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Heavy movement and Stafford’s continued dominance
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Heavy movement and Stafford’s continued dominance

The Rams’ overtime loss to the Lions on Sunday Night Football was one of the more entertaining games of Week 1, and there were some nice statistical trends. Matthew Stafford continued his dominant passing streak from last season, and Cooper Kupp was his primary target.

Los Angeles had to deal with a series of injuries, including wide receiver Puka Nacua and offensive linemen Joe Noteboom and Steve Avila, but they overcame those hurdles in a dogfight with an all-star Lions team to start the year.

Here are five interesting stats from the Rams’ season opener in Detroit:

69% of the Rams’ pass plays consisted of pre-snap motion

Pre-snap motion is incredibly useful in the passing game, as it can help quarterbacks and pass catchers recognize coverages before the play. The Rams used it on the majority of their passing snaps, and ranked fifth in the league in that stat. Kupp was one of the primary motion men, but a variety of players were moved around the formation, including some plays that involved multiple people.

The Rams had the second highest pre-snap motion rate on all plays last season. It’s a staple of the offense and will certainly be used heavily throughout the season.

Stafford has passed for over 300 yards in his last four games since last season

Stafford has been one of the best passers in football over his last four games. He finished with 317 yards on 49 attempts last night, continuing his streak of games with at least 300 passing yards and a touchdown. He battled through a minor ankle issue and heavy pressure throughout the game to keep the Rams offense moving down the field.

On Sunday night, Jared Verse led all pass rushers in distance to the quarterback on the throw or sack point (3.99 yards), according to Next Gen Stats

Rookie edge rusher Jared Verse had an eventful professional debut. He became the fourth rookie in Rams history to record a sack in his first professional game, and he also had two QB hits while leading all pass rushers in average distance to the quarterback. That makes him the closest pass rusher to the quarterback at one point.

Verse’s 33% pass rush win rate was tied for the sixth-best through Week 1 thus far, and his six QB pressures also tied for sixth. It was an extremely promising debut for the rookie against one of the NFL’s best tackling duos in Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell.

The Rams dominated time of possession, even without overtime

Despite their heavy passing volume (74%) and not getting the ball in overtime, the Rams still possessed the ball for 5:11 more than the Lions. They also outgained the Lions by 24 yards, as they sustained longer drives with more first downs (26-21). The Rams ran 74 plays to the Lions’ 61.

In regulation time, the Rams won the battle for time of possession with 9:55, but the Lions’ quick shots down the field proved to work in their favor late in the game.