The San Francisco 49ers are currently in the cellar of the NFC West division, a place few thought they’d be in after winning the NFC title last season. A win this weekend against the Los Angeles Rams will go a long way in bringing back confidence in the 49ers, which went 2-0 last year against the Rams. Meanwhile, the Rams will look to close the gap between them and the division-leading Seattle Seahawks, who are on a bye this week.
After a Week 3 loss to the Buffalo Bills and a shaky showing in a win over the New York Giants in Week 4, the Rams played much better in a convincing 30-10 road victory over the Washington Football Team last Sunday. The Rams’ defense stood out for the Rams against Washington. Los Angeles recorded eight sacks in that game, with Aaron Donald and Troy Reader combining for seven. That does not sound good for San Francisco’s offensive line that has been a letdown this season. The 49ers have allowed 18 sacks in four games, the fourth-most in the league to date. In the Niners’ loss to the Miami Dolphins last week, they let Jimmy Garoppolo and CJ Beathard be taken to the ground five times for a loss of 43 yards. But the Rams can also hurt San Francisco on offense, a notion that’s easy to make after seeing Ryan Fitzpatrick light up the sky in the win over San Francisco in Week 5.
The Rams, who are fourth in the NFL with 403.6 total yards per game, are 7-3 against the spread in their last 10 road games.
The 49ers need a pick-me-up win after the reigning NFC champions got embarrassed by the Dolphins in a 43-17 home loss last Sunday. But they will have to determine first who their starting quarterback will be in Week 6. Jimmy Garoppolo started for the Niners in the loss to Miami but he was benched in the second half because of an injured foot for CJ Beathard, though that could just be a reason to save him from further humiliation. In any case, the 49ers will have to get their rushing attack going early to open things up for their passing attack. Raheem Mostert had 90 rushing yards on 11 carries against Miami’s soft run defense. Washington was only able to pick up 38 rushing yards against LA last week, but the 49ers’ backfield is deeper than the Football Team with Jerrick McKinnon and Jeff Wilson Jr. Although the Rams’ are ninth against the run, they are just 23rd overall with 4.7 rushing yards allowed per carry.
The over is 6-4 in the 49ers’ last 10 games at home.
