After whaling on the Vikings in Week 18, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell told Kevin O’Connell he’d “see [him] in two weeks.”
‘MCDC’ was clearly hinting at the two teams facing off down the road, likely in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs.
But the Los Angeles Rams had other ideas, and on Monday night Sean McVay‘s team officially spoiled Campbell and O’Connell’s reunion with a resounding 27-9 win over Minnesota in their wild-card round matchup.
The Rams reportedly used Campbell’s message as motivation this week and even posted a screenshot of the quote inside their locker room.
And Campbell’s comments were clearly still fresh in the minds of the Rams after their emphatic win on Monday night.
Their social media team wasted no time in trolling the Lions head honcho, posting a well known SpongeBob SquarePants meme in response to a fan who reminded them of Campbell’s ‘see you in two week’s’ comment.
“*SpongeBob Narrator voice* One Week Later,” the Rams’ official account posted on X, alongside a graphic of a huge ‘W’ with Jared Verse and Kobie Turner celebrating the victory.
“pay the admin more or i will,” posted one fan.
“SEE YOU IN TWO WEEKS” added another.
“Let’s go admin,” a third commented.
There’s no doubt that Campbell’s comments provided the Rams with extra needle this week, although they were only additional fuel as the city of Los Angeles continues to battle the devastating wildfires that have ravaged the area.
However, the Rams evidently felt overlooked by Campbell’s comments and his suggestion that it was foregone conclusion the Vikings would get past LA and meet with Detroit.
Ram safety Quentin Lake even admitted to NFL Network’s Mike Garofolo that the team was well aware of Campbell’s comments heading into Monday’s contest.
“There was a little message that Dan Campbell gave, but I don’t want people to overlook us,” Lake said.
“We’re a team that has everything we need to do well in the playoffs. We’re gonna be ready come Monday night… We’re gonna do some damage, I truly believe that.”
The Rams defense suffocated Vikings’ high-powered offense inside State Farm Stadium, sacking quarterback Sam Darnold a playoff record nine times and potentially costing him millions of dollars.
The Rams’ fourth sack of the first half resulted in a fumble that Verse ran back for a touchdown to make it a 17-3 game.
Their sixth sack of the half came on a 4th and 2, setting up a TD that made it 24-3 at halftime and essentially put the game beyond the Vikings.
Darnold completed 25-of-40 passes for 245 yards, a second-half touchdown, an interception and a 77.6 rating — numbers that don’t paint the whole picture of how bad his worst performance of the season really was.
The Vikings now have a major decision to make about the future of Darnold and their quarterback corp at large.
As for the Rams, they march onto the divisional round where they will square off with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
Should they win that battle, they could face the man that overlooked them, Campbell, in a potential NFC Championship clash with the Lions, who must first get past the Washington Commanders this weekend.