In a game that was billed as an offensive showdown, it was the Rams defense that stole the show with two interceptions and six sacks. Those interceptions being two spectacular diving plays by corner Darius Williams who is quickly turning into one of the league's best defenders. The pass rush came to life as the game progressed with rookie Terrell Lewis recording his first two sacks of the season. Free agent acquisition Leonard Floyd, who has really stepped up in recent weeks, added three more sacks to his season total (7), while lineman Michael Brokers added another for good measure. When the game was on the line the defense got constant pressure on Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson causing him to have to throw early and scramble to keep plays alive. It should also be noted that corner Jalen Ramsey all but completely neutralized Seattle's top weapon DK Metcalf (2 catches for 28 yards late in the game while not being covered by Ramsey) who had been averaging 18.1 yards a catch and over a hundred yards per game.
On offense the Rams were able to move the ball with relative ease, which was expected due to the Seahawks talent depleted defense. Jared Goff bounced back from a terrible performance against Miami two weeks ago with a 27 of 37, 302 yard effort. The real story was the ability of LA's 'three-headed-monster' rushing attack to run for big gains against Seattle's stingy run defense. Backs Cam Akers, Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson just about split the carriers evenly for ninety-nine yards and three touchdowns. The Rams game plan was simple but effective, take advantage of the Seahawks weal secondary down the field, then grind it in on the ground for touchdowns. It wasn't sexy, but it was effective.
In a tough division like the NFC West, with three teams tied for the lead at 6-3, you have to draw on team strengths to pull out wins versus other divisional rivals and on Sunday the Rams needed their top five defense to step up to the challenge and they did. In the coming weeks the team will be challenged by more top tier offenses like Tampa Bay and Arizona and with the way the Rams handled Seattle there is great optimism that the team can shut those teams down and come away with much needed victories to keep the Rams in the playoff hunt in the NFC.
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