Petty made his first National Football League start in place of an injured Ryan Fitzpatrick, but couldn’t get much going against the Rams defense. The defensive line was finally effective, tallying 3 sacks, 7 tackles for losses, and 8 quarterback hits.
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Getting explosive plays from wide receiver Tavon Austin could give the Rams a lift. He was poised. He threw a deep ball well. “We’ll watch the film on Bryce and make a determination in the middle of next week”, even when he insists, “I’m not naming anybody going forward”, the byproduct of a 3-7 record should leave him no choice.
While it was unusual to see they were unable to gain a victory that week, it’s even more weird to see that the team got another win without crossing the end zone. The Rams’ defense nearly instinctively flocked the quick outs and running back flares, forcing Petty out of his comfort zone. Enunwa gets the outside position on Johnson as the corner comes in to make the play on Marshall.
The L.A. offense still can not get it going in either the running game or the passing game. Petty wasn’t spectacular in his first career start, and he did duplicate what regular starter Ryan Fitzpatrick has seemingly trademarked – a late game-ending interception – but he acquitted himself enough to earn a second chance from Bowles. “I’m not going to go into a quarterback situation”.
Coach Todd Bowles said Monday he has yet to decide if Ryan Fitzpatrick or Bryce Petty will be the quarterback Thanksgiving weekend, when the Jets return to action to face the Patriots. Filling in for an injured Fitzpatrick, Petty started the first game of his career Sunday against the Rams.
After the game, Bowles said Fitzpatrick wasn’t “completely healthy”.
The Rams have two touchdowns over their last three games, but that will not prompt head coach Jeff Fisher to turn to the No. 1 overall pick. But, the offense, which gained 280 yards and held the ball for 33:53 of game time, is not going to help Los Angeles win many games like this when it can not score a touchdown.
Keenum completed just 17-of-30 passes for 165 yards. The Rams, also a struggling team, weren’t very good either.
Each week we take a look at the tape to see what worked, what didn’t and what you might have missed.
The Rams picked up three first downs and got to the Jets’ 16, but then had to settle for Zuerlein’s 34-yard field goal with 6:52 remaining.
Zuerlein tied it at 6 with 20 seconds left in the third quarter with a 38-yard field goal. The kid obviously has talent but the Rams (mainly Fisher) don’t think he’s ready yet. There is nothing left for him to do or show the Jets, no need for Bowles to continue insisting he might give the ball back to the $12-million man who cashes his last pay check at season’s end. “That’s what you have to do against a defense like this”.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Jared Goff could be making his first start for the Rams next week against the Miami Dolphins depending on the performance by Keenum against the Jets.
Gurley also had a 21-yard run, which would have been a season-long, negated by a Greg Robinson holding penalty in the fourth quarter.
They needed a field-flipping, 78-yard punt from Johnny Hekker in the fourth quarter to change the momentum.
The sigh of relief from the Rams on Sunday was every bit as gusty as the wind swirling around MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.
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Jets: bye week. Next game vs.
