The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Minnesota Vikings 27-9 on Monday evening to cap off the NFL’s wild card round. Quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t dominate the stat sheet, but did what was necessary to lead the Rams to victory. He tossed a pair of touchdown passes in the first half to give his team a 24-3 edge at the break.
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Stafford to Davis Allen! Rams lead 24-3!
: #MINvsLAR on ESPN/ABC
: Stream on @NFLPlus and ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/o4U1o08Jxu— NFL (@NFL) January 14, 2025
Stafford spoke with ESPN’s Lisa Salters following the win. He applauded his team’s resiliency and expressed pride in their ability to overcome a 1-4 start to advance in the postseason. Then, he shifted focus to the wildfires raging in Los Angeles. He told Salters the Rams were battling for a cause greater than themselves.
“We knew what we were playing for today… For the people of Los Angeles.” – Matthew Stafford
(via @ESPN) pic.twitter.com/Us4ljrxvFn
— NFL (@NFL) January 14, 2025
Tonight’s game was supposed to take place in Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium. However, the NFL moved the contest to State Farm Stadium – home of the Arizona Cardinals – because of the aforementioned fires. Stafford discussed the troubles the Rams experienced while preparing for the playoffs.
“We were living it every day. It was a tough week for us, a bunch of moving parts. Our organization did a hell of a job taking care of us.”
Head coach Sean McVay and Co. will continue their postseason journey next weekend against the Philadelphia Eagles. Los Angeles opened as a 5.5-point underdog to Philadelphia on FanDuel Sportsbook. The Rams were three-point underdogs to the Vikings tonight, so they won’t be phased when they line up across from the Eagles. Their matchup kicks off Sunday, Jan. 19 at 3:00 p.m. E.T. on NBC.
