Studs and duds from Rams’ nail-biting win vs Colts…

Studs and duds from Rams' nail-biting win vs. Colts

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Cameron DaSilva

The Indianapolis Colts put up a fight at home on Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Rams, going into the game as slight underdogs. The Rams ultimately came away with the win, 27-24, but it wasn’t nearly as easy as their first victory against the Bears.

The Rams turned it over twice and allowed 344 total yards to the Colts, with 109 of them coming on the ground. Their red zone defense was great and Matthew Stafford stepped up with a couple of clutch drives in the fourth quarter, as Matt Gay’s 38-yard field goal proved to be the game-winner with 2:23 remaining.

Here are our studs and duds from Sunday’s road win by the Rams.

Stud: Cooper Kupp

Kupp was outstanding in this game. He was Matthew Stafford’s go-to target, seeing 11 passes thrown his way and making nine catches for 163 yards and two touchdowns. He ran great routes to get open, like the one he ran on his first touchdown, and he also gained big yardage after the catch by breaking tackles and eluding defenders.

He was the biggest playmaker on the field Sunday, helping lift the Rams to a critical victory. Without him, the offense wouldn’t have moved the ball all that easily.

Stud: Leonard Floyd

Floyd was surprisingly quiet in Week 1, but he was extremely productive on Sunday against the Colts. He finished with six tackles, three QB hits, one tackle for a loss and a sack, but he was generating pressure at a very high rate. He could have had a couple more sacks, too, but Carson Wentz was difficult to get on the ground.

He avoided at least four sacks by the Rams on Sunday, two of which would’ve been credited to Floyd.

Stud: Aaron Donald

Like Floyd, Donald was constantly around Wentz in the pocket. He dominated just about every matchup when he wasn’t lined up against All-Pro Quenton Nelson, routinely beating the left tackle and right guard. He finished with seven tackles, three QB hits and a tackle for a loss, but he came close to sacking Wentz in the fourth quarter on the play where the quarterback threw the ball away and simultaneously injured his ankle as he was going to the turf.

Donald is a stud just about every week, but this was a game where box score scouting doesn’t do him justice. He was relentless and almost impossible to block on the interior.

Studs: Entire offensive line

The offensive line has been a pleasant surprise for the Rams through two games, looking much improved from even last year’s performance. Stafford had a ton of time all afternoon and the line allowed deeper routes to develop by protecting him well in the pocket, the second week in a row that’s been the case.

Andrew Whitworth did allow a sack to Al-Quadin Muhammad, but that was the only sack by the Colts and they hit Stafford just three times all game long.

Stud: Matt Gay

It wasn’t the longest field goal, but Gay drilled a 38-yarder with 2:23 remaining to give the Rams the 27-24 lead. Jalen Ramsey’s interception on the ensuing drive sealed the victory, so Gay was credited with the game-winning field goal in this one. He also made a 34-yarder and converted on all three of his extra point attempts, continuing his perfect start to the year.

Dud: Kenny Young

Young had been playing relatively well with five tackles, but he was ejected in the second half for arguing with an official and making contact with him. Following a run by Jonathan Taylor, Young was heated and began yelling at the official.

Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey, as well as other teammates, tried to calm him down but only after he took things too far and got himself disqualified. It’s a mistake that he simply can’t make, putting the defense in a tough spot by needing to plug rookie Ernest Jones into the first-team defense.

Dud: Nick Scott

Scott didn’t have great coverage on Wentz’s deep throw to Michael Pittman, but that wasn’t his biggest mistake. As a personal protector for Johnny Hekker on a punt, Scott got in the way of the snap and had the ball hit off his arm.

The Colts fell on it in the end zone for a touchdown, giving them their first lead at 21-17. Special teams as a whole was subpar, with the kickoff coverage allowing a 41-yard return to open the game, but Scott’s gaffe on this play nearly cost the Rams the game.

Dud: Robert Woods

Woods was targeted nine times by Stafford, only two fewer targets than Kupp had. But Woods caught just five of them for 64 yards, mostly because he had three drops. That’s uncharacteristic for the veteran wideout, who typically has some of the best hands in the league.

He still had decent numbers, but they would’ve been even better had he not had a case of the drops in Indy.