NEW ORLEANS — The first half of Sundays game against the New Orleans Saints did not go as the Rams offense could have imagined. The unit ran three plays in the first quarter, turned the ball over on downs at the Saints 25 in the second and squandered a promising, ground-based drive following a sack and two incompletions.

That all amounted to the Rams first scoreless first half since Super Bowl LIII, only Bill Belichick and the Patriots werent on the opposing sideline this time.

But the Rams (6-6) came out in the second half with a different focus and energy on offense, sealing a 21-14 win. And as it has so often the last two years, that energy started with running back Kyren Williams.

Despite trailing 6-0 at halftime, things could have been much worse for the Rams if not for an illegal man downfield penalty that nullified a Saints touchdown, and a missed field goal by New Orleans (4-8) on that same drive.

And even with no points to show for it, the Rams found something before the break. Williams started to get going in the Rams final drive before the half. He took five consecutive carries to start the drive for 39 yards.

In the locker room, head coach Sean McVay emphasized the oddity of only having three possessions in the first half to dispel any discouragement, and with his assistants committed to running the ball in the second half.

We knew the second half we were coming out there and that half was going to be ours, Williams said. We just knew that we were going to take over. I think when Coach McVay puts that confidence in us and he tells us he’s going to do something and he actually does it, us running the ball, we got on a great roll.

So the Rams went back to Williams to start the second half for two straight runs before quarterback Matthew Stafford found Puka Nacua for a third-down catch-and-run into Saints territory. Back-to-back carries for eight and 10 yards by Williams kept the Rams moving.

And after a diving Nacua catch got the Rams to the New Orleans 10, Williams did the rest of the work with two more runs, dragging the pile for the final four yards into the end zone.

It felt like I was me, myself and I when I was out there playing like that, playing instinctual football, Williams said. Had great energy and was distributing it amongst the team and we were just out there playing ball and having fun. It feels good, honestly. It feels good to get back to me.

Williams finished the game with 15 carries for 104 yards, his first 100-yard performance since Week 5. He almost broke a long touchdown run in the third quarter, too, but an open-field tackle by safety Tyrann Mathieu limited the gain to 14 yards. Williams got up from the tackle and jumped up and down in frustration, knowing he was one cut away from breaking away.

Instead, Stafford found Demarcus Robinson for a 46-yard gain and a three-yard touchdown on consecutive plays to go up 14-6. But even in those passing plays you could feel Williams gravity, forcing the Saints to load up the box and opening up opportunities for Robinson and Tutu Atwell against man coverage.

It’s great for me, it’s great for everybody on the offense, I think it’s great for Sean, too, right? Stafford said. When he knows that we’re handing the ball off and getting yards, the whole playbook comes alive. The ability to move the pocket, play-actions, quick game, whatever we want, it’s available when you can get 6-7 a carry.

The Saints answered back with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling, plus a two-point conversion to tie it up. But the Rams again benefitted from New Orleans undisciplined play.

A neutral zone infraction and a pass interference call gave the Rams a third-down conversion in the red zone, down to the Saints 7. Stafford fed the ball to Nacua on an outside screen and the second-year receiver did the rest, weaving his way into the end zone for the go-ahead score.

The Saints marched, working the clock below two minutes, getting into the red zone. But defensive tackle Bobby Brown III stuffed Alvin Kamara on third down, and outside linebacker Jared Verse came around the edge to hit Saints quarterback Derek Carr as he released on fourth down to get the stop.

And then the Rams handed the ball off to, who else, Williams and he ran for the game-sealing first down on the first play of the final drive. It gave the Rams the win they needed to keep pace with the Seahawks in the NFC West, even if Williams was still thinking about the one cut he didnt quite hit.

This week I’m going to make that safety miss, Williams declared. I can’t wait to get back to work to make that safety miss that third level and I’m gonna hit that 60-yarder, I can’t wait.