St. Louis Rams (5-7, 6-6 ATS) @ Washington Redskins (3-9, 4-8 ATS)
*ATS= against the spread
BETDAQ Line: St. Louis -2.5 (44)
Significant Injuries
St. Louis: CB Marcus Roberson (questionable– ankle), DE Alex Carrington (questionable– knee), CB Lamarcus Joyner (questionable– groin)
Washington: DE Kedric Golston (questionable– back), DE Jason Hatcher (questionable– knee), WR Desean Jackson (questionable– leg), S Brandon Meriweather (questionable– toe)
Recent Trends
St. Louis is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a losing record
St. Louis is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall
St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following a win
Washington is 1-6 ATS in their last 6 games following a loss
Washington is 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games
Washington is 5-23-2 ATS in their last 30 home games vs. a team with a losing record
The OVER is 5-1 in St. Louis’ last 6 games vs. NFC opponents
The OVER is 7-2 in St. Louis’ last 9 games vs. a team with a losing record
The UNDER is 20-8-1 in Washington’s last 29 home games vs. a team with a losing record
Three reasons to back St. Louis
1. The Rams have played extremely well in recent weeks, notching wins over Seattle, San Francisco, and Denver and stomping Oakland 52-0 last Sunday. Their opponent this week, Washington, has lost 4 straight games overall and has failed to cover in their last 4 home games.
2. The Redskins are a dysfunctional mess, as their head coach Jay Gruden has been publicly critical of now-benched franchise quarterback Robert Griffin III and the media gets fresh material in the way of locker room “leaks” every day. The results have been predictable: the team has won just 3 times in 12 games and has clearly regressed since the beginning of the season. The Rams, meanwhile, are playing their best football right now.
3. The St. Louis offense has steadily improved since veteran quarterback Shaun Hill was re-inserted into the starting lineup, producing 98 combined points in their past 3 games. They should be able to build on their recent success against the leaky Washington defense, a unit that ranks 27th in points allowed and surrendered 49 to Indianapolis last week.
Three reasons to back Washington
1. The Redskins are better than their 3-9 record would indicate, as they rank 11th in both total offense and total defense and have lost competitive road games to San Francisco and Indianapolis over the past two weeks. Their opponent this week, St. Louis, is coming off a win but has had trouble handling success this season, covering just once in their last 5 games following a victory.
2. Washington coach Jay Gruden made a bold move in benching quarterback Robert Griffin III in favor of Colt McCoy prior to last week’s game, and McCoy responded by passing for 392 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Indianapolis Colts. The Rams haven’t been particularly good on defense this season, ranking 20th in points allowed, and they’re better against the run than the pass, so McCoy could be in store for another big game this week. He’ll be the best quarterback on the field on Sunday, as St. Louis starts journeyman Shaun Hill.
3. The Redskins have a better defense than people realize– they rank 11th in yards allowed and 9th against the run– and the St. Louis offense has been terrible away from home this season, producing fewer than 20 points in 4 of their 6 road games.
Prediction
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