The Rams’ defense has not been the reason the team is 3-4 through seven games. They rank fifth in yards allowed and have mostly kept the Rams in games when the offense sputtered.
That doesn’t mean it’s close to being the best defense in the league, but it hasn’t been the cause of the Rams’ issues.
Bobby Wagner still sees room for improvement, particularly in one area: creating turnovers. When asked what changes the Rams might need to make on defense, Wagner told reporters they just need to force more turnovers.
“From a defensive standpoint, we just need to create turnovers,” he said. “I think that’s the biggest thing. We’ve had our opportunities to have them, and we haven’t capitalized on it. Again, that’s something that’s in our control. And so we make some of those plays, I think the game changes a little bit. I think that’s a start for us.”
Through seven games, the Rams have only forced eight turnovers: five interceptions and three recovered fumbles. They’ve forced six fumbles but recovered only three of them.
Some of that comes down to luck, like on Sunday when Jalen Ramsey leveled Christian McCaffrey and knocked the ball out, but it landed perfectly in the arms of Ray-Ray McCloud for the 49ers.
“It happens that way sometimes,” Wagner said of the bad bounces for Los Angeles. “For him to just be sitting there on the ground and the ball bounces to his hands, it happens that way. You can’t really sweat it. Just got to move on and you have to have a short memory and that’s kind of what it is.”
Last season, the Rams ranked 10th in turnovers forced with 25, so they’ve regressed in that area this year.
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