SEATTLE — After 15 weeks and ultimately 67 minutes spent neck-and-neck on Thursday night, the fate of the NFC West came down to a two-point play in overtime. Hold, and the Rams would have the inside track to the top seed for the NFC playoffs. Fail, and the Seahawks would take control of the conference and the division.
Sam Darnold’s throw just cleared Kobie Turner’s fingers. Tight end Eric Saubert slipped open and caught the ball in the end zone to secure a 38-37 Seattle victory.
With the loss, the Rams (11-4) fall behind Seattle (12-3) in the division standings with two weeks left in the regular season and stare down the possibility of opening the playoffs on the road.
“This one’s a tough one right there,” head coach Sean McVay said.
The Rams might not have needed overtime if not for an unusual call in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks had just driven to cut the Rams’ eight-point lead to two with Darnold’s 26-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Barner.
But it appeared the Rams had stopped the Seahawks’ comeback just short. Sam Darnold’s screen pass to Zach Charbonnet bounced off the helmet of Jared Verse and into the navy painted turf in end zone.
But after a review as the Seahawks and Rams waited on the field for a kickoff, it was determined that Darnold’s pass had traveled backward before hitting Verse. By picking up the ball in the end zone, Charbonnet had tied the score without even knowing it.
“I’ve never quite seen anything like what happened on the two-point conversion,” McVay said. “Didn’t get a clear explanation of everything that went on just because of the timing of it.”
“I just want to know that rule,” quarterback Matthew Stafford added. “Because I thought on plays like that – two-minute plays or two-point plays, inside of two minutes and stuff – I didn’t think you were allowed to advance a fumble.”
With receiver Davante Adams (hamstring) sidelined, the Rams struggled early in the red zone. They had been one of the best teams in the NFL in that department with the man-beating Adams leading the charge.
But the Rams settled for field goals on three of their first four trips inside the Seattle 20-yard line on Thursday. On one, a touchdown to Terrance Ferguson was overturned because guard Justin Dedich – in after an ankle injury to Kevin Dotson – was called for an ineligible man downfield penalty. On another, the Rams tried to use their aggression on previous fourth downs to draw Seattle offsides, only to settle for a Harrison Mevis field goal.
Ferguson did eventually get a 3-yard touchdown as an inside motion by Puka Nacua froze the defense and allowed Ferguson to get open in the flat. He performed a finger roll in honor of the layup score that gave the Rams their first lead of the game, 13-7.
Despite the early issues in the red zone, the Rams moved the ball well. Quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 29 of 49 pass attempts for 457 yards, peppering balls to Konata Mumpfield, Xavier Smith, Davis Allen and Nacua. The Rams dominated time of possession 40:33-26:14 and total yards 581-415.
Much of that production came on the ground to the tune of 124 yards. And Nacua – who caused controversy this week for critical comments about officiating on a livestream, then doubled down on the criticism after the game by posting on X, “Appreciate you stripes for your contribution” – added 225 yards on 12 catches, including gains of 54 and 58 yards and a 1-yard touchdown to give the Rams a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter.
With the way the Rams’ defense had played aside from a couple of explosives, it seemed like that should be a safe lead. Darnold, who threw four interceptions against the Rams in a 21-19 loss last month at SoFi Stadium, looked like his uncomfortable self against the Rams’ pass rush. A Josh Wallace interception and 56-yard return had set up a 1-yard Blake Corum touchdown earlier. The 297-pound Turner, dropping in coverage in the red zone, picked off another.
That gave the Rams the ball back with their 16-point advantage. But the offense went three-and-out on three straight possessions. That left room for Rashid Shaheed to return a punt 58 yards for a touchdown and Darnold (USC, San Clemente High) to find Barner for a TD and the controversial two-point conversion.
But the two teams traded punts for the rest of the fourth quarter. The one exception was a 48-yard field goal attempt by Mevis, who suffered his first miss of the season fluttering wide right. So the two teams went to overtime.
Stafford hung in the pocket, waiting for the right moment to deliver what he hoped would be the kill blow. He found Nacua crossing the middle of the field, and by the time Nacua made the catch, there was no one between him and the end zone for a 41-yard strike.
But the Rams’ defense could not come up the necessary stop as Darnold found Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the back of the end zone for a 4-yard TD, leaving the team with a more difficult road for their ultimate goals.
“We just went down swinging,” Turner said. “We beat them once, they beat us once. We’ll see them again. At the end of the day we’re in the big dance, that’s what counts, that’s what matters. I don’t care where we’re at, I don’t care if it’s freezing cold, snow, rain, or I don’t care if we’re back at home, SoFi. I’m counting on my guys.”