Outside of the San Francisco 49ers, the team nobody should want to face in the NFC playoffs is not the Philadelphia Eagles or Dallas Cowboys, but the Los Angeles Rams. That's right, the previously 3-6 Rams are now 8-7 having won five of their last six games this season, including their latest victory over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football. If the season ended today, they'd have the sixth seed and be in the playoffs.

Normally an 8-7 team is far from the most intimidating threat in the playoffs, but if any wildcard team is capable of pulling off upsets and advancing deep into the playoffs, it's the Rams. With experienced veterans like Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp combined with a young core including Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams, the Rams have both the experience and talent to compete with anyone.

Make no mistake, the Rams returning to playoff contention starts with Matthew Stafford. Since he was drafted first overall back in 2009, Stafford has been one of the NFL's most physically gifted passers. While this did not always translate into wins back with the Detroit Lions, Stafford was often one of the few players keeping Detroit in games and in contention for the NFC wildcard race.

As a passer, Stafford has frequently put up some of the largest numbers across the NFL. During the prime of his time with Detroit, Stafford had seven consecutive seasons with at least 4,000 passing yards. His peak season in terms of stats came back in 2011, when he became just the fourth quarterback in NFL history to eclipse 5,000 passing yards while also throwing for 41 touchdowns. Since that season, he set numerous NFL records as the fastest player to reach notable passing marks like 30,000, 40,000 and 50,000 passing yards.

On top of regularly putting up huge numbers, Matthew Stafford established himself as one of the more clutch quarterbacks. Stafford is tied for the NFL record for most fourth quarter comebacks in a season with eight back in 2016. That year, the Lions advanced to the playoffs, but lost in the wildcard round.

Stafford was finally able to put his clutch abilities to work again when he joined the Rams in 2021. Teaming up with Sean McVay and a roster full of stars and top signings, Stafford led his team to a 12-5 record with and NFC West crown. In the playoffs, Stafford and the Rams advanced to the Conference Championship Game, where they were trailing 17-7 to the San Francisco 49ers. Stafford overcame the deficit with three scoring drives in the fourth quarter and a 13-0 run that gave the Rams a 20-17 win and a trip to the Super Bowl. Two weeks later, Stafford won his first ring.

The Super Bowl hangover hit the Rams the following year. Due to a concussion and spinal cord contusion, Stafford only played in nine games during the 2022 season, going 3-6. Coming back into the 2023 season, the Rams were largely overlooked. Stafford was coming off of an injury and they were overhauling a roster. Los Angeles started the year off solid, but a midseason slump had them looking at what seemed to be another lost season. However, the Rams recent hot streak has them looking ready for another postseason run. Most importantly, Stafford is on fire.

Matthew Stafford has thrown multiple touchdown passes in each of the past five games, while completing over 70% of his passes in the last two. He's also avoided throwing any interceptions over the past four games. Stafford has always been a good quarterbacks, but his occasional tendencies for turnovers has cost his team in the past. With Stafford now putting up numbers and playing efficiently, he and the Rams have returned to 2021 form.

They've shown this as they've beat playoff contenders like the Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks and Saints, and went toe-to-toe in a narrow overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens. They're gritty, battle-tested and most importantly have one of the NFL's best quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford. Beware of the Rams come January.