December 21, 2019; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) and offensive guard Ben Garland (63) during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Rams at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Rams vs 49ers Pick, Odds, Analysis

When the Week 6 Sunday Nighter appeared on the schedule in the spring, few would have imagined the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers would wind up getting 3.5 points from the Los Angeles Rams.

But sure enough, San Francisco has been terrorized by the injury gods, while healthy, productive, balanced Los Angeles is a bad call in Buffalo short of 5-0.

The only thing predictable in this league is massive doses of unpredictability. Let’s break down L.A.-San Francisco at an empty Levi’s Stadium.

Rams 49ers Odds: -3.5 LA as of Thursday – Total 51.5 at BetRivers | Matchup Report

WHY THE RAMS CAN COVER THE SPREAD

San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo appeared to be far from 100 percent and even farther from being an NFL-caliber third-stringer in an abysmal performance as the gutted 49ers were blown out by the Miami freakin’ Dolphins last week.

It’s hard to imagine Jimmy G can suddenly turn it back on in just one week, and now he’ll have to face defensive player of the year frontrunner Aaron Donald and his strong supporting cast with limited offensive support as a result of a slew of injuries.

Trend Dummy points out that the Rams are 15-4-1 ATS in their last 20 conference games and 10-3 ATS in their last 13 road games.

WHY THE 49ERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD

The 49ers are getting healthier, they’re incredibly well coached, they’re extremely familiar with the Rams, they’re getting a field goal plus a hook from L.A., they’re at home and — maybe most critically — they’re desperate.

Under those circumstances and with Garoppolo, George Kittle and Deebo Samuel all at least making progress from a health perspective, you’d think a mentally strong, veteran team could keep this thing close with its season on the line.

RAMS 49ERS PICK

The 49ers know how to deal with the Rams. They’ve won and covered in six of the last nine meetings between these teams, and they need a W in a major way here. The Rams have been stellar, but they did dig a huge hole in Buffalo before letting the still-winless Giants hang around all day in Los Angeles. The Niners are just 2-5 ATS in their last seven home games, but this line seems to account for those recent struggles and the sorry state of the roster.

Here’s your chance to take advantage of that by fading a heavy public favorite on Sunday Night Football.

Brad Gagnon has been passionate about both sports and mass media since he was in diapers -- a passion that won't die until he's in them again. He was a lead contributor to an earlier incarnation of NationalFootballPost.com and was happy to return when new management revived the brand in 2020. Based in Toronto, he's covered the NFL since 2008 and has been a national NFL writer at Bleacher Report since 2012. He despises all 32 NFL teams equally but remains a fan of the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto Raptors. He can be reached at Brad@NationalFootballPost.com

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