The Rams’ 2-4 start has invited the kind of panic that follows every ugly stretch, and after the loss to the Cardinals, the noise around Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford and the rest of the roster has only grown louder. Los Angeles entered the year as Super Bowl favorites, yet six weeks in, the team sits with a 41 percent chance to make the playoffs and a season that keeps sliding the wrong way.
One of the biggest talking points has been McVay’s playcalling, especially after his 4th-and-1 decision against Arizona drew heat. He deserves criticism for that call, and he hasn’t been flawless.
Even so, stripping playcalling away from one of the league’s best offensive minds and handing it to an offensive coordinator in his first season does not solve much. McVay may be part of the problem, but he’s still one of the main answers.
Overreaction Validity: 2/10
The “super team” label has also taken a beating. The Rams were tagged with that description all offseason, though no one inside the building used the phrase.
The reality is simpler: the version people imagined never actually got on the field together. Myles Garrett was not 100 percent in Week 1, Aaron Donald didn’t make the trip, and Garrett was soon placed on injured reserve.
Since then, the Rams have been juggling injuries nonstop. It may be fair to say the vision never came together, but it’s not fair to call the whole idea a bust when the group never had a real chance to function as intended.
Overreaction Validity: 1/10
Quarterback questions are starting to creep in too, and while it might be too early to hand the job to Ty Simpson, the idea of moving him up to backup status at least has some weight. Stafford has helped create some of the early-season mess with his own mistakes, including two ill-advised interceptions against the Eagles, but he also remains the one player most capable of pulling this team out of the hole.
The Rams may have beaten the Cardinals with Simpson. A change to the rookie could come later, but right now Stafford is still the one who can drag this offense forward.
Overreaction Validity: 5/10
The defense, meanwhile, has become part of the weekly blame game again, but that conversation needs a little more balance. Rams fans have been through this cycle with defensive coordinators going back to Raheem Morris, and this version is not without faults.
Still, the unit made a play that should have beaten the Bills, held the Cardinals to 18 points, and kept them out of the end zone on five red-zone trips. A McVay offense should be expected to score more than 20 points against the NFL’s worst scoring defense.
Through six weeks, the Rams rank 10th in defensive DVOA and third in yards allowed per game, and that’s been done without Garrett and other key pieces in several games. Shula has, at least so far, put in place the kind of defense fans were asking for early on.
Overreaction Validity: 4/10
Then there’s the trade deadline, where the Rams are once again a team to watch. Les Snead doesn’t usually operate like an executive ready to wave the white flag and sell off parts.
Byron Young could bring back solid draft capital, but that doesn’t feel like the most likely path. A stand-pat approach or a move aimed at upgrading the roster makes more sense.
The Rams didn’t make the playoffs in 2019, yet they still went out and traded for Austin Corbett and Jalen Ramsey. In 2022, they made calls on Christian McCaffrey and Brian Burns.
A huge splash may not be coming, but Snead is expected to be working the phones. Overreaction Validity: 6/10
In Other News...
Sean McVay Tries To Defuse Kyren Williams Drama As Rams Spiral
Sean McVay spent part of the week trying to calm down a situation the Rams would rather not have lingering around them. After the Week 6 loss, running back Kyren Williams drew attention for his postgame comments, and McVay moved quickly to frame them as the kind of thing that happens in the heat of the moment. He said Williams was emotional and misspoke, while making clear the back remains a positive influence and a leader in the locker room.
The timing matters because Los Angeles is already trying to stop a slide at 2-4, and the offense has little room for distraction. The Rams have been dealing with broader issues on that side of the ball, and the challenge only grows with Davante Adams expected to miss several weeks. In that context, McVays effort to smooth things over is less about one comment than keeping a fragile season from getting any shakier. [Read more 🡒]
Aaron Donald Just Became The Rams Biggest Defensive Dilemma
Aaron Donalds return from retirement was supposed to give the Rams a familiar anchor up front, but the picture around him has changed quickly. With Poona Ford out for the season with a torn triceps, Kobie Turner sidelined for multiple weeks with a groin injury and Myles Garrett still not back at practice, Los Angeles suddenly has far less depth than it expected when it counted on its defensive line.
So the conversation has shifted from easing Donald back in to whether the Rams need more of him, more often. The team is weighing a bigger snap count to cover for the absences, but there is still a real question about how much extra burden the 30-something star can handle after retirement and with his current workload already part of the equation. [Read more 🡒]
Kurt Warner Just Put The Rams Biggest Offensive Issue On McVay
Kurt Warner has zeroed in on what has kept the Rams from looking like a finished product this season, pointing to the lack of a consistent running game and the physical edge needed in the red zone. It is the kind of critique that lands harder when it comes from someone who knows what high-level Rams offense is supposed to look like, and it matches the broader sense that this group has been leaving too many easy answers on the table.
Sean McVay has already owned the teams critical errors and said composure has to improve, which puts the spotlight back on how quickly the Rams can clean up the details. Blake Corum and Kyren Williams have both voiced confidence in the talent in the room, but the next step is turning that belief into a more reliable finish once the field gets tighter and the stakes rise. [Read more 🡒]