With their resilience on display, the Los Angeles Rams came from behind to defeat the Baltimore Ravens on the road in Week 17.
It took Los Angeles a while to weather the storm. Following Clark’s second pick of Stafford, the Rams’ defense forced the Ravens to settle for a field goal after marching 91 yards. As part of the Ravens’ subsequent drive, Jordan Fuller’s pick of Huntley led to Stafford’s 18-yard touchdown pass to Kupp to make the score 10-7.
In the second half, the Rams’ red zone defense came up with two more stops. Baltimore had to settle for a fourth Justin Tucker field goal and a 19-14 advantage after Leonard Floyd and Aaron Donald sacked Huntley on third down. Stafford capitalized on the stop by orchestrating two late touchdown drives, more than making up for his early troubles.
Beckham’s game-winning touchdown reception has to be the game’s biggest play. This season, Beckham has five touchdowns in seven games with the Rams.
The Rams improved to 12-4 with the win and moved one step closer to winning the NFC West division.
The #Ravens may give it until before game-time, but sources say the belief heading into today is that QB Tyler Huntley is the likely starter vs. the #Rams. Lamar Jackson hasn’t been ruled out, but the ankle did not allow him to practice Thursday or Friday. Not a good sign.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 2, 2022
Ravens’ side
The Baltimore Ravens had a difficult time facing the Los Angeles Rams in Week 17 as they attempted to halt their unexpected losing streak. John Harbaugh’s team put up a valiant fight, but they eventually ran out of steam and lost 20-19, giving them yet another nail-biting loss.
While the Ravens scored 13 points off turnovers, they were unable to take advantage of those opportunities for more points. After Tyus Bowser’s strip-sack of Stafford deep in Ravens territory, Baltimore had a chance to pull away from Los Angeles in the third quarter.
Afterward, the Ravens moved all the way to the Rams’ 28-yard line but had to settle for a field goal to take the lead, 16-7. While they played well for the majority of the game, the Ravens’ defense came up empty late in the game.
As a result of the loss, the Ravens sit in third place in the AFC North with an 8-8 record. The loss also prolonged the team’s losing streak to five games and further complicated their chances of making the playoffs as the season nears its conclusion. To make the playoffs, Baltimore has to regroup and rebound against the division rival Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 18.
greg roman calling a shotgun inside zone on second and goal from the 2 yard line is the reason why we can never punch it into the end zone and win games like these
— Caden Morris (@caden2319) January 2, 2022
Record breaker, injuries, and next match
Ravens’ single-season yards receiving record is broken by Andrews, who surpassed Michael Jackson’s mark set during the team’s first season in Baltimore after moving from Cleveland.
The season total for Andrews is 1,276 yards. This exceeds Jackson’s 1201 yards in 1996. Additionally, Andrews is just four catches away from matching Derrick Mason’s 2007 record of 103 catches.
Despite going the entire week without being listed on the injury report, Ravens’ C Bradley Bozeman watched the game from the sideline wearing a mask. He was replaced by Trystan Colon. The timing of Bozeman’s illness made it hard to place him on the inactive list, according to coach John Harbaugh.
On Monday night, Baltimore will host the Steelers, who will face the Browns in what is likely to be Ben Roethlisberger’s final regular-season home game, while the Rams will play the 49ers on Saturday, who are chasing a wild-card spot in the NFL.