Jan 23, 2022
Rams lead Buccaneers after lopsided first half
So far, so good for the Los Angeles Rams. The visitors from L.A. dominated play on both sides of the ball as they took a 20-3 lead over Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at halftime.
TSN.ca Staff
So far, so good for the Los Angeles Rams.
The visitors from L.A. dominated play on both sides of the ball as they took a 20-3 lead over Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at halftime.
The Rams struck first on a field goal from Matt Gay and followed that up with a Kendall Blanton touchdown soon after to go up 10-0. Ryan Succup nailed a 45-yard field goal late in the first quarter to get the Buccaneers on the board, but the Rams kept on coming early in the second quarter.
Facing a third and 20 on their own 30-yard line, Matthew Stafford hooked up with Cooper Kupp for a 70-yard touchdown to put the Rams up 14 and take advantage of a clear breakdown in coverage by the Tampa secondary.
Gay added another field goal near the end of the half while the Bucs largely struggled on offence, tallying just 133 total yards compared to 250 from the Rams.
The winner will move on to face the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship next weekend, who booked their spot in the final four with a 13-10 victory over Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers Saturday night.
In the AFC, the Cincinnati Bengals defeated Derrick Henry and the Tennessee Titans to book their spot in the AFC Championship. They will take on the winner of the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs, who will do battle Sunday evening in the lone Divisional Round game left this weekend.