The Los Angeles Rams' offense couldn't find paydirt on Monday night, falling 23-15 to the Miami Dolphins to snap a three-game winning streak.
"It was just negative plays at the wrong time," quarterback Matthew Stafford said after the game, via The Associated Press. "Whether it was a turnover, sack, inefficient play on first down, whatever it was we shot ourselves in the foot a little bit in that strike zone area near the 30-yard line. And that was the difference in the game."
After two three-and-outs and an interception to open the game, the Rams moved the ball, getting into Dolphins territory on each of their final seven drives, but settled for six field goal attempts (five makes).
Stafford took a couple of bad sacks that stalled drives, the offense never felt in synch, and the run game got churning for only a brief moment in the third quarter. The red zone and key-down issues were magnified. L.A. went 0-3 in the red area and 3-12 on third downs. An inability to sustain drives coupled with failing to finish is a bad combination.
"There wasn't any sort of semblance of complementary football," Rams head coach Sean McVay said. "Defensively, I was pleased with the way that we played. I thought we were able to limit them, create a bunch of negative plays, get some turnovers, and give short fields to the offense. Then, ultimately, we weren't able to capitalize."
The Rams generated their first game without a touchdown since Week 9, 2023, versus Green Bay (20-3 loss started by QB Brett Rypien). Monday marked the second game started by Stafford with the Rams where the team failed to score a touchdown (other: Week 4, 2022, at San Francisco).
The offensive line returned starters Steve Avila and Jonah Jackson but struggled to protect Stafford early. Overall, Stafford was pressured on 30.6% of dropbacks, around his season average, but took three first-half sacks (four total). The inability to protect early underscores the notion that it takes time for lines to gel after so little work together.
Even as the protection improved, the Rams couldn't puncture the end zone. L.A. became the only NFL team in the Super Bowl era to attempt a field goal on each of their last six drives in a game despite being down by more than three points entering each one, per Opta Stats.
"I felt like it was a little bit loose early on, but as the game went on, I thought we were able to protect better, which gave us a chance to be able to sustain some drives," McVay said. "Ultimately, we were not able to finish in the red area. It felt like there was a bunch of bodies at the point of attack, specifically on some of those early third downs."
The loss dropped the Rams to 4-5. McVay's club currently sits third in the NFC West and 10th in the conference. L.A. will need to get back on track in Week 11 when they travel to New England to face the Patriots.
