{"id":460413,"date":"2026-09-11T10:10:19","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T10:10:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/460413\/"},"modified":"2026-09-11T10:10:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T10:10:19","slug":"star-studded-rams-humbled-by-brock-purdy-49ers-in-opening-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/460413\/","title":{"rendered":"Star-studded Rams humbled by Brock Purdy, 49ers in opening loss"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

MELBOURNE\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Maybe, if the Rams<\/a> still reach their intended destination at season\u2019s end, they\u2019ll look back at their very long trip to Australia \u2014 and purposely short stay<\/a> \u2014 and be grateful.<\/p>\n

A humbling punch in the face. A wake-up call. A rallying point that spurs them to even greater heights.<\/p>\n

Until then, there is only one way to look at it:<\/p>\n

The Rams embarrassed themselves<\/a>, for a new part of the NFL world to see, in a humiliating 27-7 defeat<\/a> by the San Francisco 49ers.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Share via Close extra sharing options <\/p>\n

The Rams lose to the San Francisco 49ers 27-7 in the 2026 season opener at Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia on Friday.<\/p>\n

The Rams arrived here as the star-studded favorite to win Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium<\/a>. They left star-crossed, stunned and searching for answers on their long flight back to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

The Rams sleep-walked through nearly all of the opener before a sold-out crowd of 100,021 at Melbourne Cricket Ground, in the first NFL game in Australia.<\/p>\n

Coach Sean McVay<\/a>\u2019s strategy of arriving the day before the game<\/a> backfired and resulted in a dull performance by a team featuring some of the NFL\u2019s biggest stars.<\/p>\n

Did McVay still think he made the right decision having his team take a 16-hour plane ride and arrive the day before the game?<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t believe that\u2019s why we didn\u2019t play well enough, I really don\u2019t,\u201d McVay said. \u201cIt\u2019s easy in hindsight to be able to say that was a miss.\u201d<\/p>\n

McVay, per usual, threw himself on the sword and took the blame. And in this case, much of it was warranted.<\/p>\n

Kyle Shanahan<\/a>, the 49ers coach who doubles as McVay\u2019s friend, mentor and nemesis, outmaneuvered McVay again. Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris<\/a>, the Rams\u2019 former defensive coordinator and one of McVay\u2019s closest friends, outschemed McVay and his staff.<\/p>\n

But McVay was not alone.<\/p>\n

Quarterback Matthew Stafford<\/a>, the reigning NFL most valuable player, completed only 15 of 25 passes for 155 yards with an interception. With the game out of reach, McVay pulled Stafford late in the fourth quarter and had backup Stetson Bennett lead the Rams\u2019 final possession.<\/p>\n

\"Rams <\/p>\n

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford passes against the San Francisco 49ers in the first half of a 27-7 loss Friday in Melbourne.<\/p>\n

(Asanka Brendon Ratnayake \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

\u201cNot enough good stuff on offense,\u201d Stafford said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t do the things that we\u2019re accustomed to doing. … Too many times we were on different pages.\u201d<\/p>\n

All-Pro receiver Puka Nacua<\/a>, the NFL leader in catches last season, caught five passes for 74 yards and never broke loose. Davante Adams<\/a>, who led the NFL in touchdown catches last season, caught only three passes.<\/p>\n

The additions of All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie<\/a>, record-setting edge rusher Myles Garrett<\/a> and cornerback Jaylen Watson<\/a> were supposed to supercharge the Rams\u2019 defense.<\/p>\n

But 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy<\/a> passed for three touchdowns and 205 yards, and the Rams recorded no sacks.<\/p>\n

Garrett, a two-time NFL defensive player of the year, looked nothing like the player who amassed a season-record 23 sacks last season for the Cleveland Browns. He was clearly handicapped by a left knee problem that has plagued him since training camp.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was the worst version of myself that I\u2019ve put out there,\u201d Garrett said. \u201cAnd I have to be better, and we have to find a way to recover and get back to the player I know I can be and I\u2019ve shown I\u2019ve been before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rams <\/p>\n

Rams defensive end Myles Garrett sits on the bench late in the fourth quarter during a 27-7 loss to the 49ers on Friday.<\/p>\n

(Doug Benc \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

The pain distracted Garrett while facing a 49ers lineup that included three-time All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was out there, I was a little bit more focused on myself and trying to stay healthy than what they were doing, and that showed,\u201d Garrett said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t who I needed to be for my team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Special teams also played a role in the defeat. Deebo Samuel<\/a> broke off a 45-yard kick return that set up a touchdown.<\/p>\n

The 49ers \u201cobviously did what they kind of wanted with us,\u201d Stafford said.<\/p>\n

The result made Shanahan\u2019s decision to have his team spend a week in Melbourne to acclimate the correct one.<\/p>\n

Shanahan had bristled at the fact that the 49ers were chosen as the Rams\u2019 opponent for the International Series game because it took away the ability of 49ers fans to descend onto SoFi Stadium.<\/p>\n

\"Rams <\/p>\n

Rams wide receiver Davante Adams attempts to catch a pass in the fourth quarter against the 49ers.<\/p>\n

(Robert Cianflone \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Shanahan also wasn\u2019t happy that the Rams\u2019 next game is Sept. 21 on \u201cMonday Night Football,\u201d while the 49ers are playing on Sept. 20. Add in that the 49ers also must play in Mexico in November, and there was plenty of motivation beyond the game itself.<\/p>\n

The Rams trailed 17-7 early in the third quarter before the Rams\u2019 offense briefly woke up. Stafford engineered a drive to the 49ers\u2019 two-yard line. But after a one-yard catch by Nacua, the 49ers stuffed Stafford\u2019s sneak attempt.<\/p>\n

The 49ers capitalized, marching 99 yards in 11 plays, and scoring on Purdy\u2019s touchdown pass to Samuel for a 24-7 lead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been a handful of humbling moments we\u2019ve had,\u201d said McVay, who is in his 10th season, \u201cand this was certainly one of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the game, players said McVay\u2019s message was about resilience.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew we were going to face some adversity during the season,\u201d Garrett said. \u201cCome to find out it\u2019s Game 1.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rams will spend the next 10 days reviewing what went wrong and preparing for the New York Giants at SoFi Stadium. It remains to be seen whether Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald will make his season debut.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a little bit of time,\u201d Stafford said, \u201cwhich quite frankly is going to be not fun because you\u2019d rather be coming home with a win and feeling good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps the Rams will feel that way down the road.<\/p>\n

McVay is focused on other issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to find out what we\u2019re about,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MELBOURNE\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Maybe, if the Rams still reach their intended destination at season\u2019s end, they\u2019ll look back at their very…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":460414,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[11856,879,10834,423,48,52,51,5814,47,50,49,4606,769,752,772,181530,11706,10947,181532,181531,29443],"class_list":["post-460413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-49er","tag-brock-purdy","tag-davante-adams","tag-game","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-lead","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-mcvay","tag-nacua","tag-nfl","tag-pass","tag-purdy-pass","tag-ram","tag-rams","tag-shanahan","tag-short-touchdown-pass","tag-stafford"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=460413"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460413\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/460414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=460413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=460413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=460413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}