More offensive woes for Rams, Bryce Perkins in loss to Chiefs – San Gabriel Valley Tribune
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On a day that started with Sean McVay being accidentally struck in the face by one of his players, the hits continued Sunday for the injury-riddled Rams against the mighty Kansas City Chiefs.
With Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson sidelined, the Rams predictably fell to the Chiefs 26-10 at Arrowhead Stadium. But the short-handed Rams kept it close before backup quarterback Bryce Perkins threw two interceptions in the fourth quarter.
The Rams might have also been on the verge of losing their head coach after McVay took a shoulder hit to the jaw from Rams rookie tight end Roger Carter, who was running onto the field for a punt return in the first quarter. The Rams fell to 3-8 on the season and extended their losing streak to five games.
“I took a good shot,” McVay said. “Roger ran right into me. It was a good shot, but I’m OK.”
Perkins received his first career start and had the daunting challenge of keeping pace with Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes without the Rams’ top wideouts in Robinson and Kupp. The Rams’ defense, however, contained Mahomes and his high-octane offense for two-plus quarters before the Chiefs (9-2) extended their lead 20-3 after a 12-play, 71-yard scoring drive with 6:32 in the third quarter. At that point, the Rams only had 73 total net yards.
“We know there’s no moral victories, but I’m proud of the way our guys competed,” McVay said. “The defense did an amazing job being able to get red-area stops on some of those sudden changes (after Perkins’ interceptions), and so proud there.”
Robinson was unavailable to help the offense because he was surprisingly ruled out when the team announced their list for inactive players. McVay announced in his postgame news conference that Robinson will be out for the rest of the season because he has a foot injury that will require surgery.
“(He had) soreness in his foot, tried to inject it and see if he can push through,” McVay said. “When you end up getting a CT scan it revealed something that it’s going to prevent him from being available for the rest of the year. … He’s going to have to get surgery on that foot. … It’s unfortunate, but we didn’t find that out until Friday after practice when he ended up getting that CT scan.”
Robinson was a limited participant in practice throughout the week because of an ankle injury and McVay expressed optimism about him playing against the Chiefs before he learned the results of the CT scan.
Perkins, a 2020 undrafted free agent, had a few impressive scramble runs, but he struggled as a passer and was unable to take advantage of the defensive stops in the first half. Perkins got the offense going with a 14-play, 75-yard scoring drive that ended with a seven-yard touchdown reception from Van Jefferson to trim the Chiefs’ lead to 20-10 with 14:56 left in the fourth quarter.
Perkins finished 13 of 23 for 100 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions and also contributed 44 rushing yards on nine attempts. The Rams had a season-low 198 total yards with 116 coming on the ground.
“Bryce did enough things in the first half to be able to keep the chains moving with his legs,” McVay said. “But just not quite enough, but I am appreciative and grateful for what the guys did.”
Mahomes finished 27 of 42 for 320 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Chiefs rookie running back Isiah Pacheco recorded 22 carries for a game-high 69 yards and a three-yard rushing touchdown to give Kansas City a 20-3 lead in the third quarter. The Chiefs turned Perkins’ two interceptions into two field goals from kicker Harrison Butker in the fourth quarter.
“Proud of guys’ effort,” said Rams safety Nick Scott, who recorded an interception to end the defense’s four-game drought without a takeaway. “Intentions was there, everything like that. We did a good job executing for the most part. No such things as a moral victory, obviously, you want to come out with a win, but keep guys out of the end zone and I thought our fight was good in those red areas.”
The Rams’ only trailed 13-3 at halftime, but the offense entered the locker room with only 75 total net yards with 72 coming on the ground. Perkins went 2 of 5 for 16 yards in the first half, only 10 more yards than punter Riley Dixon, who had a six-yard completion on a fake punt during the second quarter.
The Chiefs scored their first points after Mahomes connected with star tight end Travis Kelce for a 39-yard catch-and-run touchdown to take a 7-0 advantage with 5:40 remaining in the first quarter. Kelce finished with four receptions for 57 yards.
The Rams’ defense forced the Chiefs to punt on their opening drive, which was followed by McVay taking an accidental hit from Carter’s shoulder. McVay, who was grabbing his jaw, was checked on the sideline by Rams head athletic trainer Reggie Scott.
“Have a little awareness running by me,” McVay said when asked what went through his mind after the hit from Carter. “Oh my gosh. It’s one of those deals, it’s really not that big of a deal. I think it probably looked worse when you end up replaying it. It was a good shot at first. I was just glad I didn’t … I don’t think I broke my jaw, so I’ll be fine.”
Carter, an undrafted rookie, said he hadn’t spoken to McVay when he met with reporters in the locker room. Carter said he didn’t know he hit McVay until someone told him on the sideline.
“I felt bad,” Carter said.
McVay hung tough after taking the shoulder hit, and so did his short-handed team for nearly four quarters against the Chiefs. That’s all you can ask for during a lost season with six games to go.
“It was a loud atmosphere,” Perkins said. “Learn from it, go on to next week.”