for the Rams did occur in the 43-20 loss.
Week 9: The Rams played the Green Bay Packers in an injury-filled game. The Rams played their starters (the ones who weren’t injured), their back-ups, and their third strings/practice squad players. An ugly 20-3 loss going into the bye-week at a 3-5 record. Looking like the hope for the season was lost.
Bye-week (Week 10): The Los Angeles Rams had assessed the holes in their roster, and used that time to heal and rest up, and to practice and prepare for the Seattle Seahawks.
Week 11: The Los Angeles Rams coming off a 3-game losing streak and the bye week. The Rams hosted the Seahawks, and it was the closest game in the regular season for the Rams. The Rams went into the 2nd half down. The Rams came out and dominated in the 2nd half coming back from a 9-point lead. The biggest thing for the Rams to save their season was when the Seahawks kicker Jason Myers, missed the game-winning kick. The final score was 17-16.
Week 12: The Los Angeles Rams faced off against the Arizona Cardinals. The game was very one-sided in the Rams’ favor. The Rams killed it on offense, they killed it on defense. Every aspect of this game for the Rams. The Rams offense was unstoppable that day. Stafford throwing for 229 yards 4 touchdowns and Kyren running for 143 yards. Absolute blowout for the Rams leading to a 37-14 win for the Rams keeping their season alive.
Week 13: The Rams played the Cleveland Browns in another blowout win for the Rams. Once again, the Rams dominated on both sides of the ball. Stafford threw for 279 yards and 3 touchdowns. Puka also went off with 4 catches 105 yards and 1 touchdown. The Rams were not slowing down. The Rams won in a blowout resulting in a 36-19 victory.
Week 14: The Rams played the Baltimore Ravens which were arguably the hottest team in the league. A real nailbiter and a fun back-and-forth game to watch. Unfortunately, the Rams lost to the Ravens in overtime. The game against the Ravens was a real wake-up call to the special teams unit. The Rams lost in overtime with the score being 37-31.
Week 15: The Rams played the Washington Commanders in a good game. The Rams were commanding a 20-0 lead. The Commanders almost came back but fell just short. The Rams took their foot off the gas and let it become closer than it should have. The Rams came out on top with a score of 28-20.
Week 16: The Rams played the New Orleans Saints in LA. The Rams were playing at such an elite level in this game in all areas of this game. I hold this game closer to me since I went to this game with my Dad. We watched the Rams absolutely command this game. Matthew Stafford had a great performance, putting up 328 yards and 2 touchdowns. Kyren ran for 104 yards and 1 touchdown. Puka had 9 catches for 164 yards and 1 touchdown. Demarcus Robinson had 6 catches for 82 yards and 1 touchdown. The Rams had a 20-point lead going into the 4th quarter. The Saints put up 15 unanswered but fell short. The Rams held on to win it 30-22.
Week 17: The Rams played the New York Giants in MetLife Stadium. The Giants were playing lights out. The Rams barely pulled through but did win. This game had playoff implications for the Rams. The Rams let the Giants put up more points than they should have. The Giants kicker Mason Cosby was picked up by the Giants from the Rams practice squad and was having a great game. With the game on the line, the Giants lined up to kick and MISSED it wide right! The Rams proceeded to be locked into the playoffs. The Rams escaped with a 26-25 win over the Giants.
Week 18: With the Rams guaranteed a playoff spot the Rams rest their starters except for a few. The storyline for this game was that the Rams have not beat the 49ers in the regular season in 9 straight meetings (4 and a half meetings) but the even bigger storyline was the rookie Puka Nacua needed 29 yards to surpass Bill Groman’s rookie receiving record which stood at 1,473 yards. Puka also had a chance to hold the reception record as well. The records both were broken! Puka now holds the record for most receiving yards for a rookie at 1,486 yards and 105 receptions in a rookie season. Once Puka set those records he was pulled from the game. The intensity switched from “Let’s let the rookie get the record” to “Let’s win this thing” and that’s exactly what happened. Backup quarterback Carson Wentz had a great game throwing for 163 yards and 2 touchdowns along with 56 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. The Rams beat the 49ers in the regular season for the first time since December of 2018.
Wildcard Weekend: The Rams had lost to the Detroit Lions in a heartbreaking fashion 24-23. The game was so good until late in the 4th quarter the Lions held Puka Nacua however, nothing was called. The Rams were robbed but that’s how the season ended.
The Good: Out-performed expectations. Made playoffs. Excellent draft. Records broken.
The Bad: Had some bad losses. Lost in the playoff. Many no calls.
The Ugly: The 3-game losing streak. The secondary. Special teams.
Overall Season Grade: A-. Did far better than expected, and made playoffs, yet fell short.
