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Sarah Barshop, ESPN Staff Writer
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams have won the NFC West after clinching the strength-of-victory tiebreaker over the Seattle Seahawks.
Along with needing to beat the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday night, the Rams entered the weekend needing 3.5 or more wins by any of the Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers, Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns to clinch the tiebreaker.
The Rams beat the Cardinals 13-9 on Saturday and the Bengals beat the Broncos to get the first of those 3.5 wins. On Sunday, the Rams got help with wins by the Bills, Vikings and Commanders.
The Rams, who started the season 1-4, won nine of their next 11 games to clinch a playoff spot.
When Rams coach Sean McVay held a news conference early on Sunday morning, he said he planned to have those games on in the background as he prepared for Los Angeles’ Week 18 matchup with the Seattle Seahawks.
McVay said he didn’t “want to put the cart before the horse” when asked whether his starters will play in Week 18 if the Rams aren’t playing for a playoff spot. The 10-6 Rams could clinch the No. 3 seed with a win against Seattle.
Last season, even with playoff seeding on the line, Los Angeles rested quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, running back Kyren Williams, defensive tackle Aaron Donald and linebacker Ernest Jones in Week 18.
When asked on Saturday night what it would mean to be able to clinch a spot before they play Seattle in Week 18, McVay said, “We had to handle our business tonight for that to even be a possibility. So, it would mean a lot.”
Los Angeles is the first team in NFL history to make the playoffs in back-to-back seasons after being three games under .500, according to ESPN Research.