Rams lean on four picks to edge Seattle and take first in NFC West

Midnight Mode, indeed.

On the day the Rams donned black uniforms for the only time this season, the offense largely went dark.

Red-hot quarterback Matthew Stafford cooled. Star receivers Davante Adams and Puka Nacua struggled to consistently make the clutch plays that they often make look routine.

But safety Kamren Kinchens and the Rams’ defense managed to keep the Seattle Seahawks at bay — just barely.

Kinchens intercepted two passes, and cornerbacks Cobie Durant and Darious Williams also picked off passes as the Rams held off the Seahawks for a 21-19 victory on Sunday at SoFi Stadium that was not secured until Seattle’s Jason Myers missed a 61-yard field goal as time expired.

“I’m proud of our football team,” coach Sean McVay said. “We’re not going to apologize for finding different ways to win.”

No apologies necessary. Despite some struggles Sunday, the Rams are living up to expectations as a Super Bowl contender.

Stafford continues to play without major errors, the defensive front continues to pressure quarterbacks into mistakes, and kicking-game issues appear to be solved.

And now the secondary, regarded as a potential liability before the season, is stepping up.

Stafford tossed touchdown passes to Adams and tight end Colby Parkinson, and Kyren Williams rushed for a touchdown as the Rams improved to 8-2, extended their winning streak to five games and assumed sole possession of first place in the NFC West.

“We found a way to win without playing perfect football against a really good football team,” Stafford said. “So I’ll take it.”

So will Adams, whose lone catch marked the 1,000 of his career and his league-leading 10th touchdown reception this season.

“It wasn’t like it was the worst of all time,” he said of the offense’s performance, “but to our standard it definitely was not there.

“But, I mean, it makes you feel even better knowing you can play like crap ... and still come out with a victory against a really good team.”

The Rams can thank Kinchens, a second-year safety who has six career interceptions, including four against the Seahawks. His interceptions set up Williams’ one-yard touchdown in the first quarter and Parkinson’s six-yard score in the fourth.

“Man, they want to throw the ball,” a chuckling Kinchens said in explaining his success against the Seahawks. “People that want to kind of put it down the field or give us a shot — big mistake.”

Or, as Durant put it: “Preaching what we do every day, man — take the ball away.”

The Rams went into the game having scored at least 34 points in each of their last three games. But that production was absent against a Seahawks team that fell to 7-3 and had its four-game winning streak end.

Stafford increased his league-leading total of touchdown passes to 27 and did not have a pass intercepted for the seventh consecutive game. But the 17th-year pro was not as sharp as he had been during a stretch that put him in the conversation for NFL most valuable player.

“I’m obviously excited that we got the win,” said Stafford, who completed 15 of 28 passes for 130 yards. “Don’t get it twisted on me here, but at the same time I know I can be better too.”

Stafford enjoyed a banner day compared to Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold.

The Rams’ front did not sack Darnold but it pressured him into poor decisions, and Kinchens, Durant and Williams made him pay. Darnold completed 29 of 44 passes for 279 yards with four interceptions.

Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who was on pace to set an NFL record for yards receiving in a season, caught nine passes for 105 yards. But he did not score.

Cooper Kupp, the former Rams star making his return to SoFi Stadium, did not have a catch in the first three quarters but had three during a late scoring drive that trimmed the Rams’ lead to two points.

With 1 minute 41 seconds left, Rams punter Ethan Evans kicked the ball 50 yards to the Seahawks’ one-yard line. The Seahawks drove past midfield, but Myers could not match his career-best 61-yard field goal against the Rams in 2020.

This time it went wide right, generating a roar from the crowd, a sigh of relief from the Rams and a joyous locker room celebration.

“It’s a lot of fun in there,” McVay said.

With more, seemingly, to come.

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