Rams seize control of playoff race with victory over Saints

INGLEWOOD — The Rams had marched 93 yards in their first drive against the New Orleans Saints on Thursday night. From Tyler Higbee picking up yards after the catch, Puka Nacua breaking a tackle, Cooper Kupp making an insane leaping grab and Matthew Stafford utilizing four receivers, it had almost all gone to plan.

But two carries and a third-down drop had the Rams facing fourth-and-goal from the Saints’ 2-yard line. They could have played it conservatively, but in a game with significant playoff implications, the field goal unit never stirred as head coach Sean McVay called in the play.

“It lets them know we didn’t come here to play,” running back Kyren Williams said. “We really came here to win; we’re going to win by any means.”

McVay’s faith was rewarded. Stafford connected with Nacua for a touchdown pass, and, though they didn’t always make it easy, the Rams were on their way to a 30-22 victory.

The Rams (8-7) did not clinch a playoff berth with the win, but they maintained control of the battle for the NFC’s last two wild card spots and, crucially, secured a tiebreaker over the Saints (7-8) with two games left in the regular season.

Stafford set the tone from the onset. Buying time in the pocket, completing throws through contact, pulling out every arm angle and ball placement in his repertoire, the veteran completed 24 of 34 passes for 328 yards and two touchdowns and, for the fourth straight game, did not throw an interception.

“I think he’s playing as good as he’s played,” McVay said. “I wouldn’t want anyone else in the world leading our team than him.”

He continued to find Demarcus Robinson, the veteran receiver who has come on so strong of late. Robinson toe-tapped in the back of the end zone for his fourth touchdown in as many weeks and added a couple of catches on scramble drills in which he seemed to read Stafford’s mind.

And the two fifth-round picks, Nacua (2023) and Williams (2022) continued to be the stars of the show. With nine receptions for 164 yards, Nacua moved within 128 yards of Ja’Marr Chase’s NFL rookie receiving yards record with two games left.

And Williams crossed the 1,000-yard rushing plateau for the season with a 22-carry, 104-yard game.

“We’re different when he plays,” McVay said.

The defense, meanwhile, saw big plays from all kinds of players.

Captain Ernest Jones IV got it started on the Saints’ opening drive with a pass breakup on second down and a sack on third that drove New Orleans out of field goal range. On the Saints’ next drive, linebacker Christian Rozeboom tackled the ever-dangerous Alvin Kamara in space to prevent a first down, then Quentin Lake broke up the third-down pass.

The Saints opted to match the Rams’ aggression and go for it on fourth-and-5 from the Rams’ 39. But rookie Kobie Turner came through with a sack for a loss of 9 yards, strong enough field position to start the Rams off on a field goal drive.

Overall, the Rams held the Saints to 5 for 11 on third down and 0 for 3 on fourth. In addition to the three turnovers on downs, safety Jordan Fuller grabbed an interception thanks to a quarterback hurry by Jones.

The Rams turned the interception into a 27-7 lead with 10-yard Williams touchdown carry. The second-year back took the ball through the back of the end zone so he could throw it to his mother in the stands.

“That was everything,” Williams said. “Now I’m finally on the stage where I’ve waited my whole life to be on and I’m excelling. So just being able to share that moment with her and her be able to have screen time, that’s amazing.”

Special teams for a moment threatened to undo the effort. Lucas Havrisik missed his fifth field goal of the season, then, holding onto a 16-point lead, the Rams allowed a blocked punt that traveled 8 yards to the Rams’ 35. On the next play, Saints quarterback Derek Carr found A.T. Perry for a 35-yard touchdown.

After Chris Olave completed the two-point conversion, the Rams’ lead was down to eight points with 3:52 remaining.

But Nacua grabbed the onside kick, then managed to stay in bounds on an end around to get a first down and keep the clock moving, allowing the Rams to complete the win.

It was the second week the Rams let their opponent back into the game, but the second in which they still came away with the win. And with two games left to secure a playoff spot, the Rams can take confidence from how their young players – from Nacua to Williams to Turner – were ready for this moment.

“That’s something that we’ve been trying to build here since the offseason. We have had such a young team this year, and I think we’re finally at the point where we go into games expecting to win,” Higbee said. “We can close out games a little bit better, try not to make them as close when we got these teams on the ropes. Throw an uppercut and put them away, but again, it’s part of learning and we’ll learn from it and be better for it moving forward.”