Look For Rams To Stop This Seahawks Running Back

Rams vs. Seahawks, 8:15 ET

The NFL didn’t wait long in Week 16 to give us arguably the best game of the week. Thursday Night Football has had some duds lately with matchups, but there is no question that we are treated to what should be a good one here. The NFC West has been one of the better divisions in football this season, and we have two teams battling for first place as the Rams take on the Seahawks tonight with major playoff implications.

The Rams are my pick to win the Super Bowl. That isn’t saying anything overly impressive. They are the #1 seed as of right now, and they are the only NFC team to have locked up their playoff spot. This has been a good season for them overall, sitting with an 11-3 record, but there have been some questionable losses even though there are just three. They have dropped games to the Eagles – a game they probably should’ve won. They were up big before they couldn’t get any stops late in the third and fourth quarters. They had a chance to win the game, their field goal was blocked and then returned for a touchdown. The next loss came at home against the 49ers on a Thursday Night Football game. San Francisco was missing virtually every player you could think of and they still were able to keep the Rams from getting their explosive offense going. It was one of those games that you start wondering if the NFL is rigged and that Vegas made a call. Their other loss was against the Panthers, and Matthew Stafford, who had played like an MVP, had a disaster of a game, at least by his standards. 

(Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images)

The Seahawks look like geniuses because they gambled on Sam Darnold and it certainly has paid off, at least this season. They also have an 11-3 record this year, and their losses have all been very close games. They lost to the 49ers in Week 1 17-13. In Week five they hosted the Buccaneers and lost a shootout 38-35. The final loss came against the Rams in Week 11. That game was in Los Angeles and Seattle dropped it 21-19. So, in three losses, they have been by a combined nine points. I don’t consider their defense to be elite, but they are incredibly good. They seem to be well-coached, have good plans, and work together. They are ranked in the top-10 for yards allowed per game overall, and in both passing and rushing yards allowed. On offense, the running game seems to be the only real flaw on the team. They are in the bottom half of the league in terms of rushing yards. 

This should be a bit of a chess match between the two coaches. Both are looking to lock up what they need in order to make the playoffs as easy as possible. They are evenly matched clubs. I’m going to share my leans before I share my play. The leans I have are to the under and to the Seahawks winning. I don’t love either play as both teams could air it out. I also think that part of my lean to Seattle is the questionable tag for Davante Adams. My official play here is going to be on the under for rushing yards on Zack Charbonet. Kenneth Walker III had one of the very few rushing touchdowns allowed by the Rams this season, and he had 67 yards last time they played. Charbonet had just 37 yards against them, and he has gotten fewer than 10 carries in three of the past four games. 

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