3 takeaways from Rams win over Seahawks...

3 takeaways from the Rams' win vs. Seahawks

Andrew Ortenberg

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

It was close and down to the wire, but the Los Angeles Rams bounced back from their only loss of the season to beat the Seahawks 36-31. The Seahawks were threatening the entire game, but the Rams held on in the end. It was a thrilling game, and there were lots of interesting developments. Here are three key takeaways from the game:

1. The Rams had too many penalties

The Rams were very fortunate to win this game considering all the penalties they had. Dante Fowler had two personal foul penalties alone, and the Rams had careless penalties on defense that extended several Seahawks’ drives and led to multiple scores for Seattle.


All told the Rams had 10 penalties for 102 yards. You aren’t going to win many division games with over 100 yards in penalties, and it’s something the Rams will need to get cleaned up moving forward. The Seahawks got five extra first downs from penalties, which is unacceptable. Toward the end of the game, a Seahawks offensive lineman hit Aaron Donald late out of bounds, which would’ve resulted in a first-and-25 for Seattle, but Donald retaliated and got a personal foul penalty of his own to cancel it out.

It was understandable why Donald wanted to retaliate, but it’s something he can’t do. It didn’t end up biting them, but it made it a lot easier for the Seahawks to almost drive the length of the field at the end.

2. Marcus Peters was better

It was a low bar to clear, but Marcus Peters was better today. He didn’t get absolutely burnt deep today, which is more than he can say for the past couple of weeks. He also had an interception that was negated by penalty.

Peters wasn’t perfect, but it seems like he’s been highly motivated by all the criticism that’s been directed at him by fans, and in the case of Sean Payton, opposing coaches. The secondary has been a mess for the Rams, and Peters improving his play might be the thing the team needs most over the second half of the season. He’s a long way from where he wants and needs to be, but today was a step in the right direction.

3. The tight ends had another big day

Yes, you read that right, it was another big day for the Rams’ tight ends. A week after emerging against the Saints, both Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett again had good days.

They combined for five catches and 40 yards, and each caught a touchdown. The yardage isn’t eye-popping, but it’s another step in the right direction for the duo. Last week each set season-highs in yardage, and Sean McVay’s trust in his tight ends is seemingly growing with each week.

With Cooper Kupp suffering what looks like a serious and possibly season-ending knee injury, the tight ends will be needed more than ever. Both are capable of making big plays, but have been inconsistent. We’ll see what happens, but it looks like both will be counted on to step up moving forward.