With Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp back, the Rams have the firepower they need
The Rams went from one of the worst offenses to the one of the best in the first game back for Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, and their receiving abilities is only half the reason that the Seahawks defense could be in for a long day. L.A.’s offense had the second-best game of any team in Week 9, gaining a season-high 18.78 EPA (Expected Points Added), as well as +0.49 EPA per pass attempt, the second-best mark for any team last week.
Compare that to playing the Raiders in Week 8 without Kupp and Nacua:
- NEGATIVE 7.94 EPA (LA’s second worst week of the year)
- NEGATIVE 0.34 EPA per pass (24th in the NFL)
If these “Next Gen Stats” like EPA are meaningless to you, then use any traditional statistic that you’d prefer:
- 30 points (season-high)
- 26 first downs (ties season-high with Week 1, the last time both WRs played)
- 386 yards (one yard less than Week 1’s season high)
- 279 passing yards
- 107 rushing yards
- 4-of-10 on third down
- 33:37 time of possession
- 0 sacks allowed
And the Vikings are a good team with a tough defense. It is especially difficult to keep your quarterback off of the ground against Minnesota, but Matthew Stafford wasn’t sacked one time.
Kupp and Nacua give the Rams and Stafford two awesome starting weapons in the passing game. However, it could be the added component of run-blocking from Kupp and Nacua that elevates the Rams offense to another level against a Seattle team that Sean McVay has consistently beaten throughout his career, especially when he has a real starting quarterback.
The Seahawks have had a terrible run defense all season. They struggle to fit their gaps, struggle to take good angles, and don’t tackle well. Seattle even traded for former Rams linebacker Ernest Jones last week in an effort to upgrade their run defense, but the Bills rushed for 164 yards against them in a 31-10 win. The Seahawks have allowed this man yards in their last five games:
- Week 4, Lions: 389 total yards, 273 passing, 116 rushing
- Week 5, Giants: 420, 245, 175
- Week 6, 49ers: 483, 255, 228
- Week 7, Falcons: 369, 214, 155
- Week 8, Bills: 445, 281, 165
Seattle’s one glimmer of hope was that the Rams would be short-handed, but with Kupp and Nacua back in the fold, not only will they and Stafford have a chance to shine. This could be a fantastic week to place your bets on Kyren Williams having a new season-best rushing total (current: 102 against the Packers) unless the Seahawks have found a way to fix their run defense in the last seven days.
