Stafford turns back the clock as Rams receiver duo return in win
Los Angeles Rams #9 Matthew Stafford (QB) threw four touchdowns against the Minnesota Vikings’ secondary. Photo by Jerry Kelly/TGSportstv1.
INGLEWOOD, CA – The Los Angeles Rams (3-4) came into their Thursday Night Football matchup against the Minnesota Vikings (5-2) with a losing record, trade rumors swirling, and a future Hall of Fame quarterback that many were trying to write off.
Matthew Stafford had only mustered three touchdowns through six games on the season and statically the NFL’s best defense was in town. The Vikings’ defense was licking their lips, salivating with a wounded Rams team in front of them.
Enter Cooper Kupp's return and the surprise return of Puka Nacua. The All-Pro receiving duo ignited a fire in Stafford and the Rams' offense during their 30-20 win over Minnesota at SoFi Stadium.
Stafford exploded for four touchdowns and 279 yards passing for the Rams. Nacua paced the team with seven receptions and 107 receiving yards. Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold finished with 240 yards passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Justin Jefferson led Minnesota with 115 receiving yards on eight receptions.
The Vikings took their opening drive 70 yards down the field on nine plays led by All-Pro wide receiver Jefferson’s three receptions. Darnold capped the drive with a five-yard pass to Josh Oliver as Minnesota struck first, 7-0.
The Rams struck right back with a nine-play, 70-yard drive of their own with a short pass to Kyren Williams to tie the game midway through the first quarter. The touchdown was the tenth straight game the running back has scored dating back to 2023.
Los Angeles Rams #17 Puka Nacua (WR) avoiding being tackle by a Minnesota Vikings’ defender. Photo by Jerry Kelly/TGSportstv1.
Touchdown-after-touchdown both teams went with the Vikings responding to take a 14-7 lead on their second possession. Stafford followed suit escaping a collapsed pocket that had two Viking defenders with hands on him. The normally stone-footed veteran escaped the grasp of the first defender, then ducked under the second, firing a laser to a wide-open Kupp in the endzone, tying the game 14-14 with 10:05 remaining in the first half.
The spry moves by Stafford were closer to prime Eric Dickerson than they were to a 36-year-old quarterback with negative seven rushing yards on the season.
“Fear is a hell of a motivator,” said Stafford. “When you’re scared back there sometimes you move fast.”
The defenses then took over with neither team scoring the next 23 minutes. Jared Verse continued his phenomenal rookie season pressuring Darnold repeatedly in the second and third quarters including three hits on the quarterback. He finished with one-and-a-half sacks as Darnold was scoreless in the second half.
“Honestly it was Coach Coniglio all week he told me if you finish plays no one will stop you,” said Verse. “I’m getting it, it’s just making the plays when I get there.”
After a pair of Minnesota field goals cut the lead to one in the third quarter, 21-20, the Rams defense locked in not surrendering a single point the rest of the way.
In the fourth quarter with the Rams facing fourth-and-inches, Williams followed a huge Nacua block to keep the drive alive. In addition to his elite receiving skills, the Rams missed the six-foot-two-inch, 215-pound receiver’s blocking skills. Williams dominated on the ground and was repeatedly sprung for nice runs on Nacua's opened holes.
Los Angeles Rams #18 Demarcus Robinson (WR) 10-yard touchdown catch against the Minnesota Vikings. Photo by Jerry Kelly/TGSportstv1.
The drive ended with Stafford finding Demarcus Robinson in the endzone for the receiver's second score of the night giving the Rams a 28-20 lead with just over six minutes remaining in the game.
With time dwindling, punter Ethan Evans made a clutch kick for the Rams pinning Minnesota at the five-yard-line with 2:06 left.
Two plays later, linebacker Byron Young made a game-ending play, tackling Darnold in the endzone for the 30-20 score. However, the Vikings immediately erupted into an irate tirade for what appeared to be a blatantly missed face mask on Young.
Replay showed he grabbed Darnold’s face mask turning the quarterback's head and neck, bringing him to the ground. Young immediately put both hands on his helmet in disbelief at his mistake. Fortunately for the Rams, the referees missed the call and the Rams bled out the clock for the win.
“It looked like he got a pretty good amount of facemask there,” said Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell. “It looked like he got a piece of the facemask but they didn’t think so, so they didn’t throw the flag.”
It was a great team win for the Rams who have now won two games in the past five days and are trending in the right direction. Los Angeles looked great in all aspects of the game, offensively, defensively, and on special teams. The energy that Nacua and Kupp’s return brought, lit a fire, especially in Stafford’s eyes, which in return sparked to defense.
Stafford completed 73 percent of his passes en route to a 124.5 passer rating, his highest of the season. Additionally, his 25 completions moved him past Dan Marino to ninth on the all-time list.
Kupp’s 53rd receiving touchdown tonight moved him into a third-place tie all-time in franchise history. It put a positive ending on a tumultuous week for Kupp, which saw both the Chiefs and Steelers try to trade for the former All-Pro receiver, which McVay addressed briefly post-game.
“Teams reached out,” said “McVay. “Teams have called about him and really, we let him know what the dialogue was there. Some of the things that I’ve seen out there, they’re just not true. We’ve addressed that with those individuals.”
The Rams now have ten days off to rest, heal, and continue building chemistry. Their next matchup will be against the division-leading Seattle Seahawks (4-3) at SoFi Stadium. The Rams will have an opportunity to pull into a tie for first place with a win.