Matthew Stafford injury update: Rams QB has sprained right index finger, but expected to play vs. Bears

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford injured a finger on his throwing hand in Saturday's 34-31 wild card win over the Carolina Panthers, and while he was clearly battling some pain, the worst-case scenario was avoided. X-rays on Stafford's finger came back negative, and Sean McVay told reporters on Monday that Stafford sprained the index finger on his right hand.

Despite the injury, McVay said Stafford is expected to play in the Rams' divisional round game against the Chicago Bears on Sunday. Playing through obvious discomfort, Stafford completed 24 of his 42 passing attempts for 304 yards, three touchdowns and one interception against Carolina. That included a game-winning touchdown pass with just over two minutes remaining.

"I got a finger bent back," Stafford said after the game. "They saw it on the TV, on the sideline or whatever. I didn't, obviously, know exactly what had happened. It wasn't pleasant. It wasn't great. We'll see what it is. Was obviously able to finish the game and throw it decent. You know, once the ball's snapped, the adrenaline's pretty good. So we'll hopefully, you know, just keep it going,"

After the injury, Stafford misfired on 10 of his next 12 pass attempts including an interception. He rebounded in the fourth quarter with a pair of touchdown drives, capped by scoring tosses to Kyren Williams and Colby Parkinson. The 19-yard completion to Parkinson gave the Rams a 34-31 lead with 38 seconds to play, capping a seven-play, 71-yard drive after the Panthers just regained the advantage.

"I have been in that spot a lot in my life -- and I love that spot," Stafford said. "I would rather be me having to go out there with our offense and do it then watch from the sideline. You can make it stressful or you can make it calm and collected, and think the latter is what we were today."

Entering the playoffs, Stafford's 4,707 yards passing led the NFL and represented the fourth-highest total of his career. His 46 touchdown passes were five more than his previous career-best of 41 set during the 2011 and 2021 seasons. Stafford's quarterback rating of 109.2 eclipses his previous high of 106.0 (2019 with Detroit).