What games to follow for the Rams playoff hopes
The Los Angeles Rams are one game behind the lead for the NFC West and the last wild card spot in the NFC. Who should the fans be rooting against on Sunday?
The Seattle Seahawks play the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football. A win by the Packers would put the Rams in first place in the division and the three-seed in the NFC playoffs. The Packers have a better record than any team that Seattle has defeated all season and the Seahawks have only beaten one winning team (Broncos in Week 1) this year.
But a Seahawks win would also open the door to a second wild card spot.
The Rams can also compete for a wild card and there are two games of interest in that regard, including Sunday Night Football:
If the Seahawks win, then Green Bay falls to 9-5 and the Packers would be one game ahead of L.A. for the second wild card.
The Washington Commanders hold the final wild card at 8-5. The Commanders lead the Saints 7-0 in the second quarter of their game on Sunday morning.
If the Commanders lose, they will fall to 8-6 and although they will still hold the lead over the Rams because of conference record, it gives L.A. hope that they can overtake Washington next week; the Commanders play the Eagles, Falcons, and Cowboys to close out their season.
The Packers beat the Rams in Week 5, so the Rams would need to overtake Green Bay by a game in order to take the lead unless there was a three-way tie for two wild card spots. Then head-to-head may not matter. The Packers play the Saints, Vikings, and Bears to close out the season after Seattle.
Rooting Guide:
- Root for the Seahawks to LOSE
- Root for the Commanders to LOSE
- If the Seahawks win, root for the Packers (and Seahawks) to LOSE next week
- Root for Bucs to LOSE to Chargers
The Rams currently hold a one-game lead over the 6-7 Falcons and 6-7 Cardinals, so it would behoove L.A. for those teams to pick up another loss and continue to fall behind. The Falcons are one game behind the Bucs for the NFC South lead, so if the Bucs lose and the Falcons win, the NFC South becomes a tie again. Either way, the more losses for the winner of the NFC South, the more guaranteed the Rams will be to get the 3 seed IF they win the NFC West.
That matters not only for the first round, but the second round if the Rams get that far. The Rams want to try and avoid the number one seed as long as possible and it leaves an opening for the 3-seed to potentially host a division round game.