Fourth-seeded Rams show their hand, intended ethos before leap into postseason

Jourdan Rodrigue

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6040066/2025/01/05/rams-playoffs-fourth-seed-matchup-sean-mcvay/

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — By the time you read this column, filed in the first half of the “Sunday Night Football” game between the Detroit Lions and the Minnesota Vikings, you will know who the No. 4 seeded Los Angeles Rams will host in the wild-card round next week at 5 p.m. PT on Monday night.

Here’s where we’ll put that information, when it’s available: (Minnesota Vikings).

For Rams head coach Sean McVay, it didn’t seem to matter.

He made as much evident through his decisions leading up to the Rams’ Week 18 game, a 30-25 loss to Seattle which by kickoff held meaning only toward playoff seed (and in turn, opponent). At the very least, McVay made his real priority clear: to rest older players (Cooper Kupp and Matthew Stafford), or banged-up players (Kupp, Stafford, left and right tackles Alaric Jackson and Rob Havenstein), or players such as Kevin Dotson, Kyren Williams and Puka Nacua who will take on a significant workload into the postseason. None of them played Sunday, and a bevy of defensive players rotated frequently or didn’t get active snaps in order to keep starters on a pitch count.

If that wasn’t enough of a clue, McVay doubled down postgame. A veteran columnist noted, “from your words and your actions — you really don’t care who you play in the first round, do you?”

“No. I don’t,” McVay said. “You know what is at stake, and you have tremendous respect, but I’m excited about seeing who that is. Then we’re gonna dive into it, and we’re gonna go for it with no fear.”

If McVay believes what he says, the players do too.

“I think the vibe and the feel around this team is we all didn’t care who it was,” said tight end Tyler Higbee, who had a 6-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. “It didn’t matter. We got in the dance — no matter if we were playing the No. 1 seed, the No. 2 seed, No. 3 seed, seventh seed. I don’t think it mattered. I think we’re ready to go. We’re in the dance and it doesn’t matter who we got. We’ll figure it out (and) we’re ready to go.”

The Commanders, though less formidable on paper than the NFC North heavyweights that duked it out Sunday night, feature a lightning strike of a rookie quarterback in Jayden Daniels, who is as dangerous a passer as he is a runner. The Rams’ young defense, while improved over the weeks and months of the season, has not been able to stop a mobile quarterback all season. That could be another week’s problem, though it’s hard to think too far into the future right as the postseason begins. Los Angeles is 1-1 against the Lions and the Vikings this year, after a 26-20 overtime loss in Detroit in Week 1 and a 30-20 “Thursday Night Football” win while hosting Minnesota in Week 8. The team the Rams draw will have 14 regular-season wins.

Both are more familiar opponents than Washington (who the Rams would have played if they won Sunday), but McVay declined to say that the data already logged for either the Lions or the Vikings mattered.

“We still played them so early,” McVay said. “… There’s just a little bit of familiarity. But they have the same thing with us. So much changes as the season goes. You still try to stay abreast of what is going on relative to what (they are) doing in the different phases (and) having your eyes on those possible matchups that could occur.

“Our guys have really gotten ahead for the different possibilities that could occur, and that preparation will start as soon as that game ends when we have clarity on which direction we’re going in terms of who is gonna come in here.”

No, nobody would say outright who they wanted to play, but both matchups are emotionally loaded.

Minnesota is led by former offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell, a Coach of the Year candidate, and former tight ends coach Wes Phillips is his offensive coordinator. Cam Akers, now a Vikings running back, used to be the lead back in Los Angeles before the emergence of Williams led to his casting off by the team. Don’t forget about former Rams tight end Johnny Mundt, now a role player in Minnesota, nor former sports science head Tyler Williams who was poached by O’Connell and whose absence was certainly felt by the Rams during the 2022 season. The Vikings are on a franchise-unprecedented joyride behind reawakened quarterback Sam Darnold and a tenacious top defense under coordinator Brian Flores.

Meanwhile, the Lions — led by another Rams castoff, quarterback Jared Goff, exchanged in a win-win trade for Stafford in 2021 (come on, you know this story) — have had the Rams’ number in the last two contests. Former L.A. executive Brad Holmes orchestrated that trade with former boss Les Snead. Last year’s wild-card loss at their hands, during which Higbee was lost for months after safety Kerby Joseph’s low hit tore his ACL and MCL, was brutal. So was the overtime loss, during which the Rams defense was slowly suffocated by coordinator Ben Johnson’s rushing attack in the extra period. Both losses, both in the last calendar year, were in Detroit — also led by a Coach of the Year candidate in Dan Campbell.

The Rams say they don’t care who comes to SoFi Stadium on Monday night.

But either way, the viewers may get a game so jam-packed with meaning, we won’t soon forget it.

“I believe in our team …” said McVay. “We respect all, but we fear none. These are excellent football teams. There’s a reason why they are sitting here and they are playing for the No. 1 seed tonight, and for a 15-2 record and a 14-3 record to whoever comes up short. It’s going to be a great challenge.

“But I do know this: We’ve been fortunate enough to get into this thing. You can’t worry about duckin’ people if you want to be able to try to advance. You really expect to try to be able to make some noise when you get in it. You’re going to have to play people eventually. So felt like (resting starters) was the smart move for our football team. And really, we had an opportunity to come away with the win. We know it’s going to be a great football team coming in here (and) we’re excited about the challenge. That’s what you love.”

Sarah Barshop@sarahbarshop
The Vikings are 14-1 against teams that are not the Lions. Their first playoff game will be against the only other team they lost to this season.

Rams OLB Jared Verse selected to 2025 Pro Bowl https://t.co/bRI6HztrBX

— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) January 2, 2025