The Rams beat the Patriots in Week 11. Rookie Beaux Limmer took command at center
The Los Angeles Rams defeated the New England Patriots, 28-22, in Week 11. The win improved them to 5-5 on the season, and while the win wasn’t perfect, it was much needed. Matthew Stafford had a strong performance, while some questions have been asked about rookie kicker Joshua Karty. Here is this week’s stock up, stock down.
Stock Up: iOL Beaux Limmer
The Rams took somewhat of a risk when they took Beaux Limmer out of the lineup in favor of free-agent signing Jonah Jackson. While it was a move that needed to happen, replacing Jackson with Limmer this week also needed to happen. Injuries certainly have played a role, but the Rams have not gotten what they needed out of Jackson. However, they needed to see him and Avila together to make a fair evaluation. They got that last week against the Dolphins.
Limmer continues to impress as someone who was drafted in the sixth round. He gave up a single pressure against the Patriots and has given the Rams’ offense stability and someone they can rely on at the center position.
Stock Down: K Joshua Karty
Joshua Karty is going to have good games, OK games, and bad games. He didn’t necessarily have a bad game against the Patriots. However, his missed 26-yard field goal wasn’t great, and the lack of confidence the coaching staff had in him certainly affected the decision to punt on the final drive from the 35-yard line.
Unless Karty’s level completely nosedives, the Rams are likely going to stick with him for the rest of the season. With that said, there may be questions about whether he can be the long-term answer at kicker within the organization. He needs to bounce back and show some consistency over the second half of the season.
Stock Up: Matthew Stafford in the Red Zone
There was a lot of talk about how Matthew Stafford was struggling in the red zone over the first half of the season. Stafford wasn’t faultless by any means, but there was context for those struggles. He now has 10 touchdown passes in the red zone this season, which is the same number as Jared Goff. Stafford’s touchdowns to Puka Nacua and Colby Parkinson were two of the better throws that you’ll see in that area of the field.
In fact, Nacua’s 12-yard touchdown catch had a completion probability of just 13.4 percent. That was the most improbable completion in Week 11 and the sixth-most improbable catch all season. For the Rams to be better in the red zone, that starts with Stafford. The Rams quarterback was dialed in on Sunday.
Stock Down: Rams Cornerbacks
One can only hope that the Rams address the cornerback position this offseason and do more than just put a band-aid on the position. They took the band-aid approach this year, and at times it has cost them. There is a conversation to be had about just how much better Ahkello Witherspoon has been than Tre White, because it isn’t much. The only real difference between the two has been touchdowns allowed. Outside of that, it’s clear why the Rams waited so long to bring Witherspoon back.
Cobie Durant has been very inconsistent, while Darious Williams has been stable but not great on the outside. To a point, the Rams have been able to hide their cornerbacks with their safety play. However, when it’s one-on-one on the boundary, there isn’t a lot of confidence that a Rams cornerback is going to make a play on the ball.
Stock Up: Warren McClendon as the Rams’ Future Right Tackle
The Rams are likely still a few years away from having to find a replacement for Rob Havenstein. He is under contract for 2025 and 2026. He will likely be back for 2025, but big changes could be coming the year after, and it’s possible that both sides could move on at that point.
This isn’t to say that McClendon should undeniably be the right tackle of the future. The Rams have been there before with Joe Noteboom. This is only to say that McClendon played well at right tackle and held his own. He was one of nine offensive tackles to not allow a single pressure. At the very least, the Rams have some good depth here.
