Rams Extra Motivated in This Late-Season Match-Up

The Los Angeles Rams will be on the road against the Atlanta Falcons in week 17 of the 2025 NFL season, their last out-of-division opponent for the season. There are several key factors to watch out for in this game, which could potentially be a trap for the Rams.

There's no telling where either of these teams may be record-wise in week 17, but with the playoffs approaching, I can only assume this game will be of the utmost importance for both teams to win. If everything goes according to plan, the Rams will have already secured a playoff spot by week 17, but there will be extra motivators for them to win this game.

The Falcons are an ascending team, and their future looks bright with Michael Penix Jr, but there's no telling how his full first year as a starter will go. It's possible they'll be fighting for a playoff spot, or by this point in the season, they'll already have been eliminated from the postseason.

Even if they aren't playing for playoff football against the Rams in week 17, they have their own reasons to want to win this game. The most important will be that the Rams own the Falcons' first-round pick in 2026.

The Rams traded out of the first round with the Falcons, so in order to sweeten their deal for the 2026 NFL draft, the Rams will want to win this game to boost their chances of getting a higher draft pick. The Falcons will want to prevent this from happening, but they also have their own reasons for winning.

The Falcons could not generate pressure on the opposing quarterback, which led to them losing games they should've won. That's why they traded with the Rams in the first place to get James Pearce Jr. after already selecting Jalon Walker earlier in the draft.

I expect Pearce Jr. to have a big game to show the Rams what they missed out on by passing up on the possibility of drafting him. Personal motivators aside, I do think this Falcons defense is going to give the Rams some trouble, and it's because of their head coach.

Raheem Morris spent three years as the Rams' defensive coordinator before becoming the head coach for the Falcons this offseason. He has invaluable knowledge on how this Rams offense works, being close to Sean McVay for so long, and this could be a trap game for the Rams if they don't take this game seriously.