5 winners (and 5 losers) from Rams' catastrophic Week 3 loss to the Eagles

The Los Angeles Rams made their way to Lincoln Financial Field in Week 3 with hopes of knocking off the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles. And for the first half of the game, the team did exactly that. The defense smothered Philly's offense, limiting them to just one touchdown that came as a result of an early Matthew Stafford interception.

But after a strip sack forced Jalen Hurts to cough up the football, leading to a 10-yard touchdown pass from Stafford to running back Kyren Williams, the guns fell silent. The same offense that moved the football so easily on Philly's defense began to falter. The blocking suddenly became a turnstile once the offense moved into field goal range.

As the Horns took a commanding 26-7 lead, just 54 seconds into the second half, they appeared to have had the game well in hand. But the offense wouldn't score another point, and the defense would give up three touchdowns. By the end of the game, it just felt like the Eagles wanted it more.

5 winners and 5 losers from Rams Week 3 shocking loss to the Eagles

Loser 1- Coleman Shelton's center responsibilities

A Coleman Shelton holding penalty wiped off a Williams rushing touchdown that would have put LA up 17-7 in the first half. The penalty set the tone for the rest of the game. Rather than a simple plunge from two yards away, the penalty placed the ball back on the 12-yard line. In doing so, the Rams had no choice but to settle for a field goal.

Loser 2 - Matthew Stafford's rapport with anyone other than Puka Nacua

This is a tough one because Stafford showed flashes of being one of the best offensive weapons on the team. But he also struggled at times with his consistency. His first offensive drive led to an interception and an Eagles touchdown.

He had no problem connecting with wide receiver Puka Nacua. But as feared when he sat out all of training camp and much of the preseason, he is unable to replicate that accuracy with other receivers. He was only able to connect on eight of 18 passes for 84 yards to receivers not named Nacua, which is alarming for at least 84 reasons.

Loser 3 - ST Coordinator Chase Blackburn

Aside from their first drive of the game — following Stafford's pick — the Eagles started just about every other drive with terrible field position. They started at the 20, 19, 9, and 8-yard lines in the first half. That's the good for Blackburn. And seeing as though field position isn't exactly sexy, his team's second-half performance erased any good feelings from the first.

But it was a different story in the second half. Two consecutive blocked field goals. That wiped six points off the scoreboard. One field goal was returned for a touchdown. That threw another six points on the scoreboard for the home team. No blocking adjustments. No solutions. It seems that blocked field goals are not going away quietly.

Loser 4 - K Joshua Karty

Joshua Karty fell from hero to zero. The kicker kicked everything through the uprights in the first half, but failed to kick two game-winning field goals in the second half because the blocking faltered.

It's every placekicker's dream to boot a game-winning field goal. Karty had two chances to do so, but it turned into a nightmare pretty quickly.

Loser 5 - NFL officials

It's difficult to witness a football game between two evenly matched opponents being decided by bad officiating, but that's the storyline in this one. This was a game that was supposed to test the NFL's resolve to call offside penalties properly when the infamous Tush Push appeared in the game. And yet, the only ones pointing out the transgressions came from the broadcast booth.

But oh, the referees were Johnny-on-the-spot when it came to flagging wide receiver Puka Nacua.

They flagged him for taunting (when there was none) and failed to flag a blatant pass interference on him. Either situation would have properly placed the offense into a more enviable down and distance. But why strive for right when you can stir the pot to controversy?

Winner 1 - Rams run defense

The pre-game story was all about the run defense stopping running back Saquon Barkley. And the results are in, as the run defense passed with flying colors. Barkley rushed 18 times for a measly 46 yards. Even when factoring in Hurts' dashes to daylight, the run defense halted 27 rushes for just 86 yards. In a game of inches, that was miles of improvement over 2024.

Winner 2 - NT Poona Ford

The bonus of investing in free agent nose tackle Poona Ford paid off handsomely in this one. He was a full-service defensive lineman, generating a quarterback sack, three tackles, one tackle for a loss, and helping the run defense show the type of stingy resolve that fans have been begging for.

Winner 3 - PR Xavier Smith

While he has only been targeted once this season for a 36-yard reception, wide receiver/punt returner Xavier Smith continues to showcase his elusiveness as a stellar punt returner for the team. He returned four punts for 53 yards in Week 3, giving the offense solid field position to work from throughout the game.

Winner 4 - Rams rushing offense

The rushing offense finally showed up, converting 31 runs into 160 rushing yards. That was nearly double the rushing output of the opponents. Curiously, the offense simply was unable to run for a touchdown (see Coleman Shelton above), which played a large part in the outcome of this game. The offense was only able to convert three of 11 third downs and failed to convert a brutal fourth down as the game drew to a close. But this offense can run.

Winner 5 - DB Quentin Lake

Let's not leave out defensive back Quentin Lake. He had six tackles in this one, but more importantly, he broke up four pass plays. Hurts ignited in the second half for three touchdown passes, but it may have been more were it not for Lake's Velcro-like coverage.

Like every game, there is something to take away from this one, no matter what your perspective. If you want to be hopeful or wallow in despair, you can find plenty of evidence for doing so. Now 2-1, the team must regroup and prepare for another tough opponent in Week 4. For now, thanks for reading.

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