Kick-off on the night of Thursday to Friday at 2:15 a.m.
Los Angeles Rams (7-7) – New Orleans Saints (7-7)
It's now official since last week, there are only 2 places left in Wild Cards available in NFC. Indeed, the Cowboys and the Eagles have just punched their ticket for the playoffs, except that one of the two teams will not win the NFC East and will therefore be considered as Wild card. While the NFC West has already given its verdict, since the 49ers are officially the winners, the Rams have no choice. They must finish in the two best teams among a list which is still long with 5 teams still in the race: Minnesota, New Orleans, Seattle, even Atlanta and Green Bay.
You will have understood, this Thursday Night Football pits two teams who are almost direct opponents in this final sprint. For now, the momentum is for Californians. Sean McVay's men remain on 4 victories, in the last 5 matches. Since all of their offensive forces have returned and appear to be physically fit, the offense has been better. The rookie running back, Kyren Williams is notably the X factor of this squad. For four matches and his return from injury, he has exploded the counters. It's simple, it records in average 146 yards from the line of scrimmage. Sean McVay does not hesitate to give him the ball in hand (26 races + receptions on average over these 4 games) and the young player does good for this attack.
Waiting for Tampa
The Saints must now find the solution. The problem is that the ground game is one of the shortcomings of this defense. Historically solid for several years in this sector, the squad is struggling this season to stop opposing running backs. On average, the Saints cash 126.4 rushing yards per game. Without a reaction, New Orleans will have difficulty staying in contact with its away opponent. For Derek Carr's teammates, the objective is twofold. They in fact did not say goodbye to division. The Buccaneers have exactly the same record and are ahead thanks to their victory at the Super Dome in week 4.
Except that the return match will take place next week and a victory this Thursday would put a lot of pressure on the Floridians before going to play Tampa Bay. After a series of three consecutive losses, the Saints recovered to tackle this final sprint. They currently have two wins in a row against the Giants and the Panthers. If the level of play is not yet very reassuring, the character of this team no longer needs to be proven. Denis Allen and his men will end this season with two divisional duels in week 17 and 18. To get there with full confidence, they would be well advised to win in Los Angeles.
