4 reasons why Jared Goff will not beat Coach McVay in the Wild Card Round

IV: Rams didn't believe Goff could deliver a SB win for Aaron Donald

That triggered a chain of events in the LA Rams entire Rams organization to rally around Aaron Donald, to cement his legacy as a Super Bowl winner. And the team, with a renewed sense of urgency, and behind the indomitable passing prowess of veteran QB Matthew Stafford, did exactly that.

The LA Rams concluded, rightly or wrongly, that QB Jared Goff would be unable to deliver a Super Bowl for the LA Rams during the career of Aaron Donald, and QB Matthew Stafford would be capable of doing so. The truth is in history, as Stafford did lead the LA Rams into the promised land of Lombardi Trophies in his first season in horns. Just for the record, the Rams are back in the NFL Playoffs, and this is only Stafford third season with the Rams.

While emotions ran high between Rams HC Sean McVay and then QB Jared Goff in 2020, it was not about Goff per se. Goff had amazing success in his five season with the Rams and in the Rams offense. But, as is often the case, the Rams had to make the difficult decision when the opportunity presented itself to upgrade at the quarterback position.

Perhaps that is why the recent text exchanges between LA Rams DT Aaron Donald and Lions QB Jared Goff are so significant. In the exchange, Donald has revalidated Goff's career and abilities as an NFL quarterback:

Now the Rams, a sixth-seeded team in the NFC, must travel to face the Detroit Lions, the third-seeded team in the NFC. But that does nothing for television ratings. Instead, the game is being marketed as Lions QB Jared Goff versus his former head coach Sean McVay, or Goff versus Stafford.

So let's explain why Goff has an uphill battle (despite the odds) of beating his former team and head coach. That lack of confidence in Goff's ability to handle the pressure of the NFL Playoffs remains even to this day. And until Goff does deliver a Super Bowl, the Rams were correct in their assessment.