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It feels especially appropriate that NFL legend Aaron Donald will serve as an honorary captain for the Los Angeles Rams as they take Lumen Field against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC championship on Sunday.
Defensive line play could be the defining factor, and the Rams are well positioned to seize control by forcing quarterback Sam Darnold to make plays under pressure — a formula that has worked for them before.
Across Darnold’s last four matchups with Los Angeles — dating back to his time with the Vikings and including a wild-card playoff game along with two regular-season meetings — the results have been stark: seven interceptions, 16 sacks, countless hits, and an offense that consistently unraveled under duress.
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In Week 11, Darnold threw four interceptions, tying his career high from the infamous 2019 “I'm seeing ghosts” game. Despite outgaining the Rams 414 yards to 249, Seattle still came away with a loss.
According to Pro Football Focus, Los Angeles is the only team this season with three players recording 60 or more pressures: Jared Verse (92), Byron Young (74) and Kobie Turner (66).
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The blueprint was laid out in the 2024 NFC wild-card game, when the Rams produced nine sacks, 25 pressures, one interception and a scoop-and-score touchdown by Verse — all without heavy blitzing.
Los Angeles simply forced Darnold to process faster than he was comfortable doing, and he couldn’t. Now, he’ll have a chance at career redemption on Sunday.
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