With their win against the New York Giants and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ win over the Seattle Seahawks the Los Angeles Rams have officially made the 2023 playoffs.
At the beginning of the season, the Rams over/under win total this season started at 6.5. They surpassed that in Week 15 picking up their seventh win of the season. Now they have their ninth win of the season which ensures that Sean McVay will lock in his sixth winning season and his fifth trip to the playoffs in his seven years of coaching. Some talking heads thought the Rams were more likely to get the number one pick than make the playoffs.
Now the Rams head to San Francisco to decide their final seeding for the postseason.
Los Angeles Rams Playoff Seeding Scenarios
The Los Angeles Rams currently sit in the sixth spot and in all probability that’s where they will stay. Assuming the Rams beat the San Francisco 49ers
But here is the breakdown: The Rams currently own tiebreakers over most of the teams in the hunt. They have head-to-head advantages over the New Orleans Saints and Seahawks. And have better divisional records than the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Green Bay Packers hold a head-to-head advantage over the Rams.
The 49ers locked up the Bye Week, so it is assumed that they will rest much of their key pieces. And the Saints and Bucs are the only other team that can get to 10 wins. The Rams hold tiebreakers over both.
So the Packers are likely the only team that could unseat the Rams from #6. But they have to win out and need the Bucs and Saints losses.
But six is as high as the Rams can go. The Philadelphia Eagles or the Dallas Cowboys have the fifth seed locked up.
This Sets Up Rams vs Lions Wildcard Playoff Game
Jared Goff vs Sean McVay. Matthew Stafford vs His 12-Season Home. That part writes itself. But beyond the ties that bind the storyline only thickens. The Rams have the 5th best offense by DVOA. The Lions? The 6th best. The Rams are 6th in passing DVOA and 7th in rushing DVOA. The Lions are 9th and 4th.
On the other side of the ball, both defenses have done just enough to keep their teams competitive. They are stout against the run, allowing a rushing success rate of just 36 percent. But the Rams and Lions allow the 23rd and 24th most passing yards per game.
If styles make fights, this game is the Spiderman meme of football games.
