Week 5 was not kind to the Los Angeles Rams as they were defeated by the Dallas Cowboys, 22-10. It dropped their record to 2-3 on the season as they are struggling to find any traction on offense, defense or special teams.
Luckily for the Rams, Week 6 presents them with an opportunity to do that. They will be facing off against the 1-4 Carolina Panthers, who earlier this week, fired head coach Matt Rhule. Rhule only made it five games into his third season as head coach as the team was no longer responding to him.
It is not uncommon, however, after a head coach is fired the team will respond with a spirited effort in the next game, especially if the firing was warranted. The Rams will have to be ready to match that level of intensity, but they could be short-handed in the game.
The injury report is a lengthy one heading into Week 6 for Los Angeles. The most concerning updates are to their two best players, wide receiver Cooper Kupp and defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
According to ProFootballTalk, both players missed practice on Wednesday with injuries. Kupp and Donald are both dealing with foot ailments. Hopefully, they were just maintenance days and nothing more as overcoming their losses would be extremely difficult.
Kupp won the receiver triple crown last season and this season is being targeted even more frequently as he is on pace to shatter the single-season record for receptions he fell just short of last year. Donald remains arguably the best defensive player in the NFL and is wreaking havoc on opponents’ game plans despite the rest of the defense looking to find their footing.
Along with Kupp and Donald, tight end Tyler Higbee, center Brian Allen and wide receiver Brandon Powell all missed practice as well. Taylor Rapp, Cobie Durant and Davi Lon were all limited.
Surprisingly not on the injury report this week is quarterback Matthew Stafford. He has been dealing with an elbow issue for months and has gotten hit repeatedly this season behind an underwhelming offensive line. But, he said he is feeling pretty good and should be out there this weekend against the Panthers.
