Los Angeles Rams' Sean McVay Sounds Off On Controversial 4th Down Spot in Loss to Pittsburgh Steelers
Sean McVay did what was right on Sunday: he didn't publicly blame officiating for his loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But, odds are, it had at least a small impact in the outcome for the Los Angeles Rams.
On 4th and 1, the Steelers elected to try and QB sneak to win the game, and at first glance, it appeared they came up well short, with Kenny Pickett's knee hitting the ground with the ball still behind the line to gain.
The referees ultimately gave the Steelers a generous spot, resulting in a first down.
However, due to the fact that the play occurred outside of two minutes remaining, and the Rams being out of timeouts, they could not challenge the spot, allowing Pittsburgh to take a knee at the two-minute warning, and run out the clock.
Following the game, McVay was asked point-blank if the ball was spotted correctly and if he would have challenged the play given the opportunity.
“It doesn't matter what I think," McVay said. "That was the spot they made. It's not a challengeable play, but I'm not going to sit here and make any excuses about stuff that didn't go down. Those plays shouldn't have come down to that if we executed like we were capable of. You guys saw the same stuff that I did, but it doesn't do any good. That was what was called, and that's what we have to be able to live with."
Oct 22, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett (8) is brought down by Los Angeles Rams linebacker Michael Hoecht (97) during the first half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
© Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Would the Rams have made the stop, the odds would still have been stacked against Matthew Stafford and his offense, with 60 yards to go in two minutes with no timeouts.
That said, Stafford has made a living making fourth-quarter comebacks throughout his career in both Los Angeles and Detroit.
In fact, Stafford sits sixth all-time and first among active quarterbacks with 34 career fourth-quarter comebacks - the most recent coming this season against the Indianapolis Colts.
But McVay is right. If his team had executed in earlier key situations in the game, this controversial spot would not be a talking point on Monday. Now, the Rams have to live with the consequences.
