LOS ANGELES -- As Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay stood at the podium in Tampa after the team’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he was clear that changes have to be made for an offense that scored just 13 points in the game.

The Rams are averaging just 16.4 points per game midway through the season, by far the worst offensive season since McVay was hired as head coach in 2017 and tied for the second-worst through eight games by a defending Super Bowl champion. They fell to 3-5 and third place in the NFC West with the loss to the Bucs and face the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday (4:25 p.m. ET on FOX).

McVay wouldn’t say Monday what those offensive changes need to happen but said although he sees “positive glimpses” from the unit, it’s clear they’re not just a quick fix away from getting back to the success they’ve had in the past.

“I do think that there's some positive things,” McVay said. “I thought there was some positive performances and encouraging things that we can move forward with, but there's enough stuff that isn't going the way that we want that you can't just say, ‘Hey, we're just this one thing away from being able to get it fixed,’ and we’re working through that right now.”

So, what areas do the Rams need to improve?

Quarterback Matthew Stafford

Yes, Stafford has thrown as many interceptions (8) as touchdowns (8) this season, but that stat is skewed because he threw five in the first two games of the season. Stafford has not thrown an interception since Week 6 and hasn’t had a game with multiple interceptions since Week 2.

The bigger problem is he’s only thrown multiple touchdowns in a game once this season: Week 2 against the Atlanta Falcons. Stafford’s six consecutive games with one or fewer passing touchdowns ties the longest streak of his NFL career, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

After the loss to Tampa, Stafford said it was frustrating because there are “plays out there to be made that I’m not giving guys chances to make or we’re not making.”

“I just wish I would have played better, because if I would have played better, we probably would have won the game.”

Offensive line

The Rams have played eight different offensive lines in eight games, and that could become nine in nine games on Sunday if guard Coleman Shelton returns from injured reserve and guard Chandler Brewer starts on the other side. McVay said he thought Brewer, who started at right guard against the Bucs, “did a nice job” and said he was “pleased with the way he played."

This season, the Rams rank 24th in the NFL in team pass block win rate (55%) and 30th in team run block win rate (68%). Los Angeles has played two left tackles, two left guards -- it will be three if Shelton returns to right guard and Brewer plays at left guard -- three centers, five right guards and a right tackle this season.

While McVay has made it clear he thinks blaming injuries for the poor play is just an excuse, it’s hard to find consistency as an offense -- or offensive line -- with this much turnover.

Running back

The Rams got running back Cam Akers back against Tampa Bay. He didn’t have much impact on the stat sheet, although McVay said he thought Akers “did a good job with what he could control.”

“The snaps were minimal,” McVay said, and “there wasn't a whole lot of space.”

McVay said he thought running back Darrell Henderson Jr., who had back-to-back 10- and 23-yard runs on Sunday to get into the red zone, “had some brights spots” but pointed out that when the offense has as many three-and-outs as they did, “it’s hard to get into any sort of rhythm” on the ground.

“You have like 58 snaps and a couple of them were some no plays and so when you have eight three-and-outs, it's going to be hard to really be able to get any sort of continuity offensively,” McVay said. “And so whether it's the run game, throwing the football, scoring points, there's just a lot of things that aren't in alignment with what good football teams and good offenses do and we're continuing to try to work through to be better.”

The Rams are likely to get rookie running back Kyren Williams back from injured reserve this week, as they started his 21-day practice window on Oct. 26. The rookie, who injured his ankle on the opening kickoff in Week 1, could be the spark Los Angeles needs in the running game.