The Los Angeles Rams have reached the home stretch of the regular season which means there is little room for error.
Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford have been exceptional in the month of December during their partnership though and that continued in Week 16 when they went on the road to beat the New York Jets, 19-9. The win improved the Rams record to 9-6, having gone 8-2 in their last 10 games after their 1-4 start to the season.
With the win, the Rams are now a game ahead of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West with a chance to clinch the division next week.
While the victory was great though, it wasn’t exactly a pretty one for the Rams. They got off to a slow start, which has been a theme all season long.
After punting to open up the game, the Rams allowed the Jets to go 98 yards on 14 plays to score a touchdown on their opening drive. Stafford then threw an interception on a tipped ball, his first turnover in the last six games, which was a career-best mark for the 36-year-old.
L.A. finally began to settle in from there, putting together a touchdown drive of their own to tie the game at six as both kickers missed their extra points.
Kyren Williams punched the ball in the end zone for his 15th touchdown of the season and really led the way all day for the Rams offense with 23 carries for 122 yards.
15th touchdown of the season for Kyren Williams 😤
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— Rams Newswire (@RamsNewswire) December 22, 2024
Tyler Higbee welcomes himself back to the end zone for a go-ahead touchdown!
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— Rams Newswire (@RamsNewswire) December 22, 2024
#RamsHouse defense with a big turnover to set up that go-ahead touchdown. 😤
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— Rams Newswire (@RamsNewswire) December 22, 2024
Jordan Whittington recovers to muffed punt to seal the win for the Rams!
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— Rams Newswire (@RamsNewswire) December 22, 2024
The Jets took momentum into the halftime locker room with a 9-6 lead and then came out in the third quarter with a 14-play, 58-yard drive that ate up 9:45 of clock. The Rams got a big fourth down stop in the red area though and then began to roll from there.
After a field goal tied the game, the Rams defense came up big once again with a strip sack on Aaron Rodgers. Kamren Curl hit him on a blitz and forced the ball loose with Jared Verse there to recover.
That set the Rams up with great field position and they capitalized as Tyler Higbee found paydirt for the first time in a year. It was Higbee’s season debut after recovering from a significant knee injury and his teammates went crazy after he dove into the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown.
The Rams defense came up with two more stops and Karty tacked on another field goal to put the game out of reach, securing a big road win.
What’s next for the Rams
The Rams will now be at home to close out the regular season, hosting the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17 on Saturday night and then the Seattle Seahawks in Week 18.
