The Rams added an injury to the insult of their 38-37 overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks, as head coach Sean McVay said right guard Kevin Dotson is expected to miss some time with a left ankle sprain, starting with the Week 17 game against the Atlanta Falcons.
Dotson injured his ankle in the first half when center Coleman Shelton landed on his leg. The right guard limped with difficulty off the field before boarding a cart and entering the Rams’ locker room. He had a walking boot on his left foot and was using crutches to get around after the game.
“It might need some time so we’ll see,” McVay said. “He got a good ankle sprain, but we’ll see exactly what that means. I think his status will be possibly in doubt for the Falcons game.”
During the play in which Dotson was injured, Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall appeared to stomp deliberately on Dotson’s ankle. Shelton immediately shoved Hall, which started a skirmish between the teams.
Hall was suspended for a game by the NFL for the action, though he reportedly is appealing the decision.
“I saw it live. I was pretty upset, disappointed and bummed that we missed that too,” McVay said. “You just don’t want that. If one of our players did that, I’d be very disappointed. I think he would be the first to admit to that that’s not something he wants to do. There’s not a place for that stuff in our game.”
Reserve guard Justin Dedich took Dotson’s spot following the injury. He allowed three pressures and was called for an ineligible man downfield penalty on a play in which he was shoved off the line of scrimmage by the Seahawks’ pass rush. A touchdown pass to Terrance Ferguson was overturned on that play.
“This guy has always just delivered. The game’s not too big for him. He is tough. He plays tough. He plays physical,” McVay said. “He’s a great communicator. He understands the intent of what we’re trying to get done. I thought he was really productive in both phases.”
Dotson isn’t the only player that the Rams are expecting to be without against the Falcons. McVay said it was likely that wide receiver Davante Adams would be held out against Atlanta as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury.
Adams, who did not play against Seattle, did some light running and cuts on the turf at Lumen Field prior to Thursday’s game.
McVay said the Rams have not yet considered whether they want to shut Adams down for the last two games of the regular season to preserve him for the playoffs.
“This guy’s a great competitor. He wants to be out there. I say most likely with Atlanta, Davante is going to do everything he can to push to be available for that,” McVay said.
“Then it’s our job to be able to figure out what is best collectively with him. He’s a player that deserves to be involved in those types of conversations because of the respect and the experience, but that isn’t something that we’ve discussed at this point.”
McVay said the Rams also have not discussed whether to activate tight end Tyler Higbee (ankle) or right tackle Rob Havenstein (ankle/knee) for the Week 17 game.
Rams get clarity on controversial call
McVay said the Rams did get some clarity on the overturned two-point conversion call that went against the team Thursday.
On the play, outside linebacker Jared Verse broke up a pass from quarterback Sam Darnold to running back Zach Charbonnet. The play was whistled dead, but Charbonnet picked the ball up in the end zone. After review, the officials determined that Darnold’s pass had traveled backward, thus making it a live ball.
Because Charbonnet recovered it in the end zone, Seattle’s game-tying two-point conversion was good.
The Rams expressed confusion after the game, saying they believed teams aren’t allowed to advance the ball on a fumble during a two-point conversion. But the Rams were informed after the game that because it was a backwards pass instead of a fumble, that rule did not apply.
“I do not believe that anybody would be in disagreement that those are not the plays we want in our game,” said McVay, who is a member of the NFL’s competition committee. “Those will be things that we’ll discuss. I do know this, those aren’t the kind of plays that you want to have people converting on. That’s not something that I can imagine anyone would argue with me on that. I would feel the same way if it benefited us, too.”