Stafford Battled Through Injury in Playoff Loss to Eagles

The Los Angeles Rams battled the Philadelphia Eagles, wintery conditions and a significant injury to quarterback Matthew Stafford Sunday in Philadelphia.

Jan 19, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) runs onto the field prior to the game against the Philadelphia Eagles in a 2025 NFC divisional round game at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Entering their Divisional round playoff matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Los Angeles Rams knew they would have their hands full this past Sunday.

After embarrassingly losing to the Eagles at home earlier in the season, the Rams knew it would take nothing less than a perfect game to beat an Eagles team that has been one of the best teams in the National Football League all season.

Facing the Eagles is difficult no matter where or when the game is played. However, the Rams also had to face the Eagles in Philadelphia in the middle of January, meaning the game would be played in conditions Los Angeles was far from used to.

Still, the Rams traveled to the East Coast fully expecting to win their rematch against the Eagles and nearly did after a solid comeback attempt in the fourth quarter. After the game, Rams head coach Sean McVay noted the Rams were battling much more than the Eagles or the elements.

McVay confirmed starting quarterback Matthew Stafford suffered a rib injury against the Eagles.

“Yeah, he got his rib early," McVay said. "He got dinged up. But he is a warrior. He's so tough. He represents so many things that are right about what this team became, especially for a city that's hurting and going through some different stuff. I think he epitomizes a lot of the stuff that's right in terms of toughness, resilience, and ability to overcome adversity.

"He's a total freaking stud. And I thought he was outstanding tonight with the opportunities that he was given. There's a couple of things in some of those earlier short yardage situations where we didn't get a target, and I could have done a better job for us, but I'm sure damn proud of Matthew Stafford.”

Even with injured ribs, Stafford still threw for over 300 yards. He threw two touchdowns and no interceptions. However, he did have two fumbles, one of which he lost.

Stafford refused to let his ribs be an excuse.

“Yeah, it's an NFL football season," Stafford said. "I've been dealing with those kinds of things to a varying degree for some time, but just kind of got them going again, but was able to kind of calm it down. I didn't feel like it was much of a factor. It felt like I threw the ball pretty good.”

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