The Washington Redskins welcome the St. Louis Rams to FedEx Field this week. This game is equally important for Washington (3-9) and St. Louis (5-7), as they both go into this contest looking for a victory. The game will air Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX.
Washington lost in ugly fashion to Indianapolis 49-27 last week. Jordan Reed had a big game in the loss, totaling nine receptions for 123 yards. Colt McCoy had a big game as well, totaling 392 yards and three TDs through the air. St. Louis is looking to repeat last week when they dominated Oakland 52-0. Tre Mason had a great game for the Rams, racking up 164 total yards and three scores. He had 117 yards on the ground and 47 yards receiving.
The Over/Under (O/U) for the Redskins-Rams game this week is set at 44 points and St. Louis is a small two-point favorite. Sitting at 3-9 Straight Up (SU) and 4-8 Against The Spread (ATS), the Redskins will look to improve as they head into Week 14. In their five most recent matchups, the Redskins went 1-4 SU and 2-3 ATS. When teams pass the ball against the Rams, they do so at a high percentage. They allow a completion rate of 68.6% to their opponents, last in the NFL. As for the Washington defense, a few key matchups could decide this game. Washington’s defense will look to pad its stats against the pass when the Rams come to town. St. Louis’s 208.7 passing yards per game makes them 26th in the NFL. The Rams will need to stop Washington’s defense from getting to their quarterback in order to be successful in this game. The Redskins rank fifth in sacks with 3.4 per home game.
On the other side, the Rams have 5-7 SU and 6-6 ATS records this season. In the previous five games, St. Louis has a record of 3-2 SU and 4-1 ATS. During their last five games, the Rams have done a better job of keeping their opponents off the scoreboard. Their average of allowing 23.8 PPG has fallen since they’ve only given up an average of 15 over their last five. The St. Louis run defense has given teams headaches during those games. During that time, opponents have gained an average of only 65.0 rushing yards against this terrifying group. The pass rushers for the Rams have got to be excited about their matchup this week against the Redskins, who rank 31st in the league with an average of 3.2 sacks allowed per game. Teams need to stay focused in the first quarter against the fast-starting Rams, who average 7.2 points in the first 15 minutes. Special teams usually provides a spark for St. Louis. They average the second-most return yards in the NFL with 109.2.
Predictions: SU Winner – STL, ATS Winner – STL, O/U – Under
Notes
The total has gone OVER in 7 of St. Louis’s last 10 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington’s last 6 games.
St. Louis is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road.
Washington is 3-17 SU in its last 20 games.
St. Louis is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games on the road.
Washington is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of St. Louis’s last 9 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington’s last 6 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of St. Louis’s last 9 games when playing Washington.
Washington is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games at home.
St. Louis is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Washington.
Washington is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis’s last 6 games when playing on the road against Washington.
Washington is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Washington’s last 9 games when playing St. Louis.
Washington is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington’s last 6 games when playing at home against St. Louis.
Washington is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against St. Louis.
St. Louis is 4-4 SU when leading at the half this season. Washington is 1-1 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
St. Louis is 3-2 SU when leading at the start of the fourth quarter this season. Washington is 2-1 SU when leading at the end of the third quarter.
St. Louis is winless this season (0-3 SU) in games where it loses the turnover battle.
Washington is an even 2-2 SU in games where it wins the turnover battle, and winless (0-5 SU) when losing the turnover battle.
Washington is winless (0-5 SU) this season when allowing at least 4 sacks in a game. The St. Louis defense is averaging 4.4 sacks over its last five games.
Washington has drawn an average of 8.7 penalties on opponents this season. St. Louis is only 2-7 SU when penalized at least 8 times in a game.
When it comes to passing this season, Washington is rated higher on both sides of the ball. Its 10th-ranked passing attack will face the 21st-ranked pass defense of St. Louis, while its 15th-ranked pass defense will look to limit the 26th-ranked passing game of the Rams.
The Washington run defense is ranked ninth in the league this year, and will look to contain the 20th-ranked rushing attack of St. Louis.
Washington has given up 26.8 points per contest this year, which is ranked only 27th in the league. St. Louis has scored 21.8 points per game this year and is ranked 17th overall.
