Nfc Championship: 5 Plays That Led The Seahawks Past The Rams In Thrilling Battle To Reach Super Bowl

In opposite fashion of the AFC title game, the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams were involved in a bit of a shootout on Sunday night. 

In the end, though, it was the Seahawks who survived a battle with their NFC West rival to secure their first trip to the Super Bowl since the 2014 campaign. They'll now take on the New England Patriots, who are in the Super Bowl themselves for the first time since the Tom Brady era.

Here's a look at the key plays that decided the outcome of Sunday's contest at Lumen Field.

Rashid Shaheed’s 51-yard grab

The Seahawks came out fast on Sunday night, thanks to a massive reception from Rashid Shaheed on their opening drive. Shaheed broke up the right side of the field and easily snuck past Darious Williams to set up a 51-yard completion that put Seattle in scoring position.

That ended up being Shaheed’s only catch of the game, but it led to a 2-yard touchdown run from Kenneth Walker to get them on the board.

JSN’s huge first half

Jaxon Smith-Njigba didn’t score on this play, but the ridiculous grab through an immense hit set up the score a few plays later.

Smith-Njigba broke open deep in the middle of the field with about 30 seconds left in the half and somehow managed to hang onto a 42-yard deep ball through a huge hit from Kam Curl. Smith-Njigba jumped up like nothing happened and celebrated instantly.

Just three plays later, Smith-Njigba completed the drive with a 14-yard touchdown. That brought him up to 115 yards in the game, and put the Seahawks up entering the locker room.

Those catches were just some of the grabs he made in the first 30 minutes, though one he made in the first quarter with a single hand was way more impressive. He ended up with 153 yards and a score on 10 catches in the win.

Xavier Smith’s botched punt return

The Rams picked up a pretty quick stop to start the second half, but it completely backfired on a brutal special teams blunder.

Xavier Smith started to trip while trying to track down a deep punt and couldn’t haul it in. The Seahawks immediately jumped on it to complete the turnover, which led to a 17-yard touchdown pass from Sam Darnold to Jake Bobo on the very next play. Just like that, the Seahawks’ lead was up to 11.

Riq Woolen’s taunting

This taunting penalty came at the worst time.

While it’s not known what was actually said, Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after a third down stop late in the third quarter. That turned what should have been a Rams punt into a fresh set of downs.

The Rams immediately took advantage of it, too. Matthew Stafford hit Puka Nacua for a 34-yard touchdown pass on the very next play.

Woolen’s taunting penalty turned what was once an 11-point game into a four-point battle. It’s no wonder his teammates weren’t happy with him on the sidelines.

Seattle’s last stand

Stafford got the Rams into scoring position one final time in the fourth quarter, and nearly sent them into the lead after a long 14-play, 84 yard drive. But the drive finally stalled out just six yards from the goal line, and it ended up sealing the win for the Seahawks.

Seattle, after Stafford already scrambled on a short fourth down to keep the drive alive earlier, broke up two final passes on third and fourth down to force a turnover inside the 10 yard line. It was Devon Witherspoon who got in the way of both of them. 

Witherspoon first broke up a pass intended for Konata Mumpfield on third down, which set up a fourth-and-4 with about five minutes left in the game. Witherspoon then did it again on fourth down, and nearly intercepted a pass intended for Terrance Ferguson in the back of the end zone. He jumped up livid after the play, upset that he didn’t draw a flag, but it didn’t matter. He got the job done, and the Seahawks got the ball back.

Even though the Rams got the ball back one last time, they only had 25 seconds left and no timeouts to work with. That wasn't anywhere near enough time to go the 93 yards they needed to to find the end zone. 

While the Rams had plenty of opportunities, and nearly mounted a late comeback after a critical Seattle mistake, it was the Seahawks who executed in the end on the defensive side of the ball. That, and a massive outing from Smith-Njigba, has them headed to their first Super Bowl in more than a decade.