INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams needed a playoff tune-up Sunday. What they got instead was a third-quarter deficit against the worst team in the NFC West.
The 16-year veteran responded by throwing three touchdown passes in the final 18 minutes, rallying the Rams to a 37-20 victory over Arizona that clinched the No. 5 seed in the NFC playoffs. Los Angeles will face Carolina on the road in next week’s wild-card round.
But the 12-5 Rams trailed 20-16 late in the third quarter after Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett engineered back-to-back scoring drives that silenced the 72,004 fans at SoFi Stadium. Arizona, losers of eight straight coming in, looked poised to pull off a shocking upset.
Stafford made sure that didn’t happen. He completed 25 of 40 passes for 259 yards and four touchdowns, capping a regular season in which he led the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns. The performance moved him past Dan Marino for seventh on the all-time touchdown passes list.
“It was what needed to happen,” Stafford said. “Kind of put our minds to it.”
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Fake Punt Sparks Cardinals
The Rams built a 16-6 halftime lead on the strength of an 18-play, 74-yard drive that ate nearly eight minutes. Puka Nacua capped it with a one-handed touchdown catch in the back of the end zone with 1:22 left in the half.
Arizona came out of the locker room and immediately put together its best sequence of the season. Facing third-and-26 from its own 11-yard line, punter Matt Haack threw a perfect spiral to running back Emari Demercado for 28 yards. On the next snap, Brissett hit Michael Wilson streaking down the left sideline for a 43-yard touchdown. The Rams’ lead was down to three.
Los Angeles went three-and-out. Arizona got the ball back and marched 76 yards in 10 plays, with Wilson gaining 20 yards on one catch and tight end Josiah Deguara hauling in a 7-yard touchdown pass with 3:51 remaining in the third. The Cardinals led 20-16.
The Rams had managed just 181 yards through three quarters and looked nothing like a team ready for the postseason.
Three Straight Scores Put Game Away
Stafford found tight end Colby Parkinson for a 21-yard touchdown 42 seconds before the end of the third quarter to give Los Angeles the lead back at 23-20. The Rams never trailed again.
Tyler Higbee, back after missing five weeks with an ankle injury, caught a 22-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth to push the lead to 10. Higbee finished with five catches for 91 yards in his return.
“We wouldn’t be in a lot of the great situations we’re in without him, but he’s capable of playing better,” Rams coach Sean McVay said of Stafford after the game.
Los Angeles closed it out with a 12-play, 81-yard drive that burned nearly seven minutes. Stafford hit Parkinson from 1 yard out with 4:15 left for his fourth touchdown pass.
Parkinson caught four passes for 36 yards and the two scores. Nacua led all receivers with 10 catches for 76 yards, giving him 120 for the season and moving him past Isaac Bruce into second place on the franchise’s single-season list.
| Player | Team | Completions | Yards | TD | INT | Sacks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthew Stafford | LAR | 25/40 | 259 | 4 | 0 | 1-7 |
| Jacoby Brissett | ARI | 22/31 | 243 | 2 | 1 | 6-33 |
Backfield Split Continues
Kyren Williams and Blake Corum both battled ankle injuries during the week but played and split carries almost evenly. Williams ran 12 times for 60 yards and caught three passes for 21 yards. Corum carried 13 times for 59 yards.
Williams closed the regular season with 1,252 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. He also hauled in a 13-yard scoring reception in the fourth quarter.
Cardinals Show Fight in Losing Effort
Wilson finished with five catches for 99 yards and the long touchdown, surpassing 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his career. Trey McBride caught seven passes for 65 yards, extending his NFL single-season record for tight ends to 126 receptions.
Brissett completed 22 of 31 passes for 243 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also got sacked six times for 33 yards in losses as the Rams’ pass rush took over late.
“Obviously came up a little short, but I’m pretty sure (the Rams) probably came in here and thought they were gonna roll us and get ready for the playoffs,” Brissett said. “And no, we gave them a run for their money.”
Desjuan Johnson led Los Angeles with two sacks. Jared Verse, Byron Young, Braden Fiske, and Josaiah Stewart each added one. Ahkello Witherspoon intercepted Brissett in the fourth quarter, and Kobie Turner recovered a fumble.
| Player | Team | Receptions | Yards | Long | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puka Nacua | LAR | 10 | 76 | 17 | 1 |
| Trey McBride | ARI | 7 | 65 | 29 | 0 |
| Michael Wilson | ARI | 5 | 99 | 43 | 1 |
| Tyler Higbee | LAR | 5 | 91 | 22 | 1 |
Looking Ahead
The Cardinals fell to 3-14, losing their ninth straight game and finishing with 14 losses for the first time since the franchise began in Chicago in 1920. Coach Jonathan Gannon dropped to 15-36 in three seasons.
“We’re gonna keep swinging, man,” Gannon said. “Everybody in there has been through tough times in their careers, and the main thing that I was happy about today was they maximized the last opportunity to play.”
The Rams snapped a two-game losing streak and will carry the 100th combined victory for the McVay-Les Snead partnership into the playoffs. Los Angeles has reached at least 12 wins three times under McVay. The previous two times ended with Super Bowl appearances.
For a team that spent most of Sunday afternoon looking sluggish against a three-win opponent, the Rams found the kind of fourth-quarter finish they’ll need if they plan on making another deep run. Whether that surge came early enough to matter is the question they’ll answer starting next weekend in Carolina.
