Inside Sean McVay’s Fourth Down Decisions in Rams’ Week 3 Loss

WOODLAND HILLS, Ca. The Los Angeles Rams' loss in week 3 was impacted by two massive plays in the fourth quarter. On the Philadelphia 46-yard line, the Rams had third and one, ran a pass to Davante Adams that went incomplete before calling a run play that was stopped in the backfield, handing the ball to the Eagles near midfield.

When it came to going for it, I asked McVay if analytics played a factor in his decision.

“It's always a part," stated McVay. "The third down-and-one, we got a look that we thought was really favorable. Typically, that can end up being an explosive or a touchdown-type of play for us. That just didn't go down. Then, we had a little bit of a miscue with how we were blocking that fourth down based on some things that we anticipated with the movement of that front. That didn't work out for us, but I felt like those were hard goes in those situations. You give credit to Philly. They made those plays and we didn't.”

Sean McVay Verses Vic Fangio

I asked McVay about Fangio's front and how what he does impacts the Rams' offense.

“He’s a great coordinator," stated McVay. "I have a ton of respect for him. He mixes some things up. I thought our guys handled it well. That was a situation that we could have done a little bit better job."

Jul 24, 2025; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio addresses media during training camp at NovaCare Complex. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

"Like anything else, I thought our defense and in a sudden change, ended up getting the stop. We got the ball right back right there. I was pleased with our ability to be able to handle that. He does a great job. I have a lot of respect for Vic. He's as good as it gets.”

McVay hired Brandon Staley as Rams defensive coordinator in 2020. Staley is a Fangio disciple, so there was a lot of familiarity between the two.

My Take

For me, there have been too many miscues, especially on offense. Missed blocking assignments, massive questions about offensive line depth, an inability to score in the red zone, the list keeps stacking.

Sep 21, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

And yet, this remains one of the most unstoppable offenses in football, especially in the fourth quarter.

I'm not too concerned about this loss. It's one game, and it's early in the season. However, week four needs to be about bucking trends. Let's see what they do.

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