The ballyhooed Los Angeles Rams faceplanted in Australia, getting blown out, 27-7, by the rival San Francisco 49ers in a much-anticipated season opener on Thursday.
“They outplayed us in every facet,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “I didn’t do nearly a good enough job. This is a humbling day for us. This will define us only if we allow it to. Today was one of those days.”
The Rams took a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter on the strength of a Puka Nacua 41-yard catch-and-run. From there, things devolved. Over the next five drives, the Rams generated nine first downs, Matthew Stafford tossed an interception, Tyler Higbee lost a fumble and the team turned it over on downs twice, including once at the 1-yard line. Meanwhile, a revamped defense allowed the Niners to move up and down the field. San Francisco scored on five of its nine possessions and punted just twice, both in the first half.
“I always look inside-out,” McVay said. “I didn’t do a good enough job getting us ready to go. There were some opportunities where maybe the game could have flipped, but they deserved the win. They were ready to go. And we’ll look at it. We’ll see where we can improve and be better moving forward.
“But this is a good humbling day. This is what can sometimes happen in sports. I love this locker room and, you know, the first thing that I’m going to look at is myself, and I have to do a better job for a group collectively, with our coaches, with our players, and we’ll look at this film, and we’ll get back to work because, clearly, that’s obviously what we’ve got to do, and sometimes sports can humble you, and today was one of those days.”