While it initially seemed that the NFC West would come down to the Week 18 matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks, the Rams actually clinched the division in Week 17 due to the strength-of-victory tiebreaker.
Now, the Week 18 matchup doesn’t hold much significance for the Rams, so Los Angeles is resting its starters.
Rams to Rest Certain Starters Against Seahawks
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford highlights a list of offensive starters who will not play against the Seahawks in Week 18. In addition to Stafford, the Rams will also rest Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp, Kyren Williams, Kevin Dotson, Alaric Jackson, and Rob Havenstein.
Jimmy Garoppolo will start in place of Stafford. Former Michigan star Blake Corum will get the ball early and often as he makes the start at running back. Jordan Whittington will spell either Nacua or Kupp at one of the receiver positions. Jonah Jackson will start at right guard and Joe Noteboom will start at left tackle in the regular-season finale.
The Rams clinched the NFC West in Week 17, but their seeding is still to be determined. They could clinch the No. 3 seed with a win on Sunday or a loss by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. However, a Rams loss and a Buccaneers win will drop the Rams to the No. 4 seed. However, Rams head coach Sean McVay recently said the seeding doesn’t matter.
McVay said that because their defense is so inexperienced, certain key players will be on the field but “maybe not the amount of workload that you’re accustomed to with some of the main cast and crew.”
“We’re still working through the specifics of how we’re going to approach it. What I can tell you guys is Jimmy Garoppolo will start at quarterback this week,” McVay said on Wednesday. “That’ll give Matthew a chance to be able to get some rest.”
The Rams opted to rest their starters in Week 18 last season after they clinched a playoff berth, so this is nothing new to Los Angeles. Stafford, Kupp, Williams, and defensive tackle Aaron Donald all missed the final game last season.
After starting the season 1-4, the Rams have won nine of their past 11 games to make the playoffs.
Nacua will fall 10 yards short of a 1,000-yard season. He will finish the regular season with 79 catches. The 1,000 yards is a meaningless statistic, but it could have looked good on a resume for the second-year pro. Nacua had 1,486 yards last season on 105 receptions.
