Aug 19, 2020; Ashburn, Virginia, USA; Washington Football Team quarterback Kyle Allen (8) passes the ball as quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr. (7) watches on day twenty-two of training camp at Inova Sports Performance Center in Ashburn, Virginia. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Rams vs Washington Pick, Betting Analysis, Odds, Trends

The Dwayne Haskins Experiment is on hold in Washington while they try the Kyle Allen Experiment. The Washington Football Club hosts the Los Angeles Rams Sunday in a match where the line moved two points after this QB shift. 

The benching of Haskins has seemed to sway bettors towards Los Angeles. The line opened at -5.5 for the Rams, but now it sits at -7.5. That two-point swing is huge for the overall outlook of this game, crossing key numbers of 6 and 7 on the spread. I like Washington to cover the 7.5 and they should give the Rams a tough fight. 

LA Rams Washington Odds: Rams -7.5 Total 45.5 | Bet the Game @ BetRivers | Matchup Report

Why Washington will cover the spread

I watched the entirety of the Baltimore vs Washington game on Sunday and my biggest takeaway from it was that Dwayne Haskins needs to be benched. Ron Rivera did just that, and it’s time for Kyle Allen to lead this offense. Allen had some success in Carolina last season. He started 12 games, and threw 17 TDs with a 62% completion percentage. 

Allen should be able to come into this offense and provide a spark that this team desperately needs. Allen had success throwing the ball to Christian McCaffery out of the backfield last season, and Antonio Gibson should be able to provide Allen with that safety net.

The Rams defense has struggled covering running backs thus far, giving up more than 32 yards receiving to each of their opponents starting running backs this season. 

The bright spot for Washington this season has been their defense. Last week they kept Lamar Jackson in check, only allowing Jackson to throw for 193 yards. L.A struggled to move the ball last week against the Giants, only putting up 17 points. 

Why Los Angeles will cover the spread

Los Angeles is off to a hot start this season, improving to 3-1 after a 17-9 win over the Giants. Their one loss came against the undefeated Buffalo Bills, in a game they almost came back in but ultimately fell short. 

 L.A will get some reinforcements this week, as RB Cam Akers is expecting to return this week. If you take away last week, this Rams offense has been better than expected. They put up 89 points combined in their first three games, and looks like they found their 2018 form. 

On defense, Aaron Donald will be the X-Factor. Washington has struggled to keep their QB upright, and this looks like a good matchup for Donald. With Allen getting his first start for Washington, it will be key for the Rams defensive line to make him uncomfortable. 

Trend Dummy found plenty of reasons why the Rams might cover here (9-3 ATS past 12 road games, 5-2 ATS past 7 games at Washington, 14-4-1 ATS past 19 games vs NFC foes).

Rams Washington pick

The two-point swing in the line makes this game very interesting. Allen has to be better than what Haskins was giving this team, so I think this offense could show some juice on Sunday. The Rams struggled against a New York Giants defense last week, and Washington has way more pass rushers to cause Jared Goff some problems.

I like L.A to win this game, and many trends suggest they will cover. But I see this staying close, less than a touchdown, and back the home underdogs. 

Brenden Deeg is from Ajax, Ontario and has been an NFL writer for over 5 years. Brenden has contributed to FanSided and 4th and Jawn. Brenden also played Defensive Line at York University, in Toronto Canada. Brenden is a Philadelphia Eagles fan, and active in the Philadelphia Eagles twitter community. You can follow his personal account here @ BrendenDeegNFP   He can reached at Brenden.Deeg@NationalFootballPost.com

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