mangled thumb exemplifies Rams’ grit vs. Seahawks

Jared Goff and his mangled thumb exemplify Rams’ grit vs. Seahawks

https://theathletic.com/2313103/2021/01/09/goff-thumb-rams-seahawks-injuries/?source=twittered

We knew going into the Rams’ playoff game against the Seahawks that, given the two teams’ stagnant offenses, the victors likely would have to scratch their way into next week’s divisional round with gritted teeth and with both eyes closed. We did not know the Rams also would have to overcome losing several of their best players in order to stay alive in the postseason, and somehow they found a way to do it with Saturday’s 30-20 victory in Seattle.

After Jared Goff broke his thumb two weeks ago, backup John Wolford filled in admirably in a Week 17 victory over the Cardinals that clinched the Rams’ third playoff appearance in four years. Goff had surgery on that thumb just 12 days before Saturday’s game, and it defied reason that he would be ready to play. But head coach Sean McVay played coy all week, telling the media that Goff was improving in practice and that he would not make a decision on his starting quarterback until game time. This wasn’t true. McVay had told his team during the week that, given Goff’s injury, Wolford would be the Rams’ QB1. After the game, he marveled at what it said about his team that a lot of people knew which quarterback would start for the Rams and it did not leak out through the media.

Maybe that omerta was a sign of things to come on the field. Because when Wolford got popped in the head by Seahawks safety Jamal Adams in the first quarter and had to leave the game and go to the hospital with a neck injury, the Rams could have sulked all the way back to Los Angeles. The Rams declined to put third-string quarterback Blake Bortles on their active roster for the game. The only other QB at their disposal was Goff, who, had he truly been well enough to hurl a football down the field, would have started the game in the first place.

The Rams insisted all week that Goff was ready to go, and he got a chance to prove it. As it turned out, he also was still mad about how the Seahawks celebrated on Dec. 27 after beating the Rams to win the NFC West, the same game in which Goff broke his thumb.

“Two weeks ago,” Goff said, “you saw (the Seahawks) smoking cigars and getting all excited about beating us and winning the division, and we were able to come up here and beat them. It feels good.”

The first few series with Goff under center were ugly. He took a sack for a 7-yard loss two plays after he stepped onto the field. The Rams went three-and-out on their next two possessions. On the second play of Goff’s fourth drive, he took a shot downfield and lobbed a wounded duck within the reach of Adams. It looked as though the interception monster that has been haunting Goff’s nightmares might swallow one of his passes whole again. But Cooper Kupp made an amazing adjustment, twirling all the way around to face Goff midair and then ripping the ball away from Adams for a 44-yard gain. Kupp’s play not only saved Goff from disaster, but it also flipped the field in a game that looked like it might turn into a field-goal battle royale.

Speaking of field goals, the reason we haven’t had to talk much about the Rams’ kicking situation since they signed Matt Gay on Nov. 17 is because he has made 17 of the 19 field goals he’s tried, including 12 in a row. He hit all three attempts Saturday. And while his longest kick was from 40 yards, considering that the Rams were mired in a placekicking morass earlier this season, the fact that they haven’t missed Greg Zuerlein in this season’s most crucial moments is incredible.

McVay said the best play Goff made all game was on third down with three minutes left in the first half and the Rams leading 13-10. Goff dropped back and couldn’t find any of his receivers open. So he scrambled and drew defenders toward him, then lofted a short pass to Cam Akers. With nothing but turf in front of him, Akers scampered for 44 yards. Two plays later, Akers carried the ball into the end zone to give the Rams a 20-10 halftime lead.

A quick word on Akers. The Rams’ second-round pick last April left Florida State after his junior season and only turned 21 in June. After splitting time in a running back rotation with Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson early this season, Akers broke out in a Dec. 10 game against the Patriots and rushed 29 times for 171 yards. Then he suffered a high ankle sprain the following week against the Jets. That injury caused him to miss the following week’s game in Seattle and limited him to just 34 yards last week against Arizona. High ankle sprains are nasty. He’s got the magic of young ligaments on his side, but he probably won’t be back to full health until next season. It didn’t matter Saturday. He recorded 176 yards from scrimmage, plus a touchdown in the first half.

Akers carried the Rams’ offense when the team needed him most. As the game progressed, Goff’s thumb swelled to the color and size of a magenta bratwurst.

A clearly limited Goff finished the game 9-for-19 with 155 passing yards. But even though he didn’t seem to have much use of the thumb on his throwing hand, he somehow did not turn the ball over. He even lobbed a late touchdown pass to Robert Woods to put the Rams up 30-13 and ice the game in the fourth. We’ve all ripped Goff in the past for his inability to feel pass rushes and for his inexplicable turnovers. But on Saturday afternoon, the fifth-year quarterback took the field against a tough defense in Seattle without much use of his throwing hand, and somehow he did not let the Seahawks take the ball away from him. His toughness deserves recognition. For what he could reasonably do 12 days removed from thumb surgery, Goff played his ass off.

Of course, the Rams were only in a position to win this game because of their unbelievable defense. With every week that passes, I run out of adjectives to describe Aaron Donald. Double-teaming him doesn’t work. He somehow sacked Russell Wilson on a play Saturday in which his man was still blocking him with some force!

Jalen Ramsey blanketed DK Metcalf for most of the game, and except for the Seahawks receiver’s long touchdown in the second quarter after a sensational effort by Wilson to keep the play alive, Metcalf was such a non-factor that he threw a fit on the Seahawks’ sideline.

Donald suffered a ribs injury in the third quarter and did not return. Obviously, it’s difficult to envision the Rams winning another game without their best player, but the Rams’ defense did not miss a beat without him against the Seahawks.

“Obviously, it’s impossible to replicate what (Donald) does, but it’s always next man up for us,” safety John Johnson said.

Injuries will be an issue for the Rams going forward. McVay said he again planned to keep the public in the dark about which of his quarterbacks will start next weekend. If Wolford can’t play, Bortles will slot in behind Goff — provided that Goff’s thumb doesn’t get worse. If the Saints beat the Bears on Sunday, the Rams will head to Green Bay to play the Packers. If the Bears win, the Rams will face Tampa Bay, which defeated Washington on Saturday.

The Rams also could be without Kupp, who left the game in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, but the team seemingly got some good news about that after the game.

Akers also left the game in the fourth quarter, but it’s unclear if his departure was due to injury or the fact that the Rams’ victory was all but sealed.

Whatever happens next week, the Rams pulled off a gutsy win in Seattle on Saturday. They are a well-coached team that fought hard on the road through a slew of injuries in the midst of a pandemic to bring another postseason win to L.A. And for that, this city should be proud.