Matthew Stafford and the Rams will travel to Soldier Field to take on the Bears in the NFC divisional round on Sunday.
Soldier Field will host an NFC divisional round playoff game on Sunday for the first time in 15 years. The Bears will welcome the visiting Rams to Chicago in the second round of the NFL playoffs with a trip to the NFC championship on the line.
The 2010 season was the last time the Bears were still afloat this deep into the playoffs. That year, they defeated the Seahawks at home in the divisional round before losing to the Packers in the NFC title game. This is just their third trip to the postseason since then, and the team will be looking to secure a statement win against L.A. and extend their stay in the playoffs. As for the Rams, their season came to an end in the divisional round last year when they lost a heartbreaker to the eventual champion Eagles. They’ve made the playoffs in four of the five seasons thathas been with the organization, and their 12 wins in 2025 was the most they’ve had since their Super Bowl-winning campaign in 2021. With plenty on the line for both teams, let’s make some bold predictions for the enthralling divisional round clash.Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua led the league in receptions in 2025. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Imagesbut that doesn’t mean Chicago isn’t vulnerable through the air . The Bears had 23 regular-season interceptions, but they also surrendered the eighth-most passing yards per game. If Stafford throws an errant pass, they’ll be there to make a big play, but can they keep Puka Nacua contained? That’s a different task entirely, and one I think they’ll struggle with. Nacua was virtually unstoppable all season, and he’s been Stafford’s go-to target all season. Just last week against the Panthers, he had 11 receptions on 18 targets and racked up 111 yards and a touchdown. He’s scored a receiving touchdown in each of his last four games and has eight total touchdowns in his last six games. He led the NFL with 129 receptions in 2025 and has been targeted at least nine times in each of his last eight games. I’m expecting another top-tier performance from Nacua on Sunday, anticipating him to rack up over 150 receiving yards and a touchdown. It would be the fourth time this season he recorded such a stat line.Caleb Williams led the Bears to a win over the Packers in his playoff debut | David Banks-Imagn Images Williams made his playoff debut last week against the Packers, and although he threw a pair of interceptions, he looked more than ready for the limelight. Williams racked up 361 yards and threw two touchdowns in the narrow win against Green Bay, and I think he’ll have another big game against the Rams. Williams has thrown for exactly two touchdowns in each of his last six games. He had 27 touchdown passes and seven interceptions in the regular season, but didn’t throw multiple picks in a single game all season, at least until last weekend. He’ll look to control the ball a bit better against a Rams defense that had 16 interceptions during the season, seventh-most in the NFL. I think he’ll have a strong game, throwing for 300-plus yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.Matthew Stafford is the MVP favorite this season. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Rams and Bears are two of the NFL’s highest-scoring offenses. Los Angeles was the only team to average over 30 points per game on the season, while Chicago ranked ninth in the NFL with 25.9 points per game. I think Sunday’s game will see the scoreboard lighting up early and often. No team in the NFL playoffs surrendered more points per game than the Bears, who let up an average of 24.3 points. That doesn’t bode well for the team ahead of its matchup against the NFL’s No. 1 offense. The Rams have scored 34 or more points in nine of their last 11 games. They’ve not scored less than 17 points in a game since Week 1 and have only been held under 20 points twice all year. This as a team built around its aerial attack, and I don’t think there will be any surprises in how they choose to attack the Bears on Sunday. I think both teams will have a handful of explosive plays, and this game will finish with a Rams win and a total of 60 or more points.Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News team for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.
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