Rams win overtime thriller to join Patriots in NFL final four

The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Bears in the NFL play-off game to advance to the Conference Championships in a nail-biting victory over the Bears in Chicago.

After leading the Bears to a total of comeback victories this year, quarterback Caleb Williams had a chance to claim another victory with a stunning touchdown pass that put overtime in the Divisional Round game on Sunday.

However, the 2024 draft pick had an interception thrown, and Harrison Mevis’ field goal on the Rams’ subsequent drive secured a 20-17 victory in Illinois’ freezing conditions.

The Patriots defeated the haughty Houston Texans defense and the snow to defeat the Patriots in Massachusetts, extending their lead to one win.

The Patriots’ Drake Maye and Matthew Stafford, the quarterback in Los Angeles, are the top contenders for the NFL’s title decider.

Next Sunday for the NFC Championship game, the Rams must travel to divisional rival Seattle, and New England will face the Denver Broncos in the AFC equivalent.

Los Angeles, who finished the regular season with a better record and is led by MVP frontrunner Stafford, were the NFC’s second seed, but fifth-ranked Los Angeles were favorite to win at Soldier Field.

The 37-year-old helped the Rams win the Super Bowl in 2022, but he has never won the prestigious MVP award, and his offense struggled to get going in Chicago, where the wind chill was -13C and the temperature dropped to -8C.

The Rams took the lead in the fourth quarter when Kyren Williams ran for a touchdown from five yards and had a chance to be 10-10 at half-time.

The Bears, however, have won a total of seven games this year with a 2-0 lead. With 18 seconds left, Williams was unfazed before making a hopeful pass in the end zone that tight end Cole Kmet seized with a 40-yard gain.

On the first possession of overtime, Chicago’s defense finally came to an end, but Williams, who has been dubbed “the Iceman” for his ability to deliver under pressure, was intercepted for the third time in the match on Sunday.

Mevis’ 42-yard touchdown pass at the other end of the field sealed a thrilling season for the long-suffering Bears fans, which included the team’s first play-off victory in 15 years last week.

In their first year as head coaches, Williams and Ben Johnson helped Chicago improve from a 5-12 record in 2024 to an 11-6 record this year.

With Mike Vrabel and Maye taking them from bottom to top of their division, New England has also made an unexpected play-off appearance this year.

With a 10-win winning streak, the Patriots’ 4-13 record and 4-13 record helped them clinch the AFC’s second seed.

Tom Brady’s final two seasons in New England (2018) and 2019 marked the first time the Patriots have captured the AFC East division title and advanced to the AFC Championship game.

The Patriots have finally found Brady’s long-term replacement in Maye, the third overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Maye once more showed maturity on Sunday, this time surpassing his previous year of dominance when he won his first NFL championship in 2002, age 23.

Due to the windy conditions, both he and opposite number CJ Stroud struggled, resulting in three turnovers, two of them fumbled and one interception. Additionally, he was sacked five times.

However, he also delivered three touchdown passes, two of which helped give Kayshon Boutte, who had a superb one-handed grab to seal the victory, to give him a 21-10 lead at half-time.

In addition, third-year quarterback Stroud of Houston gave up four picks in the first half alone, with one of them being returned for a touchdown by Marcus Jones after throwing just eight interceptions in 14 games during the regular season.

Despite having the NFL’s top-ranked defense this year and winning ten straight games as a result, the Texans were exiting the playoffs for the third time in a row.

Ironically, Maye will face Jarrett Stidham in the AFC Championship game from next week, a team that was initially thought to be Brady’s replacement after he wasdrafted by the Patriots in 2019 and acted as his backup that year.

bracketed conference seed, all kick-off times GMT.

Sunday, January 25th,