Matthew Stafford, Rams battered in loss to Titans

INGLEWOOD — Rams backmost Matthew Stafford, dealing with a stiff backmost successful practice, told coaches and writers helium wasn’t feeling excessively atrocious past week.

He mightiness beryllium now.

Stafford was battered Sunday nighttime by the Tennessee Titans. His ego, astatine least, indispensable person been bruised. The Rams’ backmost was taken down repeatedly by walk rushers and taken down a peg by interceptions.

After Stafford’s horrible archetypal half, the Rams were successful excessively heavy a spread to ascent retired of, and the Titans bushed them 28-16 successful beforehand of 71,785 fans astatine SoFi Stadium.

Both teams present are 7-2.

As large a interest arsenic the nonaccomplishment mightiness by Stafford’s health. He landed heavy erstwhile helium stumbled and was deed arsenic helium threw a fourth-down incomplete walk to fundamentally extremity the Rams’ nighttime with 6:39 to play. He got up slowly.

It was a fittingly achy extremity connected a nighttime erstwhile the Rams, who’d been preventing sacks this season, allowed five.

Just arsenic they’d been avoiding penalties but committed 12, including roughing-the-passer flags that helped the Titans to a clinching touchdown by Adrian Peterson with 3 minutes connected the clock.

Starting the crippled with 4 consecutive wins, the Rams were facing an hostile with a better-than-.500 grounds for the archetypal clip since their 37-20 nonaccomplishment to the NFC West-leading Cardinals.

The anticipation for the prime-time crippled was dulled erstwhile the Titans mislaid NFL rushing person Derrick Henry to ft country past week and the Rams declared recently acquired extracurricular linebacker Von Miller inactive arsenic helium recovers from an ankle injury.

Early on, the Rams’ defence was handling Henry’s replacement, the 36-year-old Peterson.

But the Rams’ discourtesy was off-kilter from the start. The enactment allowed Stafford to beryllium sacked doubly connected the opening drive. And past things got worse, interrupted lone by a 34-yard tract extremity by Matt Gay that gave the Rams their lone pb of the night.

After starting the archetypal thrust of the 2nd 4th astatine his ain 4, Stafford faced 3rd and 6 from the 10. About to beryllium sacked successful the extremity zone, helium tried to propulsion the shot distant but threw it consecutive to David Long. The Rams person a cornerback named David Long, but this was Titans linebacker David Long.

Long returned the interception to the 2. One play later, Ryan Tannehill passed to choky extremity Geoff Swaim unsocial successful the near broadside of the extremity zone, and the Titans led 7-3.

The Rams emotion the mode Stafford usually rights the vessel aft unsmooth moments. Not this time.

Stafford’s precise adjacent pass, intended for receiver Robert Woods astatine the close sideline, was chopped disconnected by information Kevin Byard and returned 24 yards for the Titans’ 2nd touchdown successful 11 seconds. It was 14-3.

The 3rd of the Titans’ 4 sacks successful the archetypal fractional was the worst. Defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons bull-rushed Rams near defender David Edwards off-balance and buried Stafford for a 10-yard nonaccomplishment connected 3rd and 5.

Tennessee took the punt astatine its 36 and went connected a 14-play drive, helped by a 15-yard facemask punishment connected Rams cornerback Dont’e Deayon, to a 1-yard bootleg for a touchdown by Tannehill. At 21-3, this was the Rams’ biggest first-half shortage of the season.

Stafford would person 1 infinitesimal of fist-pumping joy, but it was short-lived. What looked similar a touchdown walk to Tyler Higbee was taken disconnected the committee erstwhile the replay was ruled to person shown Higbee stepping retired of the backmost of the extremity portion earlier the catch. Matt Gay kicked a abbreviated tract goal, not overmuch consolation.

Gay would footwear a 54-yarder connected the archetypal play of the 4th quarter, aft Rams manager Sean McVay pulled the discourtesy disconnected the tract connected 4th and 12 astatine the Titans’ 36, and the Titans’ pb was down to 12.

Stafford is tied for sixth all-time with 33 fourth-quarter comebacks to his credit, partially a effect of having to travel from down truthful often successful 12 years arsenic backmost of the Detroit Lions but mostly a testament to his chill nether pressure.

But Stafford successful the 4th fourth couldn’t flooded Stafford successful the archetypal half.