Los Angeles Rams Put NFL Best Record On The Line Against Chicago Bears

The Los Angeles Rams have run roughshod over the NFC West this season. Thanks to their NFL best record of 11-1 they’ve already clinched the division although they’ve still got to deal with the 10-2 New Orleans Saints if they want to lock down home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. They’ll need some help if they’re going to do it as New Orleans handed the Rams their only loss of the season. They’ll also need to get a win here as they play an extremely tough road game at Soldier Field against the Chicago Bears.

For some reason, the team formerly known as the ‘Monsters of the Midway’ have been something of an afterthought this season even with the NFC North lead and a solid 8-4 record. Maybe it’s because their usually tough divisional rivals have fallen off somewhat. The Minnesota Vikings are still in the hunt at 6-5-1 but the Green Bay Packers—the Bears’ arch nemesis—are having a terrible season at 4-7-1. Chicago had won five straight games until they dropped a 30-27 verdict to the New York Giants last Sunday. This setback could have come at a very fortuitous time, however, as it might serve to refocus the team on the challenge at hand after a successful winning run.

This could be the toughest test the Rams face for the rest of the regular season not only in terms of the Bears’ W/L record but due to a very challenging situational spot. They catch the Bears coming off the aforementioned loss and welcoming the return of starting quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. The Rams will also face a passionate Chicago crowd in a nationally televised Sunday night game. The Bears have been a nasty opponent at home in recent years. This year they’re 5-1 SU/ATS but over the past three years they’re 15-6 against the number despite having an 11-11 straight up record.

Another challenge could be the weather. While it’s not expected to be particularly inhospitable by Chicago in December standards it will be the most challenging conditions that Rams’ quarterback Jared Goff has dealt with in his NFL career. Goff played his college ball at California and the gametime forecast for temperatures in the mid-20’s is a bit out of his element. It’s also in some bad pointspread situations for Los Angeles. They’re 3-7 ATS in December over the past three years, 4-10 ATS against an opponent with a winning record, 1-7 ATS during the last four weeks of the regular season and 2-8 ATS against a plus .500 opponent in the second half of the season.

Chicago is a better team defensively. They’re #3 in total defense (317.9 yards per game), #11 in pass defense (317.9 YPG) and #2 in rushing defense (85.8 YPG). They’ve also got the #5 scoring defense in the NFL giving up just 20.1 PPG. The Rams have impressive offensive numbers but this will very likely be the toughest defensive matchup the team has faced this season. The Bears lead the NFL in both interceptions and forced fumbles and rank among the top five in sacks. Led by Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks, the Bears would love to shut down the high profile Rams with their superstars Goff, Todd Gurley and Aaron Donald. Trubisky could be due for a big night in his first game back due to the Rams 26 to 7 TD to INT ratio in their last 10 games. Before holding Detroit to 16 points last Sunday the Rams had allowed 51, 31, 45 and 27 in their previous four games.

The NFL pointspread on this game underscores the public’s lack of respect for the Bears and infatuation with the Rams. Los Angeles is a -3 point road favorite in a very tough venue where the Bears have had considerable success this season. The only other time this year that the Rams have been a road favorite in this price range (field goal or less) they lost outright at New Orleans. Look for the Bears to hand them another outright loss here.

BET CHICAGO BEARS +3 OVER LOS ANGELES RAMS