Kamren Kinchens Shines as Rams Win an Instant Classic

The Rams also deployed Davis Allen as a fullback, leading to big yards for Williams. The Rams would go back to the air, hitting Williams to set up fourth and one at the Seattle eight-yard line. Getting ready to go for it, McVay opted to challenge the spot of the ball instead. They failed the challenge, ran play action, and while Davante Adams was wide open, the Seattle defense got into Matthew Stafford's face, limiting his vision and Stafford misthrew the checkdown.

Despite the initial failures, the Rams' defense showed their strength as a Sam Darnold pass inbound for Cooper Kupp was intercepted by Kamren Kinchens, with Kinchens returning the ball to the Seattle three-yard line.

This is where Sean McVay started to lose the battle. He called three straight running plays with Blake Corum, despite Williams' hot start. Corum gained two total yards. McVay would then be forced to burn his second timeout in seven minutes. However, it was the right call as McVay inserted Williams back into the game, where he scored the opening touchdown.

The score meant Williams joins Eric Dickerson, Todd Gurley, and Marshall Faulk as the only Rams to score 40+ touchdowns over a three season span.

The Seahawks would respond by targeting Jaxon Smith-Njigba. This is where the Rams made another brilliant chess move, dropping Kinchens into the box, having him cut off inside passing lanes to Smith-Njigba. That forced Darnold to try and make a precision pass downfield to Cooper Kupp that came up a near centimeter short of a completion. Seattle would then take three.

The Rams would return to 11 personnel, using Tyler Higbee in motion to fake the run while running a tight end screen that Higbee took upfield. The Rams used a mix of the run and another tight end screen to Colby Parkinson before finding themselves at another fourth and one situation.

The Rams would hand the ball to Williams, who took it to the Seattle one yard line. After a goal line fade to Davante Adams that was incomplete, followed by the Rams' burning their final timeout of the half, the Rams went back to Adams and found success. Adams would haul in his seventh red zone touchdown in the past four games as well as his 1,000 career reception.

Despite the issues early, the Rams were rolling into the second quarter.

Second Quarter

The Seahawks would look to respond and they would be bailed out by an illegal hands to the face penalty caused by Emmanuel Forbes on Smith-Njigba. Forbes and the secondary would respond on the drive with Forbes himself making a critical pass break up in the end zone. The pass rush would come to life as the Seahawks were held to three points.

The Rams would proceed to go three and out but a holding penalty on former Rams defensive back Derion Kendrick on the punt would set up the Seahawks deep in their own territory. Despite being backed up, Kenneth Walker used his speed to zoom through the running lane, taking the ball near midfield before a one-handed snag by Smith-Njigba flipped field position.

The Seahawks would build off the momentum, entering the red zone. However, the Rams would force third and six from the 13-yard line, after continuing to stop Seattle's power rushing attack.

Two Minute Warning

The Seahawks came out of the two-minute warning with another rushing play to set up fourth and one. The Seahawks would then use the tush push with AJ Barner to pick up the first down. However, the Rams would hold the Seahawks again, keeping their end zone impenetrable in the first half as Seattle ends the second frame with a field goal. The Rams took a 14-9 lead into the locker room.

Second Half

Third Quarter

Things couldn't have gone from better to worse for the Rams. After Cobie Durant intercepted Sam Darnold to open the second half, Puka Nacua fumbled the ball right back to Seattle. After the play, Davante Adams and Nick Emmanwori were talking to each other in what appeared to be an aggressive manner. Emmanwori was backed up by fellow Seahawks but Adams did not back down, amplifying the intensity of the contest.

Sam Darnold would slip out of continued pass rushes as Seattle quickly moved into the red zone before Kenneth Walker scored a touchdown. However, Seattle would be called for a holding penalty. Seattle, feeling confident, decided to test Forbes again with a deep shot to Rashid Shaheed. Shaheed, a natural speedster, had a step but Forbes turned on the burners to force another pass break up in the end zone.

Seattle would again settle for three.

On the Rams' ensuing possession, Stafford found Nacua twice on the opening plays of the drive but for some reason, McVay went to Corum on the ground instead of Williams, despite Williams having the hot hand. Corum would be stopped on back-to-back plays, forcing third and long, which the Rams' failed to pick up via a pass to Davante Adams. They would punt the ball to Seattle.

The good news for the Rams is that their defense forced a punt in which they stopped the tush push on third and short. Something to note in case the Rams play the Philadelphia Eagles again.

While the Rams' defense continued to stand tall, the offense continues their weekly tradition of stalling out in the third quarter. Why this keeps happening to the organization remains unknown but it has limited their ability to put teams away.

The offense has multiple pre-snap penalties on their next drive as it feels from my position of zero pressure, that the Rams offense reverted back to being near mundane. The good news is that the offense goes supernova in the fourth but the chance to extend the lead by a possession was forever lost.

However, the defense stepped up again, with Kamren Kinchens recording his second interception of the day. The Rams to their short passing game to end the quarter with the ball in the red zone.

Fourth Quarter

The Rams went back to Williams to start the quarter as he took the ball to Seattle's six yard line. Stafford would find Colby Parkinson on the following play to extend the lead to two possessions as Parkinson evaded multiple tackles to reach the end zone.

On the next Seattle drive, the Seahawks looked to get the ball to Walker in open space. However, their attempts wouldn't matter as Darnold would throw his fourth interception of the game. The Rams would do nothing with it as they would punt. Seattle would also stall out and punt. The Rams would respond...by also punting.

With less than six minutes in the game and down by nine points, Seattle upped the tempo as they looked to get the ball to Walker and Smith-Njigba, doing so with quick passes that allowed them to get yards after the catch. The Seahawks got to the Rams' two-yard line and while both sides raced their goal line units on the field, the Rams were clearly not in position to stop Seattle but McVay did not use him timeouts.

Walker would score the touchdown but Grey Zabel would get hurt on the play. Zabel would walk off but needed assistance from medical personnel.

The Final Two Minutes

After an end around to Puka Nacua picked up a first down, the Seahawks burned a timeout before the two minute warning. What that meant is that the Rams were one first down away from ending the ballgame. The Rams would give the ball to Williams and he would be tackled for no gain, taking the game to the two minute warning.

On second down, the Rams went back to Puka Nacua on the ground, forcing the Seahawks to burn their second timeout. On third and ten, a first down would win the game.

McVay decided to put the ball in his quarterback's hands and Stafford went to Davante Adams. It was another pass that barely missed the mark but Ethan Evans stepped up with a picture perfect punt, pinning the Seahawks at their own one yard line on a 50 yard punt.

With little room to operate, the Seahawks quickly found themselves with third down on their own five yard line. However, Darnold would find an open receiver for the first down.

However, on a big throw downfield, Cooper Kupp, who once made the impossible look routine, was unable to make a critical toe tapping catch in the clutch under tight coverage. The Seahawks would then resort to short passing game that burned up the clock.

With 17 seconds left, Darnold had the ball at his own 38. He took too much time, leading to an incompletion, leaving him with ten seconds to get into field goal range.

The Seahawks would have move the ball to the Rams' 43 yard line before calling timeout, setting up a 61-yard field goal attempt, which would tie a career long for Myers.

With the game coming down to the final play of the game, Myers would be both short and wide. Rams win 21-19.