What are the Los Angeles Rams talking about ahead of Sunday's Week 15 matchup at SoFi Stadium against the Detroit Lions?
1. The Rams leaned heavily on their 13 personnel (three tight ends, one running back) in a win over Arizona last week, something they incorporated into their offense Week 6 against the Ravens and have featured ever since. They used it in 40 of 67 snaps (59.7 percent) last week, the highest of the season and the second highest for any team, according to Next Gen Stats.
"We're just able to handle different looks," Rams tight end Colby Parkinson said of their 13 personnel sets. "There's a lot of different things we can do. We can run the ball. We can get into some drop back stuff and play extra stuff too. It kind of opens up the playbook. But all of that starts with running the ball well."
View photos of the starters for the Los Angeles Rams.
Head Coach: Sean McVay
Offensive Coordinator: Mike LaFleur
Defensive Coordinator: Chris Shula
Special Teams Coordinator: Chase Blackburn
(AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
WR Davante Adams
(AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
TE Colby Parkinson
Backed up by Davis Allen, Terrance Ferguson and Nick Vannett
(AP Photo/Jeff Lewis)
LT Alaric Jackson
Backed up by D.J. Humphries and David Quessenberry
(AP Photo/Greg Trott)
LG Steve Avila
Backed up by Justin Dedich
(AP Photo/Kara Durrette)
C Coleman Shelton
Backed up by Beaux Limmer
(AP Photo/Brian Westerholt)
RG Kevin Dotson
(AP Photo/Scot Tucker)
RT Warren McClendon Jr.
Backed up by David Quessenberry
(AP Photo/Brian Westerholt)
WR Jordan Whittington
Backed up by Xavier Smith
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
WR Puka Nacua
Backed up by Konata Mumpfield
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
QB Matthew Stafford
Backed up by Jimmy Garoppolo and Stetson Bennett IV
(AP Photo/Rusty Jones)
RB Kyren Williams
Backed up by Blake Corum, Jarquez Hunter and Ronnie Rivers
(AP Photo/Kevin Terrell)
OLB Byron Young
Backed up by Josaiah Stewart
(AP Photo/Greg Trott)
DE Braden Fiske
Backed up by Larrell Murchison and Desjuan Johnson
(AP Photo/Nell Redmond)
NT Poona Ford
Backed up by Ty Hamilton
(AP Photo/Paul Spinelli)
DE Kobie Turner
Backed up by Tyler Davis
(AP Photo/Nell Redmond)
OLB Jared Verse
Backed up by Nick Hampton
(AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
ILB Omar Speights
Backed up by Shaun Dolac
(AP Photo/Brooke Sutton)
ILB Nate Landman
Backed up by Troy Reeder
(AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
CB Emmanuel Forbes Jr.
Backed up by Ahkello Witherspoon and Josh Wallace
(AP Photo/Kara Durrette)
S Kamren Kinchens
Backed up by Chris Smith II
(AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
S Kam Curl
Backed up by Jaylen McCollough
(AP Photo/Aaron M. Sprecher)
CB Cobie Durant
Backed up by Darious Williams and Derion Kendrick
(AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
P/H Ethan Evans
(AP Photo/Nick Wass)
K Harrison Mevis
(AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
LS Jake McQuaide
(AP Photo/Kara Durrette)
PR Xavier Smith
Backed up by Konata Mumpfield
(AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
KR Jordan Whittington
Backed up by Blake Corum
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
2. Every opponent the Lions face know how dangerous of a duo Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery have become at running back. The Lions are the No. 5 rushing team in the NFL.
"Yeah, good combo between those two," Rams linebacker Nate Landman told therams.com. "Obviously, Gibbs, the speed that he plays with is a game changer. His ability to join the pass route and pass tree and affect the game that way.
"Then you got Montgomery, the way he runs downhill and it's kind of a good one-two punch that play off each other. Got a good quarterback, good skill. It's going to be a good battle, though."
The Rams come in ranked 3rd in points allowed (17.5), 13th in total defense (315.0), 11th against the run (103.5) and 16th against the pass (211.5).
3. Speaking of good running back duos, the Rams are trying to build a productive duo with Kyren Williams and Blake Corum as Corum is starting to share more of the load in Los Angeles' backfield. Corum rushed for a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries, while Williams chipped in 13 carries for 84 yards and one touchdown against the Cardinals. That's 25 carries for 212 yards and three touchdowns with an average of 8.5 yards per carry combined.
Corum already has 43 more carries this season than he did as a rookie last year with four games to go. Williams is 48 yards short of his third straight 1,000-yard rushing season.
Rams head coach Sean McVay said Monday that Corum's emergence has been huge in keeping Williams fresher down the stretch and it gives them two productive backs they can feature in their offense.
View photos from Detroit Lions practice on Wednesday, December 10, 2025.
Detroit Lions safety Daniel Thomas (2) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (14) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa (18) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions defensive back Avonte Maddox (29) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams (1) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez (44) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams (1) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions linebacker Derrick Barnes (55) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions cornerback D.J. Reed (4) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions offensive lineman Trystan Colon (57) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions edge rusher Marcus Davenport (92) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson (97) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell (46) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions linebacker Grant Stuard (15) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions defensive lineman Alim McNeill (54) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
Detroit Lions defensive lineman DJ Reader (98) during practice at the Meijer Performance Center on Dec. 10, 2025 in Allen Park, Mich. (Jeff Nguyen/Detroit Lions)
4. What does quarterback Matthew Stafford think of the Detroit defensive front he's about to face Sunday?
"Yeah, really physical, great get off, discipline, high effort, talent." he said Wednesday. "I mean they're what you want in a front. They affect the game, both in the run and pass game. It's been a big challenge every time we played them. It starts upfront with those guys and trickles into the back end. They are the engine."
5. McVay is considered one of the top offensive minds in football and one of the elite play callers. What does McVay think of the job Lions head coach Dan Campbell has done as a play caller the last few weeks?
"I've seen a great offense. Dan does a great job. He's always been so heavily involved in their offense," he said. "He's got a background, got big picture ownership, been around things and you can see that system they've made their own in Detroit. There is a real identity that's geared towards accentuating players' skill sets. There is a play style."
McVay said Campbell has a great feel for picking and choosing his spots to attack and thinks he sequences the game really well and does a great job of getting his playmakers involved to keep defenses off balance.
"You look at last Thursday, they did an amazing job putting up 44 points. They are leading the league in points scored right now and they are up there in every metric that matters offensively," McVay said. "They are doing a great job and it's tremendous credit to Dan, his staff and those players."
6. Sunday's contest at SoFi Stadium will feature two quarterbacks who rank No. 1 and No. 2 on the season in touchdown passes - Stafford with 35 and Jared Goff with 26. The two will always be linked because of the 2020 trade that sent both franchises on the road to their current success.
Stafford was asked about Goff Wednesday, and he said the postgame interactions the two have had the last couple years have always been a ton of mutual respect.
