LA Rams defense triggers fans, but the bigger problem is no offense

The LA Rams defense has been on the football field for 18:30. The New Orleans Saints have not just held the football, but they have rushed 17 times for 91 yards. Saints veteran quarterback Derek Carr has completed 15 of 23 passes for 83 yards. And Carr has not been sacked in the game.

The Rams' defense has only forced the Saints to punt once in the game. And on the road facing a team with a 4-7 record, the last thing the LA Rams wanted to do was keep the Saints in the game, let alone allow them to take a lead. The Saints' offense has put points on the scoreboard twice and missed a field goal that would have put points on the board a third time.

And fans were all over the defense:

Some fans attributed Aaron Donald's decision to retire based on the Rams defensive performance in Week 13:

Some criticism has been a bit more focused, and singles out the Rams run defense:

So you might think that at halftime, the Rams are down by two or more touchdowns, right? Well, that isn't the case.

At Halftime:

Los Angeles Rams 0
New Orleans Saints 6

See the problem? The Rams defense has held the Saints to just six points. But the Rams have failed to score a single point. Guess how many games a team wins when they fail to score? None. Zero. Zilch.

The problem is that the Rams seem to ignore every sign and evidence of the game, and stick to a game plan that seems to ignore everything that is going on. The Rams passing game has been atrocious in this one. Starting quarterback Matthew Stafford has completed just four of ten passes for 23 yards. The Rams have gotten 42 rushing yards from RB Kyren Williams on six carries, and 32 rushing yards from rookie RB Blake Corum on five carries.

Stafford was sacked once for an eight-yard loss. And he was tackled on a play early in the game and came up limping.

Per the Fox Sports broadcast booth, the Rams' streak of 129 consecutive games of scoring in the first half ended in Week 13. The booth also cited the Rams offense as struggling in 2024, never having more than six games scoring 20 points or less in any previous season for HC Sean McVay. But the team already has seven games in which the offense has scored no more than 20 points.

Fans have the right to be angry at whatever they choose. But it seems as though too many are triggered by the defense whenever the offense stumbles.

The offense did spring to life in the second half. In fact, the team engineered a sharp touchdown drive that required 11 plays, 6:10 off the game clock, and covered 70 yards. And after forcing the Saints to punt, the Rams offense is back on the football field.

At 7:16 left in Q3:

Los Angeles Rams 7
New Orleans Saints 6

As always, thank you for reading.

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