3 storylines for Rams against New Orleans in Week 12

After the fumble by Cooper Kupp before the half on Sunday, the Rams looked stuck in the mud offensively. Before Los Angeles looked hopelessly out of it in the fourth quarter, you felt like LA was a big play away from getting back into the game and challenging Minnesota.

Didn’t happen.

A Vikings team with Case Keenum is a much different deal than a Saints team led by surefire Hall Of Famer in Drew Brees. That’s a shootout the Rams likely don’t win.

Los Angeles can’t afford to slip into an offensive funk like they did against the Vikings. If you give Brees shots with the football, he’ll make the Rams pay, and as well as Jared Goff  has played, trying to go one on one with the Saints quarterback is a battle he won’t win.

As good as Los Angeles has been on offense this season is as ineffective as they looked against the Vikings. The Rams need to show they can hang with the upper echelon of the NFL if they are to be considered a PART of the upper echelon of the NFL.

If the Rams were merely due for a loss after a string of wins, then this week will show them both competitive and equal to the Saints.

But to be in the same conversation as New Orleans, they’ll also have to show they can beat them.