The Rams had lost six straight games to their rival 49ers entering Sunday night's NFC Championship, but they decided to snap the streak on a supersized stage. Sean McVay struggled to manage the clock late in the team's penultimate game of the 2021 season, but riding a big day from Cooper Kupp and his defense, which picked off Jimmy Garoppolo in the final two minutes to seal a 20-17 victory at home, he and the Rams are headed back to the Super Bowl -- in their own home, no less, with SoFi Stadium set to host the championship against the Bengals on Feb. 13.
Here are some instant takeaways from Sunday night's big Rams victory:
Why the Rams won
Give it to Raheem Morris' defense. This year was always gonna be all about Sean McVay's splashy offense, and certainly that unit did just enough when it mattered, with Matthew Stafford turning in a mostly solid day while leaning on target machine Cooper Kupp (11 catches, 142 yards, two touchdowns) and an equally reliable Odell Beckham Jr. (113 yards). But on a day the Rams managed just 20 points, struggled to get the ground game going, squandered their second-half timeouts and turned it over in the red zone, the "D" really stole the show. Aaron Donald, Greg Gaines and A'Shawn Robinson kept the 49ers' O-line on its toes, forcing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo out of his comfort zone early. Jalen Ramsey and Eric Weddle (!) each had important plays on the back end, nearly swiping Garoppolo passes. And Travin Howard sealed the win by intercepting one of several tipped Garoppolo balls in the final two minutes.
Why the 49ers lost
They couldn't do enough with the ball in their hands. Sound familiar? The 49ers have long surprised with their physicality, creative rushing strategy and ferocious pass rush. But on Sunday night, only two of those things really worked. Deebo Samuel, Kyle Shanahan's greatest weapon, still balled out with almost 100 total yards and an electrifying touchdown, and rookie Elijah Mitchell emerged as a safety valve for Garoppolo through the air. But a tenacious performance from DeMeco Ryans' defense, complete with 1.5 sacks from Nick Bosa and hard hits all around, went to waste as neither Mitchell nor Samuel could make dents on the ground, putting the burden on Garoppolo to lift San Francisco with his arm. Jimmy G wasn't horrible, delivering a few timely darts to George Kittle and Jauan Jennings, but also got away with a handful of misfires. Shanahan deserves blame, too, for going conservative with the game in his control -- specifically punting it away on fourth-and-2 near midfield in the fourth.
Turning point
McVay had just squandered his third and final timeout of the game trying to challenge a potential 49ers fumble on third-and-short, but after San Francisco's ensuing drive stalled, Shanahan elected to punt the ball on fourth-and-2 near midfield. He could've gone for the kill shot there, potentially picking up a new set of downs, burning clock and controlling the close of the game. Instead, he gave the Rams another opportunity to come back, and they did, with Stafford hitting Odell on a perfect sideline shot after Jaquiski Tartt dropped an easy deep-ball pick the play before. A helmet-to-helmet shot from Jimmie Ward moved the Rams even farther, and L.A. officially took the lead on Matt Gay's 30-yard field goal.
Play of the game
His team didn't win, but Deebo Samuel reminded a national audience why he's so important to the 49ers offense with this:
What's next
The Super Bowl! For the Rams, that is. L.A. will be back at home, in SoFi Stadium, on Feb. 13 to literally host the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. It'll be the team's second Super Bowl appearance in four years. The 49ers, meanwhile, will begin their 2022 offseason, where they'll face some big questions at key spots like QB, where Garoppolo could be set to pass the torch to rookie Trey Lance.