The capability of expert athletes on the greatest level to concentrate on the job at hand, and shut out whatever else is going on in their world, can be impressive.
The Los Angeles Rams might not have actually been concentrated on football over the previous week, not with fatal wildfires impacting a substantial part of the Los Angeles location. They might see smoke from their practice center. There was issue about their own homes and enjoyed ones. Preparing to deal with an excellent Minnesota Vikings group wasn't the concern. It didn't assist the Rams that the video game needed to be moved from their home of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood to a neutral website in Arizona either.
And yet, when Monday night's video game began, the Rams played their finest video game of the whole season in a 27-9 success versus the Vikings in the NFC wild-card round.
The Vikings, who were 14-3 throughout the routine season, never ever had a possibility. The Rams controlled from the start, burying the Vikings in a win. The Rams advance to the divisional round, and will deal with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
The Rams' win included an overall crisis by Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, whose excellent season deciphered in Week 18 and on Monday night, however the Rams' defense had plenty to do with his errors.
If the Rams would have come out flat and lost, no one would have blamed them. Rather, the Rams had among the more remarkable playoff efficiencies we've seen in a while, provided the scenarios.
If the Rams were sidetracked by what was taking place back in Southern California, you ‘d have never ever understood it by the method they began Monday night's video game.
On the very first play, Matthew Stafford struck Puka Nacua for a 27-yard gain. That began a 70-yard drive that ended with Stafford striking Kyren Williams for a 5-yard goal. The Rams required a fast three-and-out, with the Vikings' very first 2 plays losing 11 lawns. Came another strong Rams drive, though an unneeded roughness charge was a factor it stalled and Los Angeles had to settle for a field objective and a 10-0 lead.
The momentum never ever truly stopped. There was a possibly substantial error when the Vikings appeared to recuperate a fumble and return it for a goal, however it was reversed on a replay evaluation when authorities stated Stafford was turning the ball forward for an insufficient pass. The Rams kept rolling. Darnold was strip-sacked and the fumble was returned by protective end Jared Verse for 57 backyards and a goal. In the last minute of the very first half, Stafford struck tight end Davis Allen for a goal. The Rams led 24-3 at halftime. The Rams had 6 sacks before halftime, the very first time given that 1988 that a group had 6 sacks in the very first half of a championship game.
Whatever was working out for the group that was displaced by the wildfires.
