Apparently the football gods didn’t want the Rams’ season to end. Sunday’s battle with the Seahawks went into overtime after Jason Myers’ potential game-winning field goal glanced off the right upright as time expired in the fourth quarter, sending the game to OT.
Buy Rams TicketsThe Rams played the Seahawks close once again after suffering a heartbreaking loss to Seattle in Week 13, ending the season with plenty of drama. Unfortunately, the Rams couldn’t capitalize on the gift that was Myers’ miss, losing to Seattle in overtime, 19-16.
Here’s a recap of what happened and how the Rams closed out the year with yet another frustrating loss.
Final score: Seahawks 19, Rams 16
Game notes
- The Rams couldn’t have started this game much better, getting an interception by Jalen Ramsey on the very first play of the day. He returned it to the Seahawks’ 11-yard line but the Rams couldn’t turn it into a touchdown, settling for a field goal.
- Ramsey added a second interception later on, picking off Smith in the third quarter to give the Rams the ball back while holding a 16-13 lead.
- Quentin Lake nearly had his first career interception, and he really should have. He replaced Russ Yeast in the second quarter and had an easy pick in his hands, but he lost control of it as he began running toward the end zone so it was ruled incomplete. It easily could’ve been a pick-six.
- Tutu Atwell scored his first career rushing touchdown, going 11 yards to the end zone in the second quarter. Tyler Higbee laid a key block on the play to give Atwell a lane up the left side.
- Cam Akers continued his dominance on the ground, once again rushing for more than 100 yards for the third straight game. He also contributed as a receiver, catching three passes for 24 yards.
- Baker Mayfield was under a ton of pressure in this one, more so than he had been in any game with the Rams this season. That was a big reason for his poor performance, but he did himself no favors with a bunch of bad throws – including that crucial interception in overtime.
- Kenneth Walker was the second running back in a row to rush for at least 100 yards against the Rams after Los Angeles went 15 straight games without allowing a 100-yard rusher. He had 114 yards on 29 carries.
It was over when...
… Myers hit a 32-yard field goal to win it in overtime to win the game. It truly wasn’t close to being over at any point, going back and forth all afternoon.
He made up for a bad miss in the fourth quarter, sending the Rams home with their 12th loss of the year.
3 stars of the game
No. 3 star: Bobby Wagner – 7 tackles, 1 QB hit, 1 TFL
No. 2 star: Jalen Ramsey – 5 tackles, 2 INT, 3 PBU
No. 1 star: Cam Akers – 21 carries, 104 yards. 3 catches, 24 yards
Play of the game
Ramsey had the Rams in business right away with his third interception of the season, picking off Geno Smith on the first play of the day. The Rams probably wouldn’t have kept this game as close as it was if not for that play, though they would’ve loved to capitalize with a touchdown instead of an opening field goal.
STOP PLAYING WITH @jalenramsey! A pick to start Week 18!
📺 @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/Ov36awnRQw
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) January 8, 2023
What's next?
For the first time since the 2019 season, the Rams will miss out on the playoffs. They’ll enter offseason mode now and begin reconstructing the roster for the 2023 season, scouting prospects and looking at potential targets in free agency.
They’ll also need to figure out whether Sean McVay will be back as the head coach next season because if he leaves, which he’s considering, there could be a domino effect with other veterans such as Aaron Donald.
