Rams 2025 season: What went right and wrong in Super Bowl pursuit
Rams kick returner Xavier Smith muffs a punt as Seattle’s Dareke Young recovers the ball in the third quarter Sunday in the NFC championship game.
(Jane Gershovich / Getty Images)
Mistake-prone special teams: Blocked kicks led to multiple early-season defeats, and the Rams in November signed Harrison Mevis to replace Joshua Karty and veteran snapper Jake McQuaide to replace Alex Ward.
A punt return for a touchdown by Seattle’s Rashid Shaheed on Dec. 18 ultimately led to McVay firing special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn.
Punter Ethan Evans was mostly solid and Mevis performed well. But punt returner Xavier Smith’s attempt to catch a ball while he was falling down in the NFC championship game resulted in a fumble that led to a pivotal touchdown by the Seahawks.
Too much for Tutu: Don’t blame receiver Tutu Atwell.
The Rams selected the diminutive-but-speedy receiver in the second round of the 2021 draft, but McVay, who is regarded as perhaps the best offensive mind in football, never fully maximized Atwell’s skill set. Atwell became a free agent after the 2024 season, and the Rams gave him a $10-million, one-year contract, ostensibly with promises that they had finally figured it out.
Alas, Atwell caught six passes (about $1.7 million per catch), including an 88-yard winning touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. He was not active for the divisional-round playoff game against the Chicago Bears or the NFC championship.
No investment in secondary: The Rams were so confident the pass rush would be dominant, they stood pat and made no changes to the secondary. No draft picks. No free agents.
They made a trade deadline deal for cornerback Roger McCreary but otherwise rode with the same group from 2024.
In the NFC championship, Cobie Durant and Darious Williams started at cornerback.
Nacua’s social media mistake: Nacua, perhaps more than any other Rams player, embraces social media opportunities and has become one of the NFL’s most popular personalities.
But while appearing on a livestream a few days before a critical Week 16 game at Seattle, Nacua made critical comments about officials and, unbeknownst to Nacua, made an anti-semetic gesture. Nacua apologized and the NFL and the Rams issued statements. After scoring two touchdowns and amassing 225 yards receiving in the overtime defeat, Nacua posted another critical comment about officials. He was fined $25,000.
Lost home-field advantage: Entering a Week 13 game at Carolina, the Rams were 9-2, had won six games in a row and held the No. 1 seed for the NFC playoffs, which came with home-field advantage for the playoffs.
The Rams lost to the Panthers, the first of three losses in their final six games. They finished with the No. 5 seed.
That meant the Rams probably would have to win three road games to advance to the Super Bowl. They came back for playoff victories at Carolina and Chicago but could not do it at Seattle.
