The Los Angeles Rams beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 30-27, in Sunday’s NFC divisional playoff game at Raymond James Stadium, sending Tom Brady home for the remainder of the playoffs and Matthew Stafford into his first conference championship game.
And what a thriller it ended up.
After Brady and the Buccaneers tied the score with less than a minute left, erasing a 24-point Rams lead, Stafford hit Cooper Kupp on 44- and 20-yard passes in the waning seconds to set up the game-winning kick from Matt Gay, the former Buccaneer who was cut by Tampa Bay and who had missed an attempt midway through the fourth quarter.
The Rams will take on their NFC West rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, next Sunday at SoFi Stadium, the same venue that will host Super Bowl LVI two weeks later. This will be the first time in league history that a team will host a conference championship game in the Super Bowl stadium.
Matthew Stafford and the Rams are one game away from the Super Bowl. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
L.A.'s stars showed up to topple Tampa Tom
The Rams’ all-in gamble is close to paying off the way the team’s architects drew it up. This is exactly what they imagined when they traded for Stafford and Von Miller, and signed Odell Beckham Jr. over the past calendar year.
The Rams’ stars came to play. Stafford was hot early, staking L.A. to a three-score lead and beating the mighty Brady, who suffered his first playoff loss as a Buc. Aaron Donald and Miller were in Brady’s face most of the game.
Kupp had a costly second-half fumble but took the top off the Bucs’ defense early in the game with a 70-yard touchdown and atoned late with his two massive catches to set up Gay's winning kick. Beckham caught six passes for 69 yards, generating four first downs. Kupp finished with nine catches for 183 yards and a score. Stafford threw for 336 yards and two TDs.
And it was good enough, even with some unbelievably tense moments while protecting the lead to keep Brady out of the running for an eighth Super Bowl ring. Amid a flurry of speculation he might consider retiring, Brady missed out on a shot to reach his 15th conference championship game.
Brady's comeback falls short
Brady kept the Bucs in the game after they fell behind 27-3. The comeback king cut the lead to 27-20 with just over three minutes remaining and the Bucs tied the game with less than a minute left on Leonard Fournette's 9-yard TD run with 46 seconds left. But it was not enough as Gay’s 30-yard field goal ended it.
Brady finished 30-of-54 passing for 329 yards with a TD and an interception, overcoming a slow start and early pressure to bring the Bucs close to pulling off an insane comeback.
Instead, the Rams will be headed to their 11th NFC championship game and their second appearance since returning to Los Angeles, making it three straight divisional-round games where the road team pulled the upset.
The Rams and Bucs each were down a starting offensive tackle. The Rams appeared to handle life better without Andrew Whitworth than the Buccaneers did without Tristan Wirfs. The Rams often put Donald over the gap of Wirfs’ replacement, Scott Wells, and it led to Brady facing a ton of pressure. Miller also did his part, strip-stripping Brady in the fourth quarter after the Bucs cut it to a two-touchdown lead.
The Rams got on the board first with a field goal from Gay — a one-time Bucs kicker — to cap a 72-yard opening drive. Then on the Rams’ next possession, they got some help from two Bucs penalties (for 31 yards) and finished the drive with Stafford hitting Kendall Blanton for the game’s first TD. And it was Blanton’s first NFL touchdown, too, giving Los Angeles a 10-0 lead in the first quarter.
Brady missed on his first four pass attempts. He got in enough of a groove on the Buccaneers’ third drive to cut the lead to 10-3 with a Ryan Succop field goal, but it was clear that the timing and rhythm of the Tampa Bay offense was not cooking as usual.
Meanwhile, Stafford kept dealing. A blown coverage by the Bucs allowed Kupp to get wide open and race through the secondary for a 70-yard touchdown — on third-and-20, no less — and a shocking 17-3 Rams lead less than a minute into the second quarter.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady couldn't pull off an absurd comeback against the Rams. (AP Photo/Mark LoMoglio)
After the two teams traded punts, the Buccaneers got the ball back and moved it into Rams territory. But Brady was flagged for the first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty of his career after complaining to the referees that he was hit late by Von Miller, moving the ball back 15 yards after a 7-yard completion. Brady gained 19 yards back with an improvised lob pass to Leonard Fournette, but Succop missed his 48-yard field-goal try to keep it a two-TD lead.
The Rams were not done before the half, but it could have been worse for the Buccaneers.
They drained nearly seven minutes of time on a 12-play, 41-yard drive, with Gay’s 40-yard field goal upping the Los Angeles lead to 20-3. Then, with the backed up inside their own 10-yard line and two minutes left in the second quarter, Brady threw off his back foot and lofted an interception right to safety Nick Scott.
The Rams looked to put their feet down on the Bucs’ necks as they moved inside the Tampa Bay 5-yard line. But Cam Akers fumbled at the 1-yard line with 14 seconds left in the half, costing the Rams at least three points.
The two teams swapped punts on their opening drives of the third quarter. But the Rams got a 33-yard return from Brandon Powell, and four plays later Stafford sneaked in a 1-yard touchdown and the Rams silenced the crowd by taking a 27-3 lead.
Brady famously brought the New England Patriots back from down 28-3 in Super Bowl LI, with a similar amount of time left on the clock.But it wasn’t meant to be for Brady and the Buccaneers on this day, even though they got key turnovers via second-half fumbles from Akers (again) and Kupp.
UPDATED Jan. 23, 2022 7:35 PM PT
Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp, right, hauls in a 40-yard pass over Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. late in the game to set up the game-winning field goal.
Matthew Stafford leads Rams to last-second playoff win over Tom Brady and Buccaneers
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford gives the victory sign as he leaves the field after beating the Buccaneers 30-27 in the NFC divisional playoffs Sunday.
TAMPA, Fla. — Matthew Stafford had 42 seconds to prove it.
Forty-two seconds to show why the Rams traded for him and made him the centerpiece of a team with a mandate to play in the Super Bowl. Forty-two seconds to knock off Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Stafford said his heart was racing Sunday when he trotted onto the field with the score tied in the NFC divisional-round playoff at Raymond James Stadium, but the 13th-year pro demonstrated nothing but calm a few plays later while staring down an all-out blitz.
Stafford’s 44-yard pass to Cooper Kupp set up Matt Gay’s game-winning field goal as time expired for a 30-27 victory before a crowd of 65,597 that sent the Rams into the NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers.
“I live for those kind of moments,” Stafford said. “I would have loved to have been taking a knee when you’re up by three scores, but it’s a whole lot more fun when you got to make a play like that to win the game and just steal somebody’s soul.”
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Photos: Rams defeat Buccaneers in thrilling playoff triumph
The Rams kept their Super Bowl hopes alive Sunday, defeating Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a thrilling, 30-27 victory in the NFC divisional playoffs at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. The Rams will play the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game on Jan. 30.
Here are some of the best photos of the Rams’ win from veteran Los Angeles Times photographers Gina Ferazzi and Robert Gauthier:
Rams tight end Kendall Blanton (86) scores a first-quarter touchdown in front of Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford celebrates after throwing a second-quarter touchdown pass to Cooper Kupp.
Rams defensive end Aaron Donald sacks Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady in the second quarter.
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And, oh, by the way, The Times’ Gary Klein picked the exact score
(It’s too bad Gary’s editors cut his sentences about Matthew Stafford leading the Rams on a 63-yard drive with 42 seconds left after Leonard Fournette had capped a Bucs comeback from a 27-3 deficit with a game-tying touchdown after Cam Akers fumbled for the second time in the game to give Tom Brady the ball with two minutes remaining.)
‘This game is officially lunacy’: Matt Gay ends the insanity with game-winning kick
Leonard Fournette scores on fourth and inches to tie game at 27
The Buccaneers took advantage of another fumble by Cam Akers, running back Leonard Fournette scoring on an eight-yard touchdown run to tie the score.
The Rams were once ahead, 27-3.
Rams 27, Bucs 27 42 seconds left in fourth quarter
Brady hits Evans on bomb to cut lead to 27-20, Bucs get ball back on Akers fumble
Buccaneers receiver Mike Evans beat Jalen Ransey for a 55-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to pull the Buccaneers to within a touchdown.
Brady has completed 28 of 50 passes for 315 yards and a touchdown, with an interception.
Evans has eight catches for 119 yards.
Two plays into the next drive, Cam Akers fumbled for the second time in the game to give the Bucs the ball back on the Rams 30.
Rams 27, Bucs 20 3:20 left in fourth quarter
In face of fourth quarter craziness, Rams defense continues to dominate
One play after Tampa Bay forced a Rams three-and-out to start the fourth quarter, Von Miller strip-sacked Tom Brady to force a fumble that was recovered by Los Angeles. On the next play, the Rams sailed a snap past Stafford that was recovered by the Bucs at the L.A. 45. On a fourth and 14 from the Los Angeles 36, Brady threw an incomplete pass to Mike Evans, but Eric Weddle was flagged for a late hit. Because the ball hit the ground before Weddle made contact, however, the Rams received the ball, albeit with a 15-yard penalty.
Got all that?
The Rams drove the ball to the Tampa Bay 29 on the subsequent drive and took nearly six minutes off the clock, but a Matt Gay 46-yard field goal attempt that would have made it a three-score game again fell short.
Rams 27, Bucs 13 6:31 left in fourth quarter
Cooper Kupp fumble sets up Bucs score to close gap to two touchdowns
The Buccaneers forced Rams receiver Cooper Kupp to fumble, and then capitalized to make it a two-score game.
Running back Leonard Fournette scored a touchdown on a one-yard run with 12 seconds left in the third quarter to keep the Buccaneers within striking distance.
Fournette’s touchdown capped a seven-play, 30-yard drive.
Fournette has rushed for 35 yards in 10 carries.
Two plays and nine seconds into the fourth quarter, the Bucs have forced a Rams punt and will start their drive at their own 30.
Rams 27, Bucs 13 14:51 left in the fourth quarter
Big punt return by Brandon Powell sets up Rams touchdown
Tom Brady has engineered some big comebacks – yes, we all remember the Super Bowl against the Atlanta Falcons and the 28-3 deficit – but the Rams are pulling away.
Matthew Stafford sneaked for a one-yard touchdown to cap a six-play, 28-yard drive set up by Brandon Powell’s 33-yard punt return.
It was Stafford’s second rushing touchdown in as many games.
Stafford has completed 23 of 30 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns.
Brady quickly took Tampa Bay downfield on the following drive, but the series stalled at the Rams’ 13. Rather than go for it on 4th and 11, Bucs coach Bruce Arians opted for a 31-yard Ryan Succop field goa to cap a 10-play, 62-yard drive.
Brady has completed 15 of 31 passes for 175 yards, with an interception.
Rams 27, Bucs 6 3:02 left in third quarter
Rams add field goal to boost lead to 20-3, squander chance to add to lead
Matt Gay kicked his second field goal of the game, this one from 40 yards, to increase the Rams’ lead to 17 points. The 12-play drive ate up nearly seven minutes.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has completed 18 of 24 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns.
Receiver Cooper Kupp has four catches for 102 yards and a touchdown.
On the second play of the Bucs’ subsequent drive, Nick Scott, better known for his play on special teams, picked off a Tom Brady pass at the Tampa Bay 31.
The Rams, however, squandered an opportunity to increase the lead when Cam Akers fumbled at the Bucs’ 1 in the final 20 seconds. The play was initially ruled down by contact, but the call was overturned upon review.
Los Angeles will get the ball to open the second half.
Rams 20, Bucs 3, Halftime
Blown coverage leads to Matthew Stafford to Cooper Kupp 70-yard TD, Rams rolling
Matthew Stafford connected with All-Pro receiver Cooper Kupp for a 70-yard touchdown pass play to put the Rams up by two touchdowns.
On third-and-20, the wide-open Kupp caught the ball at the Tampa Bay 35-yard line and sprinted into the end zone.
Stafford has completed nine of 12 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, the Rams defense continues to excel, forcing a second three-and-out in four Tampa Bay drives. On their fifth drive, the Bucs were driving but Ryan Succop missed a 48-yard field goal attempt. The drive was slowed by the first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty of Tom Brady’s career. Brady was upset by a Von Miller hit that bloodied the quarterback’s lip and appeared to be a shot to the head.
Rams 17, Bucs 3 9:04 left in second quarter
Rams continue to drive efficiently, this time punch it in on Kendall Blanton TD
It’s getting spicy in Tampa.
With the help of a taunting penalty against Ndamukong Suh, the Rams drove 71 yards and scored on a seven-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to reserve tight end Kendall Blanton.
Suh, a former Detroit Lions teammate of Stafford’s, was penalized after Stafford was pressured into an incomplete pass. “You see he kicked me?” Suh was heard saying on the ref’s mic.
Stafford has completed eight of 11 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown.
After starting the game 0-for-4, Tom Brady connected on three of four passes for 47 yards before the subsequent drive stalled at the Rams’ 27. Ryan Succop kicked a 45-yard field goal to cut the lead to 10-3.
Rams 10, Bucs 0 End of first quarter
Matthew Stafford sharp early, Rams take 3-0 lead on their opening drive
Matt Gay kicked a 26-yard field goal to give the Rams the early lead.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford completed five of seven passes for 81 yards during a nine-play, 72-yard drive. He completed his first five passes, but his last two, both inside the Tampa Bay 10, fell incomplete.
Stafford had a 17-yard strike to Cooper Kupp, a 20-yard catch-and-run to Odell Beckham Jr. (video below) and a 29-yard pass to tight end Tyler Higbee.
Tom Brady, meanwhile, is 0-for-4 on his first two drives.
Rams 3, Bucs 0 8:01 left in first quarter
Jalen Ramsey says Rams must have everything covered against Tom Brady, Buccaneers
Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey warms up before a playoff win over the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 17.
Jalen Ramsey has faced Tom Brady only once in the postseason, and it was a game Ramsey chose to put out of his mind.
In the 2017 playoffs, Brady led the New England Patriots to victory over Ramsey’s Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC championship game at Gillette Stadium.
“That game was disappointing, so I just tried to forget about it as much as I could,” Ramsey, the Rams star cornerback, said Thursday during a video conference with reporters.
Ramsey and Brady have changed teams since that playoff matchup.
On Sunday, Ramsey gets another postseason shot at neutralizing the most successful quarterback in NFL history when the Rams play Brady and the defending Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFC divisional-round game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
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Inactives for Sunday’s showdown between Rams and Bucs
Here are the players who will not be suiting up for Sunday’s NFC divisional playoff game between the Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
RAMS
- QB Bryce Perkins
- S Taylor Rapp
- RB Buddy Howell
- OLB Chris Garrett
- OLB Terrell Lewis
- OL Tremayne Anchrum Jr.
- OL Andrew Whitworth
BUCCANEERS
- QB Kyle Trask
- QB Ryan Griffin
- WR Cyril Grayson Jr.
- WR Breshad Perriman
- RB Ronald Jones II
- CB Pierre Desir
- T Tristan Wirfs
Odell Beckham Jr.'s inspired play has caught the attention of fellow Rams
Rams wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. warms up before a playoff win over the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 17.
The pass Odell Beckham Jr. dropped into Cam Akers’ hands last week was as revealing as it was decisive.
Notice the affection in the voices of the Rams players when they talked about Beckham converting the trick play.
“He could probably do it left-handed too,” Matthew Stafford said.
Observe the joy on their faces.
“Should have led me a little bit,” Akers said with a mischievous smile.
Their body language conveyed what they didn’t say explicitly: They adore Beckham.
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This is what Rams envisioned: Matthew Stafford vs. Tom Brady
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford jogs to the locker room after a playoff win over the Arizona Cardinals at SoFi Stadium on Jan. 17.
A season of firsts continues for Matthew Stafford.
For the last 12 years, when the NFL playoffs moved to divisional-round games, Stafford was relegated to interested observer. The Rams quarterback rooted for friends and former Detroit Lions teammates on teams trying to advance to NFC or AFC championship games and beyond.
“I’ve made a bunch of relationships in this business,” Stafford said Wednesday during a video conference with reporters. “So, I’m always paying attention, no matter what. Just trying to pull for the guys I know.”
On Sunday, for the first time since he was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft, Stafford will be a participant, not a fan, for an NFC divisional-round game when the Rams play the defending Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
Stafford earned the opportunity by leading the Rams to a 34-11 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in a wild-card game at SoFi Stadium. It was Stafford’s first playoff win after losing three wild-card games with the Lions.
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Matthew Stafford under pressure to beat Tom Brady and put Rams on cusp of Super Bowl
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford scrambles during a playoff win over the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 17.
TAMPA — Home-field advantage for the Super Bowl.
Last season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers enjoyed the rare luxury and became the first team in NFL history to win a Super Bowl in its home stadium.
The Rams thereafter aimed, traded and spent to position themselves to repeat the feat in Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium next month.
So, it’s perhaps fitting that for the Rams to take a step toward fulfilling that mandate, they must defeat Tom Brady and the defending-champion Buccaneers in an NFC divisional-round playoff game Sunday at Raymond James Stadium.
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Rams vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers matchups, start time and how to watch
Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald (99) encourages fans to get loud during a wild-card playoff win over the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 17.
Breaking down how the Rams (13-5) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (14-4) match up heading into their NFC divisional-round playoff game at noon PST on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium. The game will be shown on NBC (Channel 4 in the L.A. area).
When Rams have the ball: Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford was a model of efficiency in an NFC wild-card victory over the Arizona Cardinals, and his team probably will need a similar performance to defeat the Buccaneers. Stafford completed 13 of 17 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns. He did not commit a turnover for the first time in five games.
Stafford will be operating behind a line that will include left tackle Joe Noteboom starting in place of Andrew Whitworth, who suffered knee and ankle injuries against the Cardinals. After getting limited opportunities in the season-finale against the San Francisco 49ers, running back Cam Akers rushed for 55 yards in a team-high 17 carries against the Cardinals. Akers will rotate with Sony Michel, who keyed the Rams’ five-game winning streak late in the season.
Receiver Cooper Kupp is Stafford’s top target, but Odell Beckham Jr. has consistently made plays. Against the Cardinals, Beckham caught a touchdown pass and also completed a long pass to Akers. Receiver Van Jefferson and tight end Tyler Higbee also are threats.
Tackles Vita Vea and Ndamukong Suh, and linebackers Shaquil Barrett, Devin White, Lavonte David, and Jason Pierre-Paul lead the Buccaneers defense.
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Rams vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: NFL betting odds, lines and how to watch
Rams at Buccaneers (-3, 48½), 12:05 p.m. PST Sunday, NBC
When these two teams met at SoFi Stadium in Week 3, the Rams came away with a 34-24 win as the smallest of underdogs with a line of +1. Interestingly, the total for that game was 55 and the game did go over that, with a lot of yardage and some points left on the field. Games tend to tighten up in the postseason and we’ve certainly seen an adjustment to the total here.
We’ve also seen an adjustment to Sean McVay’s mindset on offense. Game state had a lot to do with why Matthew Stafford only had 17 pass attempts last week, but it was a continuation of the run-focused offense we’ve seen recently from McVay. Over Stafford ’s first 12 games, he averaged 36.5 pass attempts per game. Over the last six games, Stafford has exceeded that total just once.
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