REPORT: The Good News and Bad News for the Los Angeles Rams

The Los Angeles Rams' season was highlighted by winning streaks, the team's ability to overcome adversity, and winning the NFC West after climbing back from a 1-4 start.
However, the Rams' season was also highlighted by challenging wins over division opponents.
This was especially true in the second half of the season, when the Rams could not afford to lose and still kept their playoff hopes alive. Late in the season, the Rams secured a notable win over the Arizona Cardinals to effectively win the NFC West.
Still, the win must be taken with a grain of salt, as statistically, the Cardinals had one of the worst defenses in the league.
Ben Rolfe of the Pro Football Network ranked every defense in the NFL following the completion of the regular season and the first few rounds of the playoffs. Rolfe ranked the Cardinals' defense as the 27th-best defense in the league.
"For all the attention the injuries on offense got this year, the decline of the 49ers’ defense was a huge concern as well," Rolfe said. "Having been a top-10 unit each year between 2019 and 2023, San Francisco slipped to its worst season-long ranking since the Defense+ metric began. Run defense was a huge weakness this year. The Niners were 28th in EPA per rush and 25th in rushing success rate. Unlike past years, they couldn’t prop that up with an effective pass defense, where they ranked 25th in success rate.
"Looking ahead, cornerback Charvarius Ward and linebacker Dre Greenlaw stand out as the top free agents on this unit," Rolfe said. "Losing Ward, in particular, would be a tough blow given the lack of depth at corner, as that’s an area the 49ers will need to address in order to return to contention."
The Cardinals' ranking can be viewed as a good thing or a bad thing. All teams are fine watching their division rivals struggle, but it also must be noted that a banged-up Rams team lost to the Cardinals early in the season and only scored 13 points against them in their second matchup later in the season.
The Rams are arguably a better team than the Cardinals, but the numbers say they are not that far apart.
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