In a battle for first place in the NFC West and the No. 1 seed, the LA Rams visit the Seattle Seahawks Thursday night. Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m.

SportsLine's Machine Learning Model AI reveals its 'Thursday Night Football' SGP for Seahawks vs. Rams that returns 6-1

Although the Week 16 Thursday Night Football matchup between the Rams and Seahawks might seem pretty run-of-the-mill on its face, it's actually an incredibly consequential contest in determining the winner of the NFC West and the likely No. 1 seed in the conference.

Sam Darnold was far from his best the last time he and the Seattle Seahawks squared off against his hometown team and he is amply aware he will need to perform better than when he tossed four interceptions against the Los Angeles Rams on Nov.

The Rams are headed to the NFL playoffs, as they made sure of that with a win over the Lions on Sunday at home.

The NFC West now officially has a team in the postseason. The Los Angeles Rams clinched a postseason berth with their 41-34 win over the Detroit Lions. However, their lead in the NFC West has not changed. They are still in first place in the division but have the same record as the second-place Seattle Seahawks.