WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – After a gritty, 14-9 win over Houston in Week 1, the Rams have started preparing for their next opponent, the Tennessee Titans. Sunday marked the fifth time in the last seven games, dating back to last season, where the Rams have held their opponent to 10 points or less. They will look to continue that streak on Sunday.
Head coach Sean McVay, quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Davante Adams spoke with local media on Wednesday about Sunday's performance and looked ahead to their matchup with Tennessee. Here are the most significant quotes and talking points from those press conferences.
"I think just the command, the communication, obviously the productivity (stood out for inside linebacker Nate Landman). When he has 10 tackles, and then he obviously makes a huge play, but there's so many different things, especially when you're the green-dot guy. You're communicating, you're making front adjustments, you're communicating to the back end on certain things. This guy is an extension of the coaches." - McVay
After earning NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors, McVay praised Landman's command of the field and huddle all game, not just during his potentially game-saving forced fumble. He said that Landman has "earned the respect of his teammates" from the moment he entered the organization this past offseason, and knows when to insert his voice. He led a Rams defense that "did an outstanding job" of responding to the circumstances they were placed in.
When asked about the balance between Puka Nacua and Davante Adams' targets, McVay said they always "want to get both of them involved" because "when the ball's in their hands, good things happen." Their respective volume is largely predicated on the coverages Los Angeles is seeing, and McVay added that the offense as a whole can be "a little bit more seamless" once they can become more efficient on early downs.
Nacua's toughness led to a 10-catch, 130-yard performance that prompted one of McVay's friends to text him "Nacua must mix his oatmeal with cement," he said with a laugh. The third-year star's excitement to block in the run game helps set up opportunities for him as a pass-catcher, which is exactly what happened on the game-sealing completion. "The third-and-eight is set up because he'll stick his face on (Texans safety Jalen) Pitre on the previous two plays," which were run out of the same look and motion from Nacua.
Stafford, meanwhile, was able to work through some dirty pockets to make good decisions and high-difficulty throws in a game where he showed total command, McVay said.
"Recovery (from the game) feels good. You don't get hit for a long time at quarterback. We wear this thing (a red non-contact jersey), luckily, every day in practice so Jared Verse knows not to hit me. It is just getting back used to feeling that, but I feel good and ready to go. (I'll have) a full week of practice, hopefully, and just go play again." - Stafford
Stafford wasn't worried about the back injury that held him out of training camp and some preseason practices, saying "you have to stand in there and do your job." That's exactly what he did, and no health consequences came of it. He expects to practice fully ahead of the Rams' Week 2 matchup in Tennessee.
Stafford said the Titans have "a really physical defense" and defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons is "disruptive, strong, gets off on count, physical, fast (and) plays with a nasty streak." He knows that defense will present multiple looks, especially in the backend, which means he'll have to trust his eyes and progressions to make the right decisions with the football.
Last week, Stafford passed the 60,000 career passing yards mark on a six-yard completion to Nacua. He said it was meaningful for that ball to go to Nacua because he's enjoyed "a lot of good moments with him," and this will be another one that he always remembers. However, when he went up to Nacua to tell him as much, it was clear the receiver hadn't realized the significance of that throw and catch.
"I went up to him and was like, 'Hey man, glad that one went to you.' And he's like, 'Yeah, sure.' I don't think he really knew (why)," Stafford recalled. They were able to clear that up later, though.
"It's not easy at all (to time-up deep balls with a new quarterback), but it's something that, just having a little bit of experience with him in OTAs and that offseason program, we worked on it a little bit there, and I actually missed a few of them earlier, so to be able to go in the game and still have that trust and confidence in me, and me have the confidence in him that he's gonna see the coverage and throw the right ball, it's a good building block." - Adams
On a third-and-three in the fourth quarter, Stafford trusted Adams on a back-shoulder throw on the left sideline. The veteran receiver adjusted against tight coverage to snag the pass and get both feet down in-bounds for a 24-yard gain. Adams credited Stafford for making that play happen. "I was still driving and digging, running, trying to win over the top, and then I peaked. And, I mean, (Texans cornerback Derek) Stingley couldn't really do anything about it."
On his first catch as a Ram, Adams took a massive hit coming over the middle that bent him backwards. But the 12th-year pro popped right back up and got ready for the next snap. At this point in his career, Adams isn't looking to take punishment, but as a receiver "you can't live forever," he said. "So sometimes you got to go across the middle and make that play. You can't just let a ball soar past your eyes just because you're in harm's way... That's what you signed up for if you want to be a receiver in this league."
Adams' running mate, Nacua, showed similar toughness. After absorbing a big hit early on, he was evaluated for a concussion and a gash above his eye had to be stitched up, but he still returned. Adams described Nacua as a "pit bull" because "It's hard to stop a pit bull once you get going. That's clearly what you get from somebody like Puka."
