Key points from Rams 46-9 victory over Colts

Here are some key points from the Los Angeles Rams big 46-9 win over the Indianapolis Colts.

Hey Los Angeles Rams fan, let’s celebrate this win because the team hasn’t had a win like Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts in a very long time. There’s a new sheriff in town named Sean McVay and he’s here to change the abysmal culture that we’ve had for over a decade.

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Besides the fact that Los Angeles more or less dominated the game from start to finish, doesn’t mean they didn’t make any mistakes. Here are a few things I’ve noticed while watching the Rams’ opener against the Colts.

Penalties

The Rams had seven penalties for 50 yards and that’s unacceptable. It seemed as if there was a holding call on every long run that Todd Gurley had. The team must improve in this field if they want to become a legitimate playoff team. I trust Coach McVay to fix the little penalty issues that Jeff Fisher did not.

Todd Gurley still has not been able to breakout

Gurley had 19 rushes and amassed a total of 40 yards and a very hard fought touchdown. He could have to adjust more to the new offense so I’ll give him a pass. But it seems like Todd could be back to his 2015 form with the way he was running against the Colts. He looked a little slimmer and seemed to be finding the holes in the offensive line better than his sophomore campaign. More repetitions against the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers could help him break his slump of not reaching 100+ yards in a game. But another note, he was truly effective in the passing game by having five receptions for 56 yards.

Tavon Austin was not utilized much on offense

Tavon Austin had a total of three touches on offense for a total of 18 yards. Does this mean the Rams wanted to spread the ball around more? Or does this mean that Austin has become obsolete for the Rams in McVay’s offense? Maybe I’m just over-thinking things because Austin was also nursing an injured hamstring throughout training camp. Coach McVay could be just bringing Austin back slowly. We will see more in the near future. His muffed punt was also not helpful for Los Angeles.

Next: 5 takeaways from Rams win over Colts

Aaron Donald

The Rams’ defense was absolutely phenomenal against the Colts after recording four sacks, two interceptions returned for touchdowns, and a safety, all without the best player on defense. If the Rams were this dominant against the Colts’ offense (granted Indianapolis isn’t that good), imagine how well the defense could/would do when they get Aaron Donald back.