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The New England Patriots play in Los Angeles for the second time in five days. New England defeated the Los Angeles Chargers last Sunday to get back to the .500 mark at 6-6 on the year. They stayed in the City of Angels and head to the SoFi Stadium to take on the L.A. Rams on the NFL’s Thursday Night feature.
The Rams are coming off a road win over the Arizona Cardinals in a victory that put them on top of the NFC West. This is the first meeting between these two teams since they played against each other at Super Bowl LIII. the Patriots won that game 13-3 as well as the five previous head-to-head meetings between these two teams.
New England Patriots
It was just five games ago when New England was 2-5 and seemingly out of the playoff race. Since then, they have won four out of their last five games played to even their record at 6-6. They are currently in 10th place in the very competitive AFC Conference but with the NFL adding a 7th playoff team per conference this season, the Pats are still alive.
Cam Newton threw for only 69 yards and the Patriots only had 291 yards of total offense. But the shortfall from their offense was more than made up for by the defense and special teams. Gunner Olszewski had a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown while David McCourty picked up a blocked field goal and ran it for a touchdown Damien Harris led the team with 80 rushing yards while James White had three catches.
The Patriots rank third in the league in rushing at 150.9 rushing yards per game. They are scoring just 22.8 points per game this season but their defense has been stout, conceding just 21.3 points per game, 7th best in the NFL this season. New England has been outgained by an average of 2.3 yards per game.
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams have taken control of the NFC West. The Rams have tied the Seattle Seahawks with an 8-4 record but by virtue of their week 10 win over Seattle, they own the tiebreaker in the division. They are currently the third seed in the NFC, one game behind the Packers, and two games behind conference leader New Orleans. After this game, the Rams finish off their season with games against the Jets., Seahawks, and Cardinals.
Jared Goff completed 37 of 47 passes on Sunday and threw for 351 yards and one touchdown. It was the 6th 300+ yards passing game for Goff this season. Robert Woods caught 10 passes for 85 yards while Cam Akers rushed for a total of 72 yards with one touchdown. The Rams had 30 first downs and 463 yards of total offense while allowing just 232 yards. They also controlled the ball for nearly two-thirds of the game time.
The Rams are one of the best teams in the league on both ends of the field. They are ranked third in yards per game at 395.3 while also scoring 25.1 points per game. Their defense is ranked in the Top 5 in yards allowed (291.3), rushing yards allowed (93.1), passing yards, and points allowed at 20.3 per contest.
Who Wins?
New England is 4-1 SU in their last five games played. The Patriots are 2-4 SU in their last six games played on the road, 9-2 SU in their last 11 games played against the NFC, and 14-6 SU in their last 20 December games. The LA Rams are 9-4 SU in their last 13 games played. LA is 4-1 SU in their last five games played at home, 6-2 SU in their last eight December games, and 4-12 SU in their last 16 week 14 games.
The New England Patriots are making a late push for the playoffs. They are on a good roll right now with four wins in their last five games played.
The New England special teams accounted for two touchdowns in their 45-0 win over the Chargers to overshadow the underwhelming performance of Cam Newton who threw for less than 85 yards in the second straight game.
The Rams responded with a 38-28 win over the Arizona Cardinals after they were called out by head coach Sean McVay after a 23-20 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Rookie Cam Akers has led the team in rushing in their last two games and has scored a touchdown in each of those assignments. Meanwhile, Jared Goff is coming off a 351-yard passing game where the Rams picked up a total of 30 first downs.
Road teams are usually at a disadvantage in Thursday games. However, the Rams won’t be traveling for this game as they stayed in Los Angeles after beating the Chargers in Los Angeles during their last game. Bill Belichick’s Patriots have also thrived in these short-rest games, with 10 wins in their last 11 Thursday games. Give me the plus money and the Patriots here.
Prediction: New England Patriots
Other Bets To Make
The Patriots are 4-2 ATS in their last six games played. New England is 2-4 ATS in their last six games played on the road. The Rams are 4-2 ATS in their last six games played. Los Angeles is 3-2 ATS in five home games played this season, 1-4 ATS in their last five games against the AFC, and 0-5 ATS in their last five games against the AFC East. Head to head, the Patriots are 6-1 ATS in their last seven games played against the Rams.
Patriots
+5.5 (-110)
Rams
-5.5 (-110)
Odds from BetOnline as of 12/09/2020
New England is the road team here but it’s the Rams who will travel for this game. The Pats played the Chargers five days ago and stayed in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, the Rams played on the road last Sunday. The Patriots won their last two games even if Cam Newton threw for less than 100 yards in each one. New England has a terrific rushing attack and a very good special teams which should be able to help them win this game, not just cover the spread. The Rams have a better record and have been better all season long. However, the Pats are desperate and have played like they are in playoff mode over their last five games. I’ll take the plus points here.
Prediction: Patriots +5.5
The total has gone under in four out of the last five games played by New England. The under is 5-1 in their last six games against the NFC West. The total has gone under in seven out of the last nine games played by the Rams. LA has seen the total hit under in each of their last five games played at home. The total has gone under in five out of the last eight games played between these two teams.
Over
44.5 (-113)
Under
44.5 (-107)
Odds from BetOnline as of 12/09/2020
We have two of the best scoring defenses facing each other on Thursday. The Patriots are giving up just 21.3 points per game this season while the Rams are even allowing fewer points at 20.3 per contest. With Cam Newton as starting QB, New England doesn’t have a good passing offense. However, they run the ball very well but that’s going to eat up plenty of the clock. To beat the Rams, the Patriots need to keep Goff on the sidelines. Look for the Pats to shorten this game while keeping the scoring low.
Prediction: Under 44.5
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