If you ask most Seahawks fans who they’d least like to play in the NFC Championship game, most would say the LA Rams.
That’s the right answer for a couple of key reasons.
The Seahawks finished the regular season as the #1 team in the NFL per DVOA. The Rams ranked #2. The Bears, on the other hand, were back in 16th.
It’s stating the obvious that #1 vs #16 is better than #1 vs #2.
The other reason is what happened in week 16. The Rams for three quarters were better than the Seahawks. It took a near miraculous set of events to get the game to overtime and credit to Sam Darnold and the offense, they delivered with the game on the line.
It’s still a fact though that the Rams had 581 yards of offense and scored 37 points. They won the turnover battle 3-0. They should’ve won.
A third game doesn’t necessarily have to repeat what happened there — but these two teams are not massively different than they were on December 18th.
The Rams had a bit of a wobble after that game, losing to the Falcons and toiling against the Cardinals and Panthers. Yet if they win in Chicago to claim back-to-back road playoff wins, it’d be safe to assume they’d overcome that wobble and would’ve regained momentum.
Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua connected for 12 catches, 225 yards and a pair of touchdowns at Lumen Field last time. Nacua would fill the nightmares of fans all week if it’s LA coming to Seattle next Sunday.
Stafford, even with a bad finger, is a real threat. He’s spent a career playing hurt and is probably the best in the business at dealing with it. Sean McVay is clearly capable of testing Mike Macdonald in a way Kyle Shanahan hasn’t shown so far.
The Seahawks played the 49ers in week 18 and dominated. The score was only 13-3 because they failed to finish drives and put points on the board. A fortnight later they made amends to score 41. Is there a danger the Rams, if given the opportunity, would course-correct enough to finish the job in the NFC Championship, having blown that week 16 contest?
People often say you have to beat the best to be the best. I don’t agree. The path of least resistance is always superior — and such a path is possible in the NFL this year. I don’t want to see the best two teams in the playoffs play each other next week. I want the Bears to knock the Rams out.
That isn’t taking Chicago lightly either. They have a ton of weapons and a brilliant offensive mind leading them. Caleb Williams’ mobility and improv could be the perfect antidote to Seattle’s D-line physicality. Get him on the move, have him play backyard football early. Try to rip-up Seattle’s script and make the most of an arsenal of weapons. Make the Seahawks chase the game and get out of their comfort zone.
The Bears are capable of beating anyone.
Their defense however is susceptible and relies on turnovers. They have been opportunistic and I’m not sure over four quarters the Seahawks are going to do what the Packers, Bengals and Giants did this season and throw games away.
Some will use bravado and suggest they don’t care who the Seahawks face. That’s fine — I’m sure in most cases it comes from a place of honesty.
This is the truth though — the Rams are at least the second best team in the playoffs. Watching someone else beat them so you don’t have to try and do it simply increases the odds of the Seahawks reaching the Super Bowl — even if they’d still face a big challenge against Chicago.
