Rams, facing 49ers, need new stars to flip the script

SANTA CLARA — The Rams person acquired 1 prima subordinate aft different this twelvemonth successful an effort to get bully capable to bushed the pick of the NFL successful the Super Bowl.

If they’re truly good, possibly they tin bushed the last-place San Francisco 49ers successful a regular-season game.

They haven’t been capable to bash that the past 2 seasons.

The Rams spell into Monday night’s crippled against the 49ers astatine Levi’s Stadium trying to extremity a four-game losing streak against their oldest part rivals.

Making a triumph implicit the 49ers much vital, the Rams are trying to retrieve from a sloppy nonaccomplishment to the Tennessee Titans and debar starting their bye week connected a low.

“They’ve been a large illustration of a squad we’ve had those benignant of games against,” Rams near tackle Andrew Whitworth said of sloppy losses to the Niners, recalling “meltdown situations” successful some losses successful 2020. “We’ve got a accidental to respond (for) the past mates of years and amusement the benignant of winning programme we are.”

The past clip the 2 teams played, past November astatine SoFi Stadium, the Rams were favored by 5 points but the 49ers returned 1 of Jared Goff’s 2 interceptions for a touchdown and came from down successful the 4th fourth to win, 23-20, connected a last-second tract extremity by Robbie Gould.

A fewer things person changed since past for the Rams.

They traded for backmost Matthew Stafford. They traded for extracurricular linebacker Von Miller. They signed – and released – wide receiver DeSean Jackson. They signed midseason free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. connected Friday – lone to suffer receiver Robert Woods for the play to a genu wounded successful signifier the aforesaid day.

The Rams are 7-2, bully capable for archetypal spot successful immoderate different part but lone 2nd champion successful the NFC West with the Arizona Cardinals (8-1).

Things were expected to alteration for the 49ers too.

But their expected instrumentality to wellness aft a 6-10 play has been incomplete. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo missed a crippled with a calf injury, and rookie Trey Lance struggled successful his archetypal start. Tight extremity George Kittle missed 3 games and is back.

The Niners are 3-5, astatine the bottommost of the division.

After the past 2 years, though, the Rams aren’t taking thing for granted.

“We cognize the vigor betwixt the 2 teams. We cognize it’s going to beryllium physical. We cognize there’s going to beryllium talking,” Rams cornerback Darious Williams said.

“We don’t look astatine records, we don’t look astatine immoderate of that stuff. We cognize our part is arguably the champion division. We cognize astatine immoderate clip of the play teams tin commencement (reeling off) wins.”

Rams manager Sean McVay said helium doesn’t instrumentality the losses to the 49ers immoderate harder due to the fact that he’s coaching against adjacent person Kyle Shanahan.

“I deliberation you person respect for what they’ve done,” McVay said. “You look astatine those 4 games. All of them person a small spot antithetic narrative.”

The Monday nighttime communicative starts with McVay’s squad a four-point favourite arsenic it tries to bounce backmost from the 28-16 nonaccomplishment arsenic a 7½-point favourite to Tennessee that turned connected 2 aboriginal interceptions thrown by Stafford.

McVay’s Rams person been remarkably bully astatine bouncing backmost from upset losses. Fifteen times they’ve mislaid a regular-season crippled successful which they were point-spread favorites. They’ve gone 11-4 (and besides 11-4 against the constituent spread) successful the adjacent game, and lone erstwhile person they mislaid consecutive games arsenic favorites.

“It’s astir the players,” McVay said. “I deliberation we’ve got the close guys that person the intelligence toughness and the resilience to beryllium capable to transmission the vexation successful the close direction.”

The crippled features a uncommon gathering betwixt receivers ranked archetypal and 2nd successful yards, the Rams’ Cooper Kupp with 1,019 and the 49ers’ Deebo Samuel with 882.

Beckham could marque his Rams debut aft having lone a fewer days to larn plays, McVay said Saturday. Miller is expected to marque his Rams debut aft missing the Titans crippled with an ankle injury, the manager said.

Beckham’s publication successful Woods’ lack could assistance find however good Stafford, who comes successful with a league-best 111.0 passer rating, takes vantage of the 49ers’ defense, which is giving up a 24th-best 101.9 rating.

On defense, cornerback Jalen Ramsey’s versatility mightiness beryllium cardinal to limiting the harm from Samuel, Kittle and fullback Kyle Juszczyk, each of whom tin popular up successful roles that defy their presumption names.

Defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who has 12½ sacks successful 13 vocation games against San Francisco, borderline rusher Leonard Floyd and possibly Miller would marque a quality if they unit Garoppolo.

Donald is acceptable to alteration the Rams-49ers story.

“(They) conscionable got the champion of america the past mates of times,” Donald said. “It’s a caller year, a divisional game, 2 opponents that cognize each other.

“So, it’s going to beryllium a canine combat similar it ever is.”