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From the Podium: Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford discuss showing up for Los Angeles amid wildfires, all-around dominance in Wild Card win over Vikings

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Rams took the momentum on their very first drive of the Wild Card matchup against the Vikings and never gave it back. In a game that was played in anything but normal circumstances, with wildfires in L.A. forcing the Rams to host their game at State Farm Stadium, the Rams were dominant in all three phases en rout to a 27-9 victory. Most notably, L.A. tied a playoff record with nine sacks in the game.

After the game, head coach Sean McVay and quarterback Matthew Stafford spoke with the media about the dominant performance in the midst of tragedy back home. Now, they will have a matchup with the Eagles in the Divisional Round, which will take place in Philadelphia on Sunday.

Here are the top quotes and talking points from the press conferences, which can be viewed below:

"With everything that's going on with our community, everything that these guys have gone through, I thought they epitomized and they represented the city the right way. You talk about sports offering a platform for people to come together, offer a little bit of temporary relief, and I thought the way that our team competed tonight was what it looked like." - McVay

The Rams were dominant in every aspect of the game: offense, defense and special teams, and it started up front. McVay said Stafford made some "big time throws" on time behind an offensive line that "held up, and guys got the separation." McVay added that Stafford's numbers (19 of 27 for 209 yards and two touchdowns) "weren't reflective of how much command he had," which was a ton.

The defensive line had "a real understanding of what we were trying to get done," McVay said, adding "they're peaking at the right time." The distinct blitzes and pressure looks brought by Shula were aimed at their opponent, and specifically Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold. McVay said they got "a little bit of a jump" on the preparation because of last week's inconsequential game, and their strategy paid dividends.

McVay said their Week 2 loss, a 41-10 blowout, against the Cardinals in that very stadium seems like a lifetime ago, but "all those scars were necessary to be able to get us to the point that we are today."

"Felt like we had a good plan, and then guys were making plays for me, so it was awesome. Just try to go out there and be aggressive, this time of year, it doesn't really, reward you to be to be timid. Gotta go out there and make plays. Gotta go win games in the playoffs. Can't just hope that things fall your way. So, I thought on offense, defense, special teams, we played that way." - Stafford

Stafford completed his first 10 pass attempts, helping Los Angeles to two-straight scoring drives to start the game, and that was a product of their approach: "We want to go be aggressive," Stafford said. He added that it was "huge" for him to have Week 18 off to get healthier, as he wasn't playing at his best late in the season. He turned it around on Monday, though, helping the Rams advance to the Divisional round.

Stafford said that, after the offense got an early lead, the defense "just went crazy and was attacking the quarterback." That was the case for all four quarters as the Rams totaled as they did many sacks as points allowed.

Of the circumstances with the wildfires, Stafford said "we weren't playing just for us, (we were) playing for people back home that needed something to watch and enjoy, and I'm glad we could give that to them." Stafford said he "can't say enough" about the fans coming out to support in Arizona and the organization making the atmosphere possible on short notice.

Next week's matchup with the Eagles will be another rematch from earlier this year, and Stafford said "they gave us all we could handle" last time, so they need to start preparing immediately.

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