DB Ramsey energized Rams in zesty debut
Jalen Ramsey’s impact on the Los Angeles Rams was immediate and obvious.
So was the impact of get- ting out on the road, where the Rams always play their best football under coach Sean McVay.
The Rams (4-3) emphatically ended their threegame skid with a 37-10 win at Atlanta on Sunday in the debut of Ramsey, the elite cornerback acquired last week to energize their season. Ramsey had four tackles and forced a fumble while going up against star receiver Julio Jones, but he affected almost ev- ery passing down with his presence, according to his teammates.
“It was great, (because) it felt like we were able to do a lot of different things,” said Aaron Donald, who accidentally injured his sec- ond quarterback this season while forcing a fumble. “With him in man coverage, we got opportunities to get after the quarterback. The quarterback was holding the ball long, and guys took him down. When you’ve got guys on your defense locking (receivers) down and giving you opportunities to get after the quarterback, it’s going to be a fun day.”
McVay said Ramsey’s presence allowed the Rams to be freer with blitzes, and they sacked Matt Ryan five times as they improved to 17-4 away from Los Angeles in the regular season since McVay took over in 2017. That’s easily the best road record in the NFL during that span.
The Rams will face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday in London.
BRADY SHARP, PATS OVERWHELM JETS >> Tom Brady set the tone with a long slice-and-dice touchdown drive, New England’s blitzhappy defense forced Sam Darnold into five turnovers and the Patriots remained undefeated by cruising to a 33-0 victory over the New York Jets on Monday night.
Brady threw a TD pass to Phillip Dorsett and Sony Michel ran for three scores to help the Patriots improve to 7-0 for the third time in franchise history, and first since 2015.
They also swept the twogame season series against their AFC East rivals for the fourth straight year, outscoring the Jets (1-5) 63-14 in the two meetings.
The top-ranked Patriots defense was a big reason in this one.
Darnold was the AFC offensive player of the week after leading New York to a 24-22 win over Dallas last Sunday in his return from missing three games with mononucleosis.
He was miserable against New England, finishing 11 of 32 for 86 yards. FALCONS QB RYAN’S STREAK ON LINE >> Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan’s decade-long streak of consecutive starts is on the line because of a sprained right ankle.
Coach Dan Quinn said Ryan ran in a pool on Monday to test the ankle and has not been ruled out for Sunday’s game against Seattle.
The 34-year-old Ryan has not missed a start since 2009. His streak covers 154 regular-season games.
Asked if the injury is a high ankle sprain, Quinn said: “We’ll stay with sprain . ... Hopefully it’s not a long-term thing.” EAGLES LOSE THEIR WAY >> The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t show up for their biggest game of the season after their coach had promised a victory.
An embarrassing 37-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in front of a prime-time audience left players searching for answers, questioning their commitment and looking for accountability.
Doug Pederson, who led the team to its first Super Bowl title in his second season, pointed the finger at himself.
“It starts with me, and I hold myself accountable,” Pederson said. “I have to do a better job, quite frankly, and I have to communicate that better to the team and make sure that we’re doing the right things every single day, not just some of the time.”
MIAMI’S MCCAIN FACES DISCIPLINE >> Dolphins safety Bobby McCain will be disciplined by the team for a verbal confrontation with a 13-year-old boy and for allegedly spitting in the face of another Bills fan following Miami’s loss at Buffalo.
Coach Brian Flores said he discussed the incident with McCain a day after the Dolphins’ 31-21 loss. Flores wouldn’t say whether McCain will miss playing time as part of the discipline.