Jimmy Garoppolo to make debut for playoff-bound Rams against Seahawks

Jimmy Garoppolo will take his first snaps for the Rams when he starts in place of Matthew Stafford in playoff-bound Los Angeles’ regular-season finale against Seattle on Sunday.

Coach Sean McVay announced the decision Wednesday to rest Stafford, the 16-year veteran starter. The Rams haven’t decided which additional starters will rest.

Los Angeles (10-6) has clinched the NFC West title over the Seahawks (9-7) based on strength of schedule. The Rams are currently the third seed in the NFC playoff bracket, but they will fall to fourth if they lose to Seattle and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7) beat Atlanta to win the South division.

The wild-card seeding is still in flux among Minnesota, Washington and Green Bay, so McVay clearly doesn’t care whether the Rams enter the postseason as the third or fourth seed.

Garoppolo has yet to play for the Rams since signing to be Stafford’s backup last spring. The 33-year-old veteran, who led San Francisco to Super Bowl 54, missed the first two games of his first season in Los Angeles under suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.

Stafford has taken every snap this season for the Rams, who have won nine of 11 to surge into the postseason for the third time in his four years with Los Angeles. His 3,762 yards passing and 20 touchdown passes are his fewest in a season in which he played at least 15 games, but Stafford’s eight interceptions are also his fewest in a nearly-full season, while his completion rate (65.8 percent) is above his career average.

Stafford improved to 13-1 as a starter in Rams games played in December when Los Angeles held off Arizona 13-9 last Saturday, but his offense has been in a slump. The Rams have scored more than 21 points just once during their current five-game winning streak, and they’ve managed just three touchdowns in their past three games combined.

Los Angeles’ third-string quarterback is Stetson Bennett. The two-time national championship winner at Georgia and fourth-round draft pick in 2023 also has yet to play for the Rams, missing all of last season while away from the team for undisclosed personal reasons.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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