Xavier Smith brutally muffs Rams punt return as Seahawks score off blunder

The NFC Championship game may have turned on an ugly special teams mistake by the Rams.

After forcing a Seattle punt early in the third quarter, Xavier Smith of the Rams was back to receive the kick.

As he backed up to catch the punt, though, Smith fell backwards and botched the catch.

Seattle’s Dareke Young, who was racing downfield towards Smith, was in position to jump on the ball and recover the miscue.

Young’s recovery gave Seattle the ball and led to a 17-yard touchdown pass from Sam Darnold to Jake Bobo to help give the Seahawks a 24-13 lead.

For all their success this season, the Rams have often struggled on special teams, which led to them firing special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn, the ex-Giant, last month.

Xavier Smith (19) of the Rams muffs a punt as the Seahawks’ Dareke Young (83) recovers in the third quarter of the NFC Championship game on Jan. 25, 2026. Getty Images

They had a pair of field goals blocked in the fourth quarter of a loss to the Eagles and also had a punt blocked in their wild-card win over Carolina earlier in the postseason.

There have also been missed field goals and coverage breakdowns.

But none have been more potentially damaging than Smith’s blunder with the Rams on the doorstep of another Super Bowl appearance.

And with Darnold, the much-maligned former Jet whose career had a resurgence with the Vikings before signing with the Seahawks before this season, making the Rams pay for their mistake, it only got more damaging.