Sean McVay, Rams advance to NFC Championship Game after Bears' rally falls short

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For a moment Sunday night, it appeared the Bears’ storybook season was destined to include more chapters.

On fourth-and-4 with the season on the line, Caleb Williams‘ desperate heave to the end zone landed in tight end Cole Kmet‘s hands for a miraculous, game-tying touchdown, sending Soldier Field into a familiar, euphoric frenzy. Even if only for a few fleeting minutes, Chicago believed it had a team of destiny.

In the end, the Rams left with their fairy tale still intact. It required incredible resolve and mental toughness from the visiting team from sunny Los Angeles, but on a frigid night in Chicago, Sean McVay’s Rams found the strength within them to overcome temporary disappointment and emerge from the Divisional Round battle victorious.

“Can you guys believe they made that play right there? I mean, that was unbelievable,” McVay said of Williams’ pass to Kmet following Los Angeles’ 20-17 overtime win over Chicago. “It was tough, but I thought what was great is, hey, we can’t do anything about it. Go on to the next play, here we are in overtime, what happened then is done with. And we always talk about being in the moment, being totally and completely present, and I thought our guys did a great job of that.”

For a significant stretch of Sunday night’s showdown, the Rams appeared to be a step behind the Bears and were fortunate to be deadlocked at 10-10. NFL MVP candidate Matthew Stafford struggled to find a rhythm throughout the bitterly cold contest, leading an offense that punted on three straight drives without gaining more than 20 yards on any of the trio of possessions. McVay, meanwhile, didn’t successfully adjust to what Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen was throwing at Stafford and the offense until the final period, opening the door to a potential second straight disappointing Divisional Round conclusion for the Rams.

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“I did not like the feel for the flow of the game that I had outside of the first series where our guys did a great job,” McVay candidly admitted afterward. “Defensively, it kept us in it, in spite of how poor of a job I did for our group. But like I said, you know, I’m really grateful for this group, being able to find a way, stick with it, and be able to overcome some bad coaching by me tonight.”

The Rams’ entire defense deserves game balls for their efforts, starting with defensive back Cobie Durant, the bandit defensive back who snagged two interceptions to stop Bears drives in their tracks and buy L.A. additional opportunities to break the tie. The Rams capitalized on the first takeaway, embarking on an emphatic 14-play, 85-yard drive that ended in a Kyren Williams touchdown. From that point on, a pass-happy Los Angeles offense failed to muster much of a threat outside of a half-closing drive that ended in a 32-yard Harrison Mevis field goal.

Fortunately for the Rams, football is a game played in quarters and McVay finally found a play-calling groove in the fourth, turning to the run and directing a remarkably impressive 14-play, 91-yard march that ended in Williams’ second touchdown of the night to give Los Angeles a 17-10 lead. McVay’s exuberant reaction on the sideline, a release of frustration and satisfaction all at once, perfectly captured the moment in which the Rams finally broke through.

That drive might have been enough to cap a road triumph against a lesser opponent, but after stopping them on a fourth-and-goal pass attempt, the Rams gave the ball back to Williams and the Bears, leading to Williams’ latest dose of heroics and overtime. A punchless opening possession in overtime — a three-play drive that gained just seven yards and ended with a two-yard loss for running back Blake Corum — seemed to be the death knell for the Rams, who punted back to the Bears and watched Williams lead a drive that covered 36 yards and seemed destined for a game-winning field goal (if not touchdown).

Instead, it ended in the outstretched arms of Rams safety Kam Curl, who slid underneath a Williams pass intended for DJ Moore and picked off the Bears star. In that moment, Stafford knew his time had arrived.

“I looked right at Sean, he looked at me … and was like here we go,” Stafford said. “That’s what it’s all about. What an unbelievable job by our defense today getting us the ball over and over again. Whether it be fourth-down stops or turnovers, they were clutch and timely. That’s what it takes to win in the playoffs.

“Sometimes offense is gonna go out and have a great day and find a way to win it, and sometimes defense is going to have a day like they did today and keep us in it for as long as they did and then make the play to get us the ball back. It’s a team effort. We’ve got a resilient group. Love being part of it. Obviously, things we can do better, but we found a way to win the football game and in January and February that’s what matters.”

Stafford was only able to deliver such satisfied comments after he managed to channel his inner All-Pro, firing an absurdly accurate pass across his forward-pointing shoulders to Davante Adams for a sideline completion to push the Rams into Bears territory. Three plays later, Stafford properly anticipated yet another Bears blitz and ripped a bullet to Puka Nacua for a third-down conversion inside Chicago’s 30. After moving three yards closer, the Rams’ Super Bowl hopes rested on the shoulders of Mevis and their beleaguered special teams unit.

Despite previous struggles in the third phase of the game, Stafford had nothing but faith in Mevis.

“Shoot, I was confident. Every time we’ve asked him, he’s stepped up and made kicks,” Stafford said. “He does in practice all the time. He’s consistent. He’s a gamer. I just knew is blood pressure would be low, he’d be ready to rock and roll. Great operation. Great snap, good hold. Those are not easy conditions to do any of that kind of stuff in. Obviously a great kick there to win it for us.”

In the playoffs, often the goal is simple: survive and advance. The Rams embodied that mantra Sunday night, overcoming both personal struggles and emotional blows that would have felled weaker squads.

For Stafford and McVay — battle-tested professional partners who share the same goal — such adversity wouldn’t extinguish their dream. Not that easily.

“There’s no style points,” McVay said. “It’s about being able to survive in advance, and we were able to do that in a tough, hostile environment, and it was cold as s— today.”

Fortunately, the Rams had enough ice in their veins to get the job done.

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