LA Rams commitment to ineffective run still yielding benefits

The LA Rams are following the script we have been hoping for all week. The Rams have not committed to the running game whenever they had faced the San Francisco 49ers, they seem to completely ignore the running game. Not this time.

In the first half, the LA Rams offense has rushed 15 times for 14 yards by the end of the first quarter of football.  LA Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has passed 16 times for 15 completions, 153 yards, and two touchdowns.

So let’s point out a few fun facts. The Rams’ offense has been completely balanced in the first half.  With 15 rushes and 16 passes, the San Francisco 49ers’ defense has not been able to pin their ears back and level Stafford with a relentless pass rush. While they’ve gotten to Stafford twice, they haven’t been able to stop his accuracy.

The Rams offense may not be running well, but with the threat of a running game, Stafford has been making quick work of the 49ers secondary. He’s found his tight end, Tyler Higbee, in the endzone twice in this one.

If you had any fears of the defense or special teams rolling over for the Niners in this one, that hasn’t happened.  Brandon Powell, the late-season return specialist, has shown up. He’s given the Rams 54 years in return yardage in one half, including a 31-yard punt return that set up the offense for their second touchdown in the game.

The defense has held the 49ers to three points, 83 total yards, and just ten yards on the ground. The Rams have sacked Jimmy Garoppolo twice for 17 yards lost, and Taylor Rapp has his third interception of the season.

What about Time of Possession?  The LA Rams controlled the clock for a tidy 19:53 to the San Francisco 49ers having the football 10:07. Everything we hoped that the LA Rams would deliver in this one, they have done so through one half.