With the NFC East conquered, the Rams move on to the much tougher NFC West.
Jared Goff passed for two touchdowns and ran for another, Darrell Henderson scored two touchdowns and Aaron Donald and Troy Reeder combined for seven sacks on Sunday in the Rams' 30-10 victory over Washington at FedEx Field.
The victory, the Rams' fourth over an opponent from the so-far woeful NFC East, improved their record to 4-1 heading into the Oct. 18 game against the San Francisco 49ers.
That figures to be a much tougher test than the ones the Rams faced while dispatching the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Washington (1-4).
The NFC East is seemingly so weak _ and for the taking _ it was one of the reasons Washington coach Ron Rivera gave for replacing quarterback Dwayne Haskins with Kyle Allen, and elevating Alex Smith to the backup.
Allen was knocked out of the game in the second quarter, enabling Smith to play for the first time since suffering a gruesome leg injury in 2018 that required 17 surgeries.
But Donald and Reeder, starting in place of leading-tackler Micah Kiser, spoiled Smith's otherwise heroic return.
The Rams endured rain throughout the game _ and their cross-country trips in four weeks _ to give coach Sean McVay a victory in the stadium where he spent seven seasons as a Washington assistant.
Goff entered the game as the NFL's eighth-rated passer, but he had yet to take any deep shots down the field.
That changed on the first play of the second quarter.
With the Rams trailing, 7-6, Goff faked a handoff to running back Henderson, dropped back and lofted a long pass down the left sideline. Receiver Robert Woods caught the ball in stride for a 56-yard touchdown.
The Rams never trailed again.
Goff completed 21 of 30 passes for 309 yards, with an interception. He also scrambled for a two-yard touchdown that will be best remembered for his comedic attempt at a spike.
Tight end Gerald Everett caught four passes for 90 yards. Woods had four receptions for 71 yards.
Henderson rushed for a touchdown on the Rams' first possession and scored on an 11-yard pass in the fourth quarter that gave the Rams a 30-10 lead.
Rookie Cam Akers, playing for the first time since suffering a rib injury against the Eagles, rushed for 61 yards in nine carries, including a 46-yard run.
Smith completed nine of 17 passes for 37 yards.
In the first half, Goff was 14 of 18 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown as the Rams took a 20-10 lead.
The Rams forced a three and out and Goff went to work, completing six passes to five receivers before Henderson scored on a short run to give the Rams the lead. Samuel Sloman missed the extra-point attempt.
Allen answered with an impressive drive, and got a break when Donald was penalized for roughing the passer. Allen's six-yard scramble for a touchdown gave Washington its only lead.
On the Rams' ensuing possession, they faced a second down at their 44-yard line. Goff faked a handoff to Henderson, and then dropped back and lofted a pass downfield and hit Woods for a touchdown and a 13-7 lead.
Goff's streak of consecutive completions ended at 10 early in the Rams' next possession. But he then found Woods and Cooper Kupp for short gains before Gerald Everett turned a mid-range completion into a 40-yard gain. Goff's third-down scramble to his left resulted in a two-yard touchdown run, increasing the lead to 20-7.
With less than three minutes left in the second quarter, cornerback Jalen Ramsey knocked Allen out of the game after a third-down scramble, bringing on Smith. The veteran did not flinch after Donald sacked him to end a possession.
Smith got another opportunity after Kendall Fuller intercepted a pass by Goff with less than a minute left. Smith moved Washington in scoring position, and Dustin Hopkins' 48-yard field goal trimmed the Rams' lead to 10 points.
