INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Matthew Stafford passed for 368 yards and hit Colby Parkinson for two touchdowns, and the NFC-leading Los Angeles Rams clinched a playoff berth with a furious second-half rally for a 41-34 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
Kyren Williams rushed for two scores and Blake Corum added another TD for the Rams (11-3), who came back from a double-digit deficit shortly before halftime with 20 consecutive points to secure their
eighth victory in nine games.
Los Angeles is headed to the playoffs for the third straight year and for the seventh time in coach Sean McVay's nine seasons.
After throwing his fifth interception of the season in an inconsistent first half, Stafford ruthlessly led the Rams to victory in the second half. He heard chants of “M-V-P! M-V-P!” from the SoFi Stadium crowd after hitting Parkinson for an 11-yard score with 4:49 to play.
Amon-Ra St. Brown scorched his hometown team for 163 yards and two touchdowns on 13 receptions for the Lions (8-6). Jared Goff passed for 338 yards and three TDs, but Detroit has alternated wins and losses since Week 5, endangering its hopes for a third straight playoff berth.
Jameson Williams caught a 31-yard TD pass and had seven receptions for 134 yards. David Montgomery also scored with 2:42 to play to make it close — but the Rams got a first down to exhaust the Lions' timeouts, preventing a last-second comeback.
Detroit’s offense dominated the first half, averaging 8.5 yards per play and taking a 24-14 lead shortly before halftime. St. Brown caught a 17-yard touchdown pass set up by Aidan Hutchinson's 58-yard interception return in the first quarter, and the Orange County native scored again in the second before finishing the first half with nine catches for 127 yards.
But Parkinson caught a 26-yard TD pass late in the third quarter to put the Rams back ahead. His second TD catch in the fourth quarter was his sixth in his past six games, surpassing the veteran tight end's total TDs in his first 5 1/2 NFL seasons.
Stafford and the Rams controlled the second half even while losing both of their star receivers in the fourth quarter.
Davante Adams injured his hamstring while running a long route with 12:36 to play, and Puka Nacua — who had nine catches for 181 yards — left due to cramps one snap before Parkinson’s second TD. Nacua returned for the Rams' final series.
Detroit missed a field goal on its opening drive, but Stafford's ill-advised attempt at a screen pass moments later was picked off by the 6-foot-7 Hutchinson, who made a long return.
Kyren Williams scored on consecutive drives for the Rams, but USC product St. Brown scored his second TD on an 8-yard catch before Jameson Williams got open comfortably for his long scoring catch 30 seconds before halftime, sending the Rams to their biggest deficit since Week 5.
But after Harrison Mevis made field goals on either side of halftime, the Rams reclaimed the lead on Parkinson's sprawling TD catch in tight coverage.
The Rams forced a punt and went 50 yards in two plays for another score, with Nacua's 39-yard catch setting up Corum's TD run.
Rams: Adams, the NFL's leader in TD receptions, has been limited by hamstring injuries twice already this season. He was listed as questionable for this game.
Lions: Host Pittsburgh on Sunday.
Rams: At Seattle on Thursday for the overall NFC lead.
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