Rams Earn Hard-Fought Victory Over Panthers
BetQL’s NFL Model labeled St. Louis’ moneyline as a 3.5-star bet
- BetQL’s NFL Model labeled the Rams -125 as a ★★★1/2 Week 1 bet.
- St. Louis earned a narrow 30-27 victory over the Panthers in Carolina.
The Los Angeles Rams visited the Carolina Panthers on Sunday and boy, was it a terrific game. The Los Angeles moneyline sat at -125, making the Rams a minimal favorite. BetQL’s NFL Model indicated Rams should be more heavily favored, giving St. Louis a 3.5 star rating.
The Rams perform very well on the road. They went 6-2 in the regular season as a visiting team last year and that trend followed suit in Week 1 of the 2019 season. Let’s look back on what happened in this contest.
Coaching Genius
Coach Sean McVay proved that he’s a young mastermind by taking the Rams to the Super Bowl last season. The offensive guru has given the Rams quite an edge early on in the season, leading Los Angeles to a 13-2 record in the first half of seasons since he took over. Offenses can struggle to shake the rust off early in the year, but McVay’s offensive prowess really sets them up for success. That is a testament to his coaching skills since he rests his starters throughout the preseason.
Jared Goff did just enough to get by on Sunday. He ended the contest 23-for-39 passing for 186 passing yards with one touchdown and one interception. The Rams offensive line did well to protect him, but Goff never fully settled in.
The run game was particularly brilliant, even with Todd Gurley being featured in a limited fashion. Gurley handled 14 carries for 97 rushing yards. Malcolm Brown joined the party, scoring two touchdowns and tallying 53 rushing yards on 11 carries. The Rams ended the week with the fifth-most rush yards in the league, averaging 5.2 yards per carry as a team.
Newton’s Mobility Issues And Carolina’s Turnovers
Cam Newton suffered a foot injury during Week 3 of the preseason and it showed on Sunday. Newton’s ability to scramble was non-existent, logging negative rushing yards and getting sacked twice by Dante Fowler Jr. and once by Clay Matthews.
Newton was forced to hang in the pocket, which isn’t his forte, and it showed. He logged 239 passing yards and completed 25-for-38 passes, tallying one interception and no scores. This played into the Rams favor, as Newton has finished inside the top 15 in passer rating just once over his eight-year career. Although the Rams forced three turnovers in the contest, their defense simply couldn’t contain Christian McCaffrey, as he combined for 209 rushing and receiving yards and two touchdowns. But, it didn’t matter in the end.
Outcome
The Rams wound up dominating the time of possession and edged the Panthers 30-27. Carolina’s fourth quarter surge just wasn’t enough after the Rams led 23-13 going into the final period. Coach McVay set his team up for victory in a challenging road environment, which is something he’s made a habit of.
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