The winner of the NFC West will be decided this week. If the Los Angeles Rams win their game against the 49ers, they’ll clinch the division. If the Rams lose and Arizona wins, the Cardinals will win the NFC West. Whichever team clinches the division will earn a home playoff spot in the Wild Card round.
How many points can the Los Angeles Rams score at home in Week 18? Let’s look at the NFL odds.
Los Angeles Rams (-4.5)
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 9th, 2022
- Time: 4:25 P.M. on FOX
- Venue: SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA
- Participants: San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams
This Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams are 4.5 point favorites at home against the San Francisco 49ers.
The two teams last met in Week 10. Jimmy Garoppolo went 15 for 19 and threw for 182 yards with two touchdowns in a 31-10 blowout. The 49ers converted eight times on third down on 14 attempts.
Matthew Stafford threw two interceptions on top of 243 passing yards and one touchdown, with 122 passing yards going to Cooper Kupp. Darrell Henderson Jr. ran five times for 31 yards, while Sony Michel carried the ball four times for 20 yards.
Since then, the Rams have gone 5-1, including road victories against the Arizona Cardinals and the Minnesota Vikings.
Last week, the Rams eked out another road victory against the Baltimore Ravens. Stafford threw for 309 yards with two touchdowns and two costly interceptions. He also lost a fumble in the second quarter after taking a sack. Those three Stafford turnovers led to 10 points for Baltimore.
He completed all six passes on the Rams’ final drive with four minutes left, culminating in a seven-yard touchdown strike to Odell Beckham Jr. with less than a minute to go for a 20-19 win.
How do the Rams match up against the 49ers this week?
49ers vs. Rams (-200)
The Rams are ninth in the league at scoring, with 27.3 PPG. The 49ers have allowed an average of 21.3 PPG this season.
San Francisco has allowed an average of 114.1 rushing yards on the road. Their passing defense ranks fifth in the NFL, giving up 206.8 yards on average.
Los Angeles ranks fifth in the league at passing, averaging 277.6 yards per contest. Their rushing offense ranks 24th.
The Rams have averaged about three touchdowns per home game, while the 49ers have given up an average of 2.3 touchdowns on the road. Stafford has thrown five touchdowns and six interceptions in his last three games. This week, turning the ball over could be detrimental to the Rams’ scoring potential.
The 49ers have allowed 17.6 PPG in their last three matchups against teams with a winning record. Can the Rams score more than that this week? I think so.
Their offense has averaged 23.3 PPG in their last three matchups, even with the turnovers. The 49ers only have 18 takeaways this year, and only seven of them were interceptions, so I don’t believe they can create enough turnovers to win this matchup.
The Rams should be able to wrap up the division at home. Prediction: 49ers 17, Rams 23.
Los Angeles Rams: Can They Win the NFC West?
This week, the Los Angeles Rams need a win at home to clinch the NFC West. Stafford had three turnovers last week, and they still won. I believe they will lock up the division this week against a rookie quarterback.
What do you think? Check out BetMGM’s King of the Weekend promo, where you can select the top six teams to score the most points in Week 18. That could make you eligible for a grand prize of $50,000. Sign up for an account to get started.
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