Winners and losers as Rams survive Panthers upset scare
- The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Carolina Panthers 34-31 to advance in the playoffs.
- Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winning score.
- Rams receiver Puka Nacua had 10 catches for 111 yards and two total touchdowns.
- The Rams defense stopped the Panthers on all three of their fourth-down attempts.
The Los Angeles Rams are moving on to the divisional round of the playoffs.
Matthew Stafford and the Rams survived a 34-31 thriller Jan. 10 against the Carolina Panthers to advance to the divisional round.
The Panthers overcame a 14-0 deficit in the first half to climb back into the lead twice, the final time after a Carolina blocked punt sparked a TD drive and 31-27 lead late in the fourth quarter.
The Rams had time and the ball, however, and Stafford engineered a seven-play, 71-yard touchdown drive capped off by a beautiful pass to tight end Colby Parkinson to save the Rams’ season.
USA TODAY Sports examines the winners and losers from the wild-card game in Charlotte:
Winners
Matthew Stafford comes up clutch
The Rams veteran was up and down for much of the game. He injured his finger late in the second quarter and struggled for parts of the second half, but he led the Rams on a go-ahead touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
Stafford is the fifth player in NFL history to have at least 300 passing yards in seven playoff games.
He averaged a league-best 276.9 passing yards per game in the regular season and threw an NFL-best and career-high 46 touchdown passes.
Rams’ fourth-down defense
The Panthers converted all three of their fourth-down attempts in a Week 13 upset win over the Rams. But Carolina’s fourth-down success rate went in the opposite direction in the wild-card game. The Panthers went 0-for-3 on fourth downs in the loss.
The Rams defense stopped Carolina on a desperation fourth down to seal the win. The unit gave up 333 total yards but stood tall on fourth downs.
Panthers’ punt-block unit
The Rams’ special teams unit has been a sore spot the entire year, and special teams hurt the Rams again against the Panthers.
Panthers linebacker Isaiah Simmons blocked Ethan Evans’ punt in the fourth quarter. The Panthers offense reached the end zone four plays later to take a 31-27 lead.
The Rams have to shore up their special teams if they want to keep advancing in the playoffs.
Puka Nacua leads Rams passing attack
Nacua had three catches, 40 yards and a touchdown on the Rams’ opening drive. Targeting Nacua was a point of emphasis for the Rams all game.
The Rams wideout caught a backwards pass from Matthew Stafford, made couple moves by defenders and found the end zone to give L.A. a 14-0 advantage in the second quarter.
Nacua did have a crucial drop late in that second quarter that could’ve been a touchdown. However, he made up for the drop when he later dislodged a football that would’ve resulted in a Stafford interception. The Rams would end up scoring a touchdown on the possession.
Nacua finished with a game-high 10 catches for 111 yards, one touchdown catch and one rushing TD.
Losers
Trevor Etienne
The Panthers had a little momentum after a defensive stop and were able to take over possession of the football in the second quarter. But Etienne muffed a punt that was recovered by Rams special teamer Troy Reeder at Carolina’s 41-yard line.
The football bounced off Etienne face mask, and the fumble cost the Panthers a potential scoring opportunity.
Rams’ third-down efficiency in first half
The Rams had an opportunity to build a big first-half lead. Carolina had two first-half turnovers and turned the ball over on downs once. But Los Angeles went 1-for-6 on third downs and had issues sustaining drives, allowing the Panthers to claw back into the game.
The Rams converted only three of 13 third down chances overall.
Panthers run game
Carolina couldn’t get its ground game going. The Panthers averaged just 3.8 yards per carry, and their three three rushing touchdowns came on short yardage situations. Chuba Hubbard led the team with 46 of their 83 rushing yards.
Rams penalties
The Rams were the least-penalized team in the NFL during the regular season.
On Saturday, though, the Rams were flagged for nine penalties for 83 yards. They were lucky the penalties didn’t comeback to bite them.
