This Rams oddity could spell doom vs. Bears, and we don’t mean the cold weather

In the build-up to Sunday night’s Divisional Round matchup at Soldier Field, by now we’ve all heard the narrative that the Los Angeles Rams will probably be at a disadvantage, to some extent, against the Chicago Bears due to the expected cold weather.

While we’re not necessarily going to fight that notion, with the Bears possessing a 7-2 record at home this season, the Rams being 6-4 on the road, and Matthew Stafford's cold-weather record since joining the Rams in 2021 being 1-9, another completely unrelated item could be an even worse sign for Sean McVay and company this weekend.

And this one goes beyond simply pointing to a weather forecast.

Sean McVay has never played the same team twice in the playoffs

McVay has been the Rams’ head coach for 14 playoff games and possesses a 9-5 record dating back to the 2017-18 postseason, which followed his first regular season with the organization.

He has never coached against the same team twice in the playoffs, and that seemingly near-impossible streak is set to continue for a 15th game against the Bears.

It’s bizarre to say the least, but aside from the Rams themselves, the only two NFC teams McVay will have never faced off against in the postseason as a head coach once this weekend wraps up will be the Washington Commanders and the New York Giants.

And the Rams would have hosted the Commanders in the NFC Championship Game a year ago, had they managed to complete their late comeback against the Philadelphia Eagles in a cold-weather Divisional Round matchup.

Here’s a chart of McVay’s playoff opponents over the years and how that trend has played out.

Sean McVay's playoff history as Los Angeles Rams head coach

15 games, 15 teams. Hard to believe, to say the least.

Why is this potentially bad news for the Rams?

Because if the streak is to remain intact for another postseason, it would mean that the Rams’ season ends on Sunday, as a win would either send them to Seattle to take on the Seahawks or back to Los Angeles to host the San Francisco 49ers.

The Rams defeated the Seahawks in Seattle in the Wild Card round back in January 2021, and they defeated the 49ers at home in the NFC Championship Game back in January 2022, en route to winning Super Bowl LVII over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Aside from a win in Philadelphia a year ago, a win over the Detroit Lions two years ago would have also ended this streak, as it would have sent the Rams to Tampa Bay to take on the Buccaneers in the Divisional Round for the second time.

But it was not meant to be.

This year, let’s hope it’s meant to be.

Of course, if McVay and the Rams continue to find ways to get into the postseason, this streak would eventually have to end; at some point, the NFC would inevitably run out of teams. The preference would obviously be for it to end next weekend, either at home against San Francisco or on the road against Seattle.

If history serves as any indicator, ending this streak won't be easy, but doing so would mean the Rams are back in the NFC Championship Game for the first time since their Super Bowl run four years ago.

A road NFC Championship Game against Seattle, however, would present us with a different historical trend worth mentioning: no dome team has ever won an outdoor conference title game, and that goes for both conferences. Just figured we'd give you some further food for thought to keep in the back of your minds as the Divisional Round unfolds.

Sunday’s Rams-Bears game is set to be shown live from Soldier Field on NBC and Peacock beginning at 3:30 p.m. PT.