Rams Trail Raiders at Halftime, But QB Baker Mayfield Solid in LA Debut

The Los Angeles Rams found a spark on offense in the debut of quarterback Baker Mayfield, but a hungry Las Vegas Raiders offense was the difference in the first half on Thursday night at SoFi Stadium.

It’s turned into a lost season for the 3-9 Los Angeles Rams, but a Thursday night matchup with the close-to-town Las Vegas Raiders (5-7) at SoFi Stadium had no shortage of reasons to tune in.

The Rams claimed former No. 1 overall pick, Baker Mayfield, off waivers from the Carolina Panthers on Tuesday. LA quarterback John Wolford got the start vs. Vegas, but Mayfield got his chance to shine, as he went 3 of 6 passing for 65 yards through the first 30 minutes.

Still, it was a fumble midway through the second quarter from Rams running back Cam Akers that made the difference in a 13-3 deficit at halftime.

The Rams got punched in the mouth in the first half by the NFL’s rushing leader, as Raiders running back Josh Jacobs totaled seven carries for 21 yards and a game-opening touchdown on the game’s first drive. He finished the half with a whopping 19 touches for 66 yards.

But it was an insane one-handed, 32-yard catch from Raiders star receiver Davante Adams that got momentum swinging early. Despite being hounded by Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey, Adams managed to come away with a highlight grab off a deep bomb from quarterback Derek Carr in what was easily the play of the half.

The Rams went three-and-out on their first drive and had seemingly nothing going. But after falling down 10-0, enter Mayfield.

On his first snap as a Ram, Mayfield completed a 21-yard pass to receiver Van Jefferson and looked comfortable while doing so. This was all LA needed to get into field-goal range for kicker Matt Gay, who hit a deep 55-yarder to get the Rams on the board at the end of the first.

And just like that, it was his offense.

The Raiders added another field goal on their next drive to make it a 13-3 game, but Mayfield put together a productive response. He completed a 22-yard pass to receiver Tutu Atwell and another 22-yarder to Ben Skowronek a few plays later. Mayfield now had three completions of at least 20 yards through one half in his Rams debut.

Unfortunately for LA, Akers killed any chance at momentum by losing a fumble inside the red zone one play later.

Adams continued his impactful play-making with a 35-yard catch on third down right after the two-minute warning. But the Rams' defense finally came up with a response, as LA linebacker Ernest Jones came away with an acrobatic interception in the end zone after Carr lobbed a questionable pass into traffic.

This kept the Rams in the game headed into the locker room. Even down 10, there were plenty of positive takeaways for LA coach Sean McVay.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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