Matthew

A crescendo is building, and the Rams might be best to ignore it.

So much can happen from week to week in the NFL — check out Philadelphia’s loss to Dallas — that the Rams can’t get too comfortable, even with the way they’re playing.

In the last five games, culminating with their 27-point stomping of Tampa Bay on Sunday night, the Rams have outscored opponents in the opening quarter, 63-3.

Matthew Stafford has thrown 27 touchdown passes without an interception.

In four of the games in this six-game winning streak, the Rams defense has allowed 10 points or fewer.

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Gary Klein breaks down what went right for the Rams in their 34-7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday night.

But it’s uncomfortably early for anyone in the organization to be thinking about Santa Clara in February. The Rams need to play with blinders on. Yes, they’ve secured the NFC’s No. 1 seed for the moment, but they have a one-game lead over the Eagles, who beat them earlier this season and therefore have the tiebreaker. There’s no wiggle room.

The glide path is far different than 2021, when the Rams wound up winning the Super Bowl on their home field. That season, they went 0-3 in November games.

This bears a closer resemblance to 2018, Sean McVay’s second season, when the last game before Thanksgiving was an instant classic at the Coliseum, Jared Goff and the Rams beating Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, 54-51.

There’s no ignoring that we’re watching something special in Stafford, who takes the snap, scans the field and delivers a laser with remarkable reliability. He processes with the speed of AI.

It was 10 years ago at Levi’s Stadium that Denver’s Peyton Manning, quarterbacking his second franchise, won his second Super Bowl ring and decided to retire.

Could that be Stafford? Second franchise. Potential for a second ring. Then again, Manning’s body was breaking down on him and he wasn’t at the top of his game. Those Broncos ran the ball and had a great defense.

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford warms up before a 34-7 win over the Buccaneers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

At the moment, Stafford is playing as well as anyone who has ever played the position. He looks nothing like a 37-year-old guy who sat out training camp with back problems.

His streak of 27 touchdown passes without a pick is, according to Elias, the longest such streak by any player since play-by-play was first tracked in 1978.

“It’s hard to conceptualize the fact that you can throw — put the ball in the end zone that much,” said Rams receiver Davante Adams, who has 12 touchdown receptions this season. “Most quarterbacks can’t throw 27 passes without throwing a pick.”

Stafford’s the leading most valuable player candidate, and this could be the season that secures him a bronze bust in Canton.

As for the poetry of him walking off the biggest stage the way Manning did, that’s all fantasy football now, especially with more than a quarter of the regular season remaining.

(A little more premature conjecture: It’s not inconceivable that the Rams and New England Patriots could meet in the Super Bowl for a third time.)

What is irrefutable is the Rams are continually deepening their foothold on the Los Angeles market. They set their regular-season attendance record Sunday night (75,545 tickets distributed), surpassing the mark they set a week earlier with a home game against Seattle.

This is what Rams owner Stan Kroenke was talking about when he brought the team back in 2016, and when he built SoFi Stadium with the idea of making the nearly-300-acre campus a center of gravity on the West Coast.

It’s not just home to the Rams and Chargers, but it’s the integral role the stadium will play in the World Cup, the 2028 Olympics, and in early 2027, the second Super Bowl it will host. No matter how you feel about UCLA trying to wriggle out of its Rose Bowl deal, there’s a reason the school has turned its attention to SoFi.

Kroenke always told his development team that undershooting L.A. would be a huge mistake, that the opportunity here was immeasurable.

“Sometimes when you’re a real estate developer, I think you have to be tremendously optimistic,” Kroenke told the Los Angeles Times. “You encounter so many issues. … With the NFL, you saw how difficult that whole thing was. So you had to be the optimist.

“Then you get a night like tonight, and it’s just awesome.”

Rams defensive end Kobie Turner reacts during player introductions before facing the Buccaneers on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

The stadium was loud and overwhelmingly blue, with only a sprinkling of Tampa Bay fans. That’s progress.

The peril for the Rams now is letting down their guard. They travel across the country next weekend to play at Carolina, a team that won four of five not so long ago, including an upset of Green Bay.

In his postgame news conference, cornerback Cobie Durant was asked how it feels to have the No. 1 seed in the conference.

“I didn’t know that,” he said, sounding pleasantly surprised. “I don’t keep up with that.”

Smart answer.

From Gary Klein: This is no hot streak or a flash in the pan.

So don’t look away. Pay attention.

Otherwise, risk missing the master class that Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is conducting this season.

One that has the 17th-year pro squarely in the conversation for his first NFL most valuable player award.

“I see those people say stuff like that,” Stafford said Sunday after passing for four touchdowns in the Rams’ 42-26 victory over the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium, “and all I can think about is like I’m just lucky to have unbelievable teammates.”

Stafford, 37, is playing as if he were in the middle, not near the end, of a possible Hall of Fame career.

On Sunday he tossed touchdown passes to receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams and tight ends Davis Allen and Colby Parkinson as the Rams avenged an overtime loss to the 49ers in Week 5 and improved to 7-2.

How efficient has Stafford played this season?

He has passed for a league-leading 25 touchdowns.

With only two interceptions.

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Rams summary

NFL standings

Paul Tagliabue, NFL commissioner who led an era of expansion, dies at 84

CHARGERS

From Sam Farmer: An end to the shutdown?

Not for the Chargers, whose defense put the clamps on the Pittsburgh Steelers with a 25-10 victory before a sea of black-and-gold-clad fans and a national TV audience.

Neither team had many offensive highlights — or first downs, for that matter — but the Chargers did enough to win their third game in a row, something they hadn’t done since the first three games of the season.

You might call the Chargers inhospitable, seeing as the Steelers came into the game averaging 25.3 points. You might call the Steelers inhospitable for filling SoFi Stadium with Pittsburgh fans.

The Terrible Towels were everywhere, but there were precious few opportunities to swirl them. By the fourth quarter, thousands of those fans were streaming for the exits. The Steelers were held to 11 first downs, converted two of 11 third downs and generated 221 total yards.

Aaron Rodgers looked every bit of his 41 years. He was sacked three times, intercepted twice, brought down in the end zone for a safety and he finished with an anemic passer rating of 50.6.

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Chargers summary

NFL standings

Trevor Penning eager to bolster Chargers’ big need to protect Justin Herbert

USC BASKETBALL

Jazzy Davidson scored 21 points and made the go-ahead layup with 8.2 seconds left as No. 18 USC took down No. 9 North Carolina State 69-68 on Sunday in the third-annual Ally-Tip Off.

Davidson’s late game heroics — where she cut hard to the basket and caught Kennedy Smith’s inbounds pass in stride — capped off an impressive second half for the USC freshman, as she scored 18 points on seven-of-13 shooting after halftime.

The Trojans (2-0) were also bolstered by Londynn Jones’ 19 points. Smith added 10 points and eight rebounds.

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USC box score

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Chad Baker-Mazara scored 20 of his career-high 26 points in the first half to lead seven USC players in double figures and start the Trojans off and running to a 114-83 victory over Manhattan on Sunday.

Baker-Mazara made seven of 13 shots, including three of four from three-point range, and all nine of his free throws to help the Trojans (2-0) score more points than they’ve had since 1998. He added seven rebounds.

Ezra Ausar scored 17 points on seven-for-10 shooting for USC and Rodney Rice pitched in with 14 points, six rebounds and four assists. Jacob Cofie totaled 10 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, while Terrence Williams II added 10 points and seven boards. Reserves Jaden Brownell and Jordan Marsh scored 13 and 11, respectively.

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USC box score

KINGS

Kevin Fiala broke a tie with 8:08 left with his 500th NHL point to help the Kings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 on Sunday to open a six-game trip.

Fiala got around defenseman Erik Karlsson and shot over goalie Sergei Murashov. Fiala also had an assist. The 29-year-old Swiss winger has 218 goals and 282 assists in 667 regular-season games with Nashville, Minnesota and the Kings.

Corey Perry tied it 2-2 for the Kings at 4:49 of the third. He also had an assist.

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Kings summary

NHL standings

DUCKS

Rookie Beckett Sennecke had his first two-goal game, Leo Carlsson extended his scoring streak to 10 games with two power-play goals, and the Ducks beat the Winnipeg Jets 4-1 on Sunday night for their seventh straight victory.

Cutter Gauthier and Chris Kreider had two assists apiece and Lukas Dostal made 23 saves for the first-place Ducks, who have scored 33 goals during their longest winning streak in two years. Anaheim wasn’t even slowed by playing at Vegas on Saturday, instead beating both of the Western Conference’s 2024-25 division champions during its first back-to-back set of the season.

The 19-year-old Sennecke had already solidified his spot on the Ducks’ roster before he scored in the first and second period against Winnipeg. He has six goals and five assists in his first 15 NHL games, answering any questions about whether the former No. 3 overall pick was ready to make the leap from juniors to the NHL.

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Ducks summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1940 — The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Philadelphia Eagles 7-3 in a penalty-free game at Forbes Field. Philadelphia’s George Somers hits a 36-yard field goal in the first quarter. Coley McDonough of the Steelers scores on a one-yard rush in the third quarter.

1945 — Top-ranked Army shuts out No. 2 Notre Dame 48-0 at Yankee Stadium. Glenn Davis scores three touchdowns and Doc Blanchard scores two, while the Cadets roll up 441 yards to the Irish’s 184.

1963 — Don Meredith of the Dallas Cowboys passes for 460 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-24 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

1963 — Detroit’s Gordie Howe becomes the leading career goal scorer in the NHL with his 545th in a 3-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.

1974 — Hernri Richard and Gut Lafleur score two goals apiece to lead the Montreal Canadiens to an 11-1 over the Washington Capitals. Jack Egers gets the Capitals only goal.

1978 — Larry Holmes knocks out Alfredo Evangelista in the seventh round to retain the WBC heavyweight title in Las Vegas.

1984 — Wyoming’s Kevin Lowe rushes for 302 yards, and Rick Wegher of South Dakota State rushes for 231 to set an NCAA record for most yards gained by two opposing players. Wyoming wins 45-29.

1984 — Wild Again holds off Slew O’ Gold and Gate Dancer to capture the $3 million Breeders’ Cup Classic in the inaugural Breeders’ Cup at Hollywood Park.

1984 — Maryland completes the biggest comeback in NCAA history, overcoming a 31-0 halftime deficit to beating Miami 42-40 in the Orange Bowl. Led by back-up quarterback Frank Reich, the Terrapins score on six consecutive drives in the second half and stop Hurricane running back Melvin Bratton’s two-point conversion attempt on the goal line late in the fourth quarter.

1990 — The Phoenix Suns shatter the NBA record with 107 points in the first half of a 173-143 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

1991 — Martina Navratilova beats Monica Seles for the California Virginia Slims tournament, her 157th title, equaling Chris Evert’s record for career victories.

1996 — Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino surpasses 50,000 career yards passing in a 37-13 win over Indianapolis. Marino also reaches 4,000 completions, another NFL first, with his 10th completion of the game.

2001 — San Jose State beats Nevada 64-45, setting an NCAA single-game record for total offense with 1,640 yards. San Jose State has 849 yards to Nevada’s 791, eclipsing the previous record of 1,563 yards set by Houston and TCU on Nov. 3, 1990.

2007 — San Jose center Jeremy Roenick scores his 500th NHL goal at the expense of his former team in a 4-1 win over Phoenix.

2007 — Navy and North Texas set a major-college record by combining for 136 points in the Midshipmen’s 74-62 win. The previous record for college football’s top tier of competition was 133 points in San Jose State’s 70-63 win over Rice on Oct. 2, 2004.

2007 — Notre Dame loses for the ninth time this season, a school-record, falling 41-24 to Air Force. The last time the Irish lost to two military academies in the same season was 1944.

2012 — Ka’Deem Carey of Arizona rushes for a Pac-12 record 366 yards and ties the conference record with five TDs in the Wildcats’ 56-31 rout of Colorado.

2013 — Marc Marquez becomes the first rookie in 35 years to win the MotoGP championship after protecting his points lead in the Valencia Grand Prix. Needing a top-four finish to secure the title, the 20-year-old Marquez finishes third on his Honda behind race winner and defending champion Jorge Lorenzo. The last rookie to win the title was American Kenny Roberts in 1978.

2017 — John Carlson and T.J. Oshie score rare home power-play goals, and Braden Holtby becomes the second-fastest goalie in NHL history to 200 victories in Washington’s 4-1 win over Pittsburgh. Holtby stops 27 of the 28 shots he faces to pick up victory No. 200 in his 319th game, second only to Hall of Famer and six-time Stanley Cup winner Ken Dryden, who did it in 311.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at [email protected]. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

SANTA CLARA — This is not a one-off.

This is no hot streak or a flash in the pan.

So don’t look away. Pay attention.

Otherwise, risk missing the master class that Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is conducting this season.

One that has the 17th-year pro squarely in the conversation for his first NFL most valuable player award.

“I see those people say stuff like that,” Stafford said Sunday after passing for four touchdowns in the Rams’ 42-26 victory over the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium, “and all I can think about is like I’m just lucky to have unbelievable teammates.”

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Gary Klein breaks down what went right for the Rams in their 42-26 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

Stafford, 37, is playing as if he were in the middle, not near the end, of a possible Hall of Fame career.

On Sunday he tossed touchdown passes to receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams and tight ends Davis Allen and Colby Parkinson as the Rams avenged an overtime loss to the 49ers in Week 5 and improved to 7-2.

How efficient has Stafford played this season?

He has passed for a league-leading 25 touchdowns.

With only two interceptions.

“He can walk on water right now,” Nacua said.

In the last three games, Stafford has passed for 13 touchdowns. His second touchdown pass Sunday, to Allen, was the 400th of his career.

Stafford’s name already fills the NFL record book. He is among the top 10 in several passing categories. But he never has been this efficient for this long.

Stafford has not had a pass intercepted in the last six games, the longest such stretch of his career.

“It looks like the game is really in slow motion to him right now,” coach Sean McVay said.

Rams players (from left) Puka Nacua, Matthew Stafford, Jordan Whittington and Davante Adams celebrate in the third quarter of a 42-26 win over the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday.

(Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)

Stafford’s recent run of excellence is on par with other awe-inspiring Los Angeles sports icons.

He has been as dominant as the UCLA fast break and full court press from the 1970s. Clayton Kershaw’s 12-to-6 curveball. Freddie Freeman’s walk-off homer swing.

This is a Wayne Gretzky assist. A Nolan Ryan no-hitter.

A Reggie Bush breakaway run. A Serena Williams backhand winner. A Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sky hook, a Magic Johnson no-look pass, a Kobe Bryant game-winning three. A Lisa Leslie low-post move. A Candace Parker dunk.

A Jim Murray or Bill Plaschke column.

A fill-in-the-blank run of excellence.

Overblown? Perhaps. The NFL is a humbling league. Stafford’s recent run could end next Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks at SoFi Stadium.

So enjoy it in real time. Follow Stafford’s lead.

“I have fun out there,” he said when asked about what Nacua described as Stafford’s ‘shimmy shake’ touchdown celebration. “I lose my mind when we score touchdowns.”

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford smiles while being interviewed after the Rams’ win over the 49ers on Sunday.

(Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press)

That’s how defensive coordinators must feel when Stafford completes one of his patented no-look passes.

Adams played eight seasons in Green Bay with Aaron Rodgers. He knows what an MVP looks like.

“It’s looked like MVP play to me all year,” Adams said, pointing to a Week 2 game against the Tennessee Titans, when Stafford shook off an interception and led the Rams to victory. “Just to rally a team and continue to lead at a high level when things don’t go your way, I think that’s what really shows what an MVP is like.”

Stafford’s success harks to 2021, when he passed for 41 touchdowns and led the Rams to a Super Bowl title. He is on pace for an even more impressive statistical finish.

“The heater that he’s on, it’s elevating everybody else’s play,” Nacua said, “and we’re continuing to jump on that bandwagon with him and let him take us as far as he can.”

If Stafford continues his stellar play the Rams could find themselves right back here at Levi’s Stadium.

For Super Bowl LX.