It didn’t take long for the Rams to lose that “super team” sheen.
One poorly planned trip across the globe and an uncompetitive loss to the 49ers did most of the work. Splitting their next four games, including Monday’s overtime loss to the Bills, finished the job. And now this team that was expected to dominate the 2026 season faces an uphill climb just to get back in the NFC West race.
To be fair, the super team theory hasn’t really been put to the test. Myles Garrett, the offseason addition that got the narrative rolling, has played one injury-compromised game and hasn’t played a snap with Aaron Donald, whose return solidified Los Angeles as the team to beat.
Unsurprisingly, the Rams defense hasn’t taken the step forward we all expected after the team’s eventful offseason, but that’s not the team’s biggest issue right now. Even the special teams unit, which cost Los Angeles the Buffalo game, isn’t the biggest concern. That would be the offensive regression – specifically, the regression of Matthew Stafford.
Stafford’s numbers have dropped across the board. A year after throwing 45 touchdowns and just eight interceptions, the reigning MVP is on pace to throw 30 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. The Rams passing game, which finished second in expected points added in 2025, is down to 13th this season.
After a loss on Monday night to the Bills, Matthew Stafford is not near the top of the MVP race, which is led by Josh Allen and Brock Purdy. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Overall, the offense has fallen from the league’s most efficient unit down to ninth. That’s not a calamitous fall, but the Rams being a super team depended on the offense staying at the top of the statistical charts. Through five games, it’s been merely “good,” which isn’t good enough for a team that wants to win a Super Bowl. If Los Angeles wants to do it, it needs Stafford back in MVP form.
Whether that’s even possible is fair to question for reasons that can be answered with a quick Google search of “Matthew Stafford age.” Outside of Tom Brady, 38-year-olds don’t typically get better. That’s around the age when we start to see a physical decline, and the underlying numbers suggest Stafford is starting to cede ground to Father Time.
Stafford’s play under pressure is particularly concerning. Per Pro Football Focus, he’s averaging just 4.5 yards per attempt under pressure, about 2 yards lower than his 2025 average (6.3). He’s also thrown three picks, which ties him for the league lead. The film tells a similar story: Stafford doesn’t look as confident in the pocket when pass rushers bear down on him.
It’s easy for me to tell Stafford to stand in there and eat those hits while I type this up in pajama pants. Those hits hurt like hell, especially when you’re pushing 40. But his waning tolerance for those hits is the biggest factor in his declining production. In 2025, Stafford threw eight touchdowns to zero interceptions in a “closing” pocket, per PFF. This season, he’s already thrown four interceptions and hasn’t thrown a touchdown yet. His yards-per-attempt average is down a full yard.
In a way, Stafford’s season resembles Peyton Manning’s final year in 2015, when the Hall-of-Fame quarterback started throwing with more anticipation to beat pressure before it gets home. That led to more interceptions.
Throwing with anticipation is generally good, but it’s not always the case. It requires guesswork, and you can’t perfectly predict how the other 21 people on the field will move. On this play from the Week 3 loss in Denver, Stafford thought Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga would stick with his assignment and run with tight end Tyler Higbee.
Instead, he fell off his man and undercut Stafford’s throw for a pick-6.
Here, Stafford thought 49ers cornerback Renardo Green would stay in the flat, as he was assigned.
Instead, he drifted underneath Puka Nacua’s corner route and made the easy interception.
Interceptions aren’t the only issue. Stafford’s early throws have made things harder for his receivers, who have to adjust to the ball quicker than expected.
This has been the main issue for the passing game, but it’s too early to say that it can’t be fixed. Stafford is basically a part-time participant in training camp at this point in his career, and he doesn’t play at all in the preseason. It’s understandable – if not expected – that it’s taking him a little longer to re-acclimate to the speed of an NFL game and get comfortable throwing under pressure. This could also be a self-preservation thing. Super Bowls aren’t won in September or October. Before the Rams can lift the Lombardi in February, Stafford will first have to stay healthy throughout the season.
Like the defense, it’s hard to measure the offense’s ceiling without seeing it at full strength. Nacua and tight end Terrance Ferguson, who was projected for a breakout season, have missed two games apiece and have shared the field for just 25 snaps. We still haven’t seen Sean McVay’s fully realized vision for this offense beyond a handful of snaps.
I don’t need to elaborate on why Nacua’s missed time has been detrimental, but Ferguson’s absences shouldn’t be discounted either. He’s the skeleton key that unlocks L.A.’s three tight-end packages everyone was raving about in the offseason. The second-year pro can line up as a traditional tight end to block or out wide to stretch the field, which is extremely rare for his position.
McVay has expanded his usage to include a Travis Kelce-like role, lining up in the slot and running option routes against safeties and linebackers, who stand no chance against an athletic route-runner with a two-way go.
I have my concerns about Stafford, but I’m not hitting the panic button on the Rams just yet. Stafford has plenty of time to play himself off “washed watch,” and the receiving corps should return to full strength in the coming weeks, unlocking the full potential of McVay’s offense.
There are still three months until the postseason. That’s plenty of time for Los Angeles to reclaim the “super team” title and its spot atop the list of title favorites. But if Stafford is still shying away from hits and making mistakes under pressure come wintertime, this team can forget about the Super Bowl. Just getting to the playoffs will be a challenge.