Los Angeles Rams @ Seattle Seahawks: Who will come out on top in NFC West rivalry match-up?
Watch Rams @ Seahawks live on Sky Sports Action and Main Event from 12.30am on Friday morning; kick-off is at 1.20am
Thursday 3 October 2019 23:09, UK
The Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks meet on Thursday night looking to keep pace with the 49ers in the NFC West. Here is what to expect...
Seasons so far
With both teams at 3-1 and the San Francisco 49ers returning from their bye this week with a 3-0 record, LA and Seattle know a win will be huge in the division race this season.
After a 3-0 start of their own, last year's NFC Champion Rams came crashing down in Week Four when they were pummelled 55-40 at home by the Buccaneers. Jared Goff threw 68 passes (!), completing 45 but also threw three interceptions and lost a fumble at the end of the game that Ndamukong Suh returned for the game-sealing score.
Seattle were beaten at home by the Teddy Bridgewater-led New Orleans Saints in Week Three, but have come out on top in their other outings against three of the worst teams in the league (Bengals, 0-4, Steelers (1-3) and Cardinals (0-3-1). This game might tell us who they really are.
Players to watch
There are plenty of stars on show on Thursday night, particularly on the Rams offense. Running back Todd Gurley - the 2017 Offensive Player of the Year - might be playing sparingly this season, but he's capable of being electric if given the chance. He only received five carries last week, but head coach Sean McVay explained it as because the team went down 21-0. Expect him to be more involved.
Quarterback Goff is surrounded by a top trio of wide receivers in Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp and Brandin Cooks. All three are in the top 24 for receiving yards this season, and each one is tough to defend one on one. How will the Seattle defense prepare for them?
That D is led up-front by preseason acquisition Jadeveon Clowney. The former Houston Texans No 1 overall pick has had a fairly quiet start after being traded to Seattle just before the season - but showed his game-changing ability when he took an interception 27 yards back for a touchdown against Arizona last week. He will get better game by game and should keep the pressure on Goff on Thursday.
Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner swarms to the ball wherever it goes. He is third in the league in tackles after four games, and if you like your 'backers to fly around and play with aggression, he is the player to watch.
While defense has been the focal point for Seattle over Pete Carroll's tenure, Russell Wilson makes the offense capable of special things every time they take the field. This week, Carroll said: "He's playing great football, it's the best he's ever been" and there's no doubt the 30-year-old, statistically, is on fire.
Wilson has thrown for 1,141 yards, completed 72.9 per cent of his passes, thrown eight touchdowns and no picks, and has a quarterback rating of 118.7. That completion percentage leads all NFL QBs, and the rating is a narrow second behind Patrick Mahomes. He can make magic happen on any given play.
Finally, leading the fight to stop Wilson is two-time Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald. The Rams defensive tackle has been double-teamed a league-leading 82 times this season, and the Seahawks will pull out all the stops to slow him down. Can they keep him away from Wilson?
Key stats
- Since Week 12 of last season, 22 QBs have started at least eight games. Russell Wilson's 115.2 passer rating ranks first in that span, while Jared Goff's 78.7 passer rating in that span ranks 20th
- The Seahawks are 8-1 in Thursday primetime games since 2010 (Carroll's first season)
- Goff (31.0 passer rating on deep passes) would have a higher passer rating if he spiked the ball on every one of his deep attempts (39.6)
- Since Week 12, 2018, the only players with a lower passer rating than Goff are Josh Allen and Josh Rosen (minimum eight starts over span) - Wilson leads the NFL in passer rating in that period
- The Rams receiving trio of Cooks, Woods and Kupp have combined for more receptions (19.3) and receiving yards (247.8) per game than any WR trio in the NFL this season
- Bobby Wagner has 959 tackles since 2012 (second in NFL behind Luke Kuechly)
Watch the Los Angeles Rams visit the Seattle Seahawks live on Sky Sports Action and Main Event from 12.30am on Friday morning; kick-off is at 1.20am.
