Rams humble Bears at SoFi; Tua Tagovailoa debut awaits in Miami
It might not put them on the radar around the league, but the Los Angeles Rams did what they were supposed to do in a nationally televised game on Monday Night Football, easily handling the Chicago Bears 24-10 at SoFi Stadium.
The Rams improved to 5-2 with the win, pulling into a tie with the Arizona Cardinals for second place in the NFC West behind the Seattle Seahawks (5-1), while the Bears dropped to 5-2 on the year.
The Rams are now 30-33 all-time on Monday Night Football and remain undefeated (3-0) at SoFi Stadium.
Rams head coach Sean McVay continued his streak of winning games after leading at halftime. Since McVay took over the Rams in 2017, L.A. has won 30 straight games when leading at halftime, the longest active streak currently in the NFL.
The Rams finished with 166 rushing yards, led by Darrell Henderson Jr.’s 64 yards on 15 carries. Malcolm Brown chipped in 57 yards, including a 1-yard run for a score.
Jared Goff finished 23-of-33 for 219 passing yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Key play: Up 17-3 with a little over five minutes left in the third quarter and the Bears driving, defensive back Troy Hill tipped a Nick Foles’ pass intended for Darnell Mooney in the back of the end zone. Safety Taylor Rapp hauled in the interception, keeping Chicago off the scoreboard.
Top player: Rams wide receiver Josh Reynolds scored on a 4-yard touchdown reception on a flat route, posting touchdowns in back-to-back games for the first time in his NFL career. Reynolds finished with four receptions for a team-high 52 receiving yards. Leonard Floyd also finished with five combined tackles -- including a tackle for a loss -- two sacks and two quarterback hits playing against his old team, the Bears.
What I liked: Blocking tight end Johnny Mundt had a nice game with starting tight end Tyler Higbee inactive due to a hand injury. Mundt finished with three receptions for 43 yards, including a long of 34 yards. … The Rams held Chicago to 126 total yards in the first half, the second-fewest Chicago posted in the first half of a single game this season (124). … Up 10-3, the Rams avoided disaster early in the second half with a heads-up play by right guard Austin Corbett recovering a forced fumble on a sack by Khalil Mack. On the ensuing play, Nsimba Webster downed a Johnny Hekker punt on Chicago’s 1-yard line, with the Rams leading 10-3 early in the second half. Hekker finished with four punts downed inside the 20-yard line. … The Rams kickoff return coverage did a nice job of containing dangerous Chicago return man Cordarrelle Patterson.
What I didn’t like: Not much, as Rams dominated all facets of this game. However, Rookie kicker Samuel Sloman was having a good day, making all three of his extra points and a 22-yard field goal. Then he got a 48-yard field goal attempt blocked in the fourth quarter, his third blocked field goal this season. That’s why the Rams brought in veteran kicker Kai Forbath.
Injury report: Questionable heading into Sunday’s game due to a hand injury, Higbee was inactive for Monday’s game. … In the fourth quarter, rookie safety Terrell Burgess was taken off the field on a cart with an air cast on his left leg. Burgess suffered an ankle injury.
Up next: The Rams finished up the first half of the season on the road against the Miami Dolphins, with rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa making his first NFL start. The Rams go on the team’s bye week after the Miami game.
