The Los Angeles Rams have a field goal protection problem. Kicker Joshua Karty has had three kicks blocked in the last three games, two in Week 3 against the Eagles and one on Thursday night against the 49ers. All three blocks proved to be extremely costly, as those two games are the only two the Rams have lost all season long.
Against the Eagles, Karty had a pair of field goals blocked in the second half. The first came in the third quarter, and it helped spark a run the Eagles went on to retake the lead late in the fourth quarter after being down 26-7 in the third. But even so, Los Angeles had a chance to win with a walk-off field goal when QB Matthew Stafford drove the team into field goal range at the end of the game. Karty’s kick was blocked again and this time returned for a touchdown, exaggerating the final margin and giving the Rams their first loss.
Against the 49ers, Karty had an extra point blocked after the Rams scored a go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. The block kept the margin at three points, which allowed the 49ers to march down the field and tie the game as time expired, sending it into overtime. The 49ers would go on to defeat the Rams in overtime after Los Angeles RB Kyren Williams was stuffed on a fourth down in the red zone.
On all three blocked kicks, pressure came up the middle, through the heart of the kicking protection. Big bodies up front on the defense got vertical displacement, indenting the offensive line and getting their hands up for the block.
Los Angeles Rams HC Sean McVay Lights Into Kicking Unit Over Blocked Kicks
Harry How/GettyINGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 02: Head coach Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams reacts during the third quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium on October 02, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
On Friday, Rams head coach Sean McVay was asked about the kicking issues and how he wants to address it.
“I wish it as just one thing, Gary, you know,” McVay said in response to the reporter who asked the question. “But when you watch the protection, we’ve gotta fix it. And it’s not one thing in particular, there’s different locations and spots and people that have not executed the way that we’re capable of. We’ve gotta consistently use better techniques. And I thought we had a hold on it, I thought we did a good job against Indianapolis â”
McVay had to take a moment to reactivate a motion-sensor light that had switched off. “Sorry this light is so annoying.”
“I thought we had a good handle on it, and clearly I was not right in that,” he continued. “So we gotta fix it, we gotta go back to work, and we gotta get the right techniques and the right people in there because that has been a killer for us. And it’s cost us two games.”
Los Angeles Rams K Joshua Karty’s “Dirty Kickoffs” are a Big Advantage
While their field goal unit is struggling, the Rams kickoff unit is one of the best in the league. Karty has mastered the art of the so-called “dirty kickoff,” where he kicks a knuckleball-style kick deep into the landing zone but still in the field of play.
This lets him avoid touchbacks that would put the ball at the offense’s 35-yard line, and he makes them incredibly difficult for the returners to field. So many of his kickoffs have been muffed, forcing the returner to cover their fumbles and start with bad field position.
Still, the Rams have a massive issue in their field goal protection. If they can’t fix it, it will continue to cost them games.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Rams HC Sean McVay Sends Warning to Entire Kicking Unit appeared first on Heavy Sports.