Rams beat Bears: Key defense and ice-cold Stafford, on the way to the Championship!

Rams Dominate Bears in Defensive Battle, Advance to NFC Championship

The Los Angeles Rams’ offense, which led the league in offensive DVOA during the regular season, struggled for much of their 20-17 divisional round victory against the Chicago Bears. After three quarters, the Rams had accumulated 174 yards, their lowest amount of the season. But the Rams’ defense showed up when it was most needed, with safety Kam Curl intercepting a pass from Caleb Williams in overtime to return the ball to Los Angeles at their own 22-yard line. It was the third possession won of the game for the Rams, with two other interceptions by cornerback Cobie Durant. The Rams’ three interceptions are the most in a playoff game since the six in the 2001 divisional round against the Packers. The Rams’ defense also limited the Bears to 3 of 6 on fourth downs, including a stop near the goal line with 3:06 left in the final quarter. Although it wasn’t a brilliant game for the Rams, it was enough to send them to the NFC Championship for the first time since they won Super Bowl LVI in the 2021 season. Next Sunday, the Rams will face the Seattle Seahawks, a team with whom they split the season series: a 21-19 victory at SoFi Stadium in Week 11 and an overtime loss of 38-37 in Seattle in Week 16.

Quarterback Performance Analysis: Stafford and the Rams’ offense cooled down for much of the first three quarters, but they managed a drive when it mattered most to give the Rams the lead midway through the final quarter. Stafford was sacked four times by the Bears, his most sacks received since the Philadelphia Eagles had five in the 2024 divisional round game that ended Los Angeles’ season. This was his first game of the season without a passing touchdown.Key statistic: The Rams are the first team in the last 25 postseasons to complete a touchdown drive of at least 14 plays on their opening possession. But then, the Rams’ offense struggled to move the ball until the start of the final quarter, when they put together another 14-play touchdown drive. The Rams are the first team with multiple touchdown drives of 14 plays or more in a single playoff game since the Eagles in the 2022 NFC Championship against the 49ers.

Biggest problem in the game plan: Davante Adams had no receptions in the first three quarters. This was only the second time in his career that he went without a reception after three quarters in his nine seasons in the NFL. He finished the game with 2 receptions for 24 yards.

Next game: vs. Seahawks.

The Bears Fight to the End

After facing a seven-point deficit at the end of the game, Caleb Williams squeezed one more drop of magic in the final quarter when he found Cole Kmet in the corner of the north end zone at Soldier Field for a 14-yard touchdown and forced overtime. It was only the second overtime playoff game the Bears have played. But Chicago failed to score when their only overtime possession ended with Williams throwing an interception, his third of the game. The Rams sealed their trip to the NFC Championship with a 42-yard field goal on their next possession. The first season of coach Ben Johnson with the Bears was a resounding success despite the fact that Chicago did not reach the conference championship as the number 2 seed in the NFC. The Bears finished with 11 wins in the regular season and earned their first playoff win in 15 years when they beat the Green Bay Packers in the wild card round.

Quarterback Performance Analysis: Throughout the season, Williams has been able to put on his cape in the fourth quarter and lead the Bears to victory. But on Sunday, his superpowers ran out. Williams threw a miraculous touchdown pass with 18 seconds remaining, and the extra point forced overtime. But Williams’ struggles in the second half didn’t end in the fourth quarter. He completed only 10 of 23 passes (43%) in the second half/overtime with two interceptions. He finished 23 of 42 for 257 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. It was Williams’ second straight game with multiple interceptions after not having any games with multiple interceptions in the regular season. He posted a career-high 13 deflected passes last week against the Packers, then had nine more such throws in the loss to the Rams, including his interception in overtime.

Key Statistic: Colston Loveland’s 18-yard reception on the Bears’ final drive in the fourth quarter broke Sam LaPorta’s record for the most receiving yards by a rookie tight end in a single postseason since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger. Loveland had 193 receiving yards this postseason (LaPorta had 176 in 2023).

Most surprising performance: Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen pressured with sophisticated simulations and blitzes that made quarterback Matthew Stafford look unusually inaccurate (11 deflected passes). With C.J. Gardner-Johnson back from a concussion, Allen was able to use the full complement of Chicago’s defensive backs to pressure Stafford frequently, particularly out of ten-person packages, leading to three sacks. Overall, the Bears blitzed Stafford on 37% of his pass drops. He also finished 0-for-9 on play action.