The McVay Rams have an 18-8 record in 1 pm et road games. (Not counting the 2025 London game since it wasn’t really in the opponent’s own stadium).

This year they’re 2-1, with a loss v. the Eagles and wins v. the Titans and Ravens.

The 6-6 Panthers, of course, are more of a challenge than the 1-10 Titans or the 6-6 Ravens, who didn’t have Jackson at qb when the Rams played them.

Injury report from practice (from https://www.si.com/nfl/rams/onsi/los-amgeles-what-latest-injury-report-really-means ):

Limited
Kamren Kinchens (Shoulder), David Quessenberry (Shoulder), and Poona Ford (Calf) are questionable.

McVay: “As far as injuries are concerned, the guys that will be limited will be [Safety] ‘Kam’ [Kamren] Kinchens and [Offensive Lineman] David Quesenberry. [Outside Linebacker] ‘BY’ [Byron Young] will be a DNP,” stated McVay. “I feel good about where he’s at. [Offensive Lineman] Alaric [Jackson] is doing our consistent rhythm and routine. [Nose Tackle] Poona [Ford] will be limited. That’s where we’re at injury wise.”

The guys who bear watching, then, are Kinchens and Ford.

InvaderRam wrote:

it’s crazy to think the rams could have forbes signed through 2027.

and they got this guy for basically nothing.

Nearly one year after being waived by Commanders, Emmanuel Forbes Jr. thriving with Rams

Stu Jackson

https://www.therams.com/news/feature-nearly-one-year-after-being-waived-by-commanders-emmanuel-forbes-jr-thriving-with-rams

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – This Sunday, the Rams will play the Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.

It’s not just the date of the Rams’ Week 13 game, though.

A year ago to that day, Emmanuel Forbes Jr. was waived by the Commanders, the team that had drafted him 16th overall in the first round in 2023. Three days later, he was headed for Los Angeles after being claimed by the Rams.

Now, Forbes approaches that one-year mark with three interceptions across his last four games, playing confidently and as a key difference-maker in L.A.’s secondary.

“That’s something I always expected to do,” Forbes told theRams.com. “That’s how I always see myself playing (like that), and that’s just all the hard work paying off, honestly. But it’s big for the building that I’m able to produce and help my team win all like these games. And when I do my job, when the secondary do our job, honestly, we just feel like we can win any game. So it’s big.”

When Forbes was waived by the Commanders on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, he found out he was claimed by the Rams that Sunday night, right before the deadline for the waiver claim period (typically that claiming period lasts 24 hours).

“I was excited for a fresh opportunity, a fresh start,” Forbes said. “Got here and just got to work instantly.”

The work began well before Forbes stepped onto his new team’s practice field.

On his first day in the Rams’ facility – the same day his flight landed in Los Angeles – assistant head coach/pass game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant brought him into his office, “and we just talked for a long time, and even started watching film on me and how and why what happened in Washington.” Forbes said it’s a conversation he always remembers, one that is the reason he is the way he is today.

“Leave that in the past, like, that’s your past,” Pleasant told him. “You got a brand new start here. Don’t let nothing that happened to you in the past dictate how you going to perform here.”

Pleasant said it was “very similar” to the meeting he had with former Rams cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Jalen Ramsey when they first joined the team, in terms of expressing his delight and excitement about his opportunity to coach them, but also incorporating reflection about why they were in their respective situations to be here.

“Each of one of those gentleman had a different set of circumstances which gave me an opportunity to be able to coach them,” Pleasant told theRams.com. “I know in that first meeting, he (Forbes) thought we were gonna talk a lot about football, but we probably did everything but.”

The last 20 minutes of that first meeting were spent going over a film cut-up of Forbes playing his best ball for the Commanders, but also some things Pleasant thought he could do better.

“But it was easy to get that film,” Pleasant said. “Because of his transparency and his humility, he had already kind of talked about some of those things.”

Pleasant’s next step in restoring Forbes’ confidence involved both football and personal aspects.

From a football standpoint, Pleasant wanted Forbes to “delve deep into” being a technician, a coaching point that came from what Pleasant had seen on film.

“I knew he had been blessed with an unbelievable set of skills, but I knew that if he honed in on his technique, he would watch some of the plays he would’ve struggled to make at this level become a little easier,” Pleasant explained.

From a personal standpoint, Pleasant wanted Forbes to “calm over-eagerness to go out and prove the world wrong.” Pleasant explained they had “really good play” at the cornerback position at that time with players playing to their full potential, so it would be up to Forbes to be a “really good” role player and learn until his opportunity arrived.

Asked if it was difficult to curtail that over-eagerness initially, Pleasant said the first thing he said to Forbes was that he saw frustration come when Forbes was told he wasn’t going to be playing, but he also explained that because of the way Forbes was perceived at the time, everything from that point was going to be building what they needed. They wanted to have a long-term plan, and Pleasant said Forbes bought into that.

“I did promise him that before the season’s over, he if followed what we thought was the plan, he would find himself an opportunity to play,” Pleasant said. “Now, how much that would be, when that would be, we would never know, but I promised him, if he took care of what he needed to, he would get a chance to play.”

wv wrote:

Washington Commanders

Player: Cornelius Lucas
Details: Lucas was originally signed by Washington as an undrafted free agent. He is currently the Commanders’ starting left tackle.

The Washington LOT is Laremy Tunsil, originally a high first round pick by Miami in 2016 who then signed with Houston. Washington traded for him in 2025. He missed some games with a hamstring in October. But he’s back and continues as their starter. He’s their franchise LOT.

Cornelius Lucas was a UDFA signed by Detroit in 2014. He then signed with the Rams, and then the Saints, then the Bears, then Washington. He started 2 games at LOT as an injury replacement for Washington in 2020, but was never their starter. He is now with Cleveland.

The key term here is “franchise” LOT. Jackson not only starts for the Rams, he was extended with the big “you’re our guy” 2nd contract and is therefore their franchise LOT.

I can’t think of any other team that had a UDFA as their franchise LOT.

Granted Orlando Pace was a UDFA, but in his case the term meant “Up-high Drafted Fancy Acquisition.” So it’s a different kind of thing.

PARAM

The Best Division in the NFL. The Rams have the lead and the Seahawks are hoping they slip up a couple of times. To lose the division, they’d have to slip up at least twice. The Rams need to beat the teams they should beat and they should prevail. Seattle has their hands full with their schedule. The Rams, Colts and Niners will be tough games; they should beat the Falcons and Panthers but they better not overlook the Vikings today. I don’t think they will. The niners have two tough games, the Colts and the Seahawks, and they’re already 2 games out of the lead. Like Seattle, they better not overlook the Browns today. Bad weather, a stellar defense and a team with nothing to lose.

Which team is improving to 9-3 on this Black Friday, the Bears or Eagles? 🔮 pic.twitter.com/YT9TuBCnvs

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 28, 2025

zn wrote:

Los Angeles Rams @ Carolina Panthers: 08:30

They apparently see this one as such a foregone conclusion that they don’t even discuss the Panthers. They don’t even mention the Panthers, let alone discuss them. It’s all about Stafford and how McVay uses weapons.

Zooey wrote:

If you don’t stop with the animosity, I’m leaving.

If you leave, I will ban you. And on this site, being banned means–you can never leave.

Bwa-ha-ha.

“It's SUCH a struggle…”

“I'm not the only one who sees it…there’s no motion or very little. You don't see stacks, you don't see bunches, you don't see route concepts and combinations where 2 or 3 receivers are running routes that complement one another…”@GregCosell gives… pic.twitter.com/Oz0o6qTYwd

— Ross Tucker Podcast (@RossTuckerPod) November 27, 2025

Zooey wrote:

Yeah, I know. You’re right. I’m not complaining about Shelton, or any of the other centers over the past 40 years, but right now, we have two dream guards, and the OTs are also holding up well, and I think a dream center would have made Vita Vea invisible last week. And the Rams didn’t need to make Vea invisible. IIRC, they won handily. But I grew up in the 60s and 70s, and the Rams’ OLs and DLs just mauled everybody, and I recall those days with affection

+1

I didn’t provide all that info on Shelton “to be right,” btw, it was genuine curiosity/interest in how he was doing. Truth is, I didn’t know quite how well he was doing till I looked that stuff up.

“I don't think Lamar Jackson looks anywhere NEAR as explosive as we've seen him in the past.”

“Derrick Henry, I think is just not quite the same…”@GregCosell shares some harsh realities about the Ravens’ offense: pic.twitter.com/XdFCVC4NJc

— Ross Tucker Podcast (@RossTuckerPod) November 27, 2025

wv wrote:

Carolina RB Rico Dowdle.
When he carries the ball 10 or more times: Panthers are 6-1

Apparently they can’t or don’t run him as much when they are behind.

The exception was week 10 against NO. The Saints pulled ahead in the first half and Panthers were playing catch-up. Dowdle got the ball 18 times but was ineffectual that game, getting just 2.9 per carry.

In week 12 against SF the 9ers led the whole game. Dowdle got 6.3 a carry but only ran 6 times.

He only has 34 passing targets with 27 receptions on the season so apparently isn’t that valuable as a receiver. He averages 19.4 yards receiving a game.

So it just looks like that as a rule, they need a close game to give him carries.

The formula to beating him and them seems to be get ahead early and make them play from behind.

from Nate Atkins: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6841364/2025/11/26/rams-ahkello-witherspoon-returns-ir/?source=emp_shared_article

Witherspoon’s return creates a good problem for the Rams at outside cornerback. Emmanuel Forbes Jr. and Cobie Durant have surged in recent weeks, combining for five interceptions and a defensive touchdown over the past four games.

“You definitely don’t want to take those guys out of their flow,” defensive coordinator Chris Shula said.

“(Witherspoon) has a skill set that we definitely want to use.”

But Witherspoon adds a dimension in his own right, too. At 6-foot-2, he offers more length than most of their cornerbacks and has shown an ability to handle physical matchups and make plays on the ball. He has 23 passes defended and four interceptions in his 24 starts with the team.

Durant is an option to play at nickel cornerback, which becomes more likely after the Rams lost Lake and McCreary to injured reserve. Los Angeles runs one of the highest rates of dime personnel in the NFL, opening up six spots for defensive backs, with safeties Kam Kinchens and Kam Curl as the mainstays of the group with Lake out.

from Rams bring Tutu Atwell and Ahkello Witherspoon off injured reserve

Gary Klein

https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2025-11-26/rams-bring-tutu-atwell-ahkello-witherspoon-off-injured-reserve

The Rams, the team with the best record in the NFC, are getting stronger.

On Wednesday, the Rams designated receiver Tutu Atwell and cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon to return from injured reserve. Both could play Sunday against the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte, N.C., coach Sean McVay said.

…

McVay said last week that Atwell, who has recovered from a hamstring injury, was expected to play on Sunday. But Witherspoon was thought to still be several weeks from returning from an injury suffered in the second week of the season. Witherspoon said Wednesday that he suffered a left scapula injury, not a broken collarbone as McVay initially described to reporters.

McVay on Wednesday said the results of a scan, and Witherspoon’s work with trainers, put him ahead of schedule.

“To get Ahkello back, we’ve got some flexibility,” McVay said.

…

From The Insiders on @NFLNetwork: #Rams standout CB Emmanuel Forbes Jr. joined the show to discuss his recent success, why he's meshed with his defensive coaches, and how many points Mississippi State is going to win by in (maybe) Lane Kiffin's final Egg Bowl. pic.twitter.com/yXLYHWGvwE

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 27, 2025