7 takeaways from Rams' frustrating loss to Falcons

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The Los Angeles Rams bounced back from their previous three losses by winning their next game. They failed to do that on Monday night, losing in fairly embarrassing fashion to the Atlanta Falcons, 27-24.

They allowed their loss to the Seattle Seahawks to snowball into a losing skid, having now dropped two in a row. Sean McVay is frustrated, Matthew Stafford had one of his worst games of the season and the defense just gave up 195 yards rushing to Bijan Robinson.

There aren't many positives to take away from this game and though the sky isn't falling, the Rams have plenty to correct before the playoffs begin.

Rams badly need Alaric Jackson healthy

D.J. Humphries was a liability at left tackle all night long. He whiffed on a block on the Rams’ failed fourth-down run early in the game, got called for an illegal formation on Puka Nacua’s 36-yard catch, allowed a sack in the third quarter and was getting beat throughout the game.

His costliest play might’ve been in the fourth quarter when his holding penalty negated a game-tying 41-yard touchdown catch by Puka Nacua, though Nacua did get into the end zone a few plays later.

Jackson was questionable and Sean McVay thought he might be able to play so it doesn’t seem like a long-term injury, but the Rams need him healthy in the worst way. They can't go into the playoffs with Humphries at left tackle.

Quentin Lake continues to be missed

His coverage skills are obviously great, but Lake is especially missed as a run defender. He’s disciplined and takes good angles to ball carriers, which helps prevent big plays when running backs to get to the second and third level of the defense.

Bijan Robinson gashed the Rams for 195 yards on the ground Monday night and that’s not to say Lake would’ve completely changed the outcome, but his presence as the slot defender surely would’ve helped limit some of Robinson’s bigger runs.

Shaky secondary could be Rams’ downfall

It’s not that the secondary gave up huge plays to Kirk Cousins and the Falcons’ passing attack. The Rams only allowed 126 yards passing, 34 of which were with Robinson on the receiving end.

It’s that the coverage was never all that tight and the secondary couldn’t cover when the defense needed to get off the field. They didn’t force many difficult throws for Cousins, aside from the one pass Emmanuel Forbes Jr. broke up on the opening drive.

That was the Rams’ only pass defensed in the entire game.

It’s not a good sign that they keep rotating cornerbacks without finding their best trio, making Ahkello Witherspoon inactive the last two weeks and Darious Williams on Monday night. Come playoff time, the Rams need their corners to play better.

Rams are stumbling into the playoffs

There’s a big difference between the Rams’ last two losses. Against the Seahawks, they simply melted down and collapsed in the fourth quarter. Against the Falcons, they simply did not play well. They mustered just 363 total yards on offense, went 5-for-13 on third down and turned it over three times.

There was a lot to like in the loss to Seattle, but it’s hard to find many positives from this game. As McVay said afterwards, the Rams “have to play better.” And that’s exactly why he plans to play his starters in the finale against the Cardinals.

If the Rams don’t clean things up on both sides of the ball, they’re not going very far in the playoffs. Getting Davante Adams, Kevin Dotson, Quentin Lake and Alaric Jackson back at some point will help but this isn’t how L.A. wanted to finish off what had been a great year up until the last two weeks.

Matthew Stafford gave away the MVP

Stafford’s disastrous first half set things in motion for Drake Maye to take over as the MVP frontrunner. Then Stafford threw another interception in the fourth quarter when the Rams were trying to tie the game.

MVP is partly a team award so when you lose as a quarterback, it hurts your chances of winning votes. And not only did the Rams lose, but Stafford played terribly. It was arguably his worst game of the year, throwing three interceptions and missing a few open throws – including one that would’ve gotten the Rams in field goal range in the final seconds or possibly gone for a touchdown.

Maye is now -550 to win NFL MVP as the heavy favorite and is unlikely to give it up in the final week against the Dolphins.

Terrance Ferguson keeps delivering with big plays

Ferguson only had two catches but both of them were big plays. His first was a 27-yard reception on a stutter-and-go down the left side, picking up chunks of yards when the Rams badly needed them. He then scored a 27-yard touchdown in the third quarter to make it 24-10, drawing the Rams a bit closer.

He only saw four targets on the night but his two receptions were both massive plays in the game to keep the momentum going. He’s going to be a special player for the Rams in 2026 after a full offseason of work, but his impact is already being felt as one of the team’s primary tight ends this year.

Special teams improved already under Ben Kotwica

It only took one game for the Rams’ special teams unit to make a game-changing play after the firing of Chase Blackburn. For a unit that’s been a thorn in the Rams’ side all year, the special teams is actually what helped keep them in that game.

Jared Verse’s blocked field goal and return for a touchdown flipped the script, taking it from a possible 17-point game to only a seven-point deficit for the Rams. Ethan Evans hit a perfect punt that was downed at the 2 and Jordan Whittington had a nice 38-yard kickoff return.

Roger McCreary did get called for a penalty on the Rams’ first punt return but for the most part, the special teams improved already.

This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams vs. Falcons: 7 takeaways from LA's frustrating loss

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