SoFi’s primetime fight card loaded, starting with Eagles-Rams on Sunday

Homer and Bart Simpson will prevent the NFL from flexing out of the Dec. 9 Bengals-Cowboys game scheduled for Monday Night Football in Week 14. But give schedule-makers credit because this week’s primetime slate is phenomenal, with the final two games at SoFi Stadium. The Eagles visit the Rams in a Sunday night showdown 24 hours before the Harbaugh Bowl between the Ravens and Chargers.

And when Philadelphia (8-2) meets the Rams (5-5) on Sunday Night Football (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC), Vic Fangio and Sean McVay will square off for only the second time since McVay became Rams head coach in 2017. Fangio’s Bears took the first meeting, a 15-6 victory at a cold Soldier Field Sunday night in Week 14 back in 2018. No doubt, Bill Belichick used that tape seven weeks later to game plan the Rams before defeating McVay in the Super Bowl. The Patriots (13-3 win) and Bears (15-6 win) held the Rams to their two lowest point totals that season, including the postseason.

Sunday’s game is phenomenal matchup pitting the Rams’ explosive wide receivers, Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, against Fangio and one of the league’s top defensive backfields, featuring veterans Darius Slay, Reed Blankenship and C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and rookie cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean.

And while Fangio has seen McVay only once, the venerable defensive coordinator has squared off with Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford on 10 prior occasions. Stafford is 5-5 in those meetings (0-2 with Detroit when Fangio was in San Francisco, 5-3 with Detroit when Fangio was in Chicago).

McVay, Stafford and the Rams, left for dead and nursing a triage of injuries two months ago, suddenly have won four of their last five, including a 28-22 victory at New England last week. Nacua, who laid out for a Superman-style touchdown in the second quarter, registered seven catches for 123 yards against the Patriots. Kupp countered with six receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns.

In 98 games, Kupp has 614 career receptions for 7,554 yards and 55 touchdowns. He’s the only player in NFL history to reach 600 catches, 7,500 receiving yards and 50 touchdown receptions in his first 100 games. Plus, his 614 receptions are tied with Anquan Boldin (614) for the fourth most by a player in his first 100 games in NFL annals. Only Keenan Allen (624), Antonio Brown (622) and Julio Jones (619) had more.

The subject of trade rumors earlier in the year, Stafford is actually on pace for his second-most passing yards in a Rams uniform. Despite the Rams’ injuries, the veteran is on pace for 4,347 yards. On the way to a Super Bowl victory, he had 4,886 in his first season after Los Angeles acquired him from Detroit, 2021.

Fangio’s Eagles, fresh off a 26-18 win over Washington last Thursday, get 10 days of rest before facing off with Stafford’s high-octane offense.

For more information on the Rams and Eagles, visit the L.A. Rams and Philadelphia team pages at ProFootballPost.com.