WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – The Rams' loss to the Packers on Sunday featured some new personnel and statistical trends. Los Angeles blitzed more, but pressured less, than it had all season while the run game soared to new heights.
Running back Kyren Williams' 22 carries yielded his first 100-yard rushing game of the season. Still, the Rams' success on the ground wasn't enough to come out with a win, as they suffered their third one-possession loss of the season, 24-19 at SoFi Stadium.
Here are five interesting stats from Week 5:
Williams picked up 92 of his 102 rushing yards after contact, the eighth-most of any player in a game this season
Williams ran as tough as he has all season against the Packers. He fought through first contact on nearly all of his carries, as all but 10 of his yards were accumulated after contact. He also reached 15+ miles per hour on four runs (his most of the year) and created his first explosive play of the season on a 31-yard carry in the first half.
After the game, Williams was unhappy with his performance because of the third-quarter fumble, but his production was undeniable. He ended the game with 105 total yards and extended his regular season rushing touchdown streak to eight, which is the longest for a Ram since Greg Bell in 1988-89.
The Rams had their highest rushing success rate of the season (64.3%) and the fourth-highest rate in any game this season
Success rate is defined by a play with positive expected points added (EPA), which measures how many more or less points a play is expected to add compared to the average play in that specific context. All three Rams rushers – Williams, Blake Corum and Tutu Atwell (one rush for seven yards) – were productive with their carries and totaled positive rushing EPA on the day. Everyone, especially the offensive line, did their part.
Corum got involved early on Sunday despite not seeing a single first-half carry before the matchup with Green Bay. His five carries for 25 yards helped the Rams get to the goal line, where Williams punched in the team's first touchdown.
Despite their elite production on the ground, the game script called for late passing, and the Rams ended up with an unfavorable split – only 38.4% of their plays were runs.
Kobie Turner had the eighth-fastest sack of the week (3.14 seconds) during his first multi-sack half of his career
Turner's first career multi-sack half featured two impact plays. The first was a straight bull rush where he squeezed between two Packers linemen to drop Love for a loss of eight and force a three-and-out on the first drive of the game. That sack, which took just 3.14 seconds, was the third-fastest of the week for an interior defensive lineman.
Then, during the Packers' two-minute drill at the end of the first half, he barreled toward Love and laid down a huge hit that forced his check down to go backwards, resulting in a fumble that went out of bounds. That led to a Packers field goal after a failed third-and-long.
The Rams had their highest blitz rate (41.4%) but lowest pressure rate (27.6%) of the season
The Rams entered Sunday's game with the NFL's highest pressure rate and fifth-lowest blitz rate. Those rates essentially flipped against Green Bay, as they blitzed at the third-highest rate in Week 5 thus far, but produced pressure at the eighth lowest.
Outside linebackers Jared Verse and Byron Young led the way with four pressures apiece, and Turner finished both of his two pressures with sacks. Safety Kam Curl blitzed the passer four times and created pressure on two of them. It was a much different game plan on defense that yielded primarily positive results, apart from a few impactful explosive plays.
Ahkello Witherspoon played 81% of snaps in his second game of the season
Witherspoon went from in-season free agent signing to starting cornerback in the span of three weeks. He was elevated from the practice squad for last week's game against the Bears, but only played on 13% of snaps. This week, the coaching staff chose to make veteran cornerback Tre'Davious White inactive, opting for Witherspoon and Darious Williams (who returned from Injured Reserve this week) at outside corner.
Witherspoon allowed just one catch for seven yards on three targets as the closest defender. His 42.4 passer rating when targeted was tied with Cobie Durant for the best among Rams corners. Head coach Sean McVay said the team will "evaluate everything" going forward, so his future role is yet to be determined.
