The Los Angeles Rams escaped from a massive scare in the NFL playoffs on Saturday, fighting back from the brink of defeat to beat the Carolina Panthers 34-31 thanks to a stunning Colby Parkinson touchdown.
Trailing by four with 38 seconds left on the clock, Parkinson reeled in a 19-yard pass from Stafford tight in the corner and piroutted around his defender before tumbling into the end zone. It brought a stunned silence over the Bank of America Stadium after their Panthers team had the Rams on the ropes in their first playoff appearance in eight years.
But Stafford, seemingly battling a finger issue, showed exactly why he’s the leading contender for the MVP award by finding his tight end Parkinson in the corner with the game and the season on the line.
‘Total team effort,’ Stafford said on the field moments after victory was complete. ‘A lot to clean up but we found a way to win it late. I believe in my teammates and I know they believe in me.’
The Rams appeared to take control early on with two Puka Nacua touchdowns giving the 2022 Super Bowl champions a commanding lead in South Carolina.
But from there, things started to unravel. With less than 30 seconds to go in the first half, Nacua inexplicably dropped a deep pass from quarterback Stafford that he has taken so many times before.
Matthew Stafford showed his MVP credentials as Los Angeles Rams beat Carolina Panthers
Bryce Young and the Panthers had one of the Super Bowl contenders on the ropes
With the game on the line, Colby Parkinson’s late touchdown took the Rams through
Had he taken it, Nacua had nothing but the end zone in front of him. The wide receiver was shellshocked and needed consoling on the touchdown.
Before that, Stafford had been given something else to worry about. He stubbed the fingers on his throwing hand against the forearm of Panthers defensive lineman D.J. Wonnum and went down in pain.
It was difficult to tell the specific finger Stafford had hurt but it was unquestionably impacting the 37-year-old in the second half. At the time of the incident, he had completed nine throws from 13 but ended on 24 completions from 42 passes thrown.
And as the Rams stumbled, the Panthers’ momentum grew. Running back Chuba Hubbard and quarterback Bryce Young both rushed for a touchdown each late in the second quarter, meaning that they suddenly only trailed by three at halftime.
Hubbard started the fourth quarter with a three-yard rushing touchdown to put the Panthers ahead for the first time, by four, before Stafford picked out Kyren Williams for a 13-yard touchdown.
The next drive, Young went three-and-out and the Rams smelt blood. Suddenly, Stafford’s finger didn’t seem to be as much of an issue and when he picked out Nacua with a 16-yard pass, the chasing Panthers duo of Jaycee Horn and Claudin Cherelus collided nastily as they raced to close him down.
But if it felt like the tide was starting to turn, the Panthers opened an old wound for the Rams when Ethan Evans’ punt was blocked by Isaiah Simmons. Special teams has been a concern for head coach Sean McVay in recent weeks, enough for him to fire special teams coach Chase Blackburn on December 20.
And for a brief moment, it felt like it might cost them here. The three-point lead for the Rams was looking perilous with four minutes left on the clock. It will certainly be something for McVay to think about as he prepares for next weekend’s divisional round game.
The Panthers impressed against the Rams and the manner of the loss was brutal on them
Puka Nacua scored two touchdowns but a bad drop looked like it would be costly at one point
And on the biggest drive of his career, Young did all that he could by stepping up and finding Jalen Coker with a looping seven-yard dime.
The converted kick from Ryan Fitzgerald made the score 31-27 for the Rams, who knew a field goal would be no good with 2:39 left to go.
But thanks to Stafford and Parkinson, even that wasn’t enough.