5 Keys to Victory: Did Rams learn from previous mistakes?

5 Keys to Victory: Did Rams learn from previous mistakes?
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The Los Angeles Rams take on the Baltimore Ravens in Week 6 following 10 days of rest and a disappointing loss to the San Francisco 49ers. After 10 days, we’ll finally get to see how this Rams team responds to that adversity. This game has gotten easier than it seemed at the beginning of the season with the Ravens sitting at 1-4. At the same time, the Rams tend to like to make things more interesting than they need to be. Following their mini-bye, the question will be whether the Rams have learned from their past mistakes and can begin to rattle off some wins. Here are this week’s keys to victory.

Contain Derrick Henry

Over the past month, the Los Angeles Rams have played quite the gauntlet of running backs. They’ve faced Saquon Barkley, Jonathan Taylor, and Christian McCaffrey all in succession. Barkley’s 27.8 percent success rate against the Rams is his lowest of the season. Taylor’s success rate of 35.3 percent against the Rams was also his lowest of the season. McCaffrey had a season-low of 2.6 yards per carry against the Rams defense. Now, the Rams will take on Derrick Henry.

Following a season in which Henry nearly had 2,000 yards rushing, the Ravens’ running back is having a down season. He’s averaged less than two yards per carry in two of the Ravens’ six games. Henry has been contacted behind the line of scrimmage at the 4th-highest rate among running backs. Additionally, he’s rushed for 50 or fewer yards in each of his last four games. That’s the longest such drought in his career. It feels as if Henry may be due for a big game, but the Rams need to ensure that it doesn’t come against them.

Attack Ravens Cornerbacks

If there has been one way to exploit the Ravens defense this season, it has been at cornerback and in the secondary. As a defense, the Ravens are allowing the fifth-most EPA per pass and ninth-most yards per pass. This is a defense that isn’t getting pressure on the quarterback. Last week, CJ Stroud had his best game of the season, throwing for 244 yards and four touchdowns against the Ravens defense. Marlon Humphrey and Jaire Alexander have allowed a combined 20 receptions for 332 yards and two touchdowns while only recording a single pass defended.

The good news for the Rams is that Matthew Stafford is playing at an MVP-level. It’s very possible that he could be in for another big game. While the Rams typically struggle against man coverage, they’ve done well against it in 2025. The Ravens have used man coverage on 38.9 percent of opponent dropbacks which is the sixth-highest rate in the NFL. Against man coverage, Stafford is 40-59 for 501 yards with 6 TDs and 0 INTs with a 127.9 passer rating. The addition of Davante Adams has helped with that as he has 124 yards receiving against man coverage. However, Nacua has improved in this area...