The Rams are now locked into a wild-card berth
When the Los Angeles Rams take the field on Monday night against the Atlanta Falcons, they won’t have much to play for. They’ve tumbled down the NFC standings in the last 10 days, all because of their loss to the Seattle Seahawks – a game they led by 16 points in the fourth quarter.
With the Seahawks beating the Panthers and the 49ers beating the Bears on Sunday, the Rams have now been eliminated from NFC West contention before even playing in Week 17. The division will come down to next week’s 49ers-Seahawks game, which will be played at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday night.
If the Rams win their next two games, they will be the No. 5 seed no matter what happens in 49ers-Seahawks. If they lose one of their next two, they will fall to No. 6 in the conference and likely have to travel to Philadelphia in the opening round of the playoffs.
Here’s a look at the current NFC standings ahead of Monday Night Football.
- Seahawks: 13-3 (NFC West)
- Bears: 11-5 (NFC North)
- Eagles: 11-5 (NFC East)
- Panthers: 8-8 (NFC South)
- 49ers: 12-4 (WC)
- Rams: 11-4 (WC)
- Packers: 9-6-1 (WC)
- Buccaneers: 7-9
The Rams can’t completely lie down in their final two games, but it’s reasonable to think they’ll rest their starters in the season finale, knowing they’ll be the No. 5 or 6 seed no matter what. Sean McVay has shown a preference to rest his players instead of fighting for playoff seeding, taking that approach in each of the last two seasons.
First, they have to take care of business against the Falcons.
