San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams Betting Odds, Trends, and Picks for NFL Week 18 on FanDuel Sportsbook

Things look good on the surface for the Rams as they’ve won their past five games and covered the spread in four of the five contests. However, some question marks remain for Los Angeles as it heads into the postseason.

Let’s do a quick review of those five games. The Rams’ opponents were the Ravens, Vikings, Seahawks, Cardinals, and Jaguars during that stretch. Against Baltimore, Los Angeles lost the turnover battle, three to two, yet eked out a 20-19 victory. Against the Vikings, the Rams lost the turnover battle again and got outgained 361-356 in yardage but won 30-23. In Week 15, they faced a 5-8 Seattle team near the bottom in the NFC standings. Against the Cardinals, the Rams won 30-23 despite being outgained by almost 100 yards. Lastly, they faced a Jaguars team which is widely regarded as a complete abomination of a football organization.

One commonality among the five games is that neither of the Rams opponents ran the ball particularly well against them. And while you might credit the Rams run defense for this feat, I’m not sure they’ll be able to replicate the same result against the 49ers.

The 49ers rank fourth in the league with a run play rate of 47.80%. And in each of the past five meetings against Los Angeles, San Francisco’s rushed for at least 99 yards. Although the Rams rank fourth defensively in run DVOA, they couldn’t contain the run when the two teams met on November 15. Not only did San Francisco rush for 156 yards, but it also dominated the time of possession by having the ball for 39 minutes in the game. Los Angeles can ill-afford to get overwhelmed in time of possession again. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has been a turnover machine with seven giveaways in his past three games. The Ravens even returned one of Stafford’s interceptions for a touchdown.

Given how both teams stack up, I think the 49ers are a terrible matchup for the Rams. There’s a reason why San Francisco’s won each of the past five meetings. And with a chance to lock up a playoff berth with a win, take the points with the road underdogs.