It's a Thursday morning and you wake up for school or work like you would any day. You go through your morning routine, brush your teeth, shower, make coffee, do whatever you gotta do to prepare for the day. Then, like any normal person with a gambling problem you open up the internet browser on your smartphone and log into your gambling account ready to make some easy money on Thursday Night Football. You see that the Rams are playing the 49ers and audibly groan as you know this game is a surefire stinker. You place your bet on the over of 40 points just so that you can cheer for scoring but deep down knowing you'll be lucky if these two teams crack 25.
You go on with your day and wait for the game to start.
Does anyone know how to play defense?
Vegas predicted the Rams and 49ers combined wouldn't score more than 40 points total. Oh, boy were they wrong. The final score of the game was 41-39 Rams, in what was certainly the most exciting and entertaining game of the season. These two teams managed to score a combined 80 points, twice the amount of what Vegas predicted. I, along with the rest of the sports world, was completely shocked. I loved watching every second of this game, at any and all times it felt like the team with the ball could break off and score a touchdown from wherever they were on the field.
The Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has been in the league for what has seemed like a million years.
I'm pretty sure at some point in the broadcast Cris Collinsworth said that he was the oldest coach in the league at like 70 years old or something. Phillips was the mastermind behind that worldbeating Denver Broncos "mile high no fly zone" defensive backs when they won the Super Bowl in the 2015 NFL season. Man oh man how things have changed since then for Phillips, from holding Tom Brady and the New England Patriots to 18 points in an AFC Championship game to allowing 39 points to the lowly 49ers on a color rush Thursday night football game.
This game was an absolute embarrassment for the Rams defense which clearly has room to improve. I think I saw Pierre Garcon streak down the sideline and make a 40-plus yard catch seven times tonight. The 49ers didn't fair much better and actually gave up more points but is there anything really expected out of that defensive unit?
Probably not.
How legitimate are the Rams?
The Rams offense is no joke this year. Although they have had a pretty friendly schedule through three games the offense has scored 40 or more points in two out of the three games they have played. They are first in the league in points scored per game with 35.7 and sixth in total yards per game with 374.3. Todd Gurley has turned back into the Offensive Rookie of the Year player we saw two years ago and quarterback Jared Goff has thrown for five touchdowns and one interception, giving him a quarterback rating of 118.2.
Here is a list of NFL Quarterbacks with a better rating that Goff this year (minimum 60 pass attempts): Alex Smith and Derek Carr. That is the entire list.
Goff has a better rating than Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Matt Ryan. This Rams offense is legit and could make a run at the playoffs if everyone manages to stay healthy. Next week the Rams go off to Dallas in what should be a good game. The 49ers play the Arizona Cardinals at 4:05 ET.
