The last time the Rams faced the 49ers, they put together one of their worst offensive performances under Sean McVay. In the 20-7 defeat, Jared Goff had 78 yards passing on 24 attempts, Los Angeles finished with only 10 first downs and 157 yards, and the offensive line allowed four sacks.
Nothing went well for the Rams in Week 6, running into one of the best defenses in the league. The 49ers defense hasn’t been as dominant as it was in that game, allowing 75 points in the last two weeks, but it’s still one of the top units in football.
Sean McVay would even consider putting San Francisco’s pass defense among the best ever, based on the numbers it has put up.
“They did a great job. They’re a great defense, they’re one of the top defenses in the league and they’ve got one of the better pass defenses,” McVay said Tuesday. “Arguably, you just look at the numbers, they’re up there in league history. They’ve done a great job.”
Needing to win their last two games of the season, the Rams would probably prefer not to face the 49ers in Week 16, but McVay hopes the offense can put together a better performance than it did in October.
That won’t be easy, especially with Richard Sherman and K’Waun Williams expected to return from injury.
“Hopefully, we’ll have a better showing, but we certainly know what a great challenge it will be, because of what a great job Robert Saleh does leading the way, and then all the great players that they have executing the scheme,” McVay added.
One thing that helps the Rams is the fact that Todd Gurley will be available, which he was not in their first meeting with the 49ers. That game was handled by Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson, the latter of whom fumbled it on the first play of the second half to put the Rams in a deeper hole.
“I think just playing like what we expect him to,” McVay said of what he expects from Gurley this week. “Whenever his number is called, doing a good job of just being efficient, seeing things the right way, leveling things off, being able to create some stuff on his own if that’s what the look dictates, and being sound in protection. Just playing his position the right way snap in and snap out.”
The Rams are 6.5-point underdogs this weekend, which is the largest spread against them since McVay took over as the head coach. A loss will end any chance of Los Angeles making the postseason, so this is a huge game for the defending NFC champions.