The Los Angeles Rams snuck away with a 17-7 victory against the Bears in prime time on Sunday night.
It wasn’t pretty, but neither was last year’s Sunday Night Football showdown between these two teams. The Rams lost that one 15-6, but they escaped with a victory tonight.
Here are five takeaways from a win Los Angeles desperately needed against the Bears.
Rookies lead impressive offensive line performance
The Rams’ offensive line has been an absolute dumpster fire this year. They went from one of the NFL’s best units last season to arguably the worst in the NFL this year. Last week, they lost two starters, including longtime starting tackle Rob Havenstein to injury. Fans were praying for Jared Goff’s health with a bunch of unproven backups protecting him against Khalil Mack and Chicago’s tough defense.
Oddly enough, the Rams offensive line turned in one of its best performances of the year with its back against the wall.
The big difference was switching from Havenstein, who has started 68 games for the Rams over the past five years, to rookie Bobby Evans, who played three snaps in his career. Evans and fellow rookie David Edwards gave both Todd Gurley and Goff all the protection they could ask for against the Bears. It resulted in a major victory for the Rams in prime time.
Sean McVay will have a decision to make when Havenstein comes back from injury. He’s been a weak link on the line this season, and Evans looked better tonight than Havenstein has all season. Evans should hold the job until he gives them a reason to bench him.
Gurley’s hot streak continues
Last week, Gurley ran the football 12 times for 73 yards in a loss to the Steelers. He didn’t touch the ball in the fourth quarter, and everyone began to criticize McVay for failing to give him the ball more in one of his best games of the season.
McVay heard us loud and clear. Gurley touched the ball a season-high 28 times against Chicago, racking up 97 yards and a touchdown on 25 rushes while adding three receptions for 36 yards. It was the first time this season that Gurley touched the ball more than 20 times, and the first time since Week 1 that he totaled over 100 yards.
Gurley is starting to show signs of life coming out of the team’s bye week after looking lifeless in the weeks that led up to it. If the streak continues, he’s going to make both Goff and McVay’s lives easier. The Rams need to ride Gurley in a tough matchup against Baltimore next Monday.
Troy Hill plays like Troy Hill
If there was ever a game to watch to understand cornerback Troy Hill, it was this one.
Hill’s highs were incredibly high. He made some great plays in coverage and even turned an Anthony Miller drop into a crucial interception. His lows were low. Hill blew his assignment a handful of times and was called for defensive holding on a third-down stop.
Hill remains exactly who we knew he was. When he’s on, he’s a very good cornerback, but he’s not always on. The Rams need to hope that he can be the best version of himself down the stretch if they want to have a shot at the playoffs. Luckily for them, we’ve seen more of good Hill than we have of bad version this season.
Rams’ defense continues to thrive
The Rams’ loud struggles on offense have taken the spotlight off of their defense this season.
Wade Phillips has his defensive unit playing the best football they’ve played since he took over in 2017. They’ve given up fewer than 20 points six times this season, and are 5-1 in those games. They’ve held opponents to under 100 rushing yards in seven of their last nine games. They’ve given up just one touchdown in each of their last four games. Jalen Ramsey hasn’t been lights out since joining the team, but the Rams are clearly a much better defense with him on the field.
The Rams will face their toughest matchup of the season when Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens head into Los Angeles next week. It will be a huge test for the defense, but it feels like a challenge they’ll be up for.
Mistakes and inconsistencies need to stop
Sunday night’s victory was a hard-fought win. But here’s a hard truth: The Rams don’t win this game against a better team. The Bears aren’t good. The Rams escaped as a result of that.
There were numerous costly penalties in this one: offsides on a punt, illegal formation to take away a touchdown, defensive holding on a third-down stop, offensive holding on a first down, and a running into the kicker that almost gave Chicago a first down. Every one of these could have been avoided.
The Rams also turned the ball over twice early in this game. Gurley’s fumble was unfortunate, but it’s something that happens in football, and unfortunately, the Rams couldn’t come up with the ball. They caught a break when Cooper Kupp had a similar fumble and Mike Thomas was able to jump on it.
Goff’s interception, however, was unforgivable. Goff tried to force the ball to a double-covered Josh Reynolds for absolutely no reason, and it resulted in an interception. Goff has been a turnover machine this season, throwing 10 interceptions in just as many games, with a good amount of them being avoidable. He’s making bad decisions and throwing the ball to blanketed receivers. It needs to stop.
The Rams are a long shot to make the playoffs this year, but the talent exists to run the table and get in. That starts with Goff, who’s been a shell of his 2018 self this year. We’ve seen flashes of brilliance from the 134 million dollar man. Those flashes need to become a steady thing. The Rams can’t afford to make these kinds of mistakes if they want a shot at taking down Baltimore next week.
