NEW ORLEANS — Kryen Williams and the Los Angeles Rams headed to the locker room at halftime confident that the zero on the scoreboard was no indication of how the final 30 minutes would play out.

“We knew the second half was going to be ours,” said Williams, who rushed for a season-high 104 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown, in the Rams’ 21-14 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

“It felt great. “It felt like I was myself, myself, when I was out there playing like that,” Williams said. “I played instinctive football and had great energy.”

Matthew Stafford passed for two touchdowns in the fourth quarter as the Rams (6-6) stayed close in the NFC West race and handed Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi his first loss.

“All we could do was get a win this week and we did,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “There has been improvement overall for our team and that’s what I want to continue to see.”

The Saints (4-8) were driving inside the Rams’ 10-yard line in the final minutes, but Derek Carr’s pass on fourth-and-3 was deflected from behind by edge rusher Jared Verse and fell incomplete.

“I realized the tight end was on me,” Verse said, referring to the Saints’ Foster Moreau. “The No. 1 rule on the sideline is you can’t get blocked by the tight end – you just can’t. I just led him back and was able to get away and influence the throw.”

That allowed the Rams to run out the clock on the Saints and Rizzi, who had won his first two games since taking over after Dennis Allen was fired.

“We did a lot of things in the game that we wanted to do and played the game the way we wanted to, but we didn’t execute at the crucial time,” Rizzi said. “We had the chance.” We won there and we didn’t get the ball in the end zone. Bad luck.

Stafford passed for 183 yards without a turnover. His scoring passes went 3 yards to Demarcus Robinson and 7 yards to Puca Nacua, giving the Rams the lead for good with 8:54 left.

“The first half was definitely frustrating, but at the same time we knew we were going to get good yards on every turnover,” Stafford said. “You have to keep playing. Football is a game with ups and downs.

Versatile New Orleans tight end Taysom Hill, who led the Saints to their last win with one of the best games of his career, injured his left knee and was carted off the field after a fourth-and-short run late in the fourth quarter had transformed.

Hill, 34, a fan favorite, waved from the car as the crowd in the Superdome chanted his name. Rizzi did not provide an update on Hill after the game, saying he still needs to have imaging done before the full extent of his injury can be determined.

The Saints narrowly edged out the Rams and had the ball longer, but struggled to get into the end zone. New Orleans settled for three field goal attempts in the first half, with Blake Grupe hitting two from 54 yards but missing one from 36 yards.

That was enough to give New Orleans a 6-0 halftime lead before Williams’ 10th TD of the season gave the Rams a 7-6 lead.

“Kyren’s energy was outstanding,” McVay said. “He excelled at being really decisive. He left the ground under his feet, balanced himself well and did a great job of slash running to the second and third levels.”

Saints running back Alvin Kamara rushed for 112 yards on 23 carries.

New Orleans’ only touchdown came on Carr’s 28-yard fourth-quarter pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling, his fourth TD reception in four games since signing midseason. Dante Pettis delivered Carr’s pass in tight coverage to the right corner of the end zone, converting the ball into 2 points, making the score 14.

Injuries

Hill’s departure capped a tough day for New Orleans due to injuries. Starting center Erik McCoy was unable to return from another serious groin injury despite a two-week layoff, so Shane Lemieux started in his place. The offense suffered another blow in the fourth quarter when guard Nick Saldiveri was forced off the field with a left knee injury. Safety Tyrann Mathieu appeared to hurt his shoulder during a tackle on Williams in the second half. He remained on the sidelines after treatment and said after the game that he expected a quick recovery.

Next

Rams: Host Buffalo next Sunday.

Saints: Next Sunday at the New York Giants.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL