A pair of NFC West behemoths meet when the fifth-seeded Los Angeles Rams battle the top-seeded Seattle Seahawks in the 2026 NFC Championship Game on Sunday. This will be the third meeting between the teams this season with both previous games decided by two points or fewer. Los Angeles earned a 21-19 win on Nov. 16, before Seattle outlasted the Rams 38-37 in overtime on Dec. 18. The Rams (12-5), who are coming off a 20-17 overtime win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday, are 7-4 on the road this season, including the postseason. The Seahawks (14-3), who defeated San Francisco 41-6 on Saturday, are 7-2 on their home field. Seattle will be without running back Zach Charbonnet (knee), who was injured in the win over San Francisco.
Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET at Lumen Field in Seattle. The Seahawks leads the all-time series 29-28. The Seahawks are 2.5-point favorites in the latest Rams vs. Seahawks odds, while the over/under for total points scored is 46. Seattle is at -142 on the money line. Before making any Rams vs. Seahawks picks, check out the NFL playoff predictions from SportsLine’s Larry Hartstein.
A former lead writer for Covers and The Linemakers, Hartstein combines a vast network of Vegas sources with an analytical approach he honed working for Pro Football Focus. He enters the conference championship round of the 2026 NFL playoffs on a 43-33 run on NFL spread picks, and he’s been especially locked in on his picks involving the Rams recently as he’s on a 28-10 run, returning +1701. Anybody following his NFL betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting sites could have seen strong returns.
Quarterback Sam Darnold helps power the Seattle offense. In 17 games during the regular season, he completed 67.7% of his passes for 4,048 yards and 25 touchdowns with 14 interceptions and a 99.1 rating. In the overtime win over the Rams on Dec. 18, he completed 22 of 34 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. He completed 21 of 24 passes for 330 yards and four touchdowns with one pick in a 38-14 win over the Washington Commanders on Nov. 2.
Despite losing Charbonnet, the Seahawks still have a formidable rushing attack. Fourth-year veteran running back Kenneth Walker II leads Seattle in rushing. In Saturday’s win over San Francisco, he carried 19 times for 116 yards and three touchdowns. In 17 regular-season games, he carried 221 times for 1,027 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught 31 passes for 282 yards (9.1 average). See which team to back at SportsLine.
Why the Rams can cover
Veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford leads the Los Angeles offensive attack. In 17 regular-season games, the MVP candidate completed 65% of his passes for 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns with just eight interceptions. In the divisional playoff win over Chicago, he completed 20 of 42 passes for 258 yards. He completed 24 of 42 passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns with one interception in a 34-31 win at Carolina in the Wild Card round on Jan. 10.
Third-year veteran wide receiver Puka Nacua is his top target. In two postseason games, he has 15 receptions for 167 yards (11.1 average) and one touchdown. In 16 regular-season games, he caught 129 passes for 1,715 yards (13.3 average) and 10 touchdowns. He also rushed 10 times for 105 yards and one touchdown. In two games against Seattle this season, he caught 19 passes for 300 yards and two touchdowns. See which team to back at SportsLine.
How to make Rams vs. Seahawks picks
Hartstein is leaning Over on the total. He’s also found a critical x-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. You can only get his pick at SportsLine.
Good morning! Many of us in Albuquerque are waking up to a rather unfamiliar sight. Light snow showers moved in late last night and through this morning blanketing parts of the city and the metro area. Snowplows have been out early this morning, but with temperatures below freezing icy spots may have formed. Snowfall, besides […]
Deep in the woods of New York State, behind guarded gates, lies a vision of ancient China reborn – a private sanctuary called Dragon Springs, 400 acres where faith and art share the same stage. It is the creative center of Shen Yun, the epic stage production of Chinese history, legends, and politics.
“We are putting on stage the tyranny of the CCP,” said Ying Chen, a vice president and conductor with Shen Yun.
The Chinese Communist Party, or CCP, calls the group behind Shen Yun an evil cult. Known as Falun Gong, it’s a spiritual movement rooted in Buddhism. In 1992, founder Li Hongzhi started teaching Falun Gong’s meditation exercises, which spread quickly throughout China.
And Beijing responded. In 1999, China banned the religious group, referring to it as “public enemy number one” for challenging communist rule.
Ying Chen says practitioners were imprisoned and tortured, including her own family. “My mom and my brother was sent to a labor camp,” she said, “and he endured 18 months of agony, and his survival was a fragile miracle. He was literally tortured every single day.”
Founder Li Hongzhi settled in the U.S., and in 2006 launched Shen Yun. It would ask much of his followers, including Jeff Sun and Ashley Cheng, who both grew up in Falun Gong families. “Li Hongzhi made it quite clear that Shen Yun was the highest form of how practitioners can support the movement,” said Cheng.
Their parents had sent them in the late 2000s to a boarding school at Dragon Springs where young performers train for Shen Yun. We spoke with Sun and Cheng, now married, from their home in New Zealand.
A rehearsal of the dance troupe Shen Yun.
CBS News
“The entire community I grew up in was very proud of me,” Cheng said. “They thought it was a great honor to live with Li Hongzhi in that compound.
Sun said attending Shen Yun was “as if, like, I made it to Harvard.”
He was 15, she was 13 … nearly 9,000 miles from home. According to Cheng, “Everything was very isolated, and our main job is to dance.”
Regarding contact with the world outside Dragon Springs, Cheng said that, if their parents asked any questions, “we had to tell that we were happy, that Master (which is Li Hongzhi) was taking great care of us.”
The reality, Sun and Cheng claim, was they were part of a group of child laborers living in constant fear.
“I was in survival mode,” said Cheng. “It’s about not exceeding 100 pounds every day. It’s about following the footsteps of the person in front of me so I don’t get yelled out of line.”
Dragon Springs, located on 400 acres in Orange County, New York, is home to Shen Yun.
CBS News
Sun said, “There’s no one we can talk to. The adults there who are your educators, [are] also your persecutors. You want to speak how you feel to them but the next day you get told that you’re thinking different to everybody else, that you are the problem.”
That was the weight of the mind. The body, they say, would bear its own. “Two kids kind of pushed my legs open in the side split, and it was the most amount of pain I’d ever experienced, ever,” Sun said. “I had internal bleeding. My entire inside of my leg, both legs, was purple. But every day I still had to do the same thing.”
Cheng said, “My shoulder was stretched for [an] abnormal amount of time once, and I lost all feeling in it. So, I had issues, from showering to going to the bathroom.”
She said, when telling her instructors about her injuries, “I was faced with an eye roll. I have not had or seen a single pill of medicine during my entire duration.”
A scene from a production of Shen Yun.
Shen Yun
Sun and Cheng are part of a growing group of former dancers contending that medical care was discouraged, a belief they say is rooted in Falun Gong teachings. “Any injury that you have, if you mention that you want to go the hospital, or if you wanted help, it will be denied,” Cheng said. “And it will be quickly, very quickly associated to, ‘You got injured because you disobeyed Li Hongzhi … It is your fault.'”
Ashley Cheng and Jeff Sun, former members of Shen Yun.
CBS News
In 2015 they were kicked out of Shen Yun. Last spring they sued, one of two federal lawsuits against the performance group alleging forced labor.
Describing his time with Shen Yun, Sun said, “Every time I think about what happened to me, it kinda breaks me apart, you know? And nobody deserves this. I mean, we’re all kids, you know? We wanted to impress our parents. We wanted to do what we thought was right.”
“Sunday Morning” asked Shen Yun about these allegations – and they invited us into Dragon Springs, where spokeswoman Ying Chen showed us around.
We observed young men and women in total quiet. “It’s a little bit like praying,” said Chen. “We settle down our minds and try to purge distracting thoughts, and just stay really focused.”
Young Falun Gong members at Dragon Springs.
CBS News
As to why men and women were sitting on opposite sides of the room, Chen said, “We have very conservative values in the school. So, we usually keep them separate.”
Asked why Shen Yun invited the media into Dragon Springs – which they have not done until now – Chen said, “I think part of it is because they talk about a compound. Does it look like a compound? I think it’s true that we work hard. This is a place that provides top-level dance training, and also it’s a faith-based community.”
Asked to respond to plaintiffs’ accusation that they were denied medical attention they may have needed, Chen replied, “I cannot speak to what they went through. But I just find it very shocking and very different from the practice here and our policies here.”
Regarding the suggestion that the Chinese government is behind the lawsuits, Chen said, “These lawsuits emerge at a time when Beijing escalated its global campaign against Shen Yun. It’s really hard to see it as a mere coincidence.”
And just this month, the Chinese Embassy called Shen Yun “a cult’s propaganda,” using “culture as cover” to “deliver indoctrination.”
Shen Yun dancer Shindy Cai.
Shen Yun
Shen Yun company members Regina Dong, Shindy Cai, and Piotr Huang were also sent as teenagers to Dragon Springs.
Dong said, “The CCP has been trying to sabotage us since Day One. We’ve got death threats, bomb threats. And this tactic that they’re using now is very similar to what they were using to persecute Falun Gong.”
Huang said his parents did not pressure him to come to Dragon Springs: “Not at all. Now, if they came and tried to drag me away, I wouldn’t go.”
He says he has access to medical attention. “When I was having pain in my Achilles a few years back, my company manager, she gave me the contact to our doctor. I had an MRI done.” Huang said he got instructions from the doctor on what to do going forward.
Cai, however, said she never gets sick, and believes her faith has protected her: “I actually do think so, because I almost find it strange sometimes. I’m like, you know, usually I’m supposed to come down with, like, a flu, but never. And I think a lot of it has to do with the energy.”
For Jeff Sun and Ashley Cheng, they returned to New Zealand, and no longer practice Falun Gong.
Asked to respond to Shen Yun describing them as “disgruntled performers,” Cheng replied, “Yes, we are disgruntled. What happened to us was not our fault. We were children. And we’ve been living with the shame. And I don’t want to live with it for the rest of my life.”
Each year is a new show, but the final scene is always the same: a Chinese city on the edge of destruction until the deus ex machina – a mystical being resembling Falun Gong founder Li Hongzhi – descends from the heavens to save the world.
But for now, the story of Shen Yun seems neither so simple, nor perhaps so sacred.
For more info:
Story produced by Dustin Stephens. Editor: Ed GIvnish.
Jordan Reid is an NFL draft analyst for ESPN, providing in-depth scouting on the nation’s top pro prospects. Jordan joined ESPN in 2021 and also contributes to SportsCenter and ESPN Radio. He played quarterback at North Carolina Central University and then went on to coach there from 2014-18.
The 2026 NFL draft is rapidly approaching, as it kicks off April 23 in Pittsburgh. So let’s re-rank the quarterback class. Who are the best passers on the board?
Six QBs who were on the initial Hot Board are no longer here, but we did add four new names. The NFL’s early-entry declaration deadline has passed, though we’re still waiting to hear what will happen with Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss‘ eligibility status, so the class could still change. And with all-star events, the combine and pro days ahead of us, these rankings are far from final.
Let’s get to it and rank the 12 best QBs in the 2026 class as of now.
Where he excels: There always seems to be a quarterback who quickly surges from Day 2-3 consideration before the season into early Round 1 (see Jayden Daniels and Cam Ward). Mendoza fills that role in this class. He transferred to Indiana in the offseason after spending his first three seasons at Cal. There was plenty of buzz from scouts about Mendoza this past summer, but many wanted to take a wait-and-see approach prior to the season. He delivered, finishing with 3,535 passing yards, 41 touchdowns and only six interceptions to win the Heisman Trophy and lead the Hoosiers to their first national championship.
Attaching isolated or singular routes behind run-game concepts has been beneficial for Mendoza, who is comfortable with reads that put single defenders in conflict. He has a fiery, three-quarters throwing release, making Mendoza’s mechanics and the Hoosiers’ passing game an ideal marriage. His 79.2% adjusted completion percentage ranked second in the country. He was also phenomenal in the red zone this season, with his 27 touchdowns (without an interception) being the most in the FBS, three ahead of Duke’s Darian Mensah.
Toughness and overcoming in-game adversity are two of Mendoza’s hallmark traits. He helped lead the Hoosiers to a Week 7 road win at Oregon, pieced together an 80-yard, game-winning drive at Penn State, and overcame Ohio State in a physical Big Ten championship game in which he was temporarily knocked out of the game early. He capped everything off with a gutty touchdown run for the game-winning points in the College Football National Championship game against Miami. It’s as good of a résumé that a quarterback prospect can have from an adversity and toughness standpoint. That’s why Mendoza is the overwhelming favorite to be picked by the Las Vegas Raiders with the No. 1 overall pick.
Where he needs work: While Mendoza is comfortable within the confines of the pocket, he struggles when forced off his original launch point. When required to move, Mendoza had a 53.2% completion percentage this season. Many of his inaccurate throws this season came when moved off his original launch point, flushed outside the pocket or forced into scramble situations. When facing true pressure, his completion percentage dropped to 50%.
Mendoza has separated himself as the top passer in this year’s class, but one thing at the next level which will be relatively new is operating from under center. He played out of the shotgun almost exclusively this season, taking only 3% of his snaps under center. Working under center is important in the NFL, as it keeps defenses honest and helps further the influence of play-action on defenders, so Mendoza will have to work on those mechanics.
Height: 6-foot-2 | Weight: 208 pounds Class: Redshirt junior | Projected range: Late Round 1-Early Day 2
Where he excels: After a disappointing performance in Week 1 against Florida State, Simpson had a hot streak during the middle of his first season as a starter. During an eight-game stretch that included four top-16 ranked opponents (Georgia, Vanderbilt, Missouri and Tennessee), Simpson threw for 1,954 passing yards, 19 touchdowns and only one interception while completing 71.9% of his passes. Simpson showed that he’s a calm passer with slightly above average arm strength and that there isn’t much that fazes him in the pocket.
There isn’t a throw that Simpson feels that he’s incapable of making, as his toughness and confidence have shined in spurts this season. The son of longtime UT-Martin head coach Jason Simpson, Ty’s football smarts and awareness are easy to see. Simpson was given a lot of pre-snap autonomy and was frequently seen altering protections and plays. His recognition of defenses is well beyond a typical QB prospect with 15 career starts.
Simpson’s pocket maneuverability is among the best of any passer in this year’s class. He is also an underrated athlete who can make things happen outside of structure. Of his 30 total touchdowns this season (28 passing, two rushing), seven came when Simpson was outside of the pocket. He’s savvy with recognizing and adjusting to pre-snap looks.
“I wouldn’t draft him until Day 2, but I think he has a chance to go in that 20-32 range,” an AFC area scout said. “It’s because the demand will highly outweigh the quality of supply in this year’s class.”
Where he needs work: Simpson sometimes doesn’t recognize when a play is over. He tends to hold the ball longer than necessary and run around in circles in the pocket while trying to extend plays that are clearly busted. Therefore, he loses yardage with negative plays that could have been avoided by checking down, running or tossing the ball out of bounds.
Simpson’s accuracy suffered down the stretch, resulting in an 11.2% off-target percentage that ranked 63rd in the FBS. And downfield passing is another area that scouts have repeatedly brought up as an area of concern, as Simpson completed only 37.3% of his passes of 20 or more air yards in 2025.
And despite his background, Simpson’s lack of starts is a concern. Many scouts remain cautious due to that small sample size.
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Why Mel Kiper Jr. has some concern about Ty Simpson
Mel Kiper Jr. examines whether Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is a first-round pick after he declared for the draft.
Height: 6-foot | Weight: 200 pounds Class: Redshirt senior | Projected range: Late Day 2
Where he excels: There might not be a better story in college football than Chambliss. After spending four seasons at Division II Ferris State, he transitioned to the SEC. Chambliss started the season backing up Austin Simmons but grabbed the starting job against Arkansas in the third game of the season. Chambliss didn’t look back, helping lead the Rebels to the semifinals of the College Football Playoff. He ended the season with 3,937 passing yards and 22 touchdowns to only three interceptions. He passed for more than 300 yards in eight of his 13 starts and showed electric playmaking ability.
He’s a decisive, accurate thrower inside the pocket with a sudden release that allows his passes to come out in a hurry. Chambliss has the arm strength to attack all three levels of the field, while his mobility keeps defenses off-balance and honest. He is a quick-footed signal-caller who can create opportunities outside of structure and is a good thrower on the move. With 527 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, he’s a reliable extension of the QB design run game. With an undersized but compact frame, Chambliss smartly avoids contact, routinely sliding in the open field prior to being exposed to defenders.
Where he needs work: Considering that 2025 was his first and only season at the Division I level, there’s still a lot of projection. There were moments when he attempted plays that worked in Division II but were a struggle against SEC competition. Chambliss also tended to pass up safe, easy underneath options in the hunt for a big gain. Understanding that he doesn’t have to go for explosive plays every time is the next step in his development.
The Ole Miss passing scheme doesn’t translate well to the NFL, with half-field reads and free-access throws making up a bulk of the Rebels’ passing concepts. Chambliss will have to be able to get through progressions that involve multiple steps and eliminate early options based on coverages at the next level. He must show more comfort with those types of reads.
The X factor: Chambliss is currently seeking an injunction to allow for a sixth year of eligibility. His waiver petitioning for that extra year has already been denied by the NCAA, and he has filed a suit in Mississippi in an attempt to play for the Rebels in 2026. We will consider him part of the 2026 class until the situation is resolved.
Height: 6-foot-1 | Weight: 205 pounds Class: Redshirt senior | Projected range: Late Day 2-Early Day 3
Where he excels: Nussmeier entered the season with heightened expectations after a promising first year as starter. He showed flashes in 2024, throwing for 4,052 passing yards and 29 touchdowns. That had many evaluators believing that he had the potential to rise to the top of the 2026 QB class. But things didn’t work out that way, as Nussmeier took a clear step back, with 1,927 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and five interceptions in nine games. He battled multiple injuries in 2025, including patellar tendinitis in his knee.
Nussmeier primarily operates from the pocket and plays with fearless anticipation. He throws accurately to spots in the intermediate game while showing an excellent gauge on route depth and where his receivers will finish on passing concepts. Nussmeier has a flexible arm, allowing him to easily alter his arm slots and ball trajectories to fit passes into spots. He navigates the pocket well, is aware of outlets and gets the ball out of his hand quickly.
Where he needs work: Nussmeier was reduced to attacking primarily the short area of the field this season due to LSU’s scheme of quick-hitters and frequent screen passes. While he does get to unleash the occasional go ball, he averaged only 6.4 air yards per target (130th in the FBS). LSU’s running game being ranked 126th in the FBS didn’t help matters, either.
He also has a propensity to be a daredevil with the ball, which can be a gift and a curse. Nussmeier has sporadic moments of carelessness because of his confidence in being able to anticipate. Many evaluators feel that Nussmeier has the profile of a middle-to-late round prospect who has the talent, awareness and mentality to stay in the league for more than a decade as a backup and eventually develop into a spot starter.
Height: 6-foot-4 | Weight: 220 pounds Class: Sixth-year senior | Projected range: Late Day 2-Early Day 3
Where he excels: Once regarded as a candidate for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft, Beck’s inconsistencies resulted in him entering the transfer portal after a disappointing final season at Georgia. But Beck started to revive his draft stock at Miami. A rhythmic passer who is at his best when allowed to play on-beat, he finished with 3,813 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and 12 interceptions this season.
Beck was helped by a more consistent and improved receiving structure around him and looked more like what he showed in 2023 versus 2024. He is a balanced pocket passer who wants to methodically dissect and deliver against defenses. His game is centered around accuracy and decisiveness, so he wastes little time getting the ball out and remains synchronized with progressions. His 74.8% adjusted completion percentage this season was the eighth-highest mark among all FBS passers.
Even though his season ended on a disappointing note with a game-ending interception against Indiana in the National Championship game, the chemistry between Miami’s protection, playmakers and Beck formed the perfect marriage. Because of that, many scouts view Beck as a middle round option.
Where he needs work: Teams that have been able to consistently generate early pressure against Beck have been able to knock him off his game. Beck’s off-target percentage when his feet are planted (9.7%) this season was significantly different than when he’s forced to move (21.4%) from his original launch point.
Beck needs to be drafted by a team where he’s the final piece of the puzzle rather than one that lacks surrounding playmakers; he’s more reliant on good infrastructure than most QBs. The Miami offensive line was key, as Beck’s 17.1% pressure rate faced was the lowest in the FBS. He got an average of 2.9 seconds to throw the ball. Beck was able to play within the confines of the offense while not being forced to make plays outside of the scheme. But can he hold up when conditions are less ideal?
Height: 6-foot-5 | Weight: 235 pounds Class: Senior | Projected range: Late Day 2-Early Day 3
Where he excels: Allar has prototypical size and arm strength. He also has plenty of experience, having started 35 games and played in 45 overall. He made a noticeable leap from his sophomore to junior season, increasing his completion percentage from 59.9% in 2023 to 66.5% in 2024. Upon announcing his return to school, Allar was immediately expected to be one of the best QBs in this class.
That didn’t happen. A disappointing loss at home against Oregon in double overtime in which Allar threw the game-ending interception was followed by losses to UCLA and Northwestern. He suffered a broken left ankle in the Northwestern game and was sidelined for the season. Prior to the injury, Allar had 1,100 passing yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions.
He’s an above-average intermediate passer who isn’t afraid to test tight windows and can accurately hit routes in between the numbers. He exhausts progressions and delivers to targets, and he has more than enough arm strength to succeed at the next level. He also has the mobility to navigate the pocket and gain yardage that’s available.
Where he needs work: Allar’s accuracy regressed, as his 12.5% off-target percentage ranked 94th in the FBS, and Allar has moments where he puts the ball too high or low. He tends to make receivers work harder than they should to secure catches.
“The biggest issue is that he looks good against the low- and middle-tier teams, but he just hasn’t had that signature performance any time that he plays against the elite ones,” an AFC assistant general manager said.
In a traits-based league, I believe that there will be a team that convinces itself to draft Allar early because of his physical attributes and a belief it can reconstruct his lower half to improve his ball placement. Allar will need to be in a true under-center, dropback offense that attacks the intermediate and deeper portions of the field.
Height: 6-foot-6 | Weight: 224 pounds Class: Fifth-year senior | Projected range: Early Day 3
Where he excels: Green immediately became the Razorbacks’ starter after transferring from Boise State following the 2023 season. He had 2,714 passing yards, 19 touchdown throws and 11 interceptions this season, along with 771 rushing yards (12th most among FBS QBs) and two touchdowns on the ground. He had eight games with 50 or more rushing yards. Green’s long stride puts teams in a bind when he runs. Green also has the arm talent to get the ball to the spots he wants with his elongated over-the-top release.
He has shown the ability to make explosive plays with both his arm (14 completions of 20-plus air yards) and his legs. He will likely be a popular middle-round target for teams looking to develop a toolsy passer with upside.
Where he needs work: Green’s warts were noticeable as the season went on, most notably the time he takes to pass the ball. His 3.13-second average time to throw ranked 134th out of 138 quarterbacks in the FBS, and his indecisiveness in the short-to-intermediate areas was a big reason.
Green has also struggled facing pressure. All 27 times he was sacked this season came against true pressure, and he completed only 38.6% of his passes in those situations.
Where he excels: With four starters returning along the Tigers’ offensive line and his top three wide receivers back for another season, I thought Klubnik had the best supporting cast in the country and had a prime opportunity to build off a breakout 2024. That’s part of why I had him as the No. 1 pick in my way-too-early mock draft in May. But Klubnik finished with 2,943 passing yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions. He’s most comfortable operating off play-action, as he had 10 touchdowns, two interceptions and a 72.7% completion percentage.
Klubnik has stretches of hot and cold play throughout games, similar to a streaky 3-point shooter. His clean throwing release allowed him to distribute the ball evenly to all his targets in the underneath areas the Tigers operated in. Klubnik is also a threat as a runner when forced to break the pocket.
Where he needs work: Klubnik has a lot of borderline-average traits but doesn’t have one superior trait. Outside of his Week 6 performance against North Carolina (22-of-24, 254 yards and 4 TDs), Klubnik hesitated throwing the ball on time, too. I saw him up close against LSU in the season opener and noticed that he had timing troubles when reading concepts. His anticipation skills have been lacking, and he defaulted to waiting for teammates to get open before throwing.
His mechanics tend to wane when facing pressure, and his accuracy becomes scattershot. Klubnik completed only 48.5% of his passes when facing true pressure. There were mixed opinions of Klubnik entering the season, but thoughts of him being a middle-to-late round passer have become more of a consensus. Klubnik will be participating in the Shrine Bowl, and the week of practices and meetings with NFL teams will be pivotal to his draft stock.
Where he excels: Robertson has an effective throwing motion, which helped him distribute the ball in Baylor’s spread-and-shred offense. After transferring from Mississippi State, he took the reins of the QB1 spot early in the 2024 season and orchestrated one of the more explosive units in the country the past two seasons.
Robertson finished his college career with back-to-back 3,000-yard passing seasons, with 3,681 passing yards, 31 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2025. He’s always looking to attack vertically, as his 26 completions of 20-plus air yards were the 12th most in the FBS. Robertson is a quick, decisive decision-maker who gets the ball out in a hurry. He knows where his options are in passing concepts and shows a willingness to throw the ball to any accessible receiver, no matter where he is on the field.
Where he needs work: Robertson’s accuracy and pocket feel can waver when defenses speed him up and his base isn’t set. His 12 interceptions this season were tied for fifth most among FBS QBs, and Robertson had three games where he threw at least two interceptions. His decision-making would waver in the fourth quarter, when he threw six interceptions. Underthrown passes and misreading underneath coverages were the two major culprits in his turnovers and missed opportunities.
Where he excels: Payton continues the long-running tradition of decorated North Dakota State passers. After missing the final eight games of the 2024 season with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder, he bounced back in 2025, finishing with 3,188 passing yards, 29 total TDs (16 passing, 13 rushing), and four interceptions.
Payton is a strong dual-threat option with a frame that allows him to make difficult throws from the pocket and showcase his ability as a runner. He is tough in the pocket and able to withstand big hits from defenders while still throwing accurately. Payton is an excellent downfield passer, as his strong base, touch and feel help him deliver drop-in-the-bucket passes. Designed QB runs and short-yardage situations are successful with him because of his vision and willingness to fight through and shrug off would-be tacklers.
There are teams that have him as an athlete on their board, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise if Payton experiments at other positions during the predraft process, starting with the Senior Bowl.
“He was finally healthy this year prior to that game in the playoffs and I actually liked his film quite a bit,” an AFC scout assigned to the Midwest said. “We thought he was more of a Taysom Hill-type with the ability to do more than just pass it around.”
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Cole Payton throws 78-yard touchdown pass vs. Illinois State
Cole Payton connects for 78-yard TD pass
Where he needs work: Payton has a full-circle throwing motion that includes loopy mechanics. He must become less reliant on his upper body to generate power in his throws, as his lower body stiffness is most notable when throwing passes to his left side. Progressing to secondary options and overall pocket awareness are other things that he needs to improve. He also has a habit of locking on to first reads and being unaware of underneath targets. And finally, Payton also needs to use his mobility more by taking off to run when plays break down or when early options aren’t available.
Payton suffered a broken thumb on his throwing hand during the team’s second-round loss in the FCS playoffs. He is expected to be healed in time for practices in Mobile, but it is an injury to monitor.
Height: 6-foot-2 | Weight: 205 pounds Class: Senior | Projected range: Late Day 3-UDFA
Where he excels: After transferring to Illinois from Ole Miss in 2023, Altmyer became the starter in his first year with the program. He improved every season, finishing 2025 with 3,007 passing yards and 22 touchdowns to five interceptions. Altmyer is a true point guard who gets the ball out in a hurry, spreads it around and is a swift processor of opposing defenses. He does a great job identifying breakdowns or holes in defenses, and his 8.0% off-target percentage was the eighth lowest in the FBS.
Illinois’ offense runs a mixture of light and heavy personnel sets, so Altmyer has gained experience with a variety of pre-snap positionings. He can play from under center or in the shotgun, operates well off play-action and can read out levels concepts. He can also run when opportunities present themselves, showing the escapability and quickness to outrace first- and second-level defenders.
Where he needs work: Altmyer’s confidence can be a gift and a curse, as he’ll bypass safer options in hopes of hunting for flashy plays. That daredevil mentality can prompt him to force throws into tight windows.
The Senior Bowl will give Altmyer a chance to separate himself from the rest of the late-round crop of quarterbacks. Many evaluators I spoke to this season mentioned him as one of their top candidates to be a late-round dart throw who could become a decade-plus backup quarterback in the NFL.
Height: 6-foot-4 | Weight: 225 pounds Class: Seventh-year senior | Projected range: Late Day 3-UDFA
Where he excels: A rare seventh-year senior, Fagnano spent four seasons at Maine (2019-22) before transferring to UConn prior to the 2023 season. He experienced a breakout in 2025, finishing with 3,448 passing yards and 28 touchdowns to only one interception — a tipped pass against Air Force. Fagnano is a mechanically sound passer whose eyes, feet and throwing motion are routinely in sync. Fagnano shows comfort with scanning through full-field reads. He understands his limitations and opts to make the right throw. He also gets the ball out quick — his 2.56-second average time before pass ranked among the top 25 in the FBS.
Fagnano rose to the occasion against bigger opponents, going 2-1 against ACC opponents, including a victory over ACC champion Duke. His 14 go-ahead passing touchdowns led the FBS. Fagnano will be participating in the Shrine Bowl, which will be an opportunity for him to continue to prove his worth as a late-round possibility or priority undrafted free agent.
Where he needs work: Fagnano, who will turn 25 prior to the draft, played in an offense predicated on quick completions, as 28.8% of his attempts this season were at or behind the line of scrimmage (38th most in the FBS). Fagnano has limited arm strength and won’t wow scouts with his passing velocity. His game is more dependent on taking the safe throw than testing defenses in tighter windows.
Search and rescue crews find and safely escort two people from La Luz Trail
YOU CAN ALSO CHECK FOR DELAYS OR CANCELLATIONS ON OUR WEBSITE AND OUR APP. TWO PEOPLE RESCUED ON THE LA LUZ TRAIL. THIS IS FOOTAGE FROM THAT RESCUE. ACCORDING TO THE STATE POLICE, THEY CALLED 911 AROUND FOUR YESTERDAY AFTERNOON SAYING THEY WERE LOST AND COLD. A NUMBER OF AGENCIES COMING TOGETHER TO HELP THE SEARCH. OFFICIALS WANT HIKERS TO KEEP THIS IN MIND BEFORE THEY HEAD OUT. PEOPLE THINK IT’S NICE AND WARM AND SUNNY WHEN THEY START OUT DOWN IN THE BASE OF ALBUQUERQUE, AND THEN THEY HEAD UP THE MOUNTAIN AND THEY ENCOUNTER THE SNOW AND THE ICE. TONIGHT WAS A LITTLE DIFFERENT STORY BECAUSE IT’S BEEN SNOWING ALL DAY, AND IT’S A LITTLE SURPRISING TO SEE PEOPLE GETTING STUCK IN THE SNOW WHEN THEY KNEW THAT THERE WAS SNOW UP THERE. IF YOU CAN’T GET DOWN A TRAIL, RESCUERS MUST COME AND GET YOU. AS A REMINDER, LA LUZ IS AN INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT TRAIL. YOU EITHER NEED TO REACH THE TRAM TO RIDE DOWN OR HIKE BACK DOWN Y
Search and rescue crews find and safely escort two people from La Luz Trail
New Mexico State Police have rescued two people on the La Luz Trail.According to New Mexico State Police, search and rescue crews have found two people in their 20’s on the La Luz Trail. The pair were escorted off the trail by search and rescue crews.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —
New Mexico State Police have rescued two people on the La Luz Trail.
According to New Mexico State Police, search and rescue crews have found two people in their 20’s on the La Luz Trail.
The pair were escorted off the trail by search and rescue crews.
LONDON — No more fawning praise. No more polite workarounds and old-style diplomacy. And no one is calling Donald Trump “daddy” now.
European leaders who scrambled for a year to figure out how to deal with an emboldened American president in his second term edged closer to saying “no,” or something diplomatically like it, to his disregard for international law and his demands for their territory. Trump’s vow to take over Greenland and punish any country that resists, seems to have been the crucible.
“Red lines” were deemed to have been crossed this year when Trump abruptly revived his demand that the United States “absolutely” must rule Greenland, the semiautonomous region that is part of NATO ally Denmark. That pushed even the most mild-mannered diplomats to issue sharp warnings against Trump, whom they had flattered withroyal treatment and fawning praise.
“Britain will not yield” its support for Greenland’s sovereignty, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. Several of the continent’s leaders said “Europe will not be blackmailed” over Greenland.
“Threats have no place among allies,” said Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre.
The tough diplomatic talk around the showdown last week in Davos, Switzerland, was not the only factor pressuring Trump. U.S. congressional elections are approaching in November amid a sinking stock market and wilting approval ratings. European leaders also are not the first to stand in Trump’s way during his second term — see Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
But the dramatic turnabout among Europe’s elite, from “appeasing” Trump to defying him, offers clues in the ongoing effort among some nations of how to say “no” to a president who hates hearing it and is known to retaliate.
“We want a piece of ice for world protection, and they won’t give it,” Trump told his audience at the World Economic Forum. “You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative. Or you can say no, and we will remember.”
In recent days, Europe offered abundant refusals to go along with Trump, from his Greenland demand and joining his new Board of Peace and even to what Canada’s Mark Carney called the “fiction” that the alliance functions for the benefit of any country more than the most powerful. The moment marked a unity among European leaders that they had struggled to achieve for a year.
“When Europe is not divided, when we stand together and when we are clear and strong also in our willingness to stand up for ourselves, then the results will show,” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said. “I think we have learned something.”
Federiksen herself exemplified the learning curve. A year ago, she and other leaders were on their heels and mostly responding to the Trump administration. She found it necessary to tell reporters in February 2025, “We are not a bad ally,” after Vice President JD Vance had said Denmark was “not being a good ally.”
Trump is transactional. He has little use for diplomacy and no “need (for) international law,” he told The New York Times this month. Therein lay the disconnect between typically collaborative European leaders and the Republican president when he blazed back into the White House saying he wanted the U.S. to take over Greenland, Panama and perhaps even Canada.
“In Trump’s first term, Europe didn’t know what to expect and tried to deal with him by using the old rules of diplomacy, with the expectation that, if they kept talking to him in measured terms, that he would change his behavior and move into the club,” said Mark Shanahan, associate professor of political engagement at the University of Surrey,.
“It’s very hard for other leaders who deal with each other through the niceties of a rules-based system and diplomatic conversation,” Shanahan said. “It is hard for them to change.”
Five months after Trump’s inauguration last year, with his Greenland threat in the air, European leaders had gotten their heads around Trump management enough to pull off a meeting of NATO nations in the Netherlands. NATO members agreed to contribute more and widely gave Trump credit for forcing them to modernize.
Secretary-General Mark Rutte, known as the coalition’s “Trump whisperer,” likened the president’s role quieting the Iran-Israel war to a “daddy” intervening in a schoolyard brawl.
Traditional diplomacy exists to preserve possibilities of working together. That often means avoiding saying a flat “no” if possible. But Trump’s Greenland gambit was so stark a threat from one NATO member to another that Greenland’s prime minister actually said the word.
“Enough,” Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a statement shortly after Trump’s remarks Jan. 5. “No more pressure. No more hints. No more fantasies about annexation.”
That played a part in setting the tone. Denmark’s leader said any such invasion of Greenland would mark the end of NATO and urged alliance members to take the threat seriously.
They did, issuing statement after statement rejecting the renewed threat. Trump responded last weekend from his golf course in Florida with a threat to charge a 10% import tax within a month on goods from eight European nations — Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland. The rate, he wrote, would climb to 25% on June 1 if no deal was in place for “the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland” by the United States.
Trump’s fighting words lit a fire among leaders arriving in Davos. But they seemed to recognize, too, that the wider Trump world left him vulnerable.
“Trump was in a fairly weak position because he has a lot of other looming problems going on,” domestically, including an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision on his tariffs and a backlash to immigration raids in Minnesota, said Duncan Snidal, professor emeritus of international relations at Oxford University and the University of Chicago.
Canada’s Carney said no by reframing the question not as being about Greenland, but about whether it was time for European countries to build power together against a “bully” — and his answer was yes.
Without naming the U.S. or Trump, Carney spoke bluntly: Europe, he said, should reject the big power’s “coercion” and “exploitation.” It was time to accept, he said, that a “rupture” in the alliance, not a transition, had occurred.
Unsaid, Snidel pointed out, was that the rupture was very new, and though it might be difficult to repair in the future, doing so under adjusted rules remains in U.S. and European interests beyond Trump’s presidency. “It’s too good a deal for all of them not to,” Snidel said.
Before Trump stepped away from the podium in Davos, he had begun to back down.
He canceled his threat to use “force” to take over Greenland. Not long after, he reversed himself fully, announcing “the framework” for a deal that would make his tariff threat unnecessary.
Trump told Fox Business that “we’re going to have total access to Greenland,” under the “framework,” without divulging what that might mean.
Frederiksen hit the warning button again. In a statement, she said, “We cannot negotiate on our sovereignty.”
After Jelly Roll‘s 2025 in-ring WWE debut, fans knew very little about the road that led him there. But thanks to his episode of Unreal on WWE and Netflix, we’re now learning much more about the intense preparation behind the scenes.
Jelly Roll Got Two Houses in Orlando While Training for WWE
WWE’s main training facility is located in Orlando, Florida, and Jelly Roll was so committed to preparing for the match that he temporarily relocated there. He rented one house for himself and his family, along with a second nearby home for his crew, who typically travel with him on the road.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
The setup allowed Jelly Roll to train during the day and then spend his nights writing and recording music — balancing the demands of WWE training while continuing to build his music career.
Jelly Roll Never Gets Nervous Before He Performs on Stage
Jelly admitted in the episode that he doesn’t have nerves before he goes out and sings because he knows that all of the people there already love him and paid to see him play.
He did get scared before his WWE match because he was worried that fans wouldn’t appreciate him being there. He was wrong, they did.
Jelly Roll Wanted to Be a Loser in the WWE
Before Jelly’s match in 2025, he went to Triple H, WWE CCO, and asked him if he could go “heels up,” meaning, he wanted to be the one to lose the match.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
Jelly Roll Got Thrown Through 15 Tables to Practice
If you know anything about WWE and professional wrestling, you know that getting thrown through tables comes with the territory. To prepare for his big moment, Jelly Roll admitted he repeatedly took those hits — allowing wrestlers to throw him through 15 tables as part of his training.
The brutal practice helped him understand the physical demands of the ring and get comfortable with the impact before stepping in front of a live WWE audience.
Jelly Roll Was First Offered a WWE Match When He Weighed Nearly 500 Pounds
Jelly Roll admits that when he first approached WWE about wrestling, he was still at his heaviest weight. Looking back, he says he was embarrassed that he even brought it up at the time, acknowledging that a match at that weight likely would have looked awkward and unrealistic.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
Jelly Roll’s Nickname Was Almost “Jelly Doughnut”
Jelly Roll — born Jason DeFord — almost went by the nickname “Jelly Doughnut.” Growing up, he loved jelly doughnuts so much that his mom seriously considered calling him that before deciding on the shorter “Jelly Roll” instead.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
Ironically, he doesn’t even really like jelly rolls.
WWE Was Always Jelly Roll’s Goal After Getting Famous
Jelly Roll says WWE had always been on his radar once his music career started taking off.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
“I watched all these celebrities getting these cool matches,” he said. “So when I started doing music and people started noticing me, it kind of became my North Star. I thought, ‘I wonder if I’ll get famous enough that I’ll actually get to be involved in one of these wrestling matches as a celebrity.’”
Jelly Roll Admitted He Would Die If He Didn’t Lose Weight
Jelly Roll points to one specific moment in 2024 at SummerSlam as a wake-up call. At the time, he was still at his heaviest, and when he entered the ring to do a Five Knuckle Shuffle, it took two wrestlers just to help him get back to his feet.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
“I was so big that it took two grown men to get me to stand up,” he said. “I knew if I didn’t do something, it was going to kill me.”
Wrestling in WWE Was the Most Grueling Thing He’s Ever Done
Jelly Roll admits that training to wrestle in WWE was the most grueling thing he has ever done — and something he couldn’t wait to do again the next day.
Elsa, Getty Images
Elsa, Getty Images
He said his body was “mad” at him at first, but it slowly began to adjust as he trained harder and got closer to his wrestling goal weight of 300 pounds.
When Did Jelly Roll Make His WWE In-Ring Debut?
Jelly Roll made his in-ring debut at SummerSlam in 2025, appearing in a tag team match alongside Randy Orton against Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul.
The match took place on Night 1 of the event, held Saturday, August 2, 2025, at MetLife Stadium.
Check out Jelly Roll’s stunning weight-loss transformation in photos.
Jelly Roll’s Stunning Weight Loss Journey in 29 Pictures
Jelly Roll once weighed over 500 pounds, but as of January 2026, he’s close to 250. His weight loss journey wasn’t linear, however. These 29 pictures show how he put weight on and dropped in at various stages of his life, dating back to 2011.
Jelly Roll: 27 Stunning Facts About the ‘Save Me’ Singer
Jelly Roll is country music’s most fascinating character. His life has taken dozens of wild twists and turns, and he’s been honest about all of it. Here are 27 facts about the “Save Me” singer and his family.
Earlier this week, the Big Ten and SEC failed to reach an agreement this week on further College Football Playoff expansion, keeping next year’s bracket at 12 teams. Neither of college football’s two most powerful conferences are willing to budge on their vision for the CFP’s future, leaving the tournament at an impasse for now as they struggle for power. But on the field, there’s no doubt which league is ahead.
Despite occupying five spots in this year’s CFP, the SEC failed to reach the national title game for the third consecutive year. On the other end, the Big Ten claimed its third straight national title — all three from different teams — after Indiana’s dominant 16-0 run in 2025. But the Big Ten’s dominance was more than just top-heavy.
The Big Ten posted an 11-5 bowl record, good for a .688 winning percentage that ranked No. 1 nationally, followed by the ACC (9-5) and the Big 12 (4-4) among Power leagues. The SEC’s disappointing 4-10 finish included marquee losses by Alabama, Vanderbilt and LSU.
Welcome to college football’s new era, one where the balance of power tilts heavily to the north after years of southern dominance. According to legendary coach Nick Saban, NIL has a lot to do with that shift.
“In this day and age of the culture we have now in college football, paying players, name, image and likeness, transfer, it’s an advantage for the Big Ten,” Saban told AL.com. “You’ll never convince me otherwise. The North. Because people in the South would not go to the North unless you paid them.”
Saban acknowledged Indiana’s rise is “good for college football” and provides hope that “everybody can turn a program around” after his former assistant, Curt Cignetti, put the rest of the sport on notice in 2025.
Former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer was among the first to call the race in favor of the Big Ten last summer — and, for now, he was right. The conference’s 2024 CFP run marked the peak of a changing of the guard that began two years earlier, when Michigan stopped Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe at the goal line in the Rose Bowl, ending the SEC’s bid for another national title.
After Indiana’s 2025 championship, the gap appears wider. Since Georgia’s 65-7 win over TCU to claim the national title at the end of the 2023 season, the SEC is just 1-5 in playoff games against nonconference opponents. That stretch includes Alabama’s 35-point loss to Indiana in Pasadena, Miami’s upset of Texas A&M and the Hurricanes’ win over Ole Miss in the Fiesta Bowl.
SEC pushing chips in on 2026
Coming out of the 2026 transfer portal cycle, SEC programs notched the top three classes — LSU, Ole Miss and Texas — along with six of the top 12 overall, including Kentucky’s best-ever showing of the transfer era at No. 9. During the 2025 season, seven programs ranked inside the top 12 of the previous portal cycle reached the playoff, including first-time participants Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Miami.
Roster retention and talent acquisition remain two critical components in building an elite two-deep, and the SEC has shown impressive strength in both areas during the early years of NIL through aggressive resource deployment.
At Texas, the allure of Arch Manning’s return has made the Longhorns an attractive offseason destination for high-end transfers. Manning is coming off arguably his best overall performance after leading Texas past Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, and the Longhorns have since added weapons around him, including Auburn transfer Cam Coleman at wide receiver and NC State’sHollywood Smothers in the backfield.
In the ongoing SEC–Big Ten supremacy debate, Texas will host Ohio State on Sept. 12, an early-season matchup that could go a long way in shaping each team’s path to the playoff.
Indiana proved to be an exception to the roster-talent rule this season, as Curt Cignetti went unbeaten with a roster rated 72nd nationally, according to the 247Sports Team Talent Composite. Eight impact players in the Hoosiers’ two-deep arrived two recruiting cycles earlier from James Madison, while Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza ranked as the fourth-best quarterback in the portal.
The SEC will also move to a nine-game conference schedule for the first time in 2026, which could enhance the selection committee’s evaluation of at-large résumés based on strength of schedule. SEC schools are also required to play at least one Power Four opponent — or Notre Dame — annually, meaning that beginning in 2026, at least 10 of each team’s 12 regular-season games will come against Power Four competition.
Over the summer, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said his league “has the best hand to play” in the future expansion debate. Like other Power conferences outside of the Big Ten, the SEC has long advocated for a 16-team playoff format.
If the SEC plans to halt the Big Ten’s run next season, the league will need its heavyweights operating at full capacity while knocking off frontrunners such as Ohio State (13/2), Indiana (7/1) and Oregon (9/1).
RUIDOSO, N.M. (KRQE) – PNM is reporting major power outages for the Village of Ruidoso. PNM says around 3,000 customers are without power as of 9:00 p.m. Saturday evening. Crews are working to restore power as soon as possible. They have not announced when power is set to be restored.
When the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams meet for the NFC championship Sunday night, it will be — by at least one measure — the best NFL showdown of nearly the last five decades.
“By DVOA, the NFC Championship Game is essentially the best NFL matchup of the last 47 years, and by a lot,” Aaron Schatz, the chief analytics officer of FTN Fantasy, posted on X in the lead-up to the game.
DVOA, for those unfamiliar, stands for “Defense-adjusted Value Over Average.” What is measures is a “team’s efficiency by comparing success on every single play to a league average based on situation and opponent.” More simply put, it’s a measure of how good a team is, weighted for situation and opposing team.
And the Rams and the Seahawks have the highest combined DVOA of any two playoff teams of the last 47 years.
If the analytics don’t get you hot and bothered, though, don’t worry, because there are plenty more storylines headed into Sunday’s game. It’s a clash of division rivals who played two incredibly close games in the regular season (the combined margin of victory was three points). It’s a clash of an offensive wunderkind (Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay) and a defensive genius (Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald). It’s also a battle between two highly drafted quarterbacks (the Rams’ Matthew Stafford and the Seahawks’ Sam Darnold) in wildly different parts of their careers who both still have something to prove.
This matchup basically has everything you could want in a football game.
The Rams enter as an offensive juggernaut, leading the league in the regular season in yards per game, passing yards per game and points per game (30.5).
The Seahawks, in contrast, enter as defensive stoppers. Seattle allowed the sixth-fewest yards per game in the regular season and the fewest points per game (17.2).
Both head coaches were able to maximize their rosters in large part because of unique strategies. The Rams were successful using “13-personnel,” or formations using three tight ends. Los Angeles used such formations at a 30.5% rate in the regular season, compared with the league average of 5.3%.
The Rams have succeeded using such formations because the size helps them run, while Stafford has also been able to have success throwing even though there are fewer receivers on the field.
“Thirteen personnel causes a lot of problems for” the defense, Los Angeles tight end Terrance Ferguson told The Athletic in December, adding that it forces defenses to choose between putting more linebackers or more defensive backs on the field. “It makes it easier on us. It’s the mismatches 13 personnel creates with the big bodies blocking safeties, and if you want to put big guys out there, we can run routes, as well.”
The Seahawks, though, are one of the few teams equipped to handle the three-tight-end formations. Seattle played the most snaps in the regular season with at least five defensive backs on the field, but the Seahawks were still able to stop the run despite eschewing size for speed. That’s in large part because of nickel cornerback (and rookie) Nick Emmanwori, who can cover receivers while tackling like a linebacker.
“They’re a group that can play a so-called lighter grouping because they go draft guys that they have a vision for. Nick has done a hell of a job,” McVay said during the week. “He’s playing outside linebacker for them, he’s playing safety, he’s playing star, he’s playing the ‘dime money’ spot. They move him all around, and they can be a nickel, but they can basically present a bunch of different base structures because of his versatility.”
Said Macdonald in December of his rookie’s unique ability: “We’ve never really had a player like him, so we are kind of making it up as we go to a certain extent.”
The chess match between the coaches will ultimately determine who makes the Super Bowl. In November, the Rams ironically won the defensive thriller, 21-19. Seattle, meanwhile, won the shootout, scoring a 38-37 overtime victory in an instant classic in December.
Sunday’s game will also be a legacy moment for the quarterbacks. Will Stafford get to another Super Bowl and add to the Hall of Fame résumé he has built in Los Angeles? Or will Darnold prove himself on a big stage against a defense that has historically troubled him?
All the strategies will be laid bare and all the questions will be answered in what is one of the most intriguing NFL games ever.
“It’s going to be a hell of an atmosphere, an environment,” McVay said. “We’re excited about it. Those are the moments you feel the most alive as a competitor, and we got to go handle it against a freaking damn good football team. But I wouldn’t expect anything less in the NFC championship if you expect to advance to a Super Bowl.”
