By Jourdan Rodrigue, Larry Holder and Chris Licata
It was a tale of two halves for the Los Angeles Rams in New Orleans on Sunday. After being shut out for the first 30 minutes, Sean McVay’s squad scored three times in the second half to knock off the Saints, 21-14. A pair of Matthew Stafford touchdown passes in the final frame proved to be the difference, as was a fourth-down defensive stop in the red zone with less than 90 seconds to play.
With the win, McVay passed John Robinson for the most regular season wins by a head coach in franchise history (76) and Los Angeles pulled even to 6-6 on the season — just one game behind the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks (7-5).
The Saints, who snapped a two-game win streak, fell to 4-8. They also lost do-it-all man Taysom Hill after he was carted off with a knee injury in the fourth quarter following a fourth-down conversion attempt.
After first-half dud, Rams recommit to run
For just the second time in McVay’s tenure as a head coach, the Rams were shut out at halftime (the other first-half shutout came at the hands of the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LIII). McVay’s offense did not commit to the run in the first half, and only ran three plays (a three-and-out) in the first quarter as their slow start streak continued.
The Rams have been held without a touchdown in nine first quarters this season. Recommitting to the run game and lead rusher Kyren Williams on touchdown drives in the third and fourth quarters gave them a 14-6 lead as the latter quarter began. — Jourdan Rodrigue, Los Angeles Rams senior writer
Saints all but eliminated from the playoffs
The Saints entered Week 13 with a three percent chance of making the postseason (via The Athletic’s NFL playoff projector) and carried new life having won their first two games under interim coach Darren Rizzi. Losing to the Rams basically served as a playoff eliminator. The offense wasn’t good enough Sunday despite winning the time of possession battle. New Orleans failed to score touchdowns in either of its two red zone trips. Meanwhile, the Rams scored three touchdowns in three second-half red zone trips. That was the game in a nut shell.
And now you’re looking squarely at next year with five games left in the 2024 campaign. Can the Saints choose the right coach to replace Dennis Allen? Can the Saints fix the offense, the team’s primary issue since Drew Brees retired after the 2020 season? Can the Saints build the defense back up after being the team’s primary strength the past few seasons? — Larry Holder, NFL senior writer
The @RamsNFL get a HUGE stop on 4th down!
📺: #LARvsNO on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/eSN5Qn9S7p— NFL (@NFL) December 1, 2024
Rams’ first-round rookie continues to shine
Jared Verse’s outstanding rookie season continues. As the Saints crept closer and closer to the Rams’ end zone, down a touchdown in the fourth quarter, quarterback Derek Carr dropped back to throw on fourth-and-3. Verse’s second and third efforts against his blocker pushed him back and he finally got to Carr, hitting him and forcing an incompletion. Verse keeps showing up in big moments for the Rams, who needed him to do exactly that after a late surge from the Saints’ offense. — Rodrigue
Required reading
- NFL Week 13 scores and live updates: Predictions, odds, inactives, analysis and more
- NFL playoff projections 2024: The Athletic’s model predicts the field
- Rams won’t suspend Demarcus Robinson as legal process continues; more Week 13 notes
(Photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)
