It was a sea of red jerseys at SoFi Stadium last night, which could only mean one thing: the 49ers were in town to play the Los Angeles Rams.
Coming into the game extremely depleted, many fans and experts alike expected the Rams to route the 49ers on Thursday Night Football.
From the start, that was clearly not going to be the case as the 49ers jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead, dominating the Rams in time of possession as they held the ball for 11 of the first 14 minutes of the game.
Despite trailing 17-7 at halftime, Stafford would lead two excellent touchdown drives in the 2nd half to tie the game up at 20-20 after Rams kicker Josh Karty missed the go-ahead extra point. This was one of several costly errors from the Rams in the 2nd half.
After the 49ers kicked a field goal to reclaim the lead, the Rams were at the 49ers’ goal line with 1 minute left in the game. The Rams handed the ball off to running back Kyren Williams, who already had 2 touchdowns in the game. The offensive line created a massive hole, and Williams appeared to have a walk-in touchdown, but 49ers defensive tackle Alfred Collins punched the ball out of Williams’ hands at the goal line.
Critical Kyren Williams Fumble Leads To Los Angeles Rams Loss
If Kyren Williams had scored on this play, the game would have likely been over, as the 49ers would only have 1 timeout to drive the length of the field for a touchdown.
Even though the Rams would ultimately tie the game and send it into overtime, this fumble was the deciding factor in the Rams’ demise.
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Trailing by 3 in overtime, the Rams would have a 4th and 1 in the 49ers’ red zone. The Rams would hand the ball off to Williams once again, but the Niners’ defense stuffed him short of the line to gain to seal the victory.
Sean McVay took full accountability for the loss, blaming his choice of play call on 4th and 1 as the reason for the Rams’ loss.
These are the kinds of games the Rams cannot afford to lose in a competitive NFC West. A divisional game at home with the Niners missing numerous starters, this is a game the Rams had to have.
The Niners jump to 4-1 on the season and take firm control of the division with 10 days to rest their injured starters, as stars George Kittle, Ricky Pearsall, and Brock Purdy are all expected to return for next week’s matchup against Tampa Bay.
The Rams will need to regroup as they fall to 3-2 and will have to play another depleted team in the Baltimore Ravens, next Sunday.