The Good, Bad & Ugly From Rams' Win Over Lions

On a night when the Rams needed to grind out a win, it was Jared Goff who had the key and Stafford who had control. Where Goff missed, not hitting a receiver in stride, missing tough throws, failing to convert on third down, it was in those areas for which Stafford was surgical. He came through in the big time and the team is ready to follow him into the deepest pit of hell.

The defense overcame a near-unprecedented start of just getting the fight taken to them, and yet it was them in the second half who called game. The defense roared when the Lions dared to bleed and it was through their thirst that they made the critical plays to squeak this game out.

However, the biggest change came from Sean McVay. When presented with fourth-down situations early in the game, McVay showed a tendency to punt. Not on Sunday. In a game that required grit, McVay went to the wall. Converting fourth downs, instituting a more physical offensive attack, and a dramatic surge upfield to steal three points before the end of the first half to erase the negative narrative of the game.

The Bad: The Defense in the First Half

The Lions had a plan, and they had success. It was a bloodbath early with Amon-Ra St. Brown torching them while Jameson Williams was doing his best to prove he's the better cousin over Kyren Williams.

Both men combined on the day for 20 of Jared Goff's 25 catches, racking up 298 yards and three touchdowns. All three scores were in the first half. The Rams kept getting beat with deep crossing routes and quick passes to St. Brown over and over again. On top of that, the rush couldn't get home, compounding the problems in the secondary. The Rams surrendered 24 first-half points.

The Ugly: The Predictability

Aidan Hutchinson's interception came because McVay has been running tight end screens repeatedly and he watches film. The Lions were comfortable letting Amik Robertson guard Davante Adams one on one because they know it's rare for Stafford to throw the outside fade outside of the end zone.

The Lions knew how to defeat the Rams' defense early because they knew exactly how to induce advantageous situations with personnel packages.

The Lions knew how to change the picture on Stafford, taking away his common first read because that read is always Puka Nacua unless the coverage dictates differently. Make Nacua appear open pre-snap and then spring the trap.

It's time to mix things up and the Rams already recognized it because they made changes in -game. Shula dialed up different defensive looks, including rushing Emmanuel Forbes as a slot corner while McVay changed the tempo by getting more aggressive on fourth downs while committing to the rushing attack.