When in doubt, line it up. Challenge your guys to be the more physical team. Then impose your will on the other guy.
Somewhere along the way this season, Sean McVay and Rams had wandered from that identity. Too many possessions, too many stretches, too many games unfolded on someone else’s terms while losing four of their first six games.
On Sunday, he and his team finally remembered who they were.
And then they made the Raiders pay a dear price for it, running the football down their throat.
The Rams’ 35-21 victory wasn’t nearly as competitive as the final score suggested. They were tougher, more disciplined and better coached. They established the terms of engagement, then spent the afternoon making sure the Raiders abided by them.
Thirty-nine carries for 198 yards will do that.
So will two running backs, Kyren Williams and Blake Corum, who each exceeded 90 yards rushing. They essentially turned the Rams run game into their own Las Vegas Grand Prix, accelerating through big holes and leaving defenders in the rear view mirror.
When they weren’t playing bully ball and running through would-be tacklers, that is.
As for all that running room? Thank the Rams offensive line, which spent the afternoon shoving people around and turning narrow lanes into open roads.
As McVay acknowledged Monday, that identity had been missing through their first six games, too often leaving the Rams staring into a mirror and struggling to recognize the team staring back.
Williams and Corum helped bring that picture back into focus, accepting the challenge to set a physical tone and giving the Rams a standard they now have to sustain.
“Those guys did a great job. They were both awesome. They deserved well-earned credit as were the blockers,” McVay said of Corum and Williams. “When you do that, you’re not in a bad spot on 2nd and 3rd downs.”
Then came the revealing part.
“That’s the first time we’ve had that all season,” McVay said.
For an offense with Matthew Stafford pulling the strings, the temptation is always to focus on what happens through the air. But the Rams are at their most dangerous when the defense has to respect everything.
Sunday, the running game made that respect mandatory.
Corum and Williams pressed the line of scrimmage, recognized defenders overplaying their assignments and found openings. Their blockers supplied the room and the attitude.
“I thought our offensive line was excellent,” McVay said. “They had a great demeanor.”
That demeanor became the afternoon’s defining characteristic. The Rams weren’t merely calling running plays. They were committing to a physical standard, one that spread throughout the team.
Funny how that works. Start throwing your weight around on offense, and the other side joins the party.
The payoff extended beyond rushing yards. Manageable downs gave Stafford options and kept the Raiders guessing.
“Any good offense that we’ve had here that I’ve been a part of, you have to be able to do both,” McVay said. “You have to be able to have balance, or you at least have to have the threat of if they overcommit to something, then you have to be able to make them pay.”
One afternoon doesn’t establish permanence. The Rams still have to prove this version travels from week to week.
“It’s something that we have to build on because this is a long journey,” McVay said.
At least now they have something to hang their hat on.
