Week 11 came with another loss for the Los Angeles Rams, dropping their record to 3-7 on the year. It’s their fourth straight loss, keeping them in fourth place in the NFC West.
While they’re turning their attention to the upcoming game against the Chiefs, we’re looking back one last time and revisiting the loss to New Orleans.
Here’s our Week 11 report card.
Quarterback: B
Matthew Stafford recorded his highest PFF grade of the season before leaving with a possible concussion, so he was playing well at the time. He had 159 yards and two touchdowns on only 18 attempts, including a perfectly thrown 62-yard bomb to Tutu Atwell.
Bryce Perkins didn’t play poorly in relief, either. He didn’t turn the ball over and had 103 total yards, doing what he could in a really difficult situation.
Running back: B
This was actually a productive and solid game from the running backs, particularly by the Rams’ standards. It just wasn’t anything special by NFL standards.
Cam Akers led the way with 61 yards on 14 carries, Kyren Williams picked up 36 yards on seven carries and Darrell Henderson Jr. had 9 yards on his two carries before exiting with a knee injury.
All three averaged at least 4.4 yards per carry and the team totaled a season-high 148 yards on the ground, so it’s hard not to like the way the running backs played.
Wide receiver: C+
Without Cooper Kupp, things could have gone worse for the Rams’ receivers. Tutu Atwell caught a 62-yard touchdown pass on his only target, Allen Robinson made a nice grab for a touchdown and Van Jefferson ran a filthy route over the middle for a 20-yard gain.
Ben Skowronek didn’t have much of an impact and Lance McCutcheon wasn’t targeted in the 10 snaps he played, but the wideouts weren’t to blame for this loss.
Tight end: C-
Tyler Higbee has not looked very good this season, despite putting up some solid numbers early in the year. He dropped his fifth pass of the season on Sunday, catching just four of his eight targets for 45 yards. He’s still good as a pass blocker when asked to stay in and protect Stafford, but his run blocking needs work.
Offensive line: C-
Had Ty Nsekhe not gotten hurt, the offensive line might not have been in that bad of shape. But when he went down, it thrust Bobby Evans into the lineup, which was bad news for Stafford and Perkins. Evans allowed five pressures and was called for a holding penalty, struggling mightily at left tackle. Matt Skura and Oday Aboushi also had a hard time up front, earning pass-blocking grades below 40 from PFF, so the quarterbacks didn’t exactly have much time in the pocket.
Defensive line: A-
Alvin Kamara didn’t kill the Rams in this one. He had just 42 yards rushing on 12 carries, with a long run of 11 yards. Aaron Donald was stout in this one, both as a run defender and pass rusher, while Greg Gaines tallied the first multi-sack game of his career. Marquise Copeland played really well aginst the run, too.
Inside linebacker: A-
Right next to Donald, Bobby Wagner is probably the Rams’ most reliably consistent player. He doesn’t make mistakes in coverage, he doesn’t miss tackles and he helps limit opposing running backs, which is exactly what he did on Sunday against Kamara. Ernest Jones didn’t have his best and made just three tackles, but the linebacker group as a whole played well.
Outside linebacker: C+
Leonard Floyd flashed with two sacks against the Saints but he got little help from his fellow edge rushers. Justin Hollins and Terrell Lewis combined for exactly zero pressures and one tackle, struggling to impact the game much opposite Floyd. That’s been the case pretty much all season, though.
Cornerback: D
It was a bad afternoon for the Rams’ cornerbacks. Jalen Ramsey got beat for two touchdowns, including a 53-yard bomb to Chris Olave. Troy Hill allowed catches on all four of his targets, David Long Jr. gave up two receptions on two targets and David Long Jr. allowed three catches on four targets. Andy Dalton picked this defense apart and threw just four incompletions, and it’s not as if he just did it against linebackers and safeties.
Safety: C
Taylor Rapp was out of position a couple of times, taking a poor angle on a screen to Kamara and also failing to get over the top on Olave’s deep touchdown. He did make a great play in the end zone to deflect a potential touchdown pass, though. Nick Scott played a little bit better but there weren’t enough impactful plays by the safeties on Sunday.
Special teams: B
Matt Gay very quietly made a 58-yard field goal at the end of the game, which didn’t ultimately mean anything. But he’s remained one of the best kickers in football. Brandon Powell had a 34-yard kickoff return and Riley Dixon booted a 60-yard punt.
