Rams need to brace for desperate Panthers rally in second half

The 12-5 Los Angeles Rams made it a point to correct many of the mistakes they committed in Week 13. What mistakes? Well, it's a rather long list that includes poorly performing special teams, a lopsided time of possession, and a deficit of three turnovers. But so far, this one has been much closer on the scoreboard than it appears on the football field.

The Rams were comfortably up by 10 points, and a muffed punt return culminated in Los Angeles with the football with first down and 10 yards to go with 2:44 remaining. The offense did their part, driving all the way to the Panthers 19 19-yard line on a fourth down and three yards to go.

As is often the case, the team came out throwing, but the pass fell to the ground, incomplete. Instead of taking the sure-thing field goal to go up by a score of 20 to 7, the defense took the football field.

As has been the case for the Chris Shula crew, the defense could not hold the Panthers offense, and allowed a late touchdown to put the perilous Panthers within three points. That is far too close a score in a game that seemed to be dominated by Los Angeles.

And therein lies the rub.

End of first half

Rams need to brace for desperate Panthers rally in second half

The LA defense has been unable to shut the door in recent games. In Week 13, the team led by a score of 21-17. The final score? A loss by the score of 31-28. Three weeks later, the same defense laid down and played dead after taking a 30-14 lead in the fourth quarter.

Fans have become tainted recently. The same team that had earned the reputation for shutting down opponents to preserve a victory has not shown nearly the same resolve. And that makes people nervous. And why not? A potential 13-point lead has been whittled down to just three points with an entire half to play.

Was Sean McVay hesitant to rely upon kicker Harrison Mevis?

The team had high hopes for returning players to show up in a big way in this one. But wide receiver Davante Adams has only caught one of three passes for 14 yards. While safety Quentin Lake has three tackles and two deflected passes in the first half. But his pass interference extended a Panthers drive that led to their second touchdown.

The Rams get the football to open the second half. But failing to score to open the third quarter will change the entire complexion of this game.

The Rams need to brace for an emotional effort from a desperate Panthers team eager to rally. Unfortunately, the latest trend of this team does not bode well.

As always, thanks for reading.