ClutchPoints
The Los Angeles Rams suffered a truly painful loss in the NFC Championship on Sunday. Los Angeles lost a thrilling 31-27 matchup against Seattle, paving the way for their division rival to represent the NFC in Super Bowl 60. Now the Rams are left wondering what could have been after a truly special regular season.
Rams QB Matthew Stafford played at an MVP level in 2025, arguably having the best season of his 17-year career.
The 37-year-old quarterback immediately faced questions about retirement after the game. Those questions echo anxiety among Rams fans about 2025 potentially being the final season of the Stafford era.
Understandably, Stafford did not feel like talking about the future during his postgame remarks.
“I can’t generalize six months of my life ten minutes after a loss,” Stafford said after the game. “Appreciate the guys in this locker room whole hell of a lot. Everybody that helped me, and helped our team be as successful as we were this year and that’s all I’ll answer for you.”
Now that the season is over, the Rams need to figure out what went wrong. The answers to those questions will help guide them during the upcoming offseason and, hopefully, get them back to the conference championship next year.
But who deserves the most blame for Sunday’s crushing defeat? And how will the Rams respond during the offseason?
Below we will explore who is most to blame for LA’s devastating NFC Championship loss against Seattle.
We have to start at the top with Sean McVay.
McVay made a few questionable choices throughout the game that made it look like he was one step behind Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald.
The first came at the end of the first half. Los Angeles got the ball while up 13-10 with under two minute left in the half.
The Rams ran the ball on first down but passed on both second and third downs. When they punted on fourth down, they had only run 30 seconds off the clock. McVay should have ran the ball on second down, ensuring that LA got the last crack at scoring in the half.
As a result, the Seahawks had enough time for a six-play, 74-yard touchdown drive to gain the lead before halftime.
McVay also should have gone for a two-point conversion after Puka Nacua’s incredible touchdown in the third quarter. That would have made it a three-point game, which would have completely changed the stakes for Stafford during the entire fourth quarter.
I will give McVay credit for restraining himself and not challenging Cooper Kupp’s first down on Seattle’s last offensive possession. He clearly wanted to challenge, but it was smart to save a timeout.
The Rams must be missing John Streicher, who was their game management coordinator in 2024. He left to join Mike Vrabel’s staff in New England this offseason.
Special teams mistakes came back to bite the Rams once again ----------------------------------------------------------------...
