Sports
Uneven Rams overcome ‘bad coaching’ in playoff win vs. Bears
CHICAGO — The Los Angeles Rams are headed to the NFC Championship game to play the Seattle Seahawks, despite what head coach Sean McVay called “some bad coaching” by him in Sunday night’s 20-17 win over the Bears.
The Rams offense, a unit which led the league in offensive DVOA during the regular season, struggled to get into a rhythm for much of the game.
“Offensively, man, I did not do a very good job for our group tonight,” McVay said. “But I thought our guys were able to overcome it.”
After scoring a touchdown on their opening possession with a 14-play 85-yard drive, the Rams had just 174 yards at the end of the third quarter. According to ESPN Research, it was their fewest yards at the end of the third quarter in a game this season.
“I did not like the feel for the flow of the game that I had outside of the first series where our guys did a great job,” McVay said. “Defensively, it kept us in it in spite of how poor of a job I did for our group. But like I said, I’m really grateful for this group being able to find a way, stick with it and be able to overcome some bad coaching by me tonight.”
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who threw for a league-leading 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns during the regular season, completed 20 of 42 passes for 258 yards against the Bears. Stafford failed to throw a touchdown for just the second time in his playoff career, according to ESPN Research. It was the first time Stafford failed to throw multiple passing touchdowns in a playoff start for the Rams.
“I definitely didn’t get into a great rhythm today,” Stafford said. “There’s no question about that. I had some opportunities in the pass game, just some things that made it tough. Obviously I could be better.
“But playoff football is about winning the football game. Played great, threw for a bunch of yards last year in the snow and we lost, so that s— sucks. So I’m happy to have played a little bit worse today and going home with a win. So we’ll take that.”
Stafford had 11 off-target throws on Sunday, tied for his most as a member of the Rams, according to ESPN Research.
But despite the struggles for the offense for most of the night, Stafford led the Rams to his 55th career game-wining drive in the fourth quarter or overtime, which is 11 more than the next-closest player since he entered the NFL in 2009.
The victory for the Rams sent them to the NFC title game for the first time since Los Angeles won Super Bowl LVI during the 2021 season. The Rams will play the No. 1 seed Seahawks, who beat the San Francisco 49ers 41-6 on Saturday night to advance.
“[We’ve] got to be at our best,” McVay said. “You watched that game last night. They’re firing on all cylinders. They look really good and I’m excited to be able to dive into this tape and figure out how we can improve.”
The Rams split the season series in Seattle, winning 21-19 at home in Week 11 and losing 38-37 in overtime in Week 16. The Rams led the Week 16 game 30-14 in the fourth quarter.
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, who had 5 catches for 56 yards on Sunday, said it felt fitting that Los Angeles will go back to Seattle next week for a chance to go to the Super Bowl.
“I think there’s no way the football gods would rather have it be than for us to go back up there and see the All Father [Cooper Kupp] and get a chance to right our wrongs,” Nacua said. “So it will be a great challenge for us and we’re excited for it.”
- Sri Lanka requestsmatches be held outside India over security concerns.
- Scotland set to be named replacement team based on current rankings.
- Pakistan stresses no country should face pressure, threats from India.
Bangladesh’s participation in the 2026 T20 World Cup, and specifically whether the team travels to India, will reportedly be decided by January 21, following discussions in Dhaka where the International Cricket Council (ICC) reportedly conveyed a deadline to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).
During the second meeting in a week with the ICC on Saturday, the BCB reiterated its intention to play in the T20 World Cup but requested matches be held outside India over security concerns, suggesting co-host Sri Lanka as an alternative.
The ICC, however, rejected the request, keeping Bangladesh in Group C and assuring there is no security threat to the team while touring and playing in India, ESPNcricinfo reported.
The report claimed that the top cricketing body also turned down the BCB’s request to move Bangladesh to Group B, swapping places with Ireland.
It emerged that the ICC will wait for the BCB’s decision regarding participation in the tournament, and if Bangladesh chooses not to travel to India, Scotland is set to be named the replacement team based on current rankings.
The issue has remained unresolved for nearly three weeks after the BCB first formally conveyed its concerns on January 4.
With the T20 World Cup scheduled to begin on February 7, Bangladesh are currently slated to play their opening match against West Indies in Kolkata, followed by two more group games at the same venue, before concluding their group-stage fixtures in Mumbai.
The dispute traces back to the removal of Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from Kolkata Knight Riders’ IPL 2026 squad on instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), without any official explanation.
This development was followed by the Bangladesh government banning the broadcast of the IPL in the country, after which the BCB formally informed the ICC of its refusal to play T20 World Cup matches in India — a position it has maintained since.
It was also learnt on Saturday that Pakistan is expected to reassess its participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India-Sri Lanka, following increasing concerns related to the Bangladesh cricket team.
The Bangladesh government has reached out to Pakistan for support over its decision to skip travelling to India for the tournament, citing security concerns, sources told Geo News.
They added that Pakistan supports Bangladesh’s legitimate concerns, emphasising that they should be addressed and acted upon.
Pakistan has also stressed that no country should face pressure or threats from India, assuring Bangladesh of its full support on the matter.
Sports
AFCON final in pictures – iShowSpeed, bloody heads, penalty fury, fan chaos, spectacular saves, and a goal
The Africa Cup of Nations final in Rabat on Sunday night was a fairly normal football match, for most of the first 89 minutes… and then it descended into utter madness as a penalty call (soft but right) had a domino effect across the stadium.
With celebrities and dignitaries in attendance, Morocco and Senegal played brilliant, defensively strong, attacking football. A showcase for the African game. And then a penalty call was made.
In the end, Senegal won 1-0 thanks to a Pape Gueye strike in extra time, leaving Morocco fans heartbroken in the stands.
Gonzaga forward Braden Huff will miss four to eight weeks because of a left knee injury, a school spokesperson told ESPN on Thursday.
Huff suffered the injury in practice earlier this week. The varied timeline means Huff could return well before the end of the regular season or be out until the NCAA tournament.
A 6-foot-10 junior, Huff has been a breakout star for Gonzaga this season, averaging 17.8 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting better than 66% from the field. He has hit the 20-point mark on eight occasions, including a five-game stretch in December in which he averaged 24.4 points and 5.4 rebounds. The highlight of that stretch was a 37-point performance against Campbell.
Huff is tied with Graham Ike as Gonzaga’s leading scorer and is second in rebounding.
With Huff out, Mark Few could opt for a smaller lineup and start Tyon Grant-Foster in the frontcourt alongside Ike or give seldom-used 7-footer Ismaila Diagne more minutes off the bench.
No. 9 Gonzaga (17-1, 5-0 WCC) plays at Washington State on Thursday.
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