Turf Show Times
In their most convincing win on the season to date, the Los Angeles Rams blew out the Jacksonville Jaguars in London 35-7. Matthew Stafford tossed five passing touchdowns, including three to Davante Adams in a big day and first career scores for rookies Konata Mumpfield and Terrance Ferguson.
The Rams have now completed a sweep of the AFC South division with wins over the Texans, Titans, Colts, and now Jags.
Spoiler alert: There isn’t much blame to go around and the “loser” section will mostly be limited to those who weren’t on the field Sunday.
I understand on a day where the defense posted seven sacks that it’s unusual not to include a “winner” from the defensive front; however, this was a total team effort in terms of getting after the quarterback. Nearly everyone contributed in this facet.
If you take out an offensive lull in the third quarter, this game may go down as Stafford’s best effort on the season and one of his most well-rounded outings during his time with the Rams. It was the first time as a Ram that he threw for five touchdowns and it was the first time a quarterback has hit this mark in the modern day of the NFL’s international series.
Without Puka Nacua on the field because of an ankle injury, Stafford started by spreading the ball to a number of receivers—including early activity for three different TE’s in Tyler Higbee, Colby Parkinson, and Davis Allen. Konata Mumpfield caught his first career TD at the goal line. Xavier Smith seemed to play more often than Tutu Atwell. Everyone ate on Sunday and the offense overall looked very difficult to defend as a result.
Stafford completed 21 of 33 passes (63.6%) for 182 yards and five scores. He was not sacked and kept the ball out of harm’s way, though he did come close to losing control of the ball on a fumble that looked very similar to a play against the Ravens a week ago.
This was clearly the biggest test for Warren McClendon to date. I’d even go as far to say this was the single most important game of the third-year tackles career. He passed with flying colors and should be on his way to winning the full-time starting right tackle job. McClendon has filled in for Rob Havenstein and performed at a higher level than we’ve seen from the veteran.
I’m ready to say that this is now McClendon’s job for the remainder of the season. It’s a big benefit to the Rams because McClendon has one year left on his rookie deal while Havenstein is slated to hit free agency. If the team has confidence in the young player moving into 2026, it solves a need that would require premium draft capital or a large free agent acquisition to otherwise fill.
Williams has now strung together two very positive outings and looks like...
