Another miracle wasted: Rams special teams disaster turns Hollywood ending into heartbreak against Bills
The Los Angeles Rams had already pulled one rabbit out of their helmet in Philadelphia last week.On Monday night, they nearly did it again.Trailing 34-27 in the final moments of regulation, Matthew Stafford orchestrated another dramatic fourth-quarter touchdown drive, pulling the Rams even with the Buffalo Bills at 34-34 and sending a wild Monday Night Football showdown into overtime at SoFi Stadium.After a James Cook III fumble deep in Rams’ territory was recovered by Aaron Donald, the Rams marched down the field for a game-winning field goal attempt.But once again their special teams unit let them down as the Harrison Mevis’ 48-yard field goal was blocked by Greg Rousseau and the Hollywood ending belonged to Josh Allen and Buffalo instead.
After a heavyweight battle featuring eight lead changes and two ties in regulation, the Rams couldn’t finish the job in overtime, suffering another gut-wrenching defeat despite Stafford’s late heroics.More penalties, awful special teams, running rampant, and more.Here are four downs/takeaways from another frustrating night in Los Angeles.First Down: Flag Day Comes Early for the RamsThe Rams already have yellow on their uniforms, but they’ve certainly become accustomed to seeing it all over the field as well.
After committing 10 penalties for 100 yards against Philadelphia last week, Los Angeles followed that embarrassing performance with another 11 penalties for 84 yards against Buffalo.That’s 21 penalties for 184 yards in two games, enough free real estate to make a Southern California land developer jealous.The frustrating part? The Rams offense moved the football effectively against Buffalo’s secondary, particularly through the air.But holding calls, mental mistakes and undisciplined play repeatedly sabotaged promising possessions on both sides of the ball.NFL officials have already thrown more flags this season than ever before in history, but Monday night was another level.
Both teams combined for 24 penalt...