Uneven Rams overcome ‘bad coaching’ in playoff win vs. Bears

CHICAGO — The Los Angeles Rams are headed to the NFC Championship Game to play the Seattle Seahawks, despite what coach Sean McVay called “some bad coaching” by him in Sunday night’s 20-17 overtime win over the Chicago Bears.

The Rams’ offense, which led the league in offensive DVOA during the regular season, struggled to get into a rhythm for much of the game.

“Offensively, man, I did not do a very good job for our group tonight,” McVay said after Harrison Mevis kicked a 42-yard field goal to win the divisional round game. “But I thought our guys were able to overcome it.”

After scoring a touchdown on their opening possession to cap a 14-play, 85-yard drive, the Rams had recorded just 174 yards at the end of the third quarter. According to ESPN Research, it was their fewest yards at the end of the third in a game this season.

“I did not like the feel for the flow of the game that I had outside of the first series, where our guys did a great job,” McVay said. “Defensively, it kept us in it in spite of how poor of a job I did for our group. But like I said, I’m really grateful for this group being able to find a way, stick with it and be able to overcome some bad coaching by me tonight.”

Editor’s Picks

2 Related

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who threw for a league-leading 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns during the regular season, completed 20 of 42 passes for 258 yards against the Bears. Stafford failed to throw a touchdown for just the second time in his playoff career, according to ESPN Research. It was the first time Stafford did not throw multiple passing touchdowns in a playoff start for the Rams.

“I definitely didn’t get into a great rhythm today,” Stafford said. “There’s no question about that. I had some opportunities in the pass game, just some things that made it tough. Obviously, I could be better.

“But playoff football is about winning the football game. Played great, threw for a bunch of yards last year in the snow and we lost, so that s— sucks. So, I’m happy to have played a little bit worse today and going home with a win. So, we’ll take that.”

On Sunday, Stafford registered 11 off-target throws, tied for his most as a member of the Rams (since 2021), according to ESPN Research.

Despite the offense’s struggles for most of the contest, Stafford rallied the Rams for his 55th career winning drive in the fourth quarter or overtime, which is 11 more than the next-closest player since he entered the NFL in 2009. Safety Kam Curl set up the winning drive after he intercepted a pass from Bears quarterback Caleb Williams with 6:47 left in overtime. The Rams drove 54 yards in 10 plays and won it on Mevis’ field goal.

The victory sent the fifth-seeded Rams to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since Los Angeles won Super Bowl LVI during the 2021 campaign. They will play next Sunday at No. 1-seeded Seattle, which beat the San Francisco 49ers 41-6 on Saturday night to advance.

“[We’ve] got to be at our best,” McVay said of the Seahawks. “You watched that game last night. They’re firing on all cylinders. They look really good, and I’m excited to be able to dive into this tape and figure out how we can improve.”

The Rams split the season series with the Seahawks, winning 21-19 at home in Week 11 and losing 38-37 in overtime at Seattle in Week 16. The Rams led the second matchup 30-14 in the fourth quarter.

Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, who had five catches for 56 yards versus the Bears, said it felt fitting that L.A. will go back to Seattle next week for a chance to move on to the Super Bowl.

“I think there’s no way the football gods would rather have it be than for us to go back up there and see the All Father [Cooper Kupp] and get a chance to right our wrongs,” Nacua said. “So, it will be a great challenge for us, and we’re excited for it.”