Rams Team Grades: Turnovers Doom L.A. Against Giants In London Matchup
By Sam McPherson
The Los Angeles Rams turned the ball over four times on Sunday in London against the New York Giants, and even though the Rams outgained their opponent by more than 100 yards on offense, the Giants won the game, 17-10, because of those four turnovers.
New York scored the go-ahead touchdown with 9:27 to go in the fourth quarter, and Los Angeles mounted two lengthy drives down the stretch that both resulted in end-zone interceptions by the Giants defense. Overall, the Rams suffered four interceptions and four fumbles (none lost, however) in a clear case of jet lag.
Offense: C
Los Angeles moved the ball relatively easily against the Giants defense, totaling 345 yards of offense on the day, including 291 yards through the air. Quarterback Case Keenum led the Rams to a 50-percent success rate on third- and fourth-down conversions, and L.A. took an early 10-0 lead.
But it was the fumbles and the turnovers that slowed the offense, keeping the Rams from scoring. Keenum tossed four picks, although two of them were deflected passes (one of which New York returned for a TD to tie the game in the second quarter). On the final possession, Keenum had a chance to get L.A. the tying score, but there seemed to be a miscommunication between QB and receiver, resulting in the fourth INT and the end of the game.
Really, only one INT might have been Keenum's "fault," while running back Todd Gurley again didn't do much damage (15 carries, 57 yards). His longest run of the day was eight yards, and when the offense has to rely on Keenum to win, the chances aren't going to be great. Still, to hold the ball for 35-plus minutes and score just 10 points in a loss is quite disappointing.
Defense: A-
It's hard to fault the Rams defense for this one when the unit held the Giants to just 232 yards of total offense. New York only managed 10 points of offense despite being the recipient of four turnovers. Give credit there to the L.A. defense for holding the Giants to just a 30-percent conversion rate on third downs.
The Rams didn't register a sack, but they did force one turnover that led to L.A.'s only TD of the day. The Giants gained just 36 yards on 20 carries, so the Rams shut down the running attack. New York threw for only 196 yards on the day, too, so the Los Angeles defense definitely played well enough to win this game.
Special Teams: A
Los Angeles put all three of its kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks, and punter Johnny Hekker boomed seven punts for a 45.7-yard average. The Giants netted 11 return yards on punts, while the Rams kick/punt returns were significantly better. Kicker Greg Zuerlein nailed his only field-goal attempt of the day.
Coaching: C
Once again, a Rams team came away with a loss by a touchdown or less. That's the 16th loss under Jeff Fisher the team has suffered by seven points or less in only four-plus seasons now. No wonder the Rams can't finish at .500 or better: You just can't expect to succeed in the NFL when you lose that many close games every season.
What can Fisher do differently? He's got the talent, and he's had the high draft picks to make this team good. Yet somehow, they keep falling short repeatedly. In this game, Los Angeles was called for twice as many penalties as New York, and that can't go unnoticed. Sooner or later, Fisher has to start producing wins, because the inexcusable losses are piling up.
Up Next
The Rams have a bye next week, so they can concentrate on two things: getting healthy and prepping rookie QB Jarod Goff, the No. 1 overall pick in the last NFL Draft, for the field. After the loss, Fisher said the team will stay with Keenum as its starter, but it's hard to keep justifying that stance with a losing record again.
The schedule is kind for Los Angeles coming out of the bye, with four winnable games next up on the schedule: Carolina at home, at the New York Jets, Miami at home and at New Orleans. Those four teams were a combined 6-17 coming into Sunday's action. If the Rams cannot make some kind of run toward playoff contention coming out of their week off, then it's time for the Los Angeles organization to really shake things up.
