4 winners (and 3 losers) from Rams' gritty Week 1 victory over the Texans

As the final play of the game concluded, Los Angeles Rams fans had a chance to stand, pause, and process what they had just witnessed between the visiting Houston Texans and the Horns. It wasn’t a blowout win — 14-9 — much to everyone’s chagrin. But it wasn’t a loss, either. For fans of physical and competitive football, this one checked every box.

Best of all, the Rams came out on top. It was a tough win. It was an ugly win. But it was a season-opening victory, something that had eluded the team the past two years. With this early triumph, the coaches, players, and fans avoid the historical comparisons to slow-starting NFL teams of the past.

This was a game full of heroes. Some were familiar faces who carried the team to victory. Others were new names who stepped up at the exact moment the situation demanded it. This win was a team effort — the best kind in the modern NFL.

3 loser and 4 winners from the Rams ugly but precious victory

1. Loser(s) - Rams offensive rookies

The hope for at least one of the trio of offensive rookies to see action and contribute in Week 1 was dashed almost instantly. The team’s list of inactive players included rookie RB Jarquez Hunter, a mild surprise to fans who expected an offense that would dish out carries to the trio of running backs on the roster. There were no passes thrown to either rookie WR Konata Mumpfield or rookie TE Terrance Ferguson, either.

The offense scored 14 points in Week 1 for the win. There were no explosive runs. There were too few points scored. It was a win, but it was the same type of victory that helped carry the defense to the NFL Playoffs last year.

2. Loser - ILB Troy Reeder

Many fans openly expressed disappointment in the team’s decision to release rookie ILB Pooh Paul Jr., who subsequently signed with the Seattle Seahawks, and retain veteran ILB Troy Reeder. The justification for doing so seemed logical enough — the coaching staff wanted to preserve the veteran experience of Reeder on this roster. The experience he brought in Week 1 was completely frustrating.

After scoring a field goal with just over a minute remaining in the first quarter, the Texans kicked off to Jordan Whittington, who promptly returned it 74 yards all the way to the Texans’ 23-yard line. But Reeder was called for offensive holding, and the ball was placed over 50 yards away, back at the Rams’ 25. Experiences like that are ones the team and fans really do not need.

3. Loser - KR/WR Jordan Whittington

Just moments after a huge kickoff return was called back due to penalties, Whittington was in for an offensive play and caught a pass that gained 34 yards. He was pushed out of bounds at the Texans’ six-yard line. But fate was viciously unkind to Whittington on this afternoon, as another offensive holding penalty erased that reception. Within the span of less than five minutes of playing time, over 100 all-purpose yards were stripped from Whittington due to penalties.

He would end the game with just one offensive play, a jet sweep that gained five yards. But for fans of the game, he was the source of electrifying plays. Unfortunately, they didn’t count.

1. Winner - PR/WR Xavier Smith

As frustrating an afternoon as Whittington had, his teammate Xavier Smith proved what might have been with penalty-free plays. Smith caught the lone pass thrown his way for a fan-delighting 36 yards. He also returned two punts, one for 16 yards, helping the offense manage its field position. In a game dictated by defenses throughout, Smith’s presence nudged the needle to the home team’s side of the field.

2. Winner - ILB Nate Landman

It seemed almost too good to be true. Veteran free agent Nate Landman was praised throughout the summer for his veteran leadership and an incredibly effective peanut punch that always seemed capable of knocking a football loose from even the most security-conscious running backs. And wouldn’t you know it. He knocked the football loose at one of the most critical moments of the game.

With the Rams clinging to a 14-9 lead, the Texans offense began to mount a drive that gave new confidence to a frustrated unit. Starting from their own 19-yard line, Houston strung together eight plays covering 57 yards. On first down at the Rams’ 25, QB CJ Stroud completed a pass to RB Dare Ogunbowale. But Landman arrived and punched the ball out, recovered by DT Braden Fiske. That gave the ball back to the Rams offense, who ran out the final 1:43 of the clock for the win.

3. Winner - Kyren Williams

It wasn’t an overly gaudy performance by featured back Kyren Williams, but it was just enough to help the team claim the win. He ran 18 times for 66 yards for a modest 3.7 yards per carry average. He also caught one of two passes thrown his way for three yards. But he scored the first touchdown of the game, one of just two total touchdowns scored.

Related: It only took one half for Kyren Williams to make contract extension look cheap

All other running backs on the roster carried the football just once. After all the coach-speak about an offense patterned after the highly productive Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense in 2024, this one fell back into old habits fast. The running back by committee approach died in Week 1 before it ever got off the ground.

4. Winner - Puka Nacua

The true epic hero in Week 1 has to be veteran wideout Puka Nacua. Despite suffering a helmet-to-helmet blow that drew an unnecessary roughness call, Nacua returned from the locker room to finish the game. It’s lucky he did. He caught 10 of 11 passes for 130 yards, more than half of Matthew Stafford’s 245 total passing yards.

He had to leave the game due to a cut on his forehead bleeding inside his helmet, got stitched up in the locker room, and returned with a patch of gauze taped to his head.

Not only did Nacua lead his team in receptions and yards, but his 130 receiving yards bested the entire Texans wide receiver room, and combined with Davante Adams’ 51 yards, nearly matched the entire Houston offense’s total (188 receiving yards).

It was a tremendous performance by Nacua and the entire team. This wasn’t a shootout, which puts pressure on the offense to score more than 14 points in the games ahead. But it was a start, an excellent start, to a season that could follow a similar pattern for a team that improves with each outing. Let’s hope it happens sooner rather than later. As always, thanks for reading.

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