The difference between 2-5 and 3-4 is only one game. For the Los Angeles Rams, it makes a difference in how they are going to approach the next 10 games.
In the week heading up to Thursday’s game with the Minnesota Vikings, Cooper Kupp was on the trading block, reportedly generating interest from at least seven teams. On Friday, following L.A.’s 30-20 win over the Vikings — Kupp’s first game played since Week 2 — the trade talks have cooled.
Head coach Sean McVay said he was “really glad” to have Kupp back, and “I expect it to stay that way.”
McVay did acknowledge that there were talks with other teams about Kupp’s availability. But the now-healthy Rams, who are very much in the hunt for the NFC West, are happy to move forward with the season and with their full complement of offensive weapons.
Puka Nacua Also Back for L.A.
Kupp caught a touchdown pass in his return from an ankle injury, the score among his five catches for 51 yards. It was a solid contribution in what was the best game of Matthew Stafford’s season. Stafford came into the Week 8 matchup with three total touchdown passes. On Thursday night, he threw four touchdowns.
The biggest addition was the return of Puka Nacua, who was activated off injured reserve just hours before kickoff. He’d missed five games with a knee injury, but was rust-free against the Vikings. Nacua caught eight passes for 106 yards and showed no limitations in the routes he ran or the cuts he made.
The 30-points scored was the most for L.A this season, and the 386 total yards was also a season-high.
Playoff Possibilities
Less than a week ago, the Rams were 1-4, missing two of their three best offensive players and sitting in last place. Within five days, they beat the Las Vegas Raiders and Minnesota Vikings, and they are now sitting in a tie for second place in the division with the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers.
The Rams have a win over the 49ers, so they own that tiebreaker. They also now have a win over the Vikings, who may be in the wild card mix at the end of the season, when tiebreakers matter. L.A. now has a mini-bye before they play the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9. The Rams are resting, while the Seahawks are gearing up for a tough game with the Buffalo Bills.
Oddsmakers still have the Rams as +300 to make the postseason, and on the odds board, they are fourth to win the NFC West. The 49ers are the +150 favorites, while Seattle and Arizona are paying +320, and the Rams are +370. The Rams currently have the longest winning streak in the division, so +370 might be the longest odds we’ll see on them the rest of the season.
It’s early to be looking at the playoff picture. But right now, the NFC wild card teams are the Vikings, Green Bay Packers, and Chicago Bears. Above the Rams in the “on the outside looking in” list are the Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Dallas Cowboys.
L.A.’s best hope is that the NFC North begins to beat up on each other, and they won’t send all four teams to the playoffs. The Cowboys certainly aren’t playing like a playoff team, and we’ll see where the Bucs go without their top-two wide receivers. So if the Rams take care of their own business, the playoffs are very much a possibility.
Rams Remaining Schedule
Up next is the trip to Seattle, and that is who the Rams will finish the season with in Week 18. Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf suffered a grade 1 MCL sprain last week, and normally players miss two weeks with that injury. So it’s possible the Rams will face a short-handed Seattle team next week.
L.A. has games with all four teams in the AFC East, getting the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills at home, and the New York Jets and New England Patriots on the road. The 49ers and Cardinals are still on the schedule, plus NFC games against the Eagles and New Orleans Saints.
If the Rams win the games they should, and steal a couple of games they shouldn’t — like at Seattle next week, where they are 2.5-point underdogs — they will be in the thick of the playoff chase in December.
With over 25 years of experience as a distinguished sports writer for renowned platforms such as Fox Sports and ESPN, Kyle Garlett is a sports betting specialist who has been at the forefront of documenting the global surge in sports betting and online gaming. Based in Denver, Colorado, Kyle hosts an NFL betting YouTube show and podcast. Kyle also has two sports books published by HarperCollins.
Kyle graduated the Azusa Pacific University in 1996 with a B.A. Degree in Communication and Journalism.
