Rams coach and quarterback Jared Goff reached a Super Bowl together. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Matthew Stafford will return to Detroit, but that story already is written.
Stafford has won.
He became a Super Bowl champion with the Rams and remains beloved in his previous hometown. That won’t change, regardless of whether he leads his current team to an upset against his previous one.
The more compelling subplot in the NFC wild-card game between the Rams and Lions isn’t as heartwarming.
Sean McVay and Jared Goff will go head to head Sunday.
They will stake their reputations in ways Stafford won’t have to, as the disintegration of their once-fruitful partnership remains an ongoing saga.
Read more: Rams beat 49ers to set up classic Matthew Stafford vs. Lions, Jared Goff playoff game
Their split, and what they have done since, defines each of them.
McVay became a Super Bowl champion, vindicating his decision to dump his one-time franchise quarterback in Goff and hand over his offense to the veteran Stafford.
The discarded Goff has rebuilt his career with the Lions, the stigma associated with his unceremonious departure from the Rams diminishing with each of his team’s 12 victories this season.
On the surface, they have remained civil, McVay acknowledging he should have communicated better with Goff before trading him to the Lions and Goff saying he gained the closure he wanted when speaking to McVay in the wake of the deal.
McVay continued to downplay their history after a 21-20 victory over the San Francisco 49ers with which the Rams locked in the Lions as their wild-card round opponents.
Read more: Rams’ Sean McVay acknowledges missteps on Jared Goff trade as Lions QB returns to L.A.
“You guys know there’s different things that occurred [with Goff] but there’s nothing but good vibes on my end,” McVay said. “We’re gonna go in there and we know we’re going against an excellent football team.”
But can it really be just that?
When the Rams signed…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/hern-ndez-rams-lions-playoff-120043049.html
Author : LA Times
Publish date : 2024-01-08 12:00:43
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