Week 5 didn’t go the way the Los Angeles Rams wanted it to, but they did manage to put up a decent fight against the Philadelphia Eagles.
After allowing a touchdown on the opening drive, the Rams answered right back and were able to keep pace with the Eagles. However, their second half offensive struggles continued as they failed to adjust to Philadelphia’s defense and went scoreless.
Despite the loss, Los Angeles did get to see Cooper Kupp return to the field after missing the first four weeks with a hamstring injury. Kupp looked like his old self as he reeled in six catches for 95 yards in the first half before slowing down in the second half and finishing with eight catches for 118 yards.
Kupp acknowledged the team’s trouble moving the football but he also added that physically everything went well for him, via Sarah Barshop of ESPN:
“I think there’s some stuff … just processing, seeing the field, seeing what defenses are doing and then just being able to react to it,” Kupp said. “There’s a few things that I’m sure you’re going to look at tomorrow and just feel like, ‘Man, it’s just going to happen a little bit faster.’ But it did feel good to be out there playing football again.”
Kupp said he thought the Eagles’ defense gave the Rams some opportunities, adding, “Offensively we’ve just got to capitalize.”
“But man, it felt like it was right there, right there for us,” Kupp said. “Just got to go watch this film, execute just a little bit better and make a few more plays. And I think we’re a really good football team.”
Kupp was helping the team from the sidelines when he was hurt, so he must have felt a lot better contributing on the field again. As for the loss, Kupp sounded like he was encouraged by what he saw and instilled some confidence in the locker room with his comments about their ability.
Los Angeles has been much more competitive than their preseason expectations suggest, an encouraging sign for a franchise that has been transparent about the current state of affairs. With Kupp back in tow, the Rams could be a sneaky team to watch out for the rest of the regular season.
Puka Nacua named NFL Rookie of the Week for Week 4
The offense didn’t miss much of a beat without Kupp as Puka Nacua stepped up in a huge way. Nacua had another historic day in Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts and for his performance he earned his second NFL Rookie of the Week award.
More must-reads: