After two narrow road victories at Seattle and Denver, many felt the Rams would once again be tested at San Francisco. After all, just six days prior, the 49ers had given the Packers a run for their money at Lambeau. That test never really emerged, as the turnover-prone Whiners allowed Aaron Donald and the Rams defense to completely dominate the game.
Here’s a look back at Sean Wilkinson’s five Rams to watch and how they performed.
K Greg Zuerlein
After the Sam Ficken/Cairo Santos rollercoaster ride, it sure was nice to see Young GZ kicking the ball again. Zuerlein looked sharp, connecting on all 7 of his kicks on the day. The ball just makes a certain sound when he hits it. On a team loaded with weapons, Legatron is often overlooked, but when he’s right, he’s among the best in the game.
QB Jared Goff
It wasn’t an A+ afternoon for Goff, but it didn’t need to be. He was quietly efficient, going 18-for-24 with 202 with 2 TDs and a clean 127.4 passer rating. He had one strange pass that should have been intercepted, and missed a pretty easy TD throw to Tyler Higbee, but otherwise Goff was steady if not spectacular on a day that belonged to Donald and the defense.
WR Josh Reynolds
With Cooper Kupp sidelines, it was logical to assume that Reynolds would slot right in and pick up some of those targets, but that wasn’t the case. He was targeted just once on the afternoon and hauled it in for 19 yards. Reynolds was in fact overshadowed by newest Ram WR Nick Williams, who caught two balls and kept the chains moving.
Whoever plays opposite CB Marcus Peters
Heading into this game, Rams fans were all (understandably) a little concerned about Marquise Goodwin going off, as he had a great game against Green Bay. With just two catches for 24 yards, he was neutralized, as was Pierre Garcon who tallied just 5 yards on the day. Peters was sound for the second consecutive week, putting some distance between himself and his awful outing in Seattle. Troy Hill also rebounded from a poor performance at Denver. It certainly helps when the D-line is annihilating the QB, but Peters seems to be back on track and (hopefully) fully healthy.
DL Michael Brockers
With 5 tackles and 1.5 TFL, Brockers benefited from the Tasmanian Devil that was Aaron Donald. Brock was solid for the second consecutive game, and seemed to put injury concerns behind him as his unit turned in what was easily their best performance of the season.