Rams look like team capable of Super Bowl run

If you were not already doing so, it is time to start taking the Los Angeles Rams seriously as a legitimate Super Bowl contender in the NFC. 

They made that crystal clear on Monday night with a decisive 27-9 win over a 14-win Minnesota Vikings team, continuing what has been a second-half surge where they have looked like one of the best teams in the NFL.

Including Monday's win, the Rams are now 10-3 in their past 13 games after a 1-4 start and everything is clicking for them.

It exemplifies how it's not always a matter of how a team starts season, but how it finishes it. And also when it gets hot and plays its best football of the season.

The biggest factor in the Rams' favor right now is the fact quarterback Matthew Stafford is playing like a top-tier QB. There is an argument to be made he is the best remaining quarterback in the NFC playoff field, and he has been dominating opposing defenses ever since he got wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua back in the lineup healthy. 

Over his past eight starts, Stafford has thrown 15 touchdown passes to only one interception, while owning a passer rating of 104.0 or better in five of those starts.

The Rams are 7-1 in those games with Stafford in the lineup. 

Quarterback play changes everything in the NFL, and on wild-card weekend, you can make a pretty convincing argument that every team that had the better quarterback ended up winning their individual games.

If he keeps playing like he has been, the Rams are going to be an extremely tough team to knock out.

But it is not just about Stafford and the Rams' passing game.

The defense is also starting to turn things around, and it has allowed 14 points or fewer in five of their past seven games. They have held opponents to under 10 points in four of those games, including their first playoff game against the Vikings. Their pass rush, led by rookie sensation Jared Verse, is really starting to come on and cause disruption. They were outstanding in Monday's game against the Vikings, recording nine sacks. 

A defense with a big pass rush. A top-tier quarterback playing his best football. A Super Bowl-winning coach in Sean McVay. All of that can add up into a team that is capable of going on a run and winning it all. 

They might be underdogs on the road in Philadelphia this week, but this is not a team to be taken lightly.