Packers hang on for 24-19 victory over Rams

The Packers got back in the win column on Sunday with a 24-19 victory over the Rams.

Green Bay was down 13-10 at halftime, but the club took advantage of a pair of turnovers in the third quarter to build a lead Los Angeles could not overcome.

First running back Kyren Williams fumbled in Green Bay territory to end the first possession of the third quarter. A play later, quarterback Jordan Love hit tight end Tucker Kraft for a 66-yard touchdown to give the Packers a 17-13 lead.

Then safety Xavier McKinney intercepted quarterback Matthew Stafford to record a pick in his fifth consecutive game — becoming the first player since 1970 to do that in his first five games with a new team. The Packers took a little longer to go down the field after that takeaway, but Kraft caught his second touchdown of the day — getting in on a 7-yard pass for a 24-13 lead.

But the Rams weren’t done. The club used an 11-play drive in the fourth quarter to narrow Green Bay’s lead to 24-19 with 3:30 left in the contest with Demarcus Robinson’s 1-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion failed when Tutu Atwell couldn’t get into the paint on a jet sweep.

Los Angeles had one last shot to win it with a late two-minute drive. But Stafford took a sack on second-and-5, forcing the Rams to call their last timeout. And then Stafford was pressured on his fourth-down pass to tight end Colby Parkinson and the ball fell incomplete.

In his second game back from a knee injury, Love finished 15-of-26 for 224 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Kraft led with four catches for 88 yards with two TDs.

Josh Jacobs also rushed for his first touchdown as a Packer, finishing with 73 yards on 19 carries plus one 21-yard reception.

Stafford ended the game 29-of-45 for 260 yards with a touchdown and a pick. Williams had 22 carries for 102 yards with a touchdown. While Jordan Whittington led the club with seven catches and 89 yards, he had to exit the field late in the fourth quarter.

With the win, Matt LaFleur improved to 5-0 against his former boss Sean McVay and the Rams. LaFleur was Los Angeles’ offensive coordinator in McVay’s first season as head coach in 2017.

The 3-2 Packers will be back at home next week to play the Cardinals.

At 1-4, the Rams will get a chance to rest, recover, and potentially get some injured players back with a Week 6 bye.