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The Rams will have a short week coming up after beating the Chicago Bears 24-10 on Monday night. With one fewer day to prepare for their next opponent, the 3-3 Miami Dolphins, the Rams won’t get much time off before getting back on the practice field.
And when they do start their prep for the Dolphins, they’ll be gearing up to face Tua Tagovailoa in his NFL debut. The oddsmakers like Tagovailoa’s chances to lead Miami to victory in Week 8, making the Dolphins only slight home underdogs to the Rams.
At BetMGM, the Rams are just 3.5-point road favorites over Miami. The Dolphins have been better than expected this season, but it’s surprising to see the spread start smaller than it was for Rams-Bears when Los Angeles was a six-point favorite at one time. The over/under and money lines have not yet been posted as of Tuesday morning.
It’s hard to predict how a team will perform with a rookie quarterback under center, which makes this a tough line to set. Had Ryan Fitzpatrick been at quarterback, the spread might’ve been even lower. But the oddsmakers have to factor in the unknown of a rookie being at quarterback, which is the case here.
Not to mention, the Dolphins were off in Week 7, so Tagovailoa had some extra time to prepare for his first start. The Rams will have one day less than normal, too, and have to travel across the country for an early 1 p.m. ET kickoff.
All of that is factored into the spread, but it’s still somewhat surprising to see it open at only 3.5 points.
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