MCVAY CHIDES GOFF AFTER LOSS
49ers 23, Rams 20
That was the week that was for Rams quarterback Jared Goff.
Last Monday night, he engineered a game-winning field goal drive to defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tom Brady, perhaps the greatest NFL quarterback of all time.
On Sunday, Goff was solely to blame for three of the Rams’ four turnovers in the Rams’ 23-20 defeat by the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium.
Coach Sean McVay typically spreads accountability for poor execution on himself and the offense as a collective unit.
But there was no talking around Goff ’s errors Sunday.
“Our quarterback’s got to take better care of the football,” McVay said after the 49ers’ Robbie Gould kicked a 42-yard field goal as time expired to drop the Rams to 7-4.
Goff did not disagree. Not after he fumbled and had two passes intercepted, including one that was returned for a touchdown.
“He’s absolutely right,” said Goff, who signed a $134million extension before last season, adding, “Take care of the ball better. ... And just make better decisions.”
Goff ’s mistakes helped the 49ers and coach Kyle Shanahan — a McVay mentor — defeat the Rams for
the fourth time in row. The defending NFC West champions also beat the Rams last season with a last-second field goal by Gould.
The offense’s inability to maintain its high-f lying ways of the last two games ruined another strong effort by a defense that went into the game as the NFL’s topranked unit.
Rookie safety Jordan Fuller followed up his two-interception performance against the Buccaneers with another interception against the 49ers. Defensive lineman Aaron Donald — held to no tackles in the last two games — def lected the pass that Fuller intercepted, had one of the Rams’ two sacks and stripped the ball from running back Raheem Mostert for a fumble that cornerback Troy Hill returned for a touchdown.
But Goff ’s mistakes — and running back Malcolm Brown’s fumble — ultimately left too much of a burden on a defense that failed to stop 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens from leading a game-winning drive.
“We just as an offense have to consistently be there and we weren’t,” on Sunday, receiver Cooper Kupp said. “We’ve got to find ways to make that a week in, week out, day in, day out kind of
thing.”
Goff had been riding high with confidence after passing for three touchdowns against the Buccaneers. On Sunday, he completed 19 of 31 for 198 yards.
Goff has passed for 16 touchdowns, with 10 interceptions. He has fumbled five times in the last four games.
Asked what Goff could do to overcome his mistakes, McVay said each play was an individual situation.
“But it might be keeping two hands on the ball,” McVay said, “or it might be understanding that if somebody is swarming around you that you can’t just throw it away when you don’t see where you’re going — being able to trust your guys to be
able to separate.”
Goff also said there were multiple areas to address.
“It just needs to be a little bit smarter with the ball and better decision making,” he said. “That’s part of my job. I
may be good at other parts of the job right now but that’s the main part and that’s something I need to be a lot better at.”