LOS ANGELES — What a shootout. For any complaints about sloppy and unwatchable Thursday night football games, the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings did their part to ensure that the NFL’s fans received a mid-week treat.
The Rams, who posted a dazzling 38-31 victory showed just why they rank among the favorites to win a Super Bowl, and the Vikings refused to fold despite getting outgunned and overwhelmed by their hosts.
It was an electrifying quarterbacks duel. The victor, Jared Goff went 26-for-33 for 465 yards and five touchdowns — and no interceptions. Meanwhile, Kirk Cousins completed 34 of 48 passes for 400 yards and three touchdowns and no interceptions.
But the difference was the defense of the Rams, who came through with some huge stops in key moments.
Here are three things we learned in this game.
1. Jared Goff is electric. The third-year pro is playing like an elite quarterback. His first half stat line looked better than some starters’ entire game productions. In the second quarter alone, he completed six of eight passes for 194 yards and three touchdowns. The confidence and accuracy with which he throws reflects the maturation and comfort within the system, and the understanding he has of defenses. Rams just have so many weapons that a defense has to account for, and they also have a masterful play-caller and play architect in coach Sean McVay.
2. The Rams defense is just nasty. Their defensive front completely overwhelmed the Vikings at times. Minnesota moved the ball at impressive clips at times, but it didn’t have a consistent answer for Aaron Donald, Ndamukong Suh and their teammates. Donald finally got his first sack of the season. But don’t think for a second that he hasn’t impacted games in a major way. He commands so many double teams that he frees up his teammates for big plays.
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3. The Vikings defense has some real problems to address. Not only did they allow 38 points, but they also gave up 556 yards (the most ever by a Mike Zimmer defense). The Vikings struggled to get pressure on Goff, and they continually fell short on pass coverage assignments. The Rams routinely had pass-catchers running down the field uncovered. The Vikings also struggled with their tackling. Todd Gurley turned a screen pass into a 56-yard gain. It marked the third time in the last four games that Minnesota has yielded a 50-plus-yard catch out of the backfield. It’s easy to try to justify the sub-par performance as the product of a high-powered Rams attack. But the Vikings defense has not looked like the formidable unit that helped this team reach the NFC Championship game last season.
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Mike Jones on Twitter @ByMikeJones.
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