The Los Angeles Rams improved to 6-2 after their 34-10 Week 9 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. While that was totally expected from the Rams, what we didn’t expect was the quarterback, Matthew Stafford, to show some tough love to his rookie tight end.

We’re talking about the second round, 46th overall pick of the most recent draft, Terrance Ferguson. During a critical 3rd and short play near the 40-yard line, Stafford could be heard urgently yelling at Ferguson to align on the line. “Somebody, get the f— on,” the Rams quarterback said.

From Stafford’s perspective, that moment summed up exactly what veteran leadership looks like. He recognized the miscommunication, fixed it on the fly, and kept the drive alive, the kind of composure you only get from a quarterback who’s seen everything. The head coach, Sean McVay, even explicitly praised Stafford’s command, decision-making, and the trust his QB gives the offense.

“It’s just great command, great understanding of what (Stafford’s) seeing, great ability to be able to distribute the ball based on what the coverage dictates,” the HC said. “I think he’s pushing the ball, I think he’s understanding situationally what’s the right way to be able to play it, I just have total confidence where you can call the game through him.”

As for Ferguson, the rookie tight end had a notable performance against the Saints. The 22-year-old hauled in a couple of receptions for 54 yards, including an 18-yard third-down conversion with less than a 1 minute remaining in the first quarter. That said, the Saints will now face the Carolina Panthers on the road. However, the head coach seems to have one glaring issue ahead of the Week 10 matchup.

Sean McVay addressed the special teams’ issues

The Rams might be sitting at 6–2 through Week 9, but their kicking game has been anything but steady. Blocked kicks, missed field goals, you name it, it’s happened, and usually at the worst possible moments. Even in their Week 9 win over the Saints, the problem showed up again. Sean McVay didn’t sugarcoat it afterward either, admitting the unit’s got issues and promising they’ll figure it out moving forward.

“I know you guys are going to ask me — it’s got to get better. We’re going to be able to figure out how to fix this, but it can’t continue like this with regards to our kicking operation,” McVay said. “Not going to get into blaming anybody specifically. Ultimately, it’s my responsibility. It’s gone on for too long, and we’ve got to be able to fix it.”

The HC’s comments came after the Rams’ kicker Joshua Karty badly missed a 39-yard field goal and an extra point during the Saints’ game on Sunday. But through nine weeks so far, Karty is clearly not the only issue. The protection in front hasn’t done him many favors either, allowing multiple blocks this season.

On top of that, the timing between the long snapper and holder has been all over the place, just enough to throw off rhythm and mess with consistency. Now that we’re halfway through the season, the Rams look every bit like a playoff contender. The only question is whether McVay can finally clean up the special-teams mess or if the kicking woes are going to end up tripping them right when it matters most.