New guy Baker Mayfield leads Rams on 98-yard game-winning drive

The Los Angeles Rams signed quarterback Baker Mayfield just this week, and it wasn’t expected that Mayfield — with limited experience in one of the NFL’s most complicated offenses — would see serious time. But with Matthew Stafford out with a spinal cord contusion, and backup John Wolford out due to his own injuries, Mayfield took the field with about 48 hours of experience with his new team.

It started out somewhat rocky, as Mayfield tried to find timing with receivers he’d never thrown to before, but when it counted… boy, did Mayfield come through. With two minutes left in the Rams’ Thursday night game against the Las Vegas Raiders, punter AJ Cole III booted the Rams back to their own two-yard line with a 64-yard punt.

Mayfield, as much as he’s been through in his recent NFL career, was undaunted. His team was down, 16-10, they had no timeouts, and it just didn’t matter. He threw an interception that was negated by a pass interference penalty, and Raiders defensive lineman Jerry Tillery was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct after a sack, but Mayfield did quite well without the help.

Mayfield had to run a no-huddle silent count, as SoFi Stadium was filled with noise Raiders fans, and with 15 seconds left in the game, Mayfield hit receiver Van Jefferson for the 23-yard game-winning score.

“I mean… it’s Baker Mayfield,” Jefferson said right after the game. “That’s all you can say. He’s been here before, and for him to get here and do what he just did, it just shows how determined he is, and what kind of guy he is. I’m glad he’s here.”

Everyone in the Rams organization would echo that sentiment.

“He just came in and worked hard,” Jefferson said, when Amazon’s Kaylee Hartung asked him how Mayfield could command an offense with so little preparation time. “He’s only been here for a day. For him to come in here and do what he just did shows how determined he is, and what kind of player he is. He’s tough.”