Matthew Stafford knows he has his work cut out for him against Mike Macdonald's defense Sunday in Seattle.
Joining Jim Gray on the Let’s Go! podcast earlier this week, Stafford was asked about facing the Seahawks for the third time this season.
"As good a defense as we faced all year," he said. "They've got four guys they rotate on the outside, on edge rushers. They've got guys in the middle that are really, really talented players. Second-level players are great. Ernest (Jones IV) is having a hell of a year. And then in the secondary, they're long and fast and aggressive. It's a swarming group."
History sides against Stafford this week.
Sunday marks the first time a No. 1 scoring offense (Rams) will meet the No. 1 scoring defense (Seahawks) in a conference championship game since 2014, when Seattle's No. 1 D knocked off Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers No. 1 O.
Since 1990, the No. 1 scoring offense is 0-4 versus the No. 1 scoring defense when they've met in the conference championship or Super Bowl (three of the four offenses had the NFL MVP). Two of those four wins by the top defense came from the Legion of Boom Seahawks -- 2014 versus Green Bay; Super Bowl XLVIII's shellacking of the Denver Broncos.
Stafford doesn't just have to contend with a defense that has no discernible weakness, comes in waves and is led by a mastermind in Macdonald; there is also the renowned crowd noise.
"Oh, man, it's tough," he said of heading to Seattle. "It is as good an atmosphere as there is in football. I can't imagine the NFC Championship not just exceeding those expectations. They do a great job of creating that home-field advantage. And you gotta go play in the elements there with their crowd and all that goes along with it but really, you're playing against the guys on the grass and that's as talented a football team as you'll see in the NFL. They've got a great roster top to bottom. I think they're really well coached. They play fast and physical."
The Rams are the last team to beat Seattle, winning 21-19 in Week 11. L.A. then held a 30-14 fourth-quarter lead over the Seahawks in Week 16 before things crumbled into a 38-37 OT loss, which is why Sunday's tilt is in Seattle, not Los Angeles.
In Week 16, Stafford generated 457 passing yards with three touchdown tosses and didn't turn the ball over, while the defense forced two Sam Darnold interceptions. However, three straight three-and-outs in the fourth quarter, two special teams blunders and a defense that couldn't get a stop late led to the loss. It was all of L.A.'s nightmares compiled in one fourth quarter.
Turning 38 next month, Stafford said he's not yet interested in considering whether this is his last, best shot at getting that second Super Bowl ring.
"I try not to think about that kind of stuff," he said. "I just try to enjoy the team that I'm on and the moment that I'm in. I love coming to work. I love the group that we get to do it with. These, like I said, opportunities don't come every single year, so I just try to live in 'em and cherish 'em when they're here. I sure hope it's not my last opportunity, but we'll see. You never know. Take these games and these seasons one at a time and figure it out from there. But I just know that I'm happy in the moment that I am right now doing what I'm doing."
If Stafford can't puncture a Seattle defense that enters having allowed 10 or fewer points in each of its last three games, and five of their past seven, those questions will be asked in more earnest next week.
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