Los Angeles Rams Host Philadelphia Eagles In Sunday Night NFL Action

The Los Angeles Rams are playing on Sunday in prime time for the second week in a row and it would be hard for them to not turn in a better effort than last week. On Sunday night, December 9 the Rams were absolutely shut down by the Chicago Bears’ defense en route to a 15-6 loss as a -3 road favorite. To put into perspective just how decisively the Rams were dominated by the Bears consider that the previous low point output for Los Angeles this season had been 23 points. It was only the third time this season that the high scoring Rams were held under 30 points. Los Angeles is admittedly in a tough motivational position having already clinched the NFC West by a mile but there is still work to be done if they’re to have home field advantage throughout the playoffs. This is made all the more difficult by the fact that New Orleans beat the Rams in Week 9 meaning that should the teams finish with the same record the Saints will get the nod via the tiebreaker.

Philadelphia is technically still alive for a playoff spot but they need to win out and get some help. They enter this game with a 6-7 record and tied with the Washington Redskins for the second best record in the NFC East. The Dallas Cowboys have won five straight and have all but clinched the divisional title (though not ‘officially). On Friday, the Eagles made a big addition to what was already a long list of injuries as starting quarterback Carson Wentz was officially ruled out of this game and is most likely done for the season. Wentz has a stress fracture in his back and had been listed as ‘questionable’ or ‘day to day’ all week before Coach Doug Pederson announced that he wouldn’t be available for Week 16. The coach refused to speculate on his status beyond that but that was seemingly contradicted by his statement that Wentz has a three month rehab timeline.

There is something of a ‘silver lining’ in this dark injury cloud as the Eagles will call upon the services of Nick Foles. Not many teams have the luxury of having a backup who has led the team to a Super bowl title but the Eagles do. Foles will likely look to get the ball to tight end Zach Ertz often—Ertz is third in the NFL in receptions with 98. Rookie running back Josh Adams also needs to get involved as his participation has been a key component of the Eagles’ success this year. When Adams gets 27 or more rushes Philadelphia is 6-0. When he doesn’t, they’re 0-7. If Foles can get him involved in the offense he could have a big day as the Rams’ rushing defense is marginal at best ranking 23rd in the NFL. The Eagles defense has been playing fairly well though they’ll definitely be tested by the high octane Rams.

Los Angeles might have already clinched their divisional title but they’re having a dismal season where it really matters—against the NFL pointspread. The Rams won and covered their first three games this season but quickly became overpriced. Since then, they’ve covered only twice going 2-6-2 against the number. The Eagles have been an even worse ‘investment’, not really surprising for a defending Super Bowl champion in the midst of a substandard season. Philadelphia is 4-9 ATS this year including 1-4 SU/ATS on the road. Against NFC opponents they’re 4-6 SU/3-7 ATS. Los Angeles is on a 6-12 ATS run at home though this is a price range (-10.5 to -14 point favorite) where they have been successful in a small sample size winning twice in two opportunities over the past two seasons.

Ultimately, a quick glance down Philadelphia’s 2018 season game log makes the betting decision for us. The Eagles have lost once by a margin that would cover the pointspread in this game (11/18/18 in a 48-7 loss at New Orleans). At their best, the Rams have an offense that is nearly as potent as the Saints’ but we have to question their current execution and motivation. Philadelphia played hard for backup QB Foles last year and there’s no reason to think that they won’t do so again this year. There’s just no way to lay this many points against a quality, championship tested team fighting for a playoff spot.

BET PHILADELPHIA EAGLES +13 OVER LOS ANGELES RAMS