Game Preview: Rams, Seahawks look to continue playoff push on Sunday Night Football

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Game Preview: Rams, Seahawks look to continue playoff push on Sunday Night Football

Game Preview: Rams, Seahawks look to continue playoff push on Sunday Night Football

The Los Angeles Rams (7-5) will host the Seattle Seahawks (10-2) at the Coliseum on Sunday Night Football with playoff implications at stake for both teams.

Seattle currently holds the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoff picture, while Los Angeles is only one game behind the Minnesota Vikings for the second wild card spot.

To get you ready for the contest, theRams.com compiled a quick preview featuring who to watch, what to watch for on offense and defense for both the Rams and the Seahawks and three keys to victory for L.A.

Five players to watch

• Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey : Will he primarily shadow wide receiver Tyler Lockett, who has been Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson's top target, or travel between Lockett and rookie D.K. Metcalf, who has also shown he's capable of creating big plays in the passing game?* Rams running back Todd Gurley II : He went over 100 yards from scrimmage in each of Los Angeles' two games, so it will be interesting to see if that workload continues and what difference it makes. The former Georgia star had 15 carries for 51 yards and two touchdowns against Seattle in Week 5.
• Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny: The San Diego State product is coming off his two best performances of the season and created another rushing threat for the Rams defense to pay attention to in addition to Chris Carson.
• Seahawks wide receiver Josh Gordon: He has just four catches for 47 yards through his first three games with Seattle, but he's always a threat to catch deep passes.
• Rams tight end Tyler Higbee : Higbee will have a chance to build on last week's career performance with fellow tight end Gerald Everett (knee) out for the second straight game.

What to watch for…

On offense for the Rams

The general approach.

L.A. chose to air it out on offense in the first meeting, with quarterback Jared Goff racking up 395 passing yards, but Gurley's increased usage and consequent effectiveness over the last two games may have them opt for a more balanced approach this week.

On offense for the Seahawks

Penny and Gordon's involvement.

Penny had 29 rushing attempts through his last two games after 36 through his first six. Gordon, meanwhile, has been targeted only five times so far.
On defense for the Rams

How they plan to contain Wilson as a passer and Carson as a runner.

Wilson was 17 of 23 for 268 yards and four touchdowns, while Carson carried the ball 27 times for 118 yards.

On defense for the Seahawks

With Mychal Kendricks doubtful to play, rookie Cody Barton would step in at strongside linebacker for his first career start, so that would be something to monitor.

The effectiveness of defensive ends Ziggy Ansah (neck) and Jadeveon Clowney (core) will also be worth watching. Both are questionable to play after logging limited and full participation respectively for Friday's practice. Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll told reporters there's a good chance they are available for Sunday's game, but they will take it all the way through pregame to ensure they're good to go.

Three keys to victory

1. Stay disciplined: There are times, like the touchdown pass to Tyler Lockett in Week 5, where there's simply nothing a defense can do to counter some of the throws Wilson makes, or is capable of making. Awareness and staying with assignments will help minimize the chances of those kinds of things happening.
2. Stop the run: Wilson, Carson and Penny are all legitimate rushing threats for Seattle. The trio accounted for 189 of Seattle's 218 rushing yards last week.
3. Take some shots in the passing game: Seattle, like Arizona, has talent in its secondary, but it has allowed the fourth-most passing yards per game in the NFL this season.

 

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Injury Report 12/6: Everett ruled out for Rams-Seahawks; Havenstein doubtful

Injury Report 12/6: Everett ruled out for Rams-Seahawks; Havenstein doubtful

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Rams tight end Gerald Everett (knee) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Seahawks, while tackle Rob Havenstein (knee) is doubtful to play.

Havenstein was estimated as a limited participant for L.A.'s Wednesday walkthrough and was also limited in Thursday's practice. He did not participate in Friday's practice. Everett was estimated as a non-participant Wednesday and did not practice Thursday or Friday.

Defensive back Darious Williams (ankle), however, is good to go after missing the Rams' last three games.

For the Seahawks, cornerback Neiko Thorpe (core) has been ruled out, while fullback Nick Bellore (quadriceps), TE Luke Willson (hamstring) and starting LB Mychal Kendricks (hamstring) are doubtful.

Starting defensive ends Ziggy Ansah (neck) and Jadeveon Clowney (ankle) are questionable and appear to be gametime decisions, according to Seahawks.com's John Boyle.

 

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Rams' resilience must be proved over tough four-game span

The Rams pounded the Cardinals and will need to show a similar spark against the Seahawks, Cowboys and 49ers if they want to make the playoffs.

www.espn.com

Rams' resilience must be proved over tough four-game span

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- Jared Goff didn't exactly want to say the Los Angeles Rams needed a win over the Arizona Cardinals.

But with the Rams on the verge of falling out of the wild-card race, the Rams needed a win over the Cardinals.

"Being able to show that we can respond and show that we do have the resiliency among us, it's great," Goff said. "We've had some rocky times in the past few weeks."

The Rams went 1-2 in November. They fell inexplicably to the Pittsburgh Steelers 17-12 coming off a bye week. Two weeks later, they took a 45-6 drubbing by the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football. It was the worst loss in Sean McVay's three seasons as coach, and it appeared possible, perhaps probable, that the Rams' season would come to a crashing end.

But in a 34-7 victory over the Cardinals, the Rams proved they still have some of the spark that powered them to back-to-back division titles.

"It's a good step in the right direction," McVay said.

Even if it was against one of the worst-ranked defenses in the NFL, and a young offense still finding its footing.

"We knew we had to show up," said defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who had 1.5 sacks after he was nearly absent from the stat sheet a week earlier. "That's the type of football we've got to stay doing for the last couple of games and we'll see what happens from there."

With the win, the Rams' playoff chances increased from 8.5 to 14.4%, according to ESPN's Football Power Index, and their postseason probability changed again on Monday night, rising to 17.8% after the Seattle Seahawks beat the Minnesota Vikings.

However, at 7-5, the Rams likely need to win their remaining four games to earn a third consecutive playoff berth.

It is a tall task and one that will require Goff and the defense to play at their best, against much stiffer competition. The Rams' remaining schedule ranks as the third-most difficult, according to ESPN's Football Power Index.

On Sunday, the Rams return to prime time for the third time in a four-week span, for a rematch against the division-rival Seahawks (10-2), who beat them 30-29 in Week 5 when Greg Zuerlein's 44-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right with 15 seconds to go.

They'll play road games against the NFC East-leading Dallas Cowboys (6-6) and NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers (10-2), then return home to play a regular-season finale against the Cardinals (3-8-1).

Coaches and players understand what's at stake, though they have committed -- as least publicly -- to the cliché one-game-at-time approach.

"Just on to next week," said running back Todd Gurley, who rushed for 95 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries against the Cardinals. "Just trying to knock that game out the way."

The Rams have won three of their five games against the Seahawks since 2017, when McVay took over as coach. They'll need to play the way they did against the Cardinals to have a chance against their division foe.

"We cannot be satisfied," Donald said. "As long as we keep doing that and stay hungry, we'll be fine."

Against the Cardinals, the Rams recorded a season-high 549 yards. Goff passed for 424 yards, the third most in his career, and two touchdowns, breaking a three-game drought in which he failed to throw a single touchdown pass and committed six turnovers. Blake Bortles replaced him midway through the fourth quarter.

"To respond and play the way he did, play free, it just shows you the confidence he has in the system and the confidence he has in the guys around him," receiver Cooper Kupp said about Goff. "It was incredible to see him play the way he did."

Goff's highlight play wasn't a pass, but a block downfield. In the third quarter, Goff found receiver Robert Woods on a short throw on the left side of the field. However, Woods cut back to his right and Goff became his lead blocker before he was shoved aside by Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson.

Woods picked up 48 yards on the play.

"It's happened before and often I try to get out there, but I never get a chance to hit somebody," Goff said about his block. "Had it been someone other than a defensive back, I'm not sure what I would have done."

The Rams had 275 receiving yards after the catch, the most by any team in the past four seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information data. Woods had a career-high 172 receiving yards, 131 of which were earned after the catch.

Tight end Tyler Higbee also recorded a career-best 107 receiving yards, averaging 15.3 yards per catch.

The Rams' defense was 8:35 away from posting a shutout, sacking Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray six times. Rookie safety Taylor Rapp returned a Murray interception 31 yards for a touchdown.

"It always will be and always has been how you respond," Goff said.

The question that remains is whether the Rams can do it against better competition, and for four weeks straight.