Circumstances seemed bleak for the Los Angeles Rams when Matthew Stafford injured his thumb in Week 8 while laying out for a reception in a blowout loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The final score in that game was 20-43 and the injury to Stafford came in a lopsided effort. LA fell to a 3-5 record.
But that wasn’t quite the bottom for last year’s team. The thumb kept Stafford out the following week in the contest against the Green Bay Packers, and the offense was entirely inept with backup Brett Rypien under center.