Total in 49ers vs Rams Has Moved from 48.5 to 50.5; Is it High Enough Yet?
- The over/under in San Francisco vs LA Rams is on the rise
- The Rams defense has allowed a total of 85 points in its last two games
- This will be the 49ers first game against a team with a record above .500
The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams will clash in one of the marquee matchups of Week 6 (Sunday, Oct. 13, 4:05 PM ET). The total for the game opened at 48.5 but it’s now up to 50.5 as bettors are hammering the over in sportsbooks.
Is that the right play or is it wiser to let the line creep up and take the under right before kickoff?
San Francisco 49ers vs Los Angeles Rams Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | +3 (-101) | +144 | Over 50.5 (-115) |
| Los Angeles Rams | -3 (-119) | -165 | Under 50.5 (-105) |
*Odds taken 10/11/19
Rams Defense Has Struggled
We’re five weeks into the season and we now have a pretty good snapshot of the teams. At this point, it’s safe to say that while the Rams have a number of flaws, one of them is their defense, which simply hasn’t been very good this season.
Taking a look at the season as a whole, the Rams have now allowed 27 points or more in three of their five games. That includes the last two weeks where they’ve allowed a total of 85 points. One of the biggest issues is they’re not getting a ton of pressure on opposing quarterbacks as they have just 11 sacks on the year.
What’s worse is that six of those sacks were by Clay Matthews but he’s out. The rest of the team has combined for just six sacks. If Jimmy Garoppolo has time to work this weekend, the 49ers offense is going to move the ball and score points.
Rams Have Had 10 Days To Prepare
One of the keys to this showdown will be the Rams offense, which has struggled at times this season. No quarterback has been pressured more than Jared Goff. He’s struggled mightily as he has just seven touchdown passes, seven interceptions and a shockingly-low QBR of 43.9.
Goff now has a whopping six interceptions in his last three starts but I’m expecting a better effort out of him here. With 10 days off, Sean McVay is going to come up with some good schemes to put him in position to succeed.
49ers Are On A Short Week
There’s no question that the 49ers defensive line should dominate the Rams offensive line here. On paper, that is a big edge for San Francisco. The difference here is that the Rams have more time to prepare not only because they’ve had 10 days off but because the 49ers are on a short week.
San Francisco is coming off a big 31-3 win over the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football and while most bettors will expect them to play like that again on Sunday, it doesn’t always work like that in NFL.
What’s The Best Bet?
Of course, a lot of bettors look at the 49ers vs Rams odds & stats and love the over, but I don’t see it. The 49ers should be able to get pressure on Goff and cut-off the ground game. That should slow their offense – if not derail it.
As for the 49ers, they have scored at least 24 points in every game this season but I think that changes here. This will be the 49ers first opponent that’s over .500 and they’re on the road. While the Rams have trouble pressuring quarterbacks, they are pretty good against the run (3.8 yards per carry).
Add in that Todd Gurley is doubtful for this game and I think the under makes more sense than the over.
For over 15 years, Dave has been working in mainstream media and sports betting. He hosted a station on Sirius Satellite Radio for four years, and is currently a senior writer for AskMen. He's interviewed hundreds of hundreds of high-profile sports stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Floyd Mayweather.
