with which the entire Rams organization operated
this year. The player who has been the cornerstone
of their defense ever since he was picked in the first
round of the 2014 draft turns 31 in a few months, and
as physical a game as he plays, these shots aren’t going
to come forever. Likewise, Von Miller, 32, who the Rams
traded for in November, is on the back nine of his career.
Speedy receiver Odell Beckham Jr., though still 29,
has felt his football mortality, too. And then there’s
Andrew Whitworth, who is somehow still playing left
tackle in the NFL at 40.
Add all that to a need to take advantage of the primeThe Fox broadcast cameras caught Donald giving his
teammates an impassioned speech on the sidelines, and
that speech carried a message that was unmistakable:
We have to stand up to them.
As safety Eric Weddle later described the moment in
an interview outside SoFi Stadium, “AD brought us all
up after that last touchdown, and he just said, ‘Listen,
we’re not doing this again. We’re not getting into this
again. We’re gonna win it. We’re gonna put our foot
down, play for each other, fight to the bitter end, fight
for your brothers, everything you got in you.”
Donald’s urgency, really, mirrored the urgency
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME