Rams to sit Stafford, Kupp, Donald, Kyren in regular-season finale vs 49ers to rest for playoffs
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, Kyren Williams, Cooper Kupp and linebacker Ernest Jones will not play in the playoff-bound Los Angeles Rams’ regular-season finale at San Francisco, coach Sean McVay said Wednesday.
Carson Wentz will make his Rams debut when they visit the 49ers on Sunday, McVay said. Los Angeles also will be without Williams, the NFL’s second-leading rusher; Kupp, the Super Bowl 56 MVP; Donald, the seven-time All-Pro defensive lineman; and Jones, the Rams’ leading tackler.
The Rams (9-7) have clinched a playoff spot, and earning a slightly higher seeding clearly means little to McVay with most of the NFC playoff picture still in flux behind No. 1-seeded San Francisco.
The 49ers are sitting starting quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey. Sam Darnold will start in Purdy’s place.
Los Angeles will finish sixth in the NFC if it beats the 49ers or if Green Bay loses to Chicago on Sunday. If the 49ers and Packers both win, Los Angeles will be the seventh seed.
McVay said the uncertainty across the playoff picture made him comfortable shutting down five key players for a one-week break before the playoffs. McVay acknowledged he paid attention to contract incentives for any resting players to make sure he didn’t prevent anybody from earning a bonus.
Rookie receiver Puka Nacua will suit up for the Rams in Santa Clara, McVay said. Nacua is four receptions and 29 yards away from setting the NFL rookie-season records in both categories.
“I think you’d like to see an opportunity for him to do something special,” McVay said.
Wentz signed with the Rams on Nov. 8, shortly after backup Brett Rypien struggled through a loss to Green Bay. Wentz, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 draft and the longtime Philadelphia quarterback, had been out of the NFL since playing for Washington last year.
He has taken only three snaps so far for the Rams, but has nearly two months of practice time in McVay’s offense.
The decision puts an early end to an impressive regular season for Stafford, a 15-year veteran who has rebounded impressively from serious injuries that sidelined him for half of 2022.
Stafford is currently sixth in the NFL with 3,965 yards passing, but he won’t be able to secure his 10th career 4,000-yard season if he doesn’t play in San Francisco. Only six quarterbacks in NFL history have more than Stafford’s nine 4,000-yard seasons.
Stafford has thrown 24 touchdown passes with 11 interceptions this season, but he has been very sharp since returning from a thumb injury that forced him to miss the Rams’ final 1 1/2 games before their bye week.
Since the bye, Stafford has passed for 1,895 yards with 16 touchdowns and just four interceptions — two in the Rams’ narrow win over the New York Giants last week.
Stafford appears to be relatively healthy this season, particularly compared to the stretch runs of his first two seasons with the Rams. He has been sacked 30 times in 15 games this season after getting sacked 29 times in nine games last season.
The Rams have lost nine consecutive regular-season games to the 49ers since 2018. Los Angeles narrowly beat San Francisco in the NFC title game in January 2022 on the way to its Super Bowl championship.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
