The Los Angeles Rams will look to pick up their third straight victory when they host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon at SoFi Stadium in an NFC West rivalry clash. Los Angeles moved into first place in the division at 7-3 overall with a 27-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football as a 4-point underdog. The 49ers, who were on a bye last weekend, have lost three straight to fall to 4-6 and are all but out of the NFC playoff picture.
These two teams met back in Week 6, when San Francisco put together one of its best performances of the season t0 beat Los Angeles 24-16 as a 2.5-point underdog.
San Francisco regroups during bye week
The banged-up 49ers will look to make one last push for the season after having last weekend off, with their most recent game coming in a 27-13 road loss to the New Orleans Saints as a 9.5-point underdog. San Francisco got off to a promising start with a 10-0 lead on Brandon Aiyuk's four-yard touchdown catch, but the Saints would score the next 17 points heading into halftime. While the New Orleans offense would slow down in the second half after Drew Brees was injured, the 49ers only managed one more field goal with 5:54 remaining.
The 49ers defense allowed only 237 yards of total offense, but was put in bad spots by the offense turning the ball over four times. San Francisco managed just 281 yards itself, including 25 rushes for 49 yards as a team.
"I think we all knew that we had to play some really good football coming into today. I was really impressed with the guys and how hard they were going for it. If we do not get the turnovers fixed, then it doesn't matter what our situation is," head coach Kyle Shanahan said via the Saints' official website. "I believe in our four wins we are +5 or +8 and in our six losses we are -10 or something. It is a huge difference there."
San Francisco also falls to 4-6 against the spread this season, having failed to cover in all three games since its last win October 25 in New England. The over is 5-5 in San Francisco games this season after the contest against New Orleans went under the betting total of 50 points.
With numerous injuries all over the roster, the 49ers stats have fallen well off last year's marks, including on offense where they average 23.8 points and 364.7 yards per game. Opponents have scored 23.4 points per game on 315.9 yards per contest against the banged up San Francisco defense.
In six games and four starts stepping in for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo, Nick Mullins has completed 115 of 171 passes for 1,390 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions. Middle linebacker Fred Warner is having another great season with 79 tackles, four tackles for loss, two interceptions and three pass breakups.
There could finally be some reinforcements on the way for San Francisco, as running back Tevin Coleman and wide receiver Deebo Samuel returned to limited practice this week and have a chance to play. The bad news is that four starters remained on the COVID-19/reserve list with uncertain statuses for Sunday: Aiyuk, left tackle Trent Williams, and defensive tackles Javon Kinlaw and D.J. Reed. Numerous 49ers stars are out for the year, including Garoppolo, Nick Bosa and George Kittle.
Los Angeles earns primetime win
The Rams took over first place in the NFC West via tiebreaker over the Seattle Seahawks following their 27-24 win in Tampa Bay on Monday night. Jared Goff threw touchdown passes to Robert Woods and Van Jefferson in the first half to open up a 17-14 lead at the break. Los Angeles maintained a lead for much of the second until a Chris Godwin touchdown tied things with 3:53 left. Woods reeled in a 23-yard reception and Cooper Kupp caught a 19-yard pass on the next drive to set up what would be the game-winning field goal, as Jordan Fuller would then pick off Tom Brady to end the game.
Goff finished 39 of 51 passing for 376 yards and three touchdowns, although two interceptions helped out the struggling Tampa Bay offense. The Buccaneers had just 251 yards of offense, and Fuller picked off Brady twice.
The Rams are now 6-4 against the spread this season and are on a run of covering three out of their last four games. Monday's contest snapped a six-game winning streak for the under, bringing the O/U to 3-7 on the season in Los Angeles games.
Los Angeles is hanging around mid-pack in most offensive statistics, including an average of 24.3 points per game on 397.3 yards per game. The Rams rank second in scoring defense at 19.2 points per game and opponents are managing 291.9 yards per contest.
Goff is having a productive season completing 252 of 372 passes for 2,823 yards and 16 touchdowns with eight interceptions. The wide receiver duo of Woods and Kupp is about as good as it gets, with a combined 118 receptions for 1,321 yards and seven touchdowns.
Linebacker Micah Kiser injured his knee against Tampa Bay and was placed on injured reserve. Tight end Tyler Higbee is questionable after hurting his elbow on Monday night. The big absence for the Rams is left tackle Andrew Whitworth, who tore his MCL two weeks ago against Seattle.
Notable Trends
Trends via Covers.com. Los Angeles is:
- 4-1-1 ATS in its last six games against NFC West
- 6-1-1 ATS in its last eight games as a home favorite
San Francisco is:
- 1-4 ATS in its last five games vs. NFC
- 1-4 ATS in its last five games vs. winning teams
