The Rams traveled up north to face their NFC West rival 49ers and lost big time, losing 24-16. Here’s what we learned from Sunday Night Football’s tussle at Levi’s Stadium:

Zero Sacks for Rams’ Defense

Coming off an eight sack performance last week against Washington, the Rams’ defense failed to register a single quarterback takedown. San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo faced little pressure from L.A., completing 23 of his 33 passes for 268 yards and a triad of touchdowns. On the 49ers’ opening drive, Deebo Samuel caught a short pass from Jimmy G and was met by four Rams defenders. His knee never touched the ground, and what would’ve been a 10 yard gain turned into a 35 yard race down the field. That’s the kind of day it was for this Rams defense. They did, however, tighten things up during the second half, limiting the 49ers to only three points. But alas, it was not meant to be.

Same Goff, Different Day

You can’t just point fingers at the Rams’ defense. Their offense produced just as bad of a stinker. They couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities awarded by their defense, which limited San Francisco to 99 second half yards. The Goff-Kupp connection was out of whack as well. On 3rd&goal from the two yard line, Jared Goff rolled to his right and threw a laser that slipped out of Cooper Kupp’s hands. Goff threw an interception the following play on fourth down. He also missed Kupp on a deep pass earlier in the game, overthrowing him by about four yards. Goff finished 19 of 38 passing (198 yards), threw a pair of touchdowns, and also threw the aforementioned interception. He was rarely comfortable in the pocket, which led to inaccurate passes. That’s the Jared Goff experience Rams fans have come to terms with.

NFC East Panacea

If only Los Angeles could play the NFC East every week. All four of the Rams’ wins this season have come courtesy of the dreaded division; the four teams have a combined record of 5-17-1. Yikes. L.A. is now 0-2 against non-NFC East foes. They did almost overcome a 28-3 deficit against the Buffalo Bills, but they fell short thanks to a questionable pass interference call. We’ll just chalk this loss up as the Rams having a bad week. 

Things don’t get any easier for Los Angeles. Next week, they host Nick Foles and the 5-1 Chicago Bears at SoFi Stadium. Kickoff will take place at 5:15 PST on Monday Night Football on ESPN.