Karty

A week ago, Harrison Mevis was working out on his own, kicking and preparing for the day an NFL team came calling.

On Sunday, Mevis will be the Rams’ kicker when they play the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, coach Sean McVay said Friday.

Mevis and long snapper Jake McQuaide were signed to the practice squad this week because of kicking-game issues that led to early-season losses against the Philadelphia Eagles and the 49ers and resurfaced in last Sunday’s victory over the New Orleans Saints.

Mevis and second-year pro Joshua Karty competed during practices on Wednesday and Thursday.

“Ultimately, in its simplest form, who do I think gives us the best chance to have successful outcomes, particularly in that operation with the given factors on Sunday,” McVay said.

Mevis, 23, made 89 of 106 field-goal attempts at Missouri, including one from 61 yards. In the United Football League this past season, he made 20 of 21 field-goal attempts.

Mevis said he had been preparing for a call every week since the New York Jets cut him from their practice squad in September. He said he performed well this week.

“I feel like I put myself out there, I showed what I can do and proved that I can play at this level,” he said after Friday’s practice. “And I’m ready to go.”

Not only for this week.

“The work’s just starting,” he said. “This is not the end goal. I didn’t come here just to be the starter for one week. So I’m just here to help the team win.”

McVay said he still has “a lot of confidence” in Karty, a 2024 sixth-round draft pick in Karty, who has made 10 of 15 field-goal attempts and 23 of 26 extra-point attempts.

“He’s not going anywhere,” McVay said, noting that the situation would be evaluated again after Sunday’s game.

McQuaide, a 15th-year pro who played for the Rams from 2011 to 2020, replaces Alex Ward. He will work with punter/holder Ethan Evans and Mevis in what the Rams hope will be an improved operation.

“It’s definitely been a little chaotic,” Evans said of the changes this week. “But I feel very confident we’ll be able to go out there and execute our jobs.”

It was about 12 hours after his team blew numerous opportunities in an overtime loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and Rams coach Sean McVay was still kicking himself.

And lamenting his team’s troubled kicking game.

“That has been a killer for us,” McVay said Friday during a videoconference with reporters, “and it’s cost us two games.”

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Gary Klein breaks down what went wrong for the Rams in their 26-23 overtime loss to the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium on Thursday.

The Rams are 3-2, with defeats by the defending Super Bowl-champion Philadelphia Eagles and the 49ers due in part to woeful execution on field-goal and extra-point attempts.

The Eagles beat the Rams by blocking two field-goal attempts in the fourth quarter, including a potential winning kick that they returned for a touchdown on the final play.

On Thursday night, Rams kicker Joshua Karty missed a long field-goal attempt, and the 49ers blocked an extra-point try. That’s four points lost in a 26-23 defeat. Karty, who has been masterful at dropping hard-to-handle knuckleball kickoffs into the landing zone, also misplaced a kick that gave the 49ers the ball at the 40-yard line.

Karty, however, does not appear to be McVay’s most pressing kick-related concern.

The kicking unit as a whole has played a major role in both defeats, which also featured poor execution by the Rams at times in other areas.

“I can’t remember feeling much more disgusted waking up after a tough loss, than I have after the two that we’ve had,” McVay said.

So how do the Rams fix their kicking problems?

“Oh man,” McVay said. “I wish it was just one thing but when you watch the protection — we’ve got to fix it. And it’s not one thing in particular.

“There’s different locations and spots and people that have not executed the way that we’re capable of.”

After the Rams defeated the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, McVay thought the Rams had addressed their issues.

“Clearly, I was not right on that,” McVay said, “so we’ve got to fix it. We’ve got to go back to work.”

The Rams are off for the weekend, and they will return on Monday to begin preparations for a game against the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore. After that game, the Rams will remain in Baltimore to prepare for their next game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.

“We’re a couple execution plays away from being a 5-0 team,” McVay said. “But the reality is we’re 3-2.”

McVay sounded confident that the Rams would rebound from the loss to the 49ers.

“This is going to galvanize us,” he said. “I promise you that.”

Etc.

McVay continued to lament his final play call against the 49ers, which did not give quarterback Matthew Stafford a chance to make a play. Stafford had moved the Rams into position to win the game, but on fourth and one at the 49ers’ 11-yard line, McVay called a running play. The 49ers stopped Kyren Williams for no gain, ending the game. “I know it wasn’t the best decision to take the ball out his hands in crunch time on that fourth down,” McVay said. … Rookie tight end Terrance Ferguson, a second-round draft pick, caught his first pass for a 21-yard gain. “We’ve got to be able to figure out a way to get him going,” McVay said, adding, “he’s going to be a really good player for us.” … McVay indicated the Rams might make moves to improve the cornerback group. “We’re going to look into those things,” he said.

The script is familiar.

Fourth quarter or overtime. Rams trail or are tied. On comes Matthew Stafford.

The veteran quarterback is the master of comebacks.

And he appeared to be on the verge of doing it again on Thursday night against the rival San Francisco 49ers.

But the 49ers stopped running back Kyren Williams on a fourth-and-one play at the 49ers’ 11-yard line, sending the Rams to a 26-23 overtime defeat before 73,652 at SoFi Stadium.

After the game, Rams coach Sean McVay blamed himself for the failed fourth-down run, saying “it was a bad call by me.”

Stafford tossed two touchdown passes to Williams and another to Puka Nacua, but on a night when the Rams’ kicking woes continued, it was not enough to beat an injury-riddled opponent as the Rams fell to 3-2 and wasted an opportunity to take over first place in the NFC West.

Rams kicker Joshua Karty, who last year beat the 49ers with a winning field goal at SoFi Stadium, missed a long field-goal attempt and had an extra-point attempt blocked, the second time that has happened this season. His kickoff in overtime did not reach the landing zone, giving the 49ers the ball at the 40-yard line.

The 49ers improved to 4-1, with victories over the Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals in the NFC West.

McVay this week good-naturedly blamed his late grandfather John McVay for creating so many 49ers fans by helping assemble 49ers teams that won five Super Bowls.

And McVay and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, his former mentor, have squared off for some classic matchups, including the NFC championship game at SoFi Stadium in January 2022.

But these were not the same 49ers — at least on paper.

San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Alfred Collins (95) celebrates with teammates after forcing Rams running back Kyren Williams to fumble at the goal line late in the fourth quarter Thursday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

With quarterback Brock Purdy receiving a massive extension before the season, the 49ers let go of numerous high-profile stars that helped them make two Super Bowl appearances in the last six years.

Even quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is with the Rams.

Journeyman Mac Jones started in place of Purdy, who is nursing a toe injury. Tight end George Kittle, receivers Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings and star defensive end Nick Bosa also did not play.

But the 49ers still prevailed.

Mac Jones completed 33 of 49 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns.

Rams linebacker Jared Verse celebrates after making a tackle in the third quarter against the 49ers on Thursday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Christian McCaffrey caught eight passes for 82 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 57 yards in 22 carries.

The score was tied 23-23 at the end of regulation after the Rams blew a chance to win when Williams fumbled at the 49ers’ one-yard line — but then tied the score on Karty’s 48-yard field goal with two seconds left.

Piniero’s 41-yard field goal gave the 49ers the lead.

The Rams then drove from their 33 to the 49ers’ 11, where their hopes for a victory ended.