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The Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks are facing off on “Thursday Night Football” with first place in the NFC West and the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the line.
The Seahawks lead 7-0 in the first quarter. Follow for play-by-play updates and real-time analysis from The Athletic’s NFL team.
The first lengthy play of the night comes on a screen pass to Kenneth Walker III. Rookie left guard Grey Zabel had nobody to block until he was 35 yards downfield, as Walker went for 46 yards to set up Zach Charbonnet’s 4-yard touchdown run to open the scoring.
Q1 7:09 – Seahawks 7, Rams 0
That didn’t take long! Zach Charbonnet runs up the middle to get the 4-yard rushing touchdown.
That lengthy 46-yard reception from Kenneth Walker pays off. Seattle opens the scoring.
Q1 8:44 – Rams 0, Seahawks 0
Kenneth Walker! What a BIG PLAY! The Seahawks elect to go a bubble screen to Walker, who scampers for 46 yards.
First-and-goal Seahawks.
I was a little lukewarm on the Seahawks rivalry uniforms but they work for a night game.
The Rams are testing the Seahawks’ run defense out of the gate, staying committed to the ground game on their first drive. Kyren Williams got seven carries on the opening drive while the Rams only had three pass plays. Williams picked up 25 yards on the ground, but it’s the few inches he didn’t pick up that loom large for Los Angeles.
Williams converted a fourth-and-1 on the Rams’ first fourth down of the night but on the second fourth down, Williams needed a few inches but was unable to pick it up as he got stopped just short. It was an interesting approach by the Rams to open the game considering the Seahawks rank second in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game.
On the three passing plays, Matthew Stafford had one incompletion intended for Puka Nacua, one completion and one play that Stafford tucked and ran for four yards.
A run-heavy first Rams drive gets stuffed on fourth down.
They called seven runs, all to Kyren Williams, versus just three dropbacks for Matthew Stafford.
The Seahawks entered this game with the third-best run defense in the NFL, allowing just 91.6 yards per game. Sean McVay’s opening-drive script, with seven runs in the Rams’ first eight plays, was about sending a message that the Rams aren’t afraid of Seattle’s stout front.
What a stand from Mike Macdonald’s defense to seize the early momentum.
Q1 9:41 – Rams 0, Seahawks 0
With it fourth-and-1, the Rams decide to go for it again. Kyren Williams runs forward but is stopped shy of the first down after an official timeout and virtual measurement.
The Rams’ 10-play drive comes up empty. Your turn, Seattle!
Q1 13:36 – Rams 0, Seahawks 0
On third-and-1, the Rams elect to go with a quick pass. Matthew Stafford tries to find Puka Nacua on the slant route but it’s an incomplete pass.
Los Angeles goes for it on fourth down and convert. Kyren Williams barrels forward for 3 yards to secure the first down!
Q1 15:00 – Rams 0, Seahawks 0
We’re underway from Seattle with the Los Angeles Rams beginning with the football!
The Seahawks will be a tough test for the Rams tonight. Here is our Rams writer Nate Atkins on how Seattle could win at home tonight against its NFC West foe:
Read more below.
GO FURTHER
How the Rams can beat the Seahawks: Wreck Sam Darnold’s day and other matchups to watch
As we approach kickoff, here is our Rams writer Nate Atkins on how Los Angeles can win tonight over its NFC West opponent, the Seattle Seahawks. Hint: it involves the running game …
📝 “Lost a bit amid Matthew Stafford’s MVP-caliber season is the overall balance of the offense. The Rams rank No. 1 this season with a 49.6 percent rushing success rate and No. 2 with 14.6 expected points added in the run game, according to TruMedia.
“Since their Week 8 bye, they’ve averaged 149 rushing yards per game on 5.2 yards per carry. And the reason for that comes from the balance within the balance.”
Entering today, Los Angeles Rams have the shortest odds to win this year’s Super Bowl according to betMGM, at just +350.
The second-shortest odds? Those belong to … the Seattle Seahawks, at +700.
Meaning that whoever wins tonight will be considered a heavy favorite to win the Super Bowl, probably for the remainder of the regular season at least.
Buckle up.
Josh Allen’s heroic comeback to lead the Bills past Drake Maye and the Patriots on Sunday may have been too late to save his own campaign to win a second straight NFL MVP. But it definitely helped Matthew Stafford, who then stated his own MVP case in his 368-yard, two-touchdown, one-interception performance in the Rams’ win over the Lions.
Stafford is now the heavy favorite to win his first career NFL MVP award, at -300 odds on betMGM entering today. Maye is still second at +400, but just barely ahead of Allen, who surged from +1400 to +500 odds on the back of his performance on Sunday.
A couple of big injuries in this huge rematch: Rams receiver Davante Adams (hamstring) is doubtful, while Seahawks left tackle Charles Cross is out. The last time these two teams played, Sam Darnold had twice as many yards as Matthew Stafford — whom the Seahawks held to the worst EPA per pass play in five years — but Darnold threw four interceptions, and the Seahawks lost by two points.
The Rams use a lot more multi-tight-end sets now, but the Seahawks have allowed a league-best 3.9 yards per play against multi-tight-end sets. Do-everything safety Nick Emmanwori might become a household name Thursday night. Meanwhile, Darnold has a new toy in Rashid Shaheed. He’ll hit him for a big play or two against a vulnerable Rams secondary.
The pick: Seahawks (-1)
Check out the rest of my Week 16 NFL picks here.
The Rams clinched a playoff spot last week, but they have not locked up the NFC West and won't be able to do so tonight, either, as a win over the Seahawks puts them at 94 percent to win the division. Still, it would be all but over.
The NFC West race will also have a major impact on the race for the NFC's top seed. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find another game with this much leverage that didn't include a clinching opportunity. If the Rams win, they project to get the top seed 90 percent of the time. A loss, however, drops those odds to about 20 percent — a whopping 70 percent swing on a single game! Injuries have been mounting for the Rams, the latest to star wide receiver Davante Adams, so locking up a first-round bye would be huge in making sure they're healthy for a Super Bowl run. (Editor’s note: Austin and senior graphics producer Ryan Best also teamed up on a fantastic interactive team-by-team look at every remaining NFL playoff scenario.)
It shouldn't be a surprise that everything I just said about the Rams applies in the opposite direction for Seattle. If they win, the Seahawks are the NFC West favorites at 55 percent and No. 1-seed favorites at 45 percent. A loss would have them needing a miracle to come out on top in the NFC West. The difference here, in my opinion, is that technically the Seahawks haven't locked up a playoff berth yet. They're above 99 percent to make the playoffs, and even if they lost their final three games, would still sit with a 95 percent shot to make the dance. For the record, the Seahawks will clinch a playoff berth with a win or tie or a Lions loss or tie Sunday against the Steelers.
The Athletic has live coverage of Rams vs. Seahawks on “Thursday Night Football.”
The Los Angeles Rams will play a game that will define much of their season on Thursday without the league leader in receiving touchdowns.
Three-time first-team All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams has a hamstring strain and is listed as inactive as the Rams prepare for a pivotal road matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
The Rams have already beaten the Seahawks despite a less-than-stellar offensive performance once before this season. Can they do so again? Our Nate Atkins has his doubts, especially with Davante Adams sidelined. It’s why Kyren Williams, Blake Corum and the Rams’ wide receivers behind Puka Nacua will have to step up tonight, Nate writes.
The last time the Seahawks played the Rams, it resulted in the worst performance of Sam Darnold’s Seattle career. The weeks since then have not exactly wiped that sour taste from the mouths of the Seahawks’ offense, Michael-Shawn Dugar writes:
✍️ The Seahawks’ defense leads the league in EPA per play and ranks second behind the Houston Texans in points per drive and points per game. That unit has played essentially one bad game all season (Week 5 against the Buccaneers) and has all the makings of a group that can lead the team through the playoffs.
The offense is a different story. The numbers over the entire season are great. Seattle ranks fifth in points per game (28.9), 10th in points per drive and 13th in EPA per play. But the past few weeks have been underwhelming, particularly in first halves.
The Seahawks haven’t scored a first-half touchdown on offense since Week 12 against the Tennessee Titans. They haven’t reached the end zone on offense in the first quarter since Week 10. Seattle has made a habit of coming alive in the second half, but despite improving after intermission in Sunday’s 18-16 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, the offense was held out of the end zone for the first time all season.
