Matthew Stafford, Kyren Williams help Rams to 21-14 win over Saints
NEW ORLEANS — Kryen Williams and the Los Angeles Rams headed to the locker room at halftime, convinced that the zero they had on the scoreboard was no indication of how the final 30 minutes would go .
“We knew the second half was going to be ours,” said Williams, who had a season-high 104 yards, including a 4 yard touchdownduring the Rams’ 21-14 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
“It was great. I felt like I was me, myself and me when I played like that,” Williams said. “I was playing instinctive football and I had great energy.”
Matthew Stafford passed for two touchdowns in the fourth quarter as the Rams (6-6) stayed close in the NFC West race and handed Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi his first loss.
“All we could do was get a win this week, and we did that,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “There has been improvement for our team collectively, and that’s what I want to continue to see.”
The Saints (4-8) drove inside the Rams 10-yard line in the final minutes, but Derek Carr’s pass on fourth-and-3 was deflected from behind by edge rusher Jared Verse and fell incomplete.
“I realized the tight end was staying on me,” Verse said, referring to the Saints’ Foster Moreau. “The No. 1 rule of perimeter is you can’t get blocked by the tight end – you just can’t. I just brought it back and was able to take it off the ground and affect the throw.
That allowed the Rams to run out the clock against the Saints and Rizzi, who had won his first two games since taking over after Dennis Allen was fired.
“We did a lot of things in the game that we planned to do and played the game the way we wanted, but we didn’t execute in critical moments,” Rizzi said. “We were lucky to win there. We had an open guy in the end zone and we couldn’t get the ball away.
Stafford passed for 183 yards with no turnovers. His scoring passes went 3 yards to Demarcus Robinson and 7 meters from Puca Nacuathe latter putting the Rams up for good with 8:54 to play.
“The first half was really frustrating, but we knew at the same time that every time we passed it down, we were getting good yards,” Stafford said. “We have to keep playing. Football is a game of ebb and flow.”
Versatile New Orleans tight end Taysom Hill, who propelled the Saints to their previous victory with one of the best games of his careerinjured his left knee and was carted off the field after converting a fourth-and-short point late in the fourth quarter.
Hill, 34, a fan favorite, waved from the cart as the Superdome crowd chanted his name. Rizzi did not provide an update on Hill after the game, saying he still needed imaging before understanding the full extent of his injury.
The Saints narrowly outshot the Rams and possessed the ball more time, but struggled to get into the end zone. New Orleans settled for three field goal attempts in the first half, with Blake Grupe making two from 54 yards but missing one from 36.
It was enough to give New Orleans a 6-0 halftime lead before Williams’ 10th TD of the season gave the Rams a 7-6 lead.
“Kyren’s energy was exceptional,” McVay said. “He was great at being really decisive. He put his foot into the ground, stabilized well and did a great job slashing up to the second and third levels.
Saints running back Alvin Kamara totaled 112 yards on 23 carries.
New Orleans’ only touchdown came on Carr’s 28-yard pass in the fourth quarter to Marquez Valdes-Scantlinghis fourth TD reception in four games since signing mid-season. Dante Pettis caught Carr’s pass in tight coverage in the right corner of the end zone for a 2-point conversion that tied it at 14.
Hill’s departure capped a tough day for New Orleans on the injury front. Starting center Erik McCoy was unable to return from his re-aggravated groin injury despite two weeks of rest, so Shane Lemieux started in his place. The offensive line suffered another blow in the fourth quarter when guard Nick Saldiveri was knocked out with a left knee injury. Bully safety Mathieu appeared to injure his shoulder during a second-half tackle on Williams. He remained on the sideline after receiving treatment and said after the game that he hoped to recover quickly.
Rams: Host Buffalo next Sunday.
Saints: At the New York Giants next Sunday.
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