The San Francisco 49ers (1-2) and St. Louis Rams (1-2) meet up in Edward Jones Dome for Week 4's Thursday Night Football matchup. Here are predictions for this ball game as the game is pretty much in a toss as both teams head into this NFC West rivalry game.
Do the Rams really have a chance of embarrassing the NFC West favorite 49ers on a national stage? The answer is yes and here is why.
The 49ers have been held in check by both the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks in back-to-back weekends. The league has made the proper adjustments, finding ways to make the 49er's quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, appear human. Last season, he burned the league. The 49ers perfected the option and together with Kaepernick's arm, the 49ers were unstoppable.
The 49ers will be without one of their best defensive players, Aldon Smith, as he checked into rehab following his second DUI of the year. Smith already had 3.5 sacks this season, half of the team's total. This means the Rams' passing game has a few more seconds to look down field and find the open man. That could be a problem for the 49ers throughout this game.
The Rams, have the eighth best passing game in the league. Bradford has smoked defense's secondaries, going for 891 yards and six touchdowns in the first three weeks of the year. Jared Cock is nearing 200 yards receiving, while Chris Givens is averaging over 20 yards per catch. The 49ers secondary better be ready, if not, they will be in for a long day.
The Rams' weakness comes on defense and in their running game. Daryl Richardson is only averaging 3.3 yards per game and has yet to score a touchdown. This will limit the 49ers' responsibilities on defense, granted, they will probably feel very comfortable playing on their heels, waiting for a pass.
Look for the 49ers to break out in this game. It's the perfect chance. The Rams are allowing close to 30 points per game and close to 400 yards of offense. The 49ers are struggling, but they are a very talented team. It won't be the easiest battle, especially since the 49ers are traveling into a division rival's home, However, San Francisco should be able to eventually dominate and walk away from St. Louis with their second victory of the year.
Final Score Prediction: 49ers will attack with both the run and passing game. Look for Anquan Boldin to have a huge game once again as the veteran should be able to shake off the Rams' coverage. This should be a high scoring affair with both teams trading punches, look for the 49ers to force a huge turnover when the game is on the line.
49ers win 34-24
