The knock-on Matthew Stafford has been that he couldn't win the big game.
That narrative played out as his Los Angeles Rams were trailing their NFC West rivals, the San Francisco 49ers 17-7 entering the fourth quarter in the NFC Championship game. Instead, Stafford led the Rams to 13 unanswered points, capped off by a Matt Gay 30-yard field goal with 1:46 remaining to put them ahead for good to give the Rams a 20-17 victory to clinch a berth in Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13, where they will face the Cincinnati Bengals on their home field of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.
Stafford, who went 31 of 45 for 337 yards with two touchdowns, marched the Rams down the field and ended the drive with an 11-yard touchdown to Cooper Kupp, who caught 11 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns, with a little over 13 minutes to go in the game. The Rams defense led by Aaron Donald pressured 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo the entire final quarter.
Holding the 49ers scoreless allowed Stafford to get his team down the field to let Gay kick two field goals, including the game-winner to send the Rams (15-5) to their second Super Bowl in five seasons under head coach Sean McVay. The 49ers had a chance to tie or win the game. But Donald showed why he is a force to reckon with and the best defensive player in the NFL. He applied pressure on Garoppolo to force him out of the pocket and run for his life. Garoppolo ran out of the pocket, and Donald caught up to him. As Donald was throwing him to the ground, Garoppolo flung the ball in the air, and Travin Howard intercepted it to clinch the game for the Rams
Garoppolo went 16 of 30 for 232 yards with two touchdowns and one interception for the 49ers, who end their season at 12-8.
Here is what happened between the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers.
That narrative played out as his Los Angeles Rams were trailing their NFC West rivals, the San Francisco 49ers 17-7 entering the fourth quarter in the NFC Championship game. Instead, Stafford led the Rams to 13 unanswered points, capped off by a Matt Gay 30-yard field goal with 1:46 remaining to put them ahead for good to give the Rams a 20-17 victory to clinch a berth in Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13, where they will face the Cincinnati Bengals on their home field of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.
Stafford, who went 31 of 45 for 337 yards with two touchdowns, marched the Rams down the field and ended the drive with an 11-yard touchdown to Cooper Kupp, who caught 11 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns, with a little over 13 minutes to go in the game. The Rams defense led by Aaron Donald pressured 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo the entire final quarter.
Holding the 49ers scoreless allowed Stafford to get his team down the field to let Gay kick two field goals, including the game-winner to send the Rams (15-5) to their second Super Bowl in five seasons under head coach Sean McVay. The 49ers had a chance to tie or win the game. But Donald showed why he is a force to reckon with and the best defensive player in the NFL. He applied pressure on Garoppolo to force him out of the pocket and run for his life. Garoppolo ran out of the pocket, and Donald caught up to him. As Donald was throwing him to the ground, Garoppolo flung the ball in the air, and Travin Howard intercepted it to clinch the game for the Rams
Garoppolo went 16 of 30 for 232 yards with two touchdowns and one interception for the 49ers, who end their season at 12-8.
Here is what happened between the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers.