Through five games, it’s been a struggle defensively for the Los Angeles Rams. Outside of facing an abysmal Colts offense in Week 1, and limiting the Seahawks to just 241 total yards on Sunday, the Rams’ defense has not been good.

It ranks 23rd in points and 20th in yards allowed, while the offense is second and fifth in those departments, respectively. So what’s been the biggest culprit in the Rams’ defensive struggles? Stopping the run, which they’ve been unable to do.

Despite the fact that Seattle only rushed for 62 yards on 25 attempts, the Rams are still one of the worst teams when it comes to playing the run. After five games, Los Angeles has surrendered 668 yards on 148 attempts, an average of 4.5 yards per carry. That’s a half-yard more than the Rams are averaging per carry on offense, which is troublesome.

No team in the NFL has allowed more rushing touchdowns than the Rams (seven), and only five have given up more yards on the ground. Remember, this is all after they shut down the Seahawks, which means Los Angeles ranked even further down the list prior to Week 5.

On the bright side, it’s good to see the Rams are improving in that department, even if it was against a team with a terrible running game and an even worse offensive line. One week after allowing the Cowboys to rush for 189 yards, the Rams clogged up running lanes with the likes of Aaron Donald and Michael Brockers.

Mark Barron and Alec Ogletree have also played better in recent weeks, too. Barron led the team with 15 tackles on Sunday, making one of the Rams’ six tackles for loss on the day.

If Los Angeles can continue to improve its run defense, the entire unit will begin to play better. That’ll be a challenge this week with the NFL’s second-leading rusher, Leonard Fournette, likely carrying it 25 times on Sunday.