Matthew Stafford still stuck in a slump despite leading Rams to last-minute win

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford knew he needed to bring his A game to have any chance of snapping the Philadelphia Eagles' four-game winning streak over the Horns. Unfortunately, he forgot to pack his A game and was left with a subpar effort in a hostile stadium.

That almost never bodes well for the Rams, but they just scraped by in this one thanks to a strong defensive effort.

It was about as ugly a game as any team has played this late in the season. The Rams were penalized for more than 100 yards, many of those penalties negating big plays. Their elite receivers did not appear elite in this one. Puka Nacua and Davante Adams combined for 13 receptions on 21 targets for 157 yards.

Both teams were in position to win this one. Neither team seemed to want to. Neither offense was even close to impressive. Both defenses were. But turnovers will almost always decide a close game, and Stafford gifted two interceptions to Philly, leading to 10 points. This was a game the Rams deserved to lose.

Matthew Stafford dug his own hole to climb out of in Week 4

Yes, Stafford led the team to a game-winning drive and a fourth-quarter comeback in this one. But he dug himself and the team out of a hole of his own making. Despite struggling throughout much of the game, he completed 32-of-51 passes for 316 yards.

No matter how off-key Stafford looks early in games, no quarterback seems to be better in the clutch. The Rams took over with 7:26 remaining in the game from their own two-yard line, down by 10. Stafford completed seven of nine passes before Kyren Williams ran it in from the one.

Then, down by three points with 2:55 left on the clock, Stafford once again drove the ball 79 yards in just 1:45 to give LA its first lead. That time he completed five-of-six passes. So, as you can see, if you do the math, prior to the final two scoring drives, Stafford looked out of sorts.

It's hard to toss shade at a game-winning quarterback. But LA was lucky that the defense stymied Philly's offense almost all day. Had the Eagles been able to mount anything resembling a productive drive, the game would have ended up in the loss column.

An ugly win is still a win. And just like that, the Rams are 2-2 overall and 2-0 against the NFC. That could be an advantage if tie-breakers determine playoff seeding.

As always, thanks for reading.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow