Don't start planning parades just yet. Hold off on your February plans to travel to Santa Clara.
Rams they still have a long way to go before making the playoffs and attempting to reach the Super Bowl at Levi's Stadium.
Their victory with a score of 34-10 Sunday because of the fight New Orleans Saints V Sophie Stadium was not a discovery or a landmark victory. But the Rams did something important. Something championship caliber teams should do: they beat weaker opponents convincingly to 72,055.
Matthew Stafford passed for four Ttouchdowns, receiver Puka Nacua made a spectacular return from an ankle injury and the defense dominated again as the Rams won their third game in a row, improved to 6–2 and showed that Dodgers this may not be the only Los Angeles team lift the championship trophy.
“Let's see if we can continue to do some good things, like they did,” trainer Sean McVay said about World Series Champions.
The Rams' win puts them atop the NFC West heading into next Sunday's matchup against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium.
“I like the fact that we’re getting better,” McVay said, adding, “It’s just a good atmosphere.”
At least on most fronts.
The Rams' first win over an NFC opponent didn't come against the defensive backfield. Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles or rival 49ersteams that the Rams lost to in part because of poor performances.
Rams coach Sean McVay watches from the sidelines during the first half of Sunday's game against the Saints.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
And these problems remain: Joshua Carty missed a field goal and an extra point.
So McVay's patience with the kicking game is wearing thin. And no team will win the title without a competent player.
McVeigh once again stated that he trusted Carty, but this was after he had said, among other things, that “this can’t go on… it’s been going on too long” and “it’s not getting better.”
Can the Rams become a championship team without an adequate player?
“No,” McVay said. “It's going to cost us – it's already cost us. It's destroyed the momentum… The hard truth is this is not sustainable.”
But if the Rams can solve their kicking problem and stay healthy (Nacua said he would play against the 49ers after leaving the game in the second half with a chest injury) and McVay can focus his team's attention on division rivals and other playoff contenders, the Rams could earn their own parade.
Stafford is positioning himself as the leader of one of them.
Already a fixture on NFL career passing lists, the 17-year-old punter is enjoying another sensational season.
Just like he did in 2021, when he threw 41 touchdowns and led the Rams to a Super Bowl title, Stafford is playing at a level that should put him in the MVP discussion.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford passes to Saints cornerback Cameron Jordan during the first quarter Sunday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
On Sunday, his two touchdown passes to Davante Adams and one each to Nacua and tight end Tyler Higbee pushed Stafford's season total to 21 with just two interceptions.
Stafford, who scored five touchdowns in October 19 defeat of the Jacksonville Jaguars.completed 24 of 32 passes for 281 yards and extended his streak of games without an interception to five.
Stafford's wife and daughters attended the game wearing No. 22 Dodgers jerseys as a salute retired pitcher Clayton KershawStafford's teammate.
Now Stafford is chasing his second Super Bowl title.
“It’s not like we have it all figured out,” he said, adding, “We’ve got to keep looking for ways to get more points on the board.”
Nacua sat out the game against the Jaguars with an ankle injury. But days before the game, he said he “feels fantastic.”
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, left, celebrates with wide receiver Davante Adams after catching a pass in the second quarter Sunday against the Saints.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
He looked like it from the start, making two catches for first downs to start a drive that ended with a Stafford pass to Higbee. The veteran tight end clearly salutes. Dodgerscelebrated with an imaginary swing and then a post-hit celebration.
Adams then followed up his breakthrough three-touchdown performance against the Jaguars with the first of two more red zone touchdowns. The 12-year pro is tied for eighth all-time with 111 touchdown catches.
Early in the second quarter, Stafford and Nacua hit home runs, connecting on a 39-yard pass that Nacua completed for a touchdown and a 20-3 lead.
Stafford's short kick to Adams in the third quarter put the game out of reach, and Kyren Williams' short touchdown early in the fourth quarter capped the game.
Williams rushed for 114 yards and Blake Corum had 58 on a day when the Rams again used all four tight ends in their passing and running attack.
Meanwhile, the Rams defense treated Saints rookie quarterback Tyler Shaw harshly in his first start.
Several Rams defenders tackled Saints quarterback Tyler Shaw in the second quarter of the Rams' 34-10 win Sunday at Sophie Stadium.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Linebacker Braden Fiske got his first sack of the season. Nate Landman forced another fumble, and cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. intercepted his first pass as a Ram.
“We are growing at a rapid pace,” Landman said, “and we will peak at the right time.”
The game against the Saints began a stretch that included two home games after the 49ers. Only two remaining nine games — a late November trip to play the Carolina Panthers and a late December trip to play the Atlanta Falcons — will require the Rams to travel further east than Arizona.
A lot can happen between now and the start of the playoffs. But the Rams look like the Super Bowl contenders they were built to be.
