5 Takeaways From the Rams' Week 8 Win Over Texans
The Los Angeles Rams just keep on winning as they improved to 7-1 on the season, defeating the Houston Texans in the process. Despite a bad fourth quarter, L.A. lit up Houston for 38 points in the first three quarters, and still won by double digits, 38-22. The game was basically out of reach by halftime as the Rams were up four possessions (24-0) going into the break.
Here are five key takeaways from the Rams' Week 8 win over the Texans:
1. Matthew Stafford stays the course
It's been an outstanding season for Stafford thus far and it only continued to get better after he torched the Texans' secondary. Yes, Houston does have one of the worst defenses in the NFL, but you only play who's on your schedule. Stafford continues to make the right reads and it showed up big time on the stat sheet. He finished with 305 yards passing with three touchdowns on 21-of-32 completions. This was his third game already with at least three touchdown passes and his seventh game with two touchdown passes or more. He's just shy of 2,500 yards passing (2,477 to be exact) and has 22 touchdowns to four interceptions going into the second half of the season. Stafford is putting up an MVP caliber season and it also doesn't seem to matter if teams pressure him or not. He's one of the best against the blitz this season and proved that again in this matchup. L.A. is going to be one tough out if he keeps this up.
2. Cooper Kupp continues his historic pace
It feels like a weekly occurrence at this point, but Kupp has been outstanding this season. He had another great outing against the Texans and finished with seven receptions for 115 yards, plus a touchdown. That touchdown came when the game was virtually over but he still was a crucial player in drives before that, especially in the first quarter. Kupp made a few noteworthy catches on the Rams' first touchdown drive, including one that got them down inside the five-yard line. He's been Mr. Reliable and now has three straight games where he's gone over 100 yards. Kupp also has at least 100-plus yards in five of the eight Rams games this season, plus has at least one touchdown grab in six of the eight games. He's put it all together this season and a lot has to do with both him being healthy and finally having the chance to play with an elite quarterback.
3. The run defense was superb
This was the main question mark coming into this game. The Rams entered the game without defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day, which was a big loss because of how great of a run stuffer he has been this season. He has 38 total tackles (23 solo) with three sacks but it looked like the Rams didn't need him at all against the Texans rushing attack. L.A. held Houston to just 44 yards rushing, with Rex Burkhead being the lead rusher (four carries for 21 yards). After Burkhead, Scottie Phillips was second on the team in rushing with five carries for 11 yards. L.A.'s defense made Houston one-dimensional, which was another key component for this victory. Obviously, the Rams will want Joseph-Day back as soon as possible but they proved that they could be a formidable unit against the run for at least a week without him.
4. Sean McVay sets an NFL record
Even though McVay has only been a head coach for a few years, that doesn't mean he's incapable of setting NFL records. His squad is now 43-0 when leading at halftime, a testament to how L.A. never lets up in the second half when playing from ahead. McVay is always trying to put the hammer down and not go conservative unlike some coaches around college football. L.A. was up 24-0 at halftime and despite that, he was still calling his usual plays in the second half. He wasn't trying to just chew the clock down and give some possessions back. He was going for the jugular and fans should look for that to continue, whether the team is up big at the half or even if it's just by a point.
5. Ernest Jones balls out in first NFL start
Jones started his first NFL game after the Rams traded linebacker Kenny Young to the Denver Broncos and he didn't look out of place at all. In fact, it looked like he can continue to start and make plays consistently for the second half of the season. He was an absolute menace against the Texans as he finished with nine total tackles (seven solo) with 0.5 sacks and an interception. He read quarterback Davis Mills like a book as it looked like he didn't even see him slightly above his intended target. Jones intercepted Mills in Texans territory and took it back 19 yards to set the Rams up in the red zone. It was a fantastic debut and he brings an element to the defense that didn't exist when Young was in the lineup.
