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 and stare down the possibility of opening the playoffs on the road.
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 and Davis Allen. 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 added 225 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. QB Sam Darnold looked like his uncomfortable self against the pass rush A Josh Wallace interception and 56-yard return had set up a 1-yard Blake Corum touchdown earlier. 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 to find A.J. Barner for a 26-yard score.
But appeared the Rams had stopped the Seattle Seahawks’ comeback just short. 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, 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.
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.
Matthew Stafford might have gone into the blue injury tent after a couple of tough blows from an energized Seattle defense. He might have needed some attention from the medical staff in the fourth quarter.
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.
But the Rams’ defense could not come up the necessary stop.
More to come on this story.