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Rams’ faint playoff hopes go dark with loss to Packers
🏈 Packers 24, Rams 12 — FINAL
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Baker Mayfield’s short-lived magic touch expired.
So did the Rams’ near-impossible playoff hopes.
Both were put in the freezer Monday night after a 24-12 loss to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
On a night when it was 15 degrees at kickoff — with a windchill factor of seven — the defending Super Bowl champion Rams dropped to 4-10 and the inevitable finally became official:
The Rams will not pull off a miracle and play in the postseason.
Could coach Sean McVay have imagined that after winning the title the Rams would be 4-10?
Rams lose the ball...then Jalen Ramsey takes it back
🏈 Packers 24, Rams 12 — 9:21 left in the fourth quarter
Two plays after Rams quarterback Baker Mayfield threw an interception, cornerback Jalen Ramsey stripped the ball out of the arms of Packers running back Aaron Jones to prevent a potential Green Bay scoring opportunity.
The somewhat comical series of events began when Mayfield was picked off by Packers cornerback Rasul Douglas on a pass intended for Ben Skowronek. Douglas then fumbled the ball when whipped around by his undershirt by Skowronek, but teammate Adrian Amos jumped on the loose ball.
Two plays later, Jones weaved his way through the Rams defense before Ramsey met him standing up in the middle of the field. As the two players tried to push forward, Ramsey wrestled the ball away from Jones and returned it 12 yards.
Green Bay squandered another chance to potentially extend its lead in the third quarter after Keisean Nixon went 55 yards on a kickoff return. A critical sack by Leonard Floyd forced the Packers to punt.
Packers running back AJ Dillon, who has two touchdowns tonight, is currently out of the game and being evaluated for a concussion.
Rams strike back with quick TD to cut into Packers’ lead
🏈 Packers 24, Rams 12 — 22 seconds left in the third quarter
Rams quarterback Baker Mayfield found tight end Tyler Higbee in the end zone on an eight-yard touchdown pass before Matt Gay missed his first extra-point attempt this season in the final seconds of the third quarter.
An 18-yard pass from Mayfield to Rams running back Cam Akers coupled with a low block penalty by Green Bay’s Jaire Alexander for 15 yards quickly moved the ball into Packers territory. Akers then picked up 19 yards on his longest carry of the season to push the Rams inside the 10-yard line.
Aaron Jones scores on TD pass as Packers continue to pull away
🏈 Packers 24, Rams 6 — 3:02 left in the third quarter
Packers running back Aaron Jones scored off a seven-yard swing pass from Aaron Rodgers to extend Green Bay’s lead late in the third quarter.
After the Rams went three-and-out on their first possession of the second half, a facemask penalty by the Rams’ Russ Yeast on the punt allowed Green Bay to start from the L.A. 35-yard line.
A nine-yard run by Jones and a 14-yard pass to Packers tight end Marcedes Lewis helped pull the Packers into the red zone to set up the touchdown.
AJ Dillon scores his second TD of game to extend Packers’ lead
🏈 Packers 17, Rams 6 — 8:04 left in the third quarter
AJ Dillon scored his second touchdown of the game on a one-yard run to extend the Packers’ lead in the third quarter.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed four passes over 10 yards on the 11-play, 68-yard march.
The second half started well for the Rams when Jonah Williams and Michel Hoecht teamed up to sack Rodgers on the second play from scrimmage. After that, Rodgers completed 10-yard passes to Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson before Dillon transformed a short pass into a 17-yard pickup.
A 15-yard catch by Watson pushed the Packers into the red zone, and an illegal contact penalty on Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey set up the touchdown run.
Rams cut into Packers’ lead on Matt Gay’s 55-yard field goal
🏈 Packers 10, Rams 6 — HALFTIME
Matt Gay is letting the 15-degree temperature or “frozen tundra of Lambeau Field” hamper his kicking game. Gay kicked a 55-yard field goal late in the second half as the Rams managed to salvage some points after another sputtering drive.
A handful of plays earlier, Rams quarterback Baker Mayfield nearly fumbled the ball away on a Quay Walker strip sack, but offensive tackle Rob Havenstein managed to recover. Mayfield then connected with receiver Van Jefferson on a 15-yard pass on third and long to keep the drive alive. Three incomplete passes later, the Rams settled for a field goal.
Mayfield completed eight of 14 passes for 74 yards in the first half. Cam Akers has 33 yards on six carries and Jefferson has two catches for 32 yards.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is 10 of 15 for 108 yards, with an interception. AJ Dillion has 37 yards and a touchdown on seven carries and Randall Cobb has 32 yards on three catches.
Rams need to win in order to not be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. The Packers also need to win to stay alive in the NFC wild-card hunt.
AJ Dillon touchdown pushes Packers back into lead
🏈 Packers 10, Rams 3 — 4:26 left in the second quarter
AJ Dillon scored on an eight-yard run up the middle of the Rams defense to give the Packers to first touchdown of the game.
The run capped off the best-looking drive of the game so far — an 11-play, 74-yard march fueled mostly by short passes from Aaron Rodgers and short runs by Dillon. A 17-yard catch by Dillon and a 14-yard pass from Rodgers to Randall Cobb also didn’t hurt.
After managing to keep the Packers more or less in check on their first two possessions, the Rams defense has started to look a little lost on the 16-degree night at Lambeau Field.
Rams tie up game on Matt Gay field goal in second quarter
🏈 Rams 3, Packers 3 — 10:41 left in the second quarter
Matt Gay kicked a 33-yard field goal to get the Rams on the scoreboard after Baker Mayfield was nearly picked off on third down.
Packers linebacker Quay Walker nearly picked off a pass from Mayfield to Malcolm Brown that had pick-six promise if Walker managed to haul it in. Mayfield has completed five of eight passes for 46 yards so far.
An unnecessary roughness penalty on Packers safety Rudy Ford helped push the Rams on the nine-play, 53-yard drive.
On the Packers’ second possession, Rams safety Taylor Rapp picked off an Aaron Rodgers pass intended for wide receiver Allen Lazard. Rodgers is 7 of 10 for 75 yards so far.
Packers take early lead on Mason Crosby field goal
🏈 Packers 3, Rams 0 — 4:25 left in the first quarter
Mason Crosby kicked a 34-yard field goal at the end of a 12-play, 52-yard drive to give the Packers the early lead.
Green Bay nearly found the end zone, but Leonard Floyd sacked Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on third down to force the Packers to settle for a field goal.
On second-and-goal Rodgers tried to connect with wide receiver Christian Watson in the end zone, but the receiver got tangled up with Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Rodgers and the Lambeau faithful wanted Ramsey to be called for pass interference, but the refs were not persuaded.
The Rams picked up a couple first downs on the opening possession before Baker Mayfield was sacked by Packers linebacker Preston Smith on third down.
In addition to the drive sputtering out at midfield, starting center Brian Allen limped off with a calf injury and is questionable to return.
Aaron Donald voted to the Pro Bowl for a ninth time
Aaron Donald will not play against the Packers because of a high-ankle sprain, but the Rams star defensive lineman was selected to the Pro Bowl for the ninth consecutive season, the NFL announced Monday night.
Donald, the 13th pick in the 2014 NFL draft, has made the Pro Bowl in every one of his nine seasons.
Donald had five sacks this season when he suffered the ankle injury against the Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 27.
The three-time NFL defensive player of the year has not played since.
Donald has 103 career sacks.
NFL readers Q&A: What’s with all the screaming at Rams games?
A big victory over the Miami Dolphins has put the Chargers in the thick of the AFC playoff race and the acquisition of quarterback Baker Mayfield has added some interest to the last portion of a disappointing season for the Rams. With four weeks remaining in the NFL regular season, Rams beat writer Gary Klein and Chargers beat writer Jeff Miller address fans’ concerns and questions:
Can you guys write about the Rams/Chargers PA situation that Al Michaels commented on Thursday night? As a season-ticket holder, I find it really annoying as well. Do other teams scream at the crowd like this to manufacture crowd noise? I find it embarrassing as a fan.
Dom Mucciacito, Los Angeles
Miller: The inane, screaming “Make Some Noise!” PA announcer is now a thing at most pro sports venues across the country. The good news for Chargers fans is that their SoFi Stadium games sound prim and proper compared to the sophomoric nonsense I heard the last time I was at a Rams game there. Look on the bright side, no matter what football stadium you’re in — be it college or the pros — you’ll never have to wonder if the opposition is facing “THIRD DOWNNNNNN!!!” because the PA announcer will tell you. Every. Single. Time. In. Every. Single. Stadium.
Klein: The Rams and Chargers apparently feel that fans need to be stimulated through sound and vision from the moment they walk into the stadium until the moment they leave. Forget sensory overload. This is supposedly entertainment.
Baker Mayfield still won’t know Rams’ playbook cold going into Packers game
GREEN BAY, Wis. — He worked magic with less than two days of preparation.
What might Rams quarterback Baker Mayfield do with 10?
Mayfield and Rams coach Sean McVay will answer that question Monday night when the Rams play the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
The defending Super Bowl champion Rams (4-9) and the Packers (5-8) are on the brink of official elimination from the playoffs, but the suddenly resurgent Mayfield squaring off against Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers adds excitement to the matchup.
Mayfield, claimed off waivers by the Rams. on Dec. 6, came off the bench against the Las Vegas Raiders and engineered two-fourth quarter scoring drives — including a 98-yard game-winner with no timeouts left — to lead the Rams to a 17-16 victory.
Rams’ receiving trio grabs at chance to shine with stars sidelined
Two knee surgeries in six months. Sidelined for nearly all of training camp. Unable to play the first six games.
Not the season Rams receiver Van Jefferson envisioned.
But last week, the third-year pro put disappointment behind him when he caught a game-winning touchdown pass against the Las Vegas Raiders.
With 10 seconds left, Jefferson beat press coverage and grabbed a pass from quarterback Baker Mayfield to finish a 98-yard scoring drive that helped end the Rams’ six-game losing streak.
Inside the Rams’ win of year: The 40-hour sprint to get Baker Mayfield ready for Raiders
As the Rams prepare for their Monday night game at Green Bay, the franchise is still buzzing about the stunning victory 11 days earlier over the Las Vegas Raiders.
It wasn’t that the underdog Rams picked up their fourth victory in a disappointing season. Upsets happen every week in the NFL. The surprising part was quarterback Baker Mayfield, acquired two days earlier, somehow learned enough of the playbook to take over on the second series and lead his new team to a win.
In less than a week, Mayfield went from asking for his release from the Carolina Panthers — who weren’t even going to dress him for their Week 14 game — to being named NFC offensive player of the week.
The Raiders came into the game having won three in a row and with flickering playoff hopes. They weren’t pushovers. And Mayfield directed the 17-16 win in the most improbable of ways, a 98-yard drive with no timeouts in the final 1 minute, 45 seconds.
Inactives for Rams vs. Green Bay Packers
Here are the players who will not be suiting up for the Rams and Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football:
Rams
DL Aaron Donald
QB John Wolford
LB Travin Howard
DL Marquise Copeland
CB David Long Jr.
OT Bobby Evans
DT Larrell Murchison
Packers
CB Shemar Jean-Charles
LB Krys Barnes
OT David Bakhtiari
OT Caleb Jones
DL Jonathan Ford
Packers coach Matt LaFleur isn’t thrilled Sean McVay got Baker Mayfield
Sean McVay and Matt LaFleur speak to each other every few weeks during the NFL season, the Rams and Green Bay Packers coaches keeping the close tie they established early in their careers.
But not every bit of good news for one is positive for the other.
Take, for example, the Rams’ decision to claim quarterback Baker Mayfield off waivers.
“I can’t say I was real excited from a competitive standpoint,” LaFleur said jokingly Friday during a videoconference with Rams reporters.
Now, with the Rams traveling to Lambeau Field for a “Monday Night Football” game, LaFleur and defensive coordinator Joe Barry — both former assistants under McVay — must game plan to try to shut down Mayfield, who with less than 48 hours of preparation led the Rams to a dramatic victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.
Sign Baker Mayfield, then immediately play him? What a wonderfully Rams thing to do
When the rest of the NFL asks why — why sign Baker Mayfield? — the Rams say, “Why not?”
That’s been the ethos of these Rams all along, to zig when others zag.
Why not move to Los Angeles? Build a $5-billion stadium? Hire a 30-year-old head coach in Sean McVay? Trade a bunch of picks to draft Jared Goff? Trade a truckload more for Matthew Stafford, Jalen Ramsey and Von Miller?
That philosophy doesn’t always work. It can definitely catch up to you. This team mortgaged its future to win a Super Bowl, trading away all those draft picks, and it caught up to them this season. They had lost six in a row heading into Thursday night’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Putting in a waiver claim on Mayfield after Carolina released him wasn’t a high-risk move. But it was something of a head-scratcher for people who thought the Rams would just slink off into a corner and call it a season. Just get it over with. They could limp through the rest of the year with quarterbacks Bryce Perkins and John Wolford.
Coaching changes likely in the works for the Rams
After his heroic debut performance with the Rams, quarterback Baker Mayfield thanked the coaches who helped with his crash course to learn the offense in two days.
Offensive coordinator Liam Coen was among them.
But if Mayfield sticks with the Rams beyond this season, he might be tutored by a new coordinator.
Coen has been in discussions with Kentucky about returning as offensive coordinator, the position he held before re-joining the Rams’ staff as Kevin O’Connell’s successor, coach Sean McVay confirmed Friday.
“We’ve talked about that being a possibility,” McVay said during a videoconference when asked about an ESPN report. “I don’t think anything’s official yet, but if that’s the direction that he goes, then he’ll do a great job, just like he did previously.
Baker Mayfield named NFC player of week after big Rams debut
Quarterback Baker Mayfield, who led the Rams to a last-minute victory over the Las Vegas Raiders less than 48 hours after joining the team, was named NFC offensive player of the week, the NFL announced Wednesday.
Mayfield, the top pick in the 2018 draft, was claimed off waivers by the Rams on Dec. 6.
Two days later, Mayfield replaced John Wolford after the first series and played the rest of the game. Mayfield engineered two fourth-quarter scoring drives. His touchdown pass to Van Jefferson with 10 seconds left capped a 98-yard drive and gave the Rams a 17-16 lead.
Win under belt, Rams say Baker Mayfield need not learn whole playbook for Packers
Baker Mayfield had 48 hours to get ready for what turned out to be a historic performance.
After leading the Rams to a last-minute victory over the Las Vegas Raiders last week, it took the quarterback about 72 hours to come down.
“Probably Sunday afternoon my adrenaline and everything kind of like settled down a little bit,” Mayfield said Thursday. “I slept for probably a day and half.”
Mayfield was wide awake and ready for what comes next as the Rams began preparations for a game Monday night against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
Rams vs. Green Bay Packers matchups, how to watch and prediction
Breaking down how the Rams (4-9) and the Green Bay Packers (5-8) match up heading into their game at 5:15 p.m. PST on Monday at Lambeau Field. The game will be shown on ABC (Ch. 7), ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN Desportes.
When Rams have the ball
After coming off the bench and leading the Rams to a dramatic victory over the Las Vegas Raiders — with less than 48 hours of preparation — quarterback Baker Mayfield will start for the first time.
Mayfield completed 22 of 35 passes for 230 yards and a winning touchdown to wide receiver Van Jefferson in the 17-16 victory over the Raiders. Jefferson and receivers Ben Skowronek and Tutu Atwell have stepped up in the absence of injured star Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson. Receiver Brandon Powell also has made plays the last few games.
Running back Cam Akers rushed for a touchdown and also caught a key pass against the Raiders. He could play an important role against a Packers defense that ranks 30th among 32 teams against the run.
Rams vs. Packers: Betting odds, lines and picks against the spread
For a Rams team that desperately needed a pick-me-up, an unlikely source provided exactly that. Baker Mayfield, claimed on waivers two days before Thursday’s game against the Raiders, led an eight-play, 98-yard drive to come away with a 17-16 win to snap a six-game losing streak.
When the Rams signed Mayfield, some bloggers had their Spidey senses tingling, as Sean McVay is a pretty good coach to work with high-round picks that have talent, but maybe haven’t had the best situations. Jared Goff went from completely lost in 2016 to a Pro Bowler in 2017 and 2018. Matthew Stafford won a Super Bowl last season. Baker has shown flashes throughout his career, but this may be a spot for him to experience a career rebirth.
Rams at Green Bay Packers (-7, 39.5)
Will that translate this week? Well, Mayfield has had more time to dig into the playbook, but he also profiles as a guy that may be better when he can just go out there and let his instincts take over rather than overthinking it. He was 22 of 35 for 230 yards with two exceptional drives and a lot of ugly play in between. He was sacked four times and the Rams managed just 4.6 yards per play against one of the league’s worst defenses.