The Los Angeles Rams blew a 17-point lead that forced overtime before ultimately falling to the San Francisco 49ers by the score of 27-24. It was the 49ers' sixth
D.J. Fluker Jersey consecutive time they've beaten their in-state rival acro s the last three seasons, clearly having the Rams number in games of late.The Rams did, however, clinch the NFC West as a result of the Seahawks beating the Cardinals, but L.A. did fall from the No. 2 seed in the NFC to the No. 4 seed. They'll host the Cardinals in theWild Card Round on Monday Night Footballat 5:15 p.m. PT.Here are five key takeaways from the Rams' overtime lo s to the 49ers:1. 49ers owned the battle in the trenchesThe Rams offensive line has been stable for most of the year. That includes the games in which they were left patching up the group upfront when starting offensive lineman mi sed games due to COVID-19 protocols. However, on Sunday against the 49ers, the offensive line of the Rams was punished for the greater part of four and a half quarters. The 49ers won the battle at the line of scrimmage, applying constant pre sure in Stafford's face when dropping back to throw.The Ramsoffensive line allowed 22 pre sures on Staffords 32 dropbacks, per PFF. Particularly,
Shaun Alexander Jersey 15 of them came from the two guard positions (David Edwards and Austin Corbett). Ultimately, Staffordwas pre sured on 37.8% of his dropbacks and the 49ers brought a blitz just 16% of the time, per Next Gen Stats.2. Matthew Stafford's turnovers are a troubling trendCertainly, the offensive line is at blame for not allowing Stafford adequate time to distribute the ball effectively. But in another sense, Stafford's recent games of turning over the football is beginning to be a trend. Stafford was intercepted twice, extending his streak of games with at least two interceptions to three games. In fact, Stafford has committed eight turnovers acro s the last three contests. While the Rams have won twice over that span, being reckle s with the football isn't a recipe for succe s as they head into the playoffs and are tasked with
Rasheem Green Jersey facing top-notch teams.Scroll to Continue3. 49ers' second half adjustments was the turning pointThe Rams owned the first half, playing nearly as good of football as they could have hoped for to begin the game. The 49ers tacked on a last-minute field goal heading into halftime and it was from that drive on that San Francisco had a boost of momentum on their side and played with a sense of purpose in the second half before forcing the game into overtime and eventually recording the game-winning interception by cornerback Ambry Thomas. 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had just 90 pa sing yards when the first two quarters came to a close. But after a surging second half,Garoppolo finished the game completing over 70% of his pa ses for 316 yards with two interceptions. Playing through a hand injury and all,Garoppolo came through when it mattered most down the stretch.4. Rams had no answer for Deebo SamuelThe Rams are far too familiar with Samuel and yet they had no answers for slowing down the 49ers' dynamic playmaker. In Week 10, the 49ers introduced the Rams to Samuel's role of playing running back in addition to his efforts at wide receiver. Samuel collected 133 yards and two touchdowns between his five rushes and five receptions in the first meeting with the
Will Dissly Jersey Rams this season. Meanwhile, the 49ers used a similar blueprint with their versatile weapon in the regular-season finale, logging 45 rushing yards, 95 receiving yards and 24 pa sing yards, featuring two touchdowns. Samuel is the type of player the defense must pinpoint where he's lined up at prior to each snap due to his capabilities, however, what the Rams threw at San Francisco to stop their multiskilled a set, did little to no stoppage.5. Cooper Kupp's historic season had a record in sight until the wheels fell offKupp finished one of the greatest single-seasons a wide receiver has put together in NFL history. Heearned the receiving triple crown
Cassius Marsh Jersey , leading the league in receptions (145), yards (1,947) and touchdowns (16). Additionally, Kupp was on the cusp of taking ahold of a record that belongs to Hall of Famer Calvin Johnson the single-season receiving yards record. Kupp entered the game 136 yards shy of the threshold. Entering halftime with five catches for 84 yards, Kupp was on track to take po se sion of Johnson's spot in the record books. However, in the second half, after Stafford went 15-of-16 over the first two quarters, he was intercepted twice once in the third quarter and another in overtime. The offense sputtered down the stretch and Kupp ended the game 18 yards shy but nonethele s, it was a year for the ages regarding everything Kupp achieved throughout the 17-game season. More from Ram Digest:
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