INGLEWOOD, Calif. – With a 13-9 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday night, the Los Angeles Rams were close to securing a playoff spot and winning the NFC West.

The Rams needed a win against the Cardinals to start the day and 3.5 or more wins from the Vikings, Bills, 49ers, Bengals and Browns to secure a win in a tiebreaker over the Seattle Seahawks. Los Angeles got help earlier Saturday when the Bengals beat the Broncos for one of those wins.

Los Angeles (10-6) hosts second-place Seattle in Week 18 in what could be a meaningless game if the Rams win the tiebreaker by the end of the weekend.

The Rams are currently the No. 3 seed in the NFC, 1.5 games ahead of the Atlanta Falcons, who join the slate on Sunday.

Here are the key things to know from Saturday night for both teams:

Describe the game in two words: Scoring difficulties. In the three games since scoring a season-high 44 points against the Bills in Week 14, the Rams have failed to break the 20-point mark. But the Rams won all three of those games, including Saturday night’s.

Forecast for next week: Should the Rams clinch a playoff spot this weekend, their key starters will not play in Week 18, even if the No. 3 seed is in play. And there is a precedent. A year ago, the Rams started backup quarterback Carson Wentz in Week 18 with a playoff seed in the game.

Worrying trend: Slow starts continue to be a problem for the Rams’ offense, which hasn’t scored a touchdown in the first quarter in 13 games now this season. According to ESPN Research, Los Angeles also went 11 games without scoring in the first quarter, which is the second-worst record in the NFL.— Sarah Barshop

Next game: vs. Seahawks (Sunday, January 5)

The Cardinals couldn’t close out the Rams, but they did give Trey McBride his first receiving touchdown of the season.

It was the pinnacle for a team that had already been eliminated from the playoffs and came into the game with two hopes: make it harder for the Rams to get to the playoffs and try to find something – or some things – to build on heading into 2025 .

The loss of running back James Conner due to a knee injury early in the second quarter didn’t help Arizona’s cause. However, quarterback Kyler Murray did his part to keep Arizona in the game. He ran four times for 32 yards and threw 48 times for 321 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, putting a team that had little to play for on his shoulders for as long as possible.

Despite failing to reach double digits in scoring, Arizona’s passing game flourished: Murray threw for 300 yards for the second time this season, McBride broke 100 yards for the third time and Marvin Harrison Jr. finished with 96 yards.

QB breakdown: The score may not reflect it, but Kyler Murray was on the right track Saturday night. He completed 13 passes in the third quarter. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 11 passes in the first three quarters. Murray finished the game with 321 yards and a touchdown on 33 of 48 passes. It was his second 300-yard game of the season.

Worrying trend: The Rams have figured out how to get to Murray throughout his career, and that continued Saturday night. The Rams sacked Murray four times, bringing Murray’s total to 28 sacks in 10 games. The Rams’ average of 2.8 sacks per game against Murray is higher than Murray’s overall career average of 2.2 sacks per game. Only the Seahawks have sacked Murray more often (32 times).

Amazing statistics: Tight end Trey McBride finally made it into the end zone with a receiving touchdown on his 98th catch of the year, but not after setting an NFL record. His 97 catches before his first touchdown catch of the season are now the most in NFL history for catches without a receiving touchdown. The previous high was 92, determined by Keyshawn Johnson in 2001.– Josh Weinfuss

Next game: vs. 49ers (Sunday, January 5)