Seahawks’ next opponent: Rams on a roll

DALLAS – They are scoring points at an unexpected league-leading rate.

A young quarterback is blossoming behind a rebuilt offensive line, a running back is regaining his star rookie form, and several new pass-catching threats have helped offset the performance of an underperforming defense.

The Rams are 3-1 and atop the NFC West.

The Rams have shown an imaginative offense under first-year coach and play-caller Sean McVay. Quarterback Jared Goff, the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft, is thriving. So is Gurley, the NFL’s 2015 offensive rookie of the year, who was named the NFC’s offensive player of the month.

“We started off 3-1 last year and saw the way that went,” said Goff, who did not play until the 10th game as a rookie when the Rams finished 4-12 after their promising start. “So, it doesn’t mean much … Right now we’re just focused on going out there and playing as best we can.”

The Rams defense struggled since dominating the Colts in the season opener and allowed 24 points to Dallas in the first half of Sunday’s 35-30 win.

Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense is ranked 29th against the run.

Linebacker Connor Barwin played in Phillips’ 3-4 with the Houston Texans. When Barwin joined the Philadelphia Eagles, he went through a transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4.

Now he is going through another with the Rams defense working through its issues.

“There’s definitely some truth to adjusting to any new scheme,” Barwin said. “But at the same time, another way to say that maybe will be that we made some mistakes up front. Kind of self-inflicted wounds.”

The Rams also have a highly reliable kicker. Greg Zuerlein kicked a career-high seven field goals in the win over Dallas.

One of just two kickers with two field goals of 60 yards or longer in his career, Zuerlein didn’t need one beyond 43 yards to help the Rams score on five straight possessions in the second half after trailing by 11 points in the second quarter.

The sixth-year pro, with a career success rate of 81 percent, matched his season total coming in and has made all 14 kicks this season.