Vikings-Rams on Wild Card Weekend Monday: What We Learned from Los Angeles' 27-9 win 

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• REWATCH: Vikings-Rams on NFL+ Premium
• READ: Stafford on L.A.'s win during wildfire disaster: 'We knew we weren't just playing for us'
• READ: Darnold on season-ending loss: I haven't played well the last two weeks
• READ: Rams' defense smothers Vikings with nine-sack performance

1. Rams defense dominates Vikings' high-powered offense. Minnesota entered Monday night's game with the NFL's sixth-ranked passing offense, ninth-ranked scoring offense and an elite receiving duo in Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. They finished with 163 passing yards, 6 for 17 on third down and just nine points. Los Angeles devised a masterful defensive game plan for their rematch with the Vikings, restricting Sam Darnold with man coverage (he finished 4 for 12 for 64 yards, one touchdown and one interception against man coverage) and confounding him with a variety of pressures generated by their excellent defensive front and defensive backs. Eight Rams registered at least half a sack on Monday night, and two of those were recorded by defensive backs. With the secondary complicating the picture for Darnold, Rams rushers were free to chase down the uncertain quarterback, forcing two turnovers in the process. The second -- a fumble forced by Ahkello Witherspoon and recovered by rookie Pro Bowler Jared Verse, who returned it for a touchdown -- felt like a decisive blow, even if it occurred in the first half. As we eventually learned, Minnesota lacked the capability to overcome defensive coordinator Chris Shula's plans, which worked to near perfection and produced a statement win for the Rams, who added two more turnovers to their plus-eight margin since their bye week and recorded their 10th win in 13 games.
2. Minnesota's magical season ends with a thud. The Vikings won 14 games in 2024 with a beautiful blend of explosive offense and a hyper-aggressive, opportunistic defense that combined to produce one of the NFL's top contenders in the regular season. They looked nothing like that club Monday night. Save for a touchdown drive in the third quarter, the Vikings' offense never found much of a rhythm in this game, scoring just nine points for a second straight game and falling short of expectations in the playoffs for a second time under coach Kevin O'Connell. Their defense -- which ranked in the top five in takeaways and sacks -- failed to limit the Rams' offense in the first half, allowing Los Angeles to carve them up on an emphatic opening scoring drive and move quickly on a short field to produce another touchdown just before halftime, taking a 24-3 lead into the break. Minnesota's defense was able to prevent the Rams from extending their lead significantly in the second half, but even after forcing three straight punts between the third and fourth quarters, the Minnesota offense continued to flounder. In total, it was an incredibly disappointing showing from a team many considered to be one of the NFC's heavyweights entering the postseason, and will produce a fair share of criticism as the Vikings now trudge into the offseason with little to show for their efforts outside of a wild-card berth.
3. Darnold caps rough two-game stretch to finish season. Entering Week 18, most everyone spent as much time talking about Sam Darnold's rising value on the open market as they did discussing the Lions-Vikings game to decide the NFC North and the winner of the NFC's top seed. Eight days later, Darnold's stock entered freefall. After producing a clunker of a game in Minnesota's loss to Detroit, he found the going to be even more difficult Monday night in Arizona. As he'd done for most of 2024, Darnold held on to the ball longer than the 2.5-second benchmark for a quarterback's internal clock. Instead of leading to big plays, it spelled doom for him and the Vikings. Darnold reverted to the form the NFL had come to know from his days with the Jets and Panthers, crumbling amid the pressure of a relentless Rams defense that refused to let receivers run free and was happy to hunt the hesitant quarterback. The totals were triumphant for the Rams and damning for Darnold, who finished 25 of 40 for 245 yards, one touchdown, one interception, one lost fumble and nine sacks taken. The tape was much, much worse than those numbers. Minnesota's offense lacked fight all night and essentially conceded defeat in the final six minutes of the game, taking time between plays without ever threatening the Rams' lead. Darnold, meanwhile, left the field wearing a bewildered expression, lost for answers on a night that significantly tarnished the goodwill he'd built up over the career year that was 2024. It was only two games, but they were the biggest contests of the year and Darnold flopped in both of them. It will be difficult to make a case for Minnesota spending to keep him in 2025.
4. Stafford breaks slump in big win. Matthew Stafford entered Wild Card Weekend coming off three straight games with less than 200 passing yards. His Rams had won all three games, but he'd thrown only one passing touchdown since Week 15, entering a steep decline from a red-hot run of 10 touchdown passes for Weeks 11-14. Some wondered whether Stafford had lost his touch and was nearing the end of his Rams career, but the veteran quarterback ignored those concerns, besting his passing average from the aforementioned three games (153 yards per game) with 154 yards in just the first half. He tossed two sharp touchdown passes, throwing across his body to Kyren Williams for the first score and firing a bullet to tight end Davis Allen for their second offensive touchdown before the break. With a considerable lead in hand, the Rams shifted to a run-first approach in the final two quarters, but Stafford had already accomplished enough and proven his point, executing Sean McVay's game plan excellently and powering his team to victory. Those who worried about his capability will be much quieter after this showing, even if he only needed to do most of his work in the first two quarters.
5. Rams play inspired ball, roll to meaningful victory. If the location of the game and pregame performances didn't make it clear enough, we quickly learned the Rams were playing for more than just a chance to advance to the Divisional Round. From the first possession, Los Angeles was off and running, covering 70 yards in seven plays -- including a successful baiting of the Vikings on fourth-and-1 to earn a first down -- and capping that drive with a Stafford touchdown pass to Williams. By halftime, the Rams had sprinted out to a 24-3 lead by playing complementary football, proving to be the hungrier team. In what was supposed to be a home game at Los Angeles' SoFi Stadium but was moved due to raging wildfires in Southern California, the crowd at State Farm Stadium appeared to be close to a 50-50 split between Rams and Vikings fans, creating a college football bowl-like environment in suburban Phoenix. None of that mattered to the Rams, who took control of this game from the outset and never let it slip from their grasp. When Braden Fiske teamed up with Mike Hoecht to sack Darnold in the fourth quarter, he made an interlocking "LA" with his fingers. It wasn't just because he'd made a key play, but a sign the city they call home was in their hearts all night. They played like it and will head to Philadelphia next week with the same goal in mind: Win for their city.

Next Gen Stats Insight from Vikings-Rams (via NFL Pro): Jared Verse reached a top speed of 19.88 miles per hour on his fumble recovery and return for a touchdown, the fastest speed recorded by a 260-plus-pound ball carrier over the last seven seasons.

NFL Research: After recording a 106.4 passer rating in Weeks 1-17, Sam Darnold posted a rating of just 66.4 over his last two games, both losses for the Vikings.