The Rams traveled 8,000 miles with Super Bowl ambitions and came home with something considerably less glamorous.

A reality check.

The 49ers delivered it Thursday in Melbourne, Australia, dismantling Sean McVay’s team, 27-7, in a season opener that exposed the distance between the Rams’ hopes and dreams and their present reality.

“They outplayed us in every facet,” McVay said. “I didn’t do nearly a good enough job. This is a humbling day for us.”

Here are three takeaways from a loss that gave the Rams plenty to ponder on the flight home.

The reigning MVP had no answers

Matthew Stafford arrived in Australia as the league’s reigning MVP. Raheem Morris and the 49ers made him look decidedly ordinary. Stafford completed just 15 of 25 passes for 155 yards and an interception.

That should sting the Rams well beyond the flight home.

An offense with Stafford at the controls and McVay calling the plays is supposed to put defenses in uncomfortable positions. Instead, the discomfort belonged to the quarterback, who too often held the ball searching for answers or forced throws that only deepened the Rams’ problems.

“Disappointed in the way it worked out for us,” said Stafford. “Obviously didn’t move the ball consistently enough, didn’t put enough points up on the board to give ourselves a chance to be in the game.”

Give Morris credit. His defense made one of the NFL’s most accomplished quarterbacks look unsure of what he was seeing and where he should go with the football.

But the responsibility extends beyond Stafford. McVay has to give him better answers when the initial plan stalls, whether that means quicker throws, moving the pocket, or leaning on the running game to restore some rhythm.

The Rams cannot afford an offense that needs Stafford to solve every problem himself. Especially on nights when he becomes part of the problem.

Spreading the ball around isn’t the same as spreading the damage

Ten Rams caught passes from Stafford. Only Puka Nacua consistently gave the 49ers something to worry about.

On paper, involving that many receivers suggests an offense with options. On the field, those options have to do more than catch the ball. They have to move the chains, create yards after the catch, and occasionally punish a defense for devoting so much attention to Nacua.

“I just didn’t think we distributed the field,” McVay said. “We never really got into a rhythm. I think it was hard for us just overall, coach to players. Sometimes there’s days like that. Today was certainly one of them.”

The Rams need someone else to turn an ordinary completion into a consequential play.

That starts with the complementary receivers winning their matchups and giving Stafford a dependable second answer. The tight ends have to provide a more threatening presence between the numbers. Kyren Williams and the running backs can help by turning underneath opportunities into gains that keep the offense on schedule.

McVay shares in that responsibility. Motion, bunch formations and designed touches can help create space and get other players involved with a purpose.

Nacua can carry a substantial share of this offense. Asking him to supply nearly all its punch is another matter.

Has Aaron Donald gone from a luxury to a necessity?

The Rams assembled a defensive front expected to wreck games. Against San Francisco, it failed to record a sack and surrendered 174 rushing yards at 5.8 yards per carry.

One number reflects an inability to get to the quarterback. The other helps explain why.

When an offense runs that efficiently, it can avoid the obvious passing situations that allow a defensive front to attack. The Rams never consistently earned the opportunity to unleash their supposed greatest strength.

The precise breakdowns will require a closer look at the film. But the larger failure was unmistakable: Los Angeles neither controlled the line of scrimmage nor made Brock Purdy pay for dropping back.

“It’s going to be something that’s good for us to look at and understand how teams going forward are going to try to stop our rush,” said Rams defensive lineman Kobi Turner. “So we can attack that head on and we can figure out what’s our solution, how do we just play fast.”

Myles Garrett’s acknowledgment of knee pain adds another uncomfortable layer.

Donald’s return was supposed to make a formidable group overwhelming. After one game, it is fair to wonder whether the Rams need him to make it function as envisioned.

That is a considerable burden to place on a player returning after two seasons away. Donald can help. The Rams should be troubled if their answer to everything that went wrong Thursday is waiting for him to arrive.