Rams move into NFC's No. 7 seed with 28-20 victory over Commanders

The Commanders made things interesting in the fourth quarter by switching quarterbacks to Jacoby Brissett. But in the end, the Rams came away with a 28-20 victory to move to 7-7 on the season.

When the Rams scored early in the fourth quarter on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to Demarcus Robinson, it looked like Los Angeles had wrapped up the contest. That would’ve been a significant positive, particularly as the club is playing New Orleans on Thursday night.

But then the Commanders benched Sam Howell for Jacoby Brissett and Washington came to life. Brissett put together a quick five-play, 67-yard drive, ending with a 29-yard touchdown to Terry McLaurin.

Then after a Rams punt, the Commanders got the ball back and another long pass to McLaurin put Washington at the 1-yard line with 4:47 on the clock.

But somehow, it took the Commanders another nine snaps — including a couple of penalties — to finally get into the end zone with a 3-yard pass from Brissett to Curtis Samuel. By that time, there was just 1:46 left.

Washington didn’t elect to go for two, but Joey Slye’s extra-point attempt was blocked to keep the score at 28-20. Slye’s ensuing onside kick attempt was batted out of bounds by Cooper Kupp and the Rams held possession for the rest of the game to win.

Kupp also had the game’s longest touchdown, as he was wide, wide open to catch a 62-yard touchdown from Matthew Stafford early in the third quarter. Kupp finished with eight catches on eight targets for 111 yards.

Running back Kyren Williams put together another dominant game, rushing for 152 with a touchdown — though he did lose two fumbles in the first half.

Stafford was 25-of-33 for 258 yards with two TDs.

Howell was 11-of-26 for 102 yards with a touchdown and an interception before he was replaced. Brissett finished 8-of-10 for 124 yards with two TDs. McLaurin caught six passes for 141 yards with a score.

Now at 7-7, the Rams have moved into the NFC’s No. 7 seed. They’ll take on No. 8 New Orleans on Thursday night for a game that has obvious postseason implications.

The 4-10 Commanders have been eliminated from postseason contention and major changes continue to look like they’re coming for the franchise. Next week, the team will be on the road to play the Jets.