The good, the bad, and the ugly from the Rams Week 5 matchup vs the Eagles

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford

I saw a lot of hate come towards Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford after the game on social media and I have no idea why. The veteran QB had a couple of missed throws to Kupp sure, but that's to be expected when he is coming off a hamstring injury in Week 5 of the NFL season. I attribute these misses to Kupp not being in shape and potentially maybe not fully pushing himself with that hamstring. Once Stafford re-syncs with Kupp I expect those throws to be locked in.

Much of what the Rams do on route running is based on receivers hitting their marks at a specific moment in time. If the receiver is not at that spot at the right moment, the pass falls incomplete.

Stafford finished the day with a line of 21 out of 37 passes for 222 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions. That resulted in a passer rating of 92.4. It really is hard to complain about Stafford's first multiple TD game while not turning the ball over in what was arguably his best performance of the year all around.

Ahkello Witherspoon

This had to be the best overall performance on the defensive side of the ball in my opinion. LA Rams defensive back Ahkello Witherspoon shut down his side of the field and held Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith to just one reception for six yards. On the day as a whole, Witherspoon allowed three completions out of six targets for a total of 23 yards. While he did allow one touchdown, he came up huge with a big interception in the endzone as well as preventing the Eagles from putting a dagger into the Rams much earlier in the game. He was also one of the few players this week who did not have any missed tackles and finished with the 2nd highest defensive PFF grade at 77.8.

Bottom Line

While the Rams had a plethora of issues that ultimately cost them the game, there were a number of things to look forward to moving forward. This is a very young squad with a ton of future potential. They kept the game close against a team in last year's Super Bowl and against a team that may very well win it all this year (49ers). They are exceeding expectations across the league and have proven that they won't make any game easy on anyone, no matter who you are.

At the beginning of the season, I expected no more than 4-5 wins from this team. After 5 weeks of football, I think there is hope for the future, and see the team finishing closer to 8-9. I know fans may hate me for that, but until the Rams prove they can beat a decent team (Not just the Seattle Seahawks, whose numbers the Rams have had in recent history) that is the best I can see them at. Regardless, this team should be able to make all the necessary moves this off-season to become playoff contenders again next year.