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Rams nightmare playoff scenario with 3 weeks left in regular season
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The Los Angeles Rams look as dangerous as ever heading into Week 16 . Now Los Angeles is gearing up for a Thursday Night Football matchup against Seattle that has huge implications for the NFC West division race. The Rams have already punched their ticket to the playoffs. They secured their place in the postseason by defeating the Lions 41-34 on Sunday.
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But just because the Rams can't miss the playoffs doesn't mean they are breezing through the rest of the regular season.
The Rams are in competition with the following teams for playoff positioning in the NFC:
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Packers
Los Angeles is battling with Seattle and San Francisco for a potential NFC West division title. Meanwhile, Chicago and Green Bay are duking it out for the NFC North division title.
The three teams (including the Rams) that do not win a division title will be the most likely wild card teams in the NFC.
As a result, the Rams still need to fight to have a good record for the purposes of playoff seeding. If the worst possible outcome happens, their fate could change wildly.
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But just how bad could things get for LA over the next three weeks?
Below we will explore the Rams' nightmare playoff scenario with just three weeks left in the 2025 regular season.
Rams lose crucial Week 16 matchup against Seahawks
This nightmare scenario will feature the worst possible outcome each week. And I imagine you'll pick up on the theme pretty quick.
First, the worst thing that could happen to the Rams in Week 16 is losing to the Seahawks on TNF .
Both LA and Seattle head into that game at 11-3, meaning the winner will leap to the top of the division standings. The competition in the NFC West is still incredibly close, so losing this game alone will not decide the division title. However, it is unquestionably the most important game left on either team's schedule.
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That loss would move the Rams down into the wild card race.
In this scenario, the 49ers also get a big win over the Colts . That improves their record to 11-4 and moving them much closer to the Rams.
Chicago and Green Bay also face off in Week 16, so one of those teams will get a win. It doesn't really matter to the Rams who wins, as either outcome is bad for them.
Rams lose Monday Night Football against Falcons in Week 17
At this point, the Rams are now a wild card team. That means the absolute worst thing that could happen is failing to keep up with the Seahawks. And losing games themselves.
Naturally, the start of this nightmare scenario is somehow dropping a game to the Falcons on Monday Night Football.
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Additionally, there are a handful of matchups that could enhance that pain.
The most obvious game is Seahawks vs. Panthers. If Seattle gained another win, improving to 13-3, then they would box LA out from the NFC West title.
Other important matchups include the Packers vs. Ravens, with a Packers victory setting them up to pass the Rams in seeding in Week 18.
Finally, the 49ers and Bears face each other in Week 17. San Francisco getting the win is worse, as they pace the Rams in playoff seeding as well.
Cardinals upset Rams in Week 18
This scenario would give Rams fans little hope headed into Week 18.
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The Rams hit a three-game losing streak to end the regular season, falling to the Cardinals. No only would losing to Arizona be a huge disappointment, but it could start messing with LA's psyche just before the playoffs.
Meanwhile, a pair of NFC North matchups could also hurt the Rams.
The worst possible outcome is the Bears beating the Lions and Packers beating the Vikings. The stakes for both contending teams would be huge, but from the Rams' perspective it's all bad.
Whichever way it goes, both teams squeak ahead of the Rams for playoff seeding.
Finally, the 49ers and Seahawks would battle for the NFC West title in Week 18. Just like with the NFC North matchups, the Rams don't really have a dog in the fight.
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How far could the Rams fall in this nightmare scenario?
This scenario plummets the Rams as far down as they can go.
Los Angeles would finish the season at 11-6 and become the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs. They would definitively be the No. 7 seed regardless of whether Green Bay or Chicago comes out on top in Week 16.
If Chicago wins, then Green Bay would still have a slight advantage over LA at 11-5-1. Meanwhile, if Green Bay wins, Chicago would have a tiebreaker with a better conference record.
The only difference is where the Rams would play in the first round of the playoffs.
They would play on the road against the NFC North champion, whichever team that may be.
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The Rams are still a dangerous team, so even this absurd situation wouldn't be too much for them to fight their way out of. But it does illustrate how important playoff seeding is during this wild 2025 season.
Thankfully, LA can avoid this scenario by simply winning a game. Then the rest will fall into place.
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