Los Angeles Rams: Previewing Divisional Round against Dallas Cowboys

The Philadelphia Eagles shocking the Chicago Bears also affected the Los Angeles Rams’ destiny as the Rams will now host the Dallas Cowboys.

Two bounces of the ball is all it took to give the NFL and Los Angeles Rams fans a historic playoff match-up this coming Saturday. That’s right, thanks to a missed game-winning field goal in the Chicago Bears playoff game, the Dallas Cowboys will take on the Rams at the Coliseum in the Divisional Round.

The winner will make the NFC Championship game for the first time in a long time; the Rams have not played in the NFC title game since their “Greatest Show on Turf” days in 2002 and the Cowboys since 1996 when they were a dynasty, winning three Super Bowls in four years.

Someone will be able to write a new chapter in their history as both teams look for their most significant win in years.

The Matchups

This game will be defined by the offense vs. defense matchups. The Rams are a top five offensive team and the Cowboys are a top-10 defensive team. Things bear out when the inverse is true as well.

The Rams are in the bottom third on defense and the Cowboys a bottom third on offense, regardless of how you measure it. But both instances don’t necessarily paint the full picture.

As dynamic as the Rams are on offense, back to back losses in early December exposed offensive inefficiencies.

In those losses to the Bears and Eagles, the Rams scored 6 and 23 points, well below their 33 point average. The culprit in those losses was quarterback Jared Goff, who threw five interceptions and 0 touchdowns across the two games.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys may have trouble scoring but they bring with them three dynamic offensive pieces in Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, and Amari Cooper. In their last four wins, the Cowboys averaged 29 points — up from their season average of 21.

History comes to the Coliseum

Even before the teams play, the NFL must be loving this matchup. Having one of their premiere franchises and their newest darling matched up is going to be a ratings boon for them and their television partners.

Already the ticket on the third party market has gone from the cheapest ticket to the most expensive ticket.

This will be the ninth playoff matchup between the two franchises and the first since 1986; that’s so long ago that Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay wasn’t even born yet.

During the 1970s the Cowboys and Rams faced each other five times with the winner going on to play in the Super Bowl three of those times. The winner of this weekend’s matchup will be looking to make the same move.

Both teams come in with similar talent if they want to make the move into the upper echelon a win will go a long way. If the Rams want to fulfill the promise of their immense talent then they better win, or they could lament another trophy-less year.