Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk moved the Los Angeles Rams up one spot to No. 10 after a 14-9 win over Houston, and the tape backs it up. Los Angeles handled the game with defense, field position, and a quarterback who played with poise. The Rams were underrated across the board from analysts, and they got the job done.
Let’s start with Chris Shula’s side.
Los Angeles Rams Defense Controls Game
The plan leaned on three safeties and a deep rush rotation, and it traveled. Ahkello Witherspoon is taking WR1s and canceling them. Emmanuel Forbes looks settled on the opposite boundary, with Cobie Durant handling the slot. Quentin Lake and Kam Curl played every snap, Kam Kinchens was near full-time, and that big-nickel shell erased explosives.
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Up front, Jared Verse and Byron Young set the edge. Kobie Turner and Braden Fiske dented the pocket. Poona Ford gave them sturdy nose snaps.
Nate Landman wore the green dot and cleaned up. Hold an NFL offense to nine on the road and you get voters’ attention.
Rams Offense Does Just Enough
Matthew Stafford managed the tempo. The ball found Puka Nacua and Davante Adams on money downs. Nacua posted 10 for 131 after briefly leaving and returning, working in breakers and finishing through contact. Adams drew help and still won isolation routes.
Kyren Williams carried the volume, and the line with Alaric Jackson and Rob Havenstein gave Stafford a clean enough pocket to pick his spots.
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No one is handing out awards for Week 1, but the talent is real. The Rams can win a fistfight, not just a track meet. That is why the No. 10 tag feels earned instead of given.
It certainly can be higher, but it’s best if the Rams come into every week underrated to give wins a true sense of accomplishment as underdogs.
The next three will tell more. A physical Titans front, a matchup against the defending champ Eagles, and the new and improved Daniel Jones-led Colts.
Keep explosives off the board, clean up red zone execution, and this team will stop sneaking into top 10 lists and start living there.