Aaron Donald made it look like Larry Warford got off the ball late. pic.twitter.com/zHzAyWtIQi

— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) September 17, 2019

Five Takeaways: Rams defeat Saints behind second-half offense, special teams, timely defensive plays

Stu Jackson

https://www.therams.com/news/five-takeaways-rams-defeat-saints-behind-second-half-offense

Second-half contributions from a variety of key offensive players, a rebound special teams performance and clutch defensive plays helped the Los Angeles Rams moved to 2-0 on the season with a 27-9 win over the New Orleans Saints at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Here are five instant takeaways from the matchup.

1) HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS CREATE LATE SEPARATION

Considering these two teams combined for 80 points in their last regular season meeting and 49 in the NFC Championship, it was somewhat surprising to see the halftime score read Rams 6, Saints 3.

Still, credit Los Angeles for adapting in the second half.

L.A. had 207 of its 380 total yards of offense across the third and fourth quarter despite losing starting RG Austin Blythe to an ankle injury before halftime. QB Jared Goff’s poise was a big part of that, as was the steady rushing attack led by RB Todd Gurley II’s 16 carries for 63 yards and one touchdown.

2) BOTH TEAMS LOSE KEY OFFENSIVE CONTRIBUTORS TO INJURY

It was a busy day for the Rams’ and Saints’ training staffs.

For the Rams, there was Blythe’s ankle injury (carted off the field), a temporary back injury scare with DT Aaron Donald (he went back to the locker room but later returned) and TE Tyler Higbee’s chest contusion (did not return).

For the Saints, starting QB Drew Brees injured his right thumb after hitting it against Donald’s with 6:48 left in the first quarter, starting LG Andrus Peat sustained an ankle injury that prevented him from returning, WR Tre’Quan Smith suffered an ankle injury which knocked him out of the game and WR Keith Kirkwood hurt his hamstring before the game.

Neither team got out of this one completely unscathed, but between the two of them, New Orleans was clearly impacted the most by injuries.

3) KUPP HAS ANOTHER STRONG DAY

If last week wasn’t enough assurance that Rams WR Cooper Kupp was back to his usual self, look no further than Sunday’s effort against the Saints for full confirmation.

With nine minutes left in the fourth quarter, Kupp caught the ball at the Rams’ own 40 on a slant route, then took it all the way down Saints 1-yard line. It was initially ruled a 67-yard touchdown, but officials overturned the call upon further review and placed the ball at the Saints 1, crediting Kupp with a 66-yard reception instead.

While the touchdown got overturned, Los Angeles still took advantage of the big play, as Goff punched it in on a QB keeper for the score. Kupp finished the game with five receptions on nine targets for 120 yards, all team highs.

4) SPECIAL TEAMS BOUNCES BACK FROM TOUGH SEASON-OPENER

A blocked punt and a missed field goal are miscues you don’t see often from punter Johnny Hekker and kicker Greg Zuerlein respectively, let alone a unit led by special teams coordinator John Fassel.

One week after it cost the Rams 10 points in their season opener, Fassel’s squad returned to its expected form against the Saints.

Zuerlein made both of his field goal attempts, making him responsible for six of the Rams’ 27 points. Hekker averaged 49.8 yards per punt and didn’t get any of his attempts blocked. Punt returner JoJo Natson’s long of 32 set up L.A.’s offense at the New Orleans 26, and with a very short field to work with, it was able to capitalize with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Goff to WR Brandin Cooks.

Overall, Week 2 showed the usual positive impact Fassel’s crew makes.

5) DEFENSE DESERVES CREDIT, TOO

Natson’s punt return was made possible by back-to-back sacks from LB Clay Matthews and DL Michael Brockers. Both forced the Saints to punt from deep in their own territory.

New Orleans wide receiver Michael Thomas had 10 catches for 89 yards but was kept out of the endzone. The bigger development, though, was limiting the dual-threat Kamara. After registering 11 catches for 96 yards in the NFC Championship, Kamara had just one catch for 15 yards – only the third time in his career he’s been held to one reception in a regular season game.

Furthermore, the Saints offense got inside the Rams’ 20-yard line just once across 11 drives.

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Low ankle sprain for #Rams Austin Blythe. No time table on a return yet but he definitely dodged a major bullet. Is not sure about playing this week yet

Lindsey Thiry@LindseyThiry
Rams RG Austin Blythe says he’s uncertain how long he’ll be out, but doesn’t expect it to be too serious. When Blythe left the field yesterday, it appeared far more serious than a low ankle sprain. Consider this great news for a team that doesn’t have any veteran backups on the line.

RamsNewsNow@RamsNewsNow
Rams tight end reportedly won’t miss much time despite lung injury that was worse than thought

Tyler Higbee@Ty_Higs19
Thank you to everyone for the well wishes and support! I feel great and ready to get back to work asap! We’re 2-0 tho!!! #MobSquad 🤘

For the first time since 2015, there are NINE 2-0 teams in the @NFL.

Is yours one of them? pic.twitter.com/fHbPNwSq5z

— SNF on NBC (@SNFonNBC) September 16, 2019

According to @NextGenStats, QB @PatrickMahomes was 7-11, for 257 yards, and 4 TDs in the 2nd quarter ALONE (🤯)@BaldyNFL is here to break down just how he did it 👇

📺: #NFLNow pic.twitter.com/Gq9Wjb2iXF

— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) September 16, 2019

Cooper Kupp YAC then..,https://t.co/iOxuxJKJKT

YAC now… pic.twitter.com/GGqKlObpqG

— Matt Waldman (@MattWaldman) September 16, 2019

BTW. The 6 (so far) Waldman break-down vids (which at this moment are) at the end of this thread are golden: http://theramshuddle.com/topic/highlights-etc-saints-game/#post-105154

I mention that here cause sometimes, I get the feeling those post-game break-down vids get neglected.They are really must see stuff.

….

61-yard Bomb with pinpoint accuracy from Goff and great tracking by Brandin Cooks. Note how fingertips catch saved play… pic.twitter.com/o1Zzvd0v4J

— Matt Waldman (@MattWaldman) September 16, 2019

Give Goff option under pressure and he’ll belie some his pressure stats. pic.twitter.com/ng60tUr5Y8

— Matt Waldman (@MattWaldman) September 16, 2019

This became a catch. #LARams pic.twitter.com/yCaj3XjYaC

— J.B. Long (@JB_Long) September 16, 2019

trey wingo@wingoz
So.. just how good has Dak been the 1st two weeks of 2019? He’s completed 82% of his throws.. that’s the highest % in NFL history over the 1st two weeks of a season.. minimum 35 attempts

wv wrote:

Would not surprise me if the season had a lot of games like this one. Sputtering offense, but defense keeps them in the game

I assume (maybe wrongly) you think that because of the young OL?

I actually think Goff is prepared to return to his “regular 100 qb ratings” days from before the bye last year. I just think they had a game and a half of rust and are now hitting stride.

What do others think? What’s the “informal poll” on that?

Sam Farmer@LATimesfarmer
Each of the Rams’ top three receivers made at least one spectacular catch yesterday, something to add to their career highlight video.

Cam Jordan had some choice words to describe the officiating in Week 2. (via @ESPNNFL) pic.twitter.com/agJMDc8J4n

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 16, 2019