The Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks were supposed to play on Sunday afternoon, but a COVID-19 outbreak in the Rams’ building caused it to be pushed back two days after 29 players tested positive.
It’s been a challenging and unordinary 10 days for the Rams since they last beat the Cardinals in Week 14, but despite not holding a practice until Saturday and being so shorthanded that coaches had to stand in on the field, they’re now ready to face the Seahawks … on a Tuesday.
And after the Cardinals were stunned by the Lions on Sunday, the Rams have an opportunity to tie Arizona atop the NFC West – even if the Cardinals still own the tiebreaker.
The Seahawks have had a terrible season, going 5-8 in their first 13 games. They’re not technically out of the playoff hunt, but with four games to go, they need to win out. The Rams will do what they can to prevent that from happening, and if their first meeting is any indication of how Tuesday’s game will go, Los Angeles shouldn’t have too much trouble with Seattle.
They beat the Seahawks 26-17 in Week 5, gaining a season-high 476 yards on offense – including a 365-yard performance from Matthew Stafford, gashing the Seahawks secondary for an average of 9.86 yards per attempt. The Rams may not be playing as well now as they were in Week 5, but they’ve gotten back on track in the last two games with wins over the Jaguars and Cardinals.
They can’t take the Seahawks lightly, though. They still have Russell Wilson, they still have DK Metcalf (and likely Tyler Lockett), and the Rams could be shorthanded if some of their starters don’t come off the COVID-19 list.
Coming off an emotional win over the Cardinals and having far less time to practice than the Seahawks due to the massive number of cases of COVID-19, the Rams have plenty working against them in this game.
However, this is still a game they should win – and I believe they will. Having Jalen Ramsey back is huge when it comes to defending Metcalf. Darrell Henderson Jr. adds an explosive element to the backfield alongside Sony Michel, and the pass rush will be better now than it even was in Week 5 after the arrival of Von Miller and the return of Justin Hollins.
The Rams will win this one after a difficult week and pull even with Arizona for the division lead.
Final score prediction: Rams 27, Seahawks 24