Los Angeles Rams: Are Eagles or Saints the better NFC Championship matchup?
The Los Angeles Rams took care of business and advanced to the NFC Championship Game, but would they rather face the Saints or Eagles in the matchup?
For much of the past two seasons, the word on Jared Goff and the Los Angeles Rams has been their prowess through the air and high-octane offense that the run game opened up through play action. In the Divisional Round of the 2019 NFL Playoffs though, it was the ground game carrying the load as Todd Gurley and C.J. Anderson ran away from the Dallas Cowboys.
With the victory, Sean McVay’s team is now in the NFC Championship Game, a spot that many thought they would be for most of the regular season. Despite the fact that the defense that has been bolstered by big name additions has been less than stellar overall this season, the Rams have been a force that few have been able to contain this season. That’s why they were ultimately able to earn the No. 2 seed in the NFC.
Now they will await the winner of the Sunday afternoon matchup between the No. 6 seed Philadelphia Eagles and the top-seeded New Orleans Saints. To get to this point, obviously neither team would be a pushover in the NFC Championship Game. However, which team would the Rams rather face with a Super Bowl berth on the line?
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In truth, the answer to this is simple. The Los Angeles Rams would much prefer to face the Philadelphia Eagles in the conference championship game.
With all due respect to Nick Foles and his postseason magic that he’s made famous over the past two years, the defending champions don’t have the firepower on offense to take advantage of the Rams defense. And while the Eagles defense is fierce, that matters little to this Rams team that can put up points on most anyone.
More so than what the Eagles offer, though, the Saints are a tough, tough matchup for McVay’s team. Not only did New Orleans handle the Rams in a regular season matchup, but they offer a blueprint for a team that would cause LA problems.
Drew Brees and the offense have all the personnel to strike against this Rams defense and have a defense that has only gotten better as the season has gone on, giving them just as good of a chance at slowing down LA as anyone. And, if that weren’t enough, the Saints would be playing at home if they advanced while the game would be in Los Angeles should the Eagles win.
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Subsequently, as the Rams watch the end of the Divisional Round proceedings on Sunday night, they’ll no doubt be hoping that it’s the Eagles that maintain their underdog status and upset the Saints. It’s better for their Super Bowl chances, without question.