Rams see off the Colts.
The Los Angeles Rams improved to 3-1 following a 27-20 win over the Indianapolis Colts, who dropped to 3-1 after their first loss of the season on Sunday.
It was a close game between two teams that both look destined for the postseason come January.
Neither side led by more than seven points during the game. The Rams’ winning touchdown came late in the fourth quarter when Matthew Stafford connected with Tutu Atwell for 88 yards.
Here are the three key factors that ultimately decided the game for the Rams.
Colts offensive mishaps
Through the first three weeks of the season, the Colts had been mistake-free, but Sunday’s game against the Rams was a different story.
Quarterback Daniel Jones threw his first interceptions of the season – on Indianapolis’ first and last possessions of the game.
However, Colts receiver Adonai Mitchell made the more costly mistakes.
Early in the third quarter, with the Colts trailing by three points, Mitchell caught a pass from Daniel Jones that would have gone down as a 76-yard touchdown had he not dropped the ball on the goal line. That resulted in a touchback for the Rams and wiped six points off the board for the Colts.
Mitchell then got another touchdown taken off the board for the Colts in the fourth quarter.
With the score tied at 20-20 and just over two minutes left on the clock, running back Jonathan Taylor managed to bounce off multiple Rams players for a 53-yard touchdown. But it was called back for a blatant offensive holding call, with Mitchell wrestling Rams DB Darious Williams to the ground.
Matthew Stafford to Puka Nacua
Stafford has always had his go-to receiver. It was Calvin Johnson in Detroit, it was initially Cooper Kupp in LA, and it is now Puka Nacua.
Once Stafford finds that chemistry with a wide receiver, it is almost impossible to stop – as the Colts found out on Sunday.
Nacua caught 13 of his 15 targets for 170 yards and a touchdown. It was the Rams receiver’s first receiving touchdown of the season.
The 24-year-old leads the NFL with 503 receiving yards and 42 receptions. It is not close either. Seattle Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the next closest to Nacua in receiving yards with 402, and Dallas Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson is next in receptions with 34.
The 2023 fifth-round draft pick also leads the league in first downs with 26.
Rams defense
The Rams’ defense continues to dominate.
The unit came away with two interceptions, two sacks, a fumble and four tackles for loss against the Colts.
They also limited the Colts’ run game, with Jonathan Taylor averaging only 3.9 yards per carry (YPC), which was below the 5.5 YPC he averaged through the first three weeks of the season.
It was an impressive and resilient display from the Rams’ defense after giving up 26 points to the Philadelphia Eagles in the second half last week.
The young Rams defense now ranks first in the NFL for sacks with 14, fourth in fumble recoveries with four, eighth in interceptions with three, sixth in quarterback hits with 26, ninth in yards per game at 284.5 and ninth in points per game with 20.2.
