2 Glaring Stats that Led to Rams' Demise Against Seahawks

The Los Angeles Rams looked like juggernauts just a few weeks ago. After Week 15, they looked indestructible, sitting at 11-3. Their only losses were one-score pitfalls against the Philadelphia Eagles, the San Francisco 49ers — both of which featured some incredible mishaps — and the Carolina Panthers in a shocker of a trap game.

Then, they ran into the Seattle Seahawks. The Rams were able to come out on top in the first leg of the season series, 21-19, but the 'Hawks took the rematch in overtime, 38-37. They were still 11-4 after the loss, but things started to unravel for LA from there. They went on to lose their next game to the Atlanta Falcons, give away their shot at the division and No. 1 seed, play two too-close-for-comfort playoff clashes with the Panthers and the Chicago Bears, and fall short to Seattle yet again, this time in the NFC Championship. What went wrong for the Rams?

Rams just made more mistakes

Los Angeles Rams, NFL playoffs, Seattle Seahawks, Rashid Shaheed, NFC Championship — Jan 25, 2026; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Rashid Shaheed (22) makes a catch in the first half against the Los Angeles Rams in the 2026 NFC Championship Game at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

1. 93 yards given up on two catches

The defensive game plan against the Seattle Seahawks was always the same for the Los Angeles Rams — shut down the run game, get pressure on Sam Darnold, and force him to make quick decisions consistently to beat them with intermediate passes consistently. LA held Seattle's rushing attack to just 2.9 yards per carry and sacked Darnold three times for 25 yards, but it didn't keep the receivers in front enough.

The Rams gave up two big receptions, one to Rashid Shaheed for 51 yards and another to Jaxon Smith-Njigba for 42. That led directly to two touchdowns for the Seahawks. In a game that was decided 31-27, chunk gains like that can make all the difference, especially against an offense like Seattle's.

Los Angeles Rams, NFL playoffs, Seattle Seahawks, Xavier Smith, NFC Championship — Jan 25, 2026; Seattle, WA, USA; Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Xavier Smith (19) drops a punt return during the first half against the Seattle Seahawks in the 2026 NFC Championship Game at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

2. Xavier Smith - two muffed punts

Special teams was expected to be a glaring disadvantage for the Rams in this game. The prevailing thought was that Harrison Mevis's inferior kicking compared to Jason Myers's might make the difference. Maybe Shaheed would rip off a long touchdown on a punt or kick return. That didn't happen. In fact, LA did a good job making sure that Shaheed didn't get a chance to run after fielding a punt at all in this one.

However, special teams still lost the Rams this game. Xavier Smith muffed a punt early in the contest, but LA was able to retain possession. Then, he dropped another one. This time, Seattle jumped on the ball, completed the turnover, and capitalized with a 17-yard touchdown pass on the very next play. Special teams is 33 percent of the sport. There's no excuse for the Rams to be this dysfunctional in the third phase of the game moving forward.

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