The Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams are scheduled to play in the NFC wild-card round of the playoffs, and it doesn’t get much better than this: it will be the team’s first-ever home playoff game at Ford Field.
The team that was on the other side of the franchise-altering trade that sent Jared Goff and a ton of picks to Detroit in exchange for former franchise quarterback Matthew Stafford, who went on to win a Super Bowl, is standing in the way of the Lions’ quest to win their first postseason game since January 5, 1992.
After being hailed as the man to get it done for the Lions and falling short three times in the playoffs, Detroit now must get through Stafford and the Rams to break the longest active streak of 32 years without a playoff win. This is the first matchup between the two teams in Detroit since the blockbuster trade, and the second game overall between the two squads, and the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Rams season so far
The Rams are back in the playoff fold after finishing the 2022 season 5-12 and sending over the No. 6 pick in the 2023 draft to Detroit, which turned into Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta after a trade. L.A. purged plenty of the veterans on the roster from the Super Bowl team two years ago and embraced youth for this season. The change resulted in a resurgence to a 10-7 record, good enough for a spot in the playoffs.
After starting the season 3-3, the Rams lost three straight games against teams who were headed to the playoffs: the Packers, Steelers, and Cowboys. As a result, they had a 3-6 record going into their Week 10 bye. The Rams won six of their next seven games following the bye, losing only in overtime to the Baltimore Ravens, the AFC’s top seed.
Rams offense breakdown
After starting the season 3-3, the Rams lost three straight games against teams who were headed to the playoffs: the Packers, Steelers, and Cowboys. As a result, they had a 3-6 record going into their Week 10 bye. The Rams won six of their next seven games following the bye, losing only in overtime to the Baltimore Ravens, the AFC’s top seed.
Rams defensive Woes
The Rams’ defense, which is still led by future Hall-of-Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald, has not been as strong as its top-ranked offense but has improved since 2022 after bringing in youth at all three levels of the defense.
As a double-team drawing force in the center of the line, Donald recorded eight sacks and 26 total tackles in 16 games, freeing up rookies Byron Young and Kobie Turner, who were the top two rookies in the NFL entering Week 18 in terms of sacks recorded.
Match Outcome
The matchup between the Lions and Stafford seems to have been predetermined ever since the pivotal transaction that turned Los Angeles into Super Bowl winners and sent Detroit into a complete rebuilding project that produced the finest team the franchise has had since its last postseason victory in 1992. The first-ever home playoff game at Ford Field will have fans going bonkers, and Dan Campbell will have the team pumped up to make sure the Lions don’t blow their greatest opportunity to advance to the divisional round in thirty years. But Stafford and the Rams offense will match the Lions’ elite offensive point for point, answering each blow with a reliable and lethal passing game. As usual, Campbell will take proactive action to keep his best team on the field when it matters most and keep Stafford off the field rather than pulling off the kind of comeback he was known for during his 12 seasons in Detroit. Lions 34, Rams 31 is my pick.
