Rams improve to 8-7 with 30-22 victory over Saints

The Rams entered Thursday’s game needing a victory to keep pace in a crowded NFC Wild Card race.

In a similar fashion to Sunday’s win over the Commanders, things got interesting in the fourth quarter. But the Rams were able to hold on and come away with a 30-22 victory.

With the rest of the Christmas weekend slate yet to come, that puts the Rams as the NFC’s current No. 6 seed.

L.A. scored on each of its first two possessions, with Puka Nacua catching a 2-yard touchdown to cap a 14-play, 95-yard drive. Then Lucas Havrisik hit a 20-yard field goal to make the score 10-0.

The Rams could have been up 13-0, but Havrisik sent a 47-yard field goal wide left.

New Orleans took advantage of the short field, with quarterback Derek Carr firing a 45-yard touchdown deep down the middle to Rasheed Shaheed with 2:28 left in the first half.

But even after forcing a rare Rams three-and-out, the Saints couldn’t get down the field to score again, with Carr throwing a pass that was well incomplete on fourth-and-5.

Matthew Stafford and the L.A. offense took advantage of their next opportunity, with the quarterback connecting with Demarcus Robinson for a 4-yard touchdown to give the Rams a 17-7 halftime lead.

After Havrisik hit a 22-yard field goal, running back Kyren Williams scored a 10-yard touchdown after a Carr interception to give Los Angeles a 27-7 advantage. Havrisik hit another 32-yard field goal to give the Rams 20 straight points.

The Saints cut off the points streak with Juwan Johnson’s 5-yard touchdown reception with 6:33 left in the fourth quarter. And a tipped punt on Los Angeles’ next possession gave New Orleans the ball at the L.A. 35.

New Orleans didn’t take long to score, with a 35-yard touchdown pass from Carr to A.T. Perry plus a two-point conversion putting the Saints down by eight.

But with just 3:53 left and the Saints without a timeout, the visitors attempted an onside kick. Nacua recovered it to give the Rams the opportunity to close the game.

They did…


Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/thursday-night-football-rams-improve-040925973.html

Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports

Publish date : 2023-12-22 04:09:25

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