L.A. Cruises

Experience is overrated. Just ask Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams.

Much of the 2017 season has served as an expose of such as the first-year head coach and his coaching staff have guided second-year quarterback Jared Goff and a retooled roster on a surprising run toward the playoffs.

Sunday’s 42-7 beatdown over the Seattle Seahawks further drove home the point, and could have signaled a changing of the guard.

The Rams put on a clinic as they improved to 10-4 and took one step closer to clinching both the NFC West and a playoff spot. They scored at will and put up a season-high in rushing yards (244) behind Todd Gurley’s 152 yards and three touchdowns. The Rams defense throttled the Seahawks offense, sacking Russell Wilson seven times and holding the unit to a season-low both in yards (149) and points. The Rams’ defense also ensured that its offense started six of seven first-half possessions in Seahawks territory.

Stunned would best describe the mood at CenturyLink Field, where the home crowd hadn’t seen their Seahawks lose by more than a touchdown since Russell Wilson took over as the starting quarterback in 2012.

“This was just one of those wins where everything was clicking for us and we didn’t want to let up,” Gurley said. “These guys been kicking our ass the last 10, 15 years, so you’ve got to enjoy it and take advantage of the situation.”

This was supposed to be the hotly contested rematch of teams vying for the top spot in the division. In their first meeting of the season, Seattle pulled off a six-point victory in a shootout that saw Goff and the Rams fall short of a crucial late first-down by just six inches while threatening on a potentially game-winning drive.

This Sunday, both teams found themselves coming off of disappointing losses – the Rams to the Eagles, and the Seahawks to the Jaguars – and badly needing rebound performances to help their cases.

L.A. owned the better record, but a Seattle win would have given the Seahawks a two-game head-to-head edge as they clung to hopes of running the table and winning the division.

Typically, the Seahawks fare well in these high-pressure situations, and their familiarity with such seemed to translate into an edge over the upstart Rams.

But experience did nothing for Seattle Sunday. Their battered defense – missing three Pro Bowl players in Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor and Cliff Avril – offered no resistance, and their offensive line provided Wilson little protection.

Wilson has provided one heroic after another in recent weeks to keep his team in the thick of things. But on Sunday, he proved incapable of willing his team to a competitive level of play, let alone victory.

All season long, McVay has found a way to get his players to respond to adversity and capitalize on prime opportunities. And the 31-year-old did it again this week as he got his team understand the sense of urgency as they traveled to one of the toughest stadiums to play in, and then delivered a smackdown.

The win over Seattle means that the Rams once again avoided losing back-to-back games, as they have all season. They have able to do this because their coach has taught them the art of compartmentalizing, whether after losses or victories, and moving onto the next challenge.

Meanwhile, Pete Carroll – 35 years McVay’s senior and in his eighth season as coach of the Seahawks – couldn’t push the right buttons on Sunday.

This game really could have concluded after one half. The defense swarmed Seattle’s offense so fiercely that the Rams offense repeatedly received prime real estate, starting six of seven first-half possessions in Seahawks territory while rolling to four touchdowns and a pair of field goal.

The first half concluded with the scoreboard reading 34-0 and the home fans booing heavily as the Seahawks headed to the locker room.

Little changed in the second half, which mercifully concluded some 90 minutes later with the stadium only a quarter filled and backup Sean Mannion in for Los Angeles.

The Rams are on the verge of making the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

Meanwhile, the Seahawks are in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2011. Plagued by an aging defense, and with Wilson surrounded by few offensive weapons, this franchise could be bracing for an offseason overhaul.