GLENDALE, Ariz. – Rams head coach Sean McVay and quarterback Matthew Stafford held postgame press conferences with local media following the team's 20-12 victory over the Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sunday, discussing running back Cam Akers' performance, young players stepping up in the secondary and more.
Here are some of the highlights and key takeaways from those conversations, which you can watch in their entirety below:
"A lot of guys that haven't really played significant roles before that just stepped up." – McVay
- The Rams defense limited the Cardinals' explosive plays and also kept their offense out of the endzone thanks to the elevated play of defensive backs like Grant Haley and Derion Kendrick.
- Haley posted five total tackles, while Kendrick had a team-high-tying nine plus one pass breakup.
"I felt Jalen Ramsey's energy from the start. I thought our front really did a great job of applying pressure keeping an outstanding athlete like Kyler (Murray) bottled up." – McVay
- Ramsey made his presence felt all game with multiple big hits and finished with a team-high-tying nine total tackles.
- Meanwhile, the Rams defense held Murray to under 10 yards rushing and without a touchdown.
"We kind of felt the rhythm of the game, we're like, 'Man, we're doing a great job up front moving these guys,' and surely just big time credit to the guys up front guys on the perimeter blocking." – Stafford
- Led by Akers, the Rams collectively rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Akers led the way with 61 of those rushing yards and one of those touchdowns; Kupp scored the other on a 20-yard jet sweep.
- Stafford credited McVay and the coaching staff that allowed them to run downhill, and said it was fun to watch Akers "go do his thing" in space.
"When we're running the ball well, he usually has a nice game blocking and we did today so I was happy for him." – Stafford
- Wide receiver Ben Skowronek made an impact as both a run-blocker and pass-catcher on Sunday, helping create a hole for Akers on his touchdown run and finishing with four catches for 66 yards.
- "Just happy for his role to keep expanding," Stafford said of Skowronek.
