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Matthew Stafford is off to his third postseason appearance with the Los Angeles Rams. Only this time, he and L.A. are rolling into the playoffs as winners of five of the last six games.
Stafford has a renewed opportunity to add a second Super Bowl ring. The veteran quarterback likely also wants to redeem himself from last season's early exit in Detroit. The Minnesota Vikings are now coming in, and angered by failing to secure the NFC's top seed on Sunday Night Football against the Lions.
Stafford pumped new life into the Rams' air attack the moment he was swapped with Jared Goff in Jan. 2021. The new Rams QB immediately energized the team's Super Bowl LVI run. Stafford, though, still has past playoff demons to exorcise.
He's only surpassed the first round once — during his first Rams run of the 2021 season. Stafford enters SoFi Stadium with the long-awaited chance to scale the .500 mark in personal postseason victories. Without a doubt, the Rams need their QB1 to perform at a a high-level against the fifth-seeded Vikings.
But Stafford isn't the x-factor heading into this much-anticipated Wild Card contest. Here's who we believe earns that title.
Rams need Ahkello Witherspoon to bottle Justin Jefferson
The Rams' most fatal flaw ahead of the playoffs is their cornerback room. Already the franchise needed to part ways with struggling veteran Tre'Davious White. It doesn't help All-Pro Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are on deck.
Ahkello Witherspoon is the most seasoned option in this CB room. Defensive coordinator Chris Shula will need Whiterspoon to lock in on the Vikings' biggest offensive threat Jefferson.
Witherspoon didn't see much action in the previous meeting against Minnesota on Oct. 24 — playing in just nine total snaps. Jefferson grabbed eight catches and tallied 115 yards facing the Rams' coverage. Los Angeles still stunned the previous 5-1 Vikings 30-20.
Witherspoon is needed for more than nine defensive plays, this time. L.A. threw a mix of Cobie Durant and fellow veteran Darious Williams at Jefferson, but still struggled. The three-time Pro Bowl target averaged 14.4 yards per catch in Inglewood.
Minnesota and quarterback Sam Darnold wants to set the tone with Jefferson right away. It's the nature of past Viking teams to feed their breakout WR1 right away. Randy Moss and Cris Carter saw their own share of early targets while wearing the purple and gold.
Jefferson rises as the first option to ignite the offense for Minnesota. Jefferson and Darnold have shown strong cohesion together right away. Darnold provided a strong arm and hand in helping Jefferson return to the 100-catch club after watching a production drop off in 2023.
Jefferson is getting his catches. It's up to Witherspoon to keep him outside of the end zone. Shula's scheme masterfully prevented Jefferson from hitting his famed “gritty” dance back in October — because he couldn't score on the Rams.
But the Rams' chances to eliminate the Vikings increases if Witherspoon takes away Jefferson's big play capability. Minnesota develops a swagger when Jefferson erupts for a 100-yard day featuring multiple touchdowns. Witherspoon doesn't need to pick off Darnold twice or once to will the Rams to victory. He just needs to lead this CB unit in neutralizing the Jefferson threat.
