The Rams have taken their first lead of the night late in the third quarter of Thursday’s matchup with the Vikings.
After Minnesota went up 17-14 with a 23-yard field goal by Will Reichard, Los Angeles quarterback Matthew Stafford hit Demarcus Robinson with a 25-yard touchdown to make the score 21-17.
Stafford was intercepted on the Rams’ first possession of the third quarter, ending what looked to be a promising drive in opponent territory. Stafford was looking for receiver Demarcus Robinson down the left side. But the pass was too long and was intercepted by cornerback Byron Murphy, who got both feet in along the sideline.
On the ensuing drive, Justin Jefferson put the Vikings in scoring position with an outstanding catch on the left sideline for a 27-yard gain — reeling in the pass on his shoulder and clearly getting multiple feet down after initially juggling the ball.
But with an incomplete pass from Darnold to Jefferson on third-and-goal at the 5, Minnesota settled for a 23-yard field goal to take a 17-14 lead with 6:22 left in the third.
The Rams didn’t face a third down on their next possession en route to scoring their touchdown. Stafford hit Tutu Atwell for an 18-yard gain to push the Rams into Vikings territory. Then after a false start, Stafford erased a second-and-15 with a dart over the middle to Puka Nacua, moving the Rams to Minnesota’s 27-yard line.
A play later, Stafford connected with Robinson deep down the left sideline for the score.
Stafford is now 19-of-28 for 199 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
