The stage is set for the NFC Championship Game on Sunday night, a rubber match between the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks. At stake is a trip to the Super Bowl, a potential opportunity for one of the NFC West powers to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at Levi’s Stadium, the home of the San Francisco 49ers.
Let us dive into our NFC Championship Game predictions, with the stats and analysis serving as a form of a Rams vs. Seahawks preview.
Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks Combine for Under 50 Points
We’ve gotten two very different matchups in the last two Rams vs Seahawks meeting. Most recently, Seattle and Los Angeles combined for 996 total yards and 75 points back on Dec. 18, an overtime shootout that will go down as one of the best NFL games in 2025. One month earlier, the Rams and Seahawks totaled 40 points and went a combined 9-for-27 (33.3% conversion rate) on third down.
Expect something much closer to the latter in the NFC Championship Game. While Sam Darnold played well in the second half of that Week 16 contest against the Rams defense, he’s just been pedestrian for the later half of the season. From Weeks 11-18, he had an 83.2 QB rating and 8-8 TD-INT line with 17 sacks taken and he ranked 20th among qualified quarterbacks in EPA per Play (0.038).
Stafford hasn’t exactly been playing like an MVP-caliber quarteback either as of late. He was abysmal in Week 17 versus the Atlanta Falcons (3 interceptions and 64.5 QB rating), struggled after suffering a finger injury in the Wild Card Round win over the Carolina Panthers and he wasn’t all that effective against Chicago. Now facing the league’s best defense, we’re expecting a low-scoring NFC title game.
Related: NFL Defense Rankings 2026, Ranking Defenses on Conference Championship Weekend
Kenneth Walker Puts up 85+ Scrimmage Yards
It is not a given that Zach Charbonnet (knee) plays in the NFC Championship Game. Fortunately for this Seahawks offense, Kenneth Walker III is on an absolute tear as of late. Across his last four games, including the Divisional Round, Walker has put up 499 scrimmage yards on 73 touches and he has averaged 6.0 yards per carry on 61 touches. In a contract year, he has the fourth-highest Explosive Rating (122.1), the third-most breakaway runs (18) and he ranks first in juke rate (31.7 percent).
All of that will pose a problem for Los Angeles. Opponents averaged 126.5 rushing yards per game and 4.8 yards per carry against the Rams in the final eight regular-season games. While Chris Shula’s unit had more success on a down-to-down basis, it allowed a lot of explosive runs. Walker is going to be a central part of the Seahawks game plan in the NFC title game and he will deliver another excellent performance.
Related: Projecting Landing Spots for Top RBs in NFL Free Agency, including Kenneth Walker
Sam Darnold Turns It Over Twice
Is it possible that Darnold exorcised his demons against the Rams in the second half of their last meeting? Yes. However, he has shown his flaws since Week 10 and Los Angeles has proven to be better than just about anyone at exposing them. Of note, Darnold is tied with Geno Smith for the highest turnover-worthy play rate when pressured (7.6 percent) among qualified quarterbacks since Week 10 and he has the third-most interceptions (nine) in the last 10 games. The Rams have an opportunistic defense with a keen sense of where the football is at all times. We are projecting that Darnold will turn it over twice in the NFC Championship Game, throwing one interception and losing it once on a strip-sack.
Read More: AFC Championship Game Predictions, Patriots vs Broncos Preview
Seahawks Win the NFC Championship Game
We will first say that we believe the winner of the NFC Championship Game will go on to hoist the Lombardi Trophy two weeks later. Both the Seahawks and Rams are that good. This is a coin-flip matchup, as evidenced by the fact that Los Angeles and Seattle were nearly dead even in total yards and points in their two head-to-head contests this season.
It is the little things that matter. Thanks to Rashid Shaheed and Jason Myers, the Seahawks have the best special teams unit remaining on Conference Championship Weekend. We also think when stacking up the four major units taking the field that the Seahawks defense tops the list. Throw in home-field advantage, with a raucous atmosphere at Lumen Field, and you have enough factors pushing this Seattle’s way. Behind a great defensive performance and another big game from Walker, the Seahawks punch their ticket to the Super Bowl for a matchup against the New England Patriots.
