Sean McVay has a problem calling plays and picking players to use in the red zone, so the L.A. Rams lost to the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night. One two huge moments in the fourth quarter and overtime, the Rams had a chance to win the game and failed, so McVay falls to 3-2 and loses to Kyle Shanahan again, this time with San Francisco starting its backup quarterback and receivers.
Will McVay make any changes to how the Rams call plays and who they use in the red zone because of this loss?
Down 23-20 in the fourth quarter with less than two minutes on the clock, the Rams had a golden opportunity to beat the 49ers in regulation. With 1st-and-10 at the SF 11, McVay called a handoff to noted fumbler Kyren Williams, which resulted in a gain off four yards. No problem.
But on the very next play, McVay gave the ball to Williams again and he fumbled it at the 2-yard line when it was punched out by 49ers defensive tackle Alfred Collins. No surprise really, Williams leads the NFL in fumbles since 2023.
The Rams could have lost the game there, but Shanahan basically threw up the white flag and just wanted McVay to use all of his timeouts, which he did. It wasn’t a great gameplan by Shanahan honestly, but maybe he just expected L.A. to eventually fold in the red zone again, which they did.
Matthew Stafford quickly got the Rams back into field goal range and Josh Karty, who missed a field goal and had an extra point blocked, made a 48-yard kick to tie the game at 23-23 and send it to overtime. The Rams were not able to get closer and didn’t opt to take some shots into the end zone.
They should have.
After allowing a field goal in overtime and trailing 26-23, Stafford threw a brilliant pass to Tutu Atwell to get the ball to the SF 20. Oops, big mistake: That’s the edge of the red zone!
The Rams came into the game ranked 21st in red zone success rate, a problem that I highlighted a few days ago when I brought up trading for more red zone weapons this season. Maybe you don’t think the Rams need Rashod Bateman, but can we now all agree that the red zone is a major problem for McVay?
The next pass was an incomplete throw to Tutu.
The next throw was a 4-yard gain to Kyren Williams.
The next throw was a 5-yard gain to Williams.
The Rams have Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, but with the game on the line Stafford was unable to throw the ball past the first down marker and went to his running back twice. A running back who lacks the ability to evade tacklers and create explosive plays and who fumbles.
Facing fourth-and-1, McVay could have tied the game at 26-26 (if the kick wasn’t missed or blocked) but he opted to go for it with 3:41 left on the clock. It’s not a crazy decision, but you better have the right play call and the right players. Instead, McVay pulled out the wrong play call and the wrong player.
The Rams called a run up the gut by Williams which was stuffed and ended the game in a loss for the Rams.
The 49ers were starting Mac Jones at quarterback and his top target was Kendrick Bourne, a player who has averaged 350 yards per year over the past three seasons. Bourne had 10 catches for 142 yards in this one. Bourne’s previous career-high was 100 yards.
In the red zone, everybody crumbled, between McVay and Kyren and the offensive line. They were no match for a defensive line that doesn’t have Nick Bosa and couldn’t gain a yard with the game on the line, not that it should have ever come to that.
The Rams sink further down the rankings as a red zone offense this week, and further down the NFC West standings to a 49ers team that is now 4-1. The Rams play the injury-depleted Ravens next week without Lamar Jackson and a host of other Pro Bowlers and up until now that game seemed like a great opportunity for L.A. to take advantage.
But when other teams see the Rams reach the red zone, they’re the ones taking advantage of L.A..
Should McVay give up some play calling duties? Does Kyren Williams need to be benched? What lessons do the Rams learn from how they lost this game in the fourth quarter and overtime? Let us know what you think the right answers are in the comments below.
See More:
