A win can obscure a lot of shortcomings, but even after Sunday’s 24-20 road win against the Philadelphia Eagles, Rams head coach Sean McVay did little sugarcoating when it came to his special teams unit.
“We need better,” McVay said. “It’s not good enough and we need to be able to produce better and that’s kind of where we’re at with that.”
On a sloppy day in general, the special teams were still a sore spot for the Rams (2-2), despite an offseason spent trying to fix some of the issues from a year ago with new coordinator Bubba Ventrone and veteran free agents with a special teams emphasis.
Kicker Harrison Mevis missed his second field goal of the season from inside 50 yards. A penalty erased a positive punt return. And a 41-yard punt return by former Ram Britain Covey set the Eagles up with one of their two touchdowns on the day.
“Would have loved for us to have made that field goal kick, and then the long punt return is not good,” McVay said. “We have to do a better job of casting a net, being able to tackle.”
One of the few positives came from returner Alex Bachman. Signed to the active roster from the practice squad after the Rams’ late-week decision to release Xavier Smith last Friday, Bachman wasn’t remarkable, averaging 22.3 yards on kickoff returns and 7.5 on punt returns.
But McVay felt that Bachman did a good job with what he could control, adding that he wanted to see better blocking around him.
“The first part is let’s make good decisions on fielding it clean and ball security, and that was good,” McVay said. “I thought there was one that he ends up having a good one and we get flagged and it comes back. So that’s a bummer. … I think there can be some better perimeter play to give him some freedom to get some things going.”
INJURY REPORT
After missing Sunday’s win in Philadelphia, the Rams are expecting defensive tackle Aaron Donald (back soreness) to return to practice this week with the expectation of him playing on Monday night against the Buffalo Bills (3-1).
“That’s the hope,” McVay said. “That’s the direction that it looks like it’s trending in.”
Donald, who came out of a two-year retirement to rejoin the Rams this fall, felt some soreness in his back after the Week 3 loss to Denver. He did not end up practicing last week, so any return to the field would be an improvement.
The Rams are hopeful that cornerback Jaylen Watson (dislocated shoulder) can return this week from a one-game absence.
“If he feels good throughout the week in practice, the expectation is he’ll be ready to roll against the Bills,” McVay said.
The game against the Bills will mark the fourth with defensive end and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett (knee) on injured reserve, meaning Garrett will be eligible to return against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 6. McVay said he will speak with VP of sports medicine and performance Reggie Scott this week to get a feel for Garrett’s return timeline.
Wide receiver Konata Mumpfield (rotator cuff contusion) and cornerback Emmanuel Forbes (knee contusion) both were examined by the training staff against the Eagles, but McVay said he wasn’t worried about either missing time due to their injuries.
As for receiver Puka Nacua, McVay said all reports were positive after the All-Pro returned from his two-game absence with a groin injury.
“I think he came out feeling really good,” McVay said. “To my knowledge, he came out of that thing feeling healthy and it was really important to have him back.”
PRESS BOX INCIDENT
McVay said he had addressed with his coaching staff a video that showed Rams coaches in the press box making crude hand gestures toward Eagles fans at the end of Sunday’s game.
The press box at Lincoln Financial Field is not elevated like at other stadiums and instead leads directly into the fan sections, which can lead to some interactions between spectators and coaches through the glass windows.
“I’ve been a part of that situation where I was in Washington calling it from the booth and you get excited and emotional,” McVay said. “We did talk about it, that won’t be an issue going forward.”
Read more Stephen Glass, Orange Unified School District Area 7 candidate, 2026 election questionnaire