ARLINGTON, Texas – This Halloween weekend was a scary scene for the Los Angeles Rams as the team was thrashed by the Dallas Cowboys 43-20 at AT&T Stadium on Sunday. The Cowboys outscored the Rams 33-3 in the first half, a deficit the Rams could never recover from.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Los Angeles’s second consecutive loss:
Matthew Stafford exited the game in the third quarter with a thumb injury
Rams’ quarterback Matthew Stafford suffered a thumb injury on a two-point conversion play in in the third quarter according to head coach Sean McVay. Stafford, however, was visibly gripping his thumb prior to that play. Ultimately, Rams’ backup quarterback Brett Rypien entered the game to replace Stafford for the final play of the third quarter.
The first offensive drive for Rypien resulted in the Rams’ turning the ball over on downs. He completed five of his 10 passes for 42 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Rypien stated after the game that it was clear he would have to take over for Stafford after the first drive of the second half.
“Matthew came off the field, kind of re-aggravated the thumb there,” Rypien observed. “Just had a conversation with Z-Rob (QBs coach), asked if I was going, and he said I was going.”
Prior to Stafford leaving the game, he was picked off by Daron Bland on a pass intended for Cooper Kupp. Bland returned it for a touchdown to give the Cowboys a 17-3 advantage over the Rams to end the first quarter.
The Rams series of unfortunate plays continued as Micah Parsons sacked Stafford. Following the sack’ Ethan Evans’ kick was blocked by the Cowboys, which resulted in a safety. On the subsequent punt return, Cowboys’ Kavontae Turpin ran the ball back 63 yards to set up an easy Cowboys touchdown. It was the second of Dak Prescott’s four touchdowns on the day. Prescott threw for 304 yards.
Tutu Atwell and Matthew Stafford connect on an impressive two-point conversion play
After an unsuccessful two-point conversion earlier in the game, out of halftime the Rams attempted a second two-point conversion that was ultimately successful. Rams’ wide receiver TuTu Atwell connected with Matthew Stafford on a double-reverse during the opening drive of the third quarter.
Stafford, not only re-aggravated his thumb on the play, but also bloodied his elbow as he slid across the goal line following his 20-yard touchdown pass to receiver Ben Skowronek.
Royce Freeman finds the end zone
Running back Royce Freeman scored his first touchdown in a Rams uniform.
The 23-point loss to the Cowboys is tied for the team’s second-worst in the McVay era according to ESPN Stats Info and two out of the three losses have come against the Cowboys.
In McVay’s postgame press conference, he did not provide an update on Stafford’s status. With the loss suffered against the Cowboys, the Rams fell to 3-5 on the season. The next matchup for Los Angeles is against the 2-5 Green Bay Packers on the road at Lambeau Field.
