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          NFL Nation

          Rapid Reaction: St. Louis Rams

          • Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff WriterDec 1, 2013, 07:21 PM ET
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              Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers and the NFL at ESPN since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In his 10 years with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga. You can follow Nick via Twitter @nwagoner
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          SAN FRANCISCO -- A few thoughts on the St. Louis Rams' 23-13 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

          What it means: Now that the Rams sit at 5-7 on the season, any flicker of playoff hope they had has essentially vanished in the competitive NFC. They're a full three games behind San Francisco for the No. 6 spot in the conference and still trail a handful of other teams just to get into the mix. Any reasonable person wouldn't have expected the Rams to win their final six games to get into the playoff hunt, but at least now those dreams can be put to bed.

          In the bigger picture, the Rams again found out just how far they have to go to become a contender in the powerful NFC West Division. After two impressive wins against Chicago and Indianapolis, the Niners knocked out the Rams with relative ease for the second time this season.

          Stock watch -- up: Punter Johnny Hekker -- There's not much to choose from after another mostly ugly outing for the Rams, but Hekker was excellent again in this one and deserves praise for the work he's done all season. He averaged 48.8 yards per punt, and the 49ers mustered only two returns for 5 yards.

          Stock watch -- down: Rams pass-catchers -- As is the case in a loss like this one, there's plenty to choose from here. But it's worth pointing out some of the costly drops and missteps from the Rams' receivers and tight ends. Receiver Chris Givens had a few, and tight end Jared Cook also missed some catchable passes. Quarterback Kellen Clemens wasn't very accurate, but that's nothing new. In recent weeks, his pass-catchers have at least been hanging on to the ones that are catchable.

          Penalty-palooza: After accumulating just four penalties against Chicago, the Rams made up for lost time against the 49ers. They committed 11 penalties for 105 yards and were particularly guilty in the first half. In the opening 30 minutes, the Rams had seven infractions for 60 yards. Most of those were against the defense, effectively keeping the San Francisco offense moving and allowing the 49ers to build a 10-point halftime lead.

          What's next: The Rams return to St. Louis for a few days before heading west for the second consecutive week with a trip to Arizona to take on the Cardinals. While St. Louis has little chance to leapfrog the 49ers, the game against the Cardinals at least provides an opportunity for it to start crawling out of the NFC West basement.