The Los Angeles Rams wreaked havoc on the Minnesota Vikings’s offense in the Wild Card round, tying the postseason record with nine sacks in a dominant victory. Now the Rams are preparing for their next challenge, attempting to contain a Philadelphia Eagles’ offense led by running back Saquon Barkley.

LA’s GM Les Snead was asked how the Rams plan to control the league’s leading rusher when the teams meet on Sunday. “I don’t know if anyone slowed him down this year except maybe in Week 18 when he decided he wasn’t going to try to break the record,” Snead admitted per Jim Rome on X.

“At the end of the day it’s really going to take…our front four, our front five, our front seven… they're gonna really have to take it to their OL, at least go toe-to-toe with that OL, try to clog that thing up. Because, here’s what I do know, if you give Saquon a hole… all the sudden you’ll be seeing ‘Barkley’ with his number… chasing him,” Snead said.

“But I think if you can somehow go toe-to-toe with that group, be as physical as they are, clog it up… it slows him down a little bit where maybe our group can come wrangle him and tackle him and get him into third downs and get him off the field,” Snead added.

The Rams have already experienced Barkley’s ability to take over a game this season. The veteran back set a franchise record with 255 rushing yards against Los Angeles in Week 12. All told, Barkley racked up 302 total yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles' 37-20 win over the Rams.

Can the Rams slow down Eagles’ RB Saquon Barkley?

Jan 12, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) rushes the ball past Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney (29) during the first half in an NFC wild card game at Lincoln Financial Field.
Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

While head coach Sean McVay feels the team learned from the loss to Philly, stopping the league’s leading rusher is easier said than done. Barkley had a brilliant debut season with the Eagles. The All-Pro RB had an NFL-high 2,005 rushing yards on 345 carries. He added 33 receptions for 278 yards with 15 total touchdowns in one of the most dominant performances by a running back in football history.

As Snead alluded to, Barkley had a shot at breaking Eric Dickerson’s long standing single-season rushing record. The Eagles’ back was a mere 101 yards shy of setting the record but the team opted to rest him in the season finale.

After getting blown out by Philadelphia in Week 12, the Rams turned their season around, winning five straight games to clinch the NFC West and reach the playoffs. LA recognizes how dangerous the Eagles are and the team hopes to be better prepared for Philly’s explosive offense during the Divisional round clash.

While the Eagles earned the second seed in the conference with another dominant season, the Rams appear to be coming together as a team at the right time. With LA’s young defense playing well and Matthew Stafford leading an efficient scoring offense, the Rams are legit contenders for the title as well.