After losing in heartbreaking fashion against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Los Angeles Rams fought a hard-fought battle against the Indianapolis Colts to improve their record to 3 - 1. They've looked like one of the most impressive teams in the NFL to start off the 2025 season, and they have a chance to make another statement in their next game.
Their next game will be at home against a divisional rival, the San Francisco 49ers, in a primetime matchup on Thursday Night Football. They have a chance to not only cement themselves as the team to beat in the NFC West but also start a streak of winning that could go on for many weeks.
Bucky Brooks is an NFL analyst as well as a sports writer for FOX Sports, and heading into week five, he named his top ten teams in the NFL. For the Rams, their win against the Colts propelled them back into the top five as their loss against the Eagles dropped them all the way to ten.
"Style points do not matter in Hollywood, and the Rams keep stacking wins by relying on various methods to get the job done. Against the Colts, L.A.'s big-play offense showed up and showed out with the game on the line", said Brooks.
What makes the 2025 Rams true contenders is that they can beat a team multiple ways. Early on in the season, it was their defense that came up with big plays and shifted the momentum in favor of the Rams to win them games.
As of late, it's their offense that has taken that next step and blossomed into one of the more complete units in the NFL. When scheming against the Rams, there is so much to consider, and even when looking at their tape just this season, Sean McVay always finds a way to incorporate new ideas and plays every week.
"With Matthew Stafford dropping bombs over the top of over-aggressive defenders committed to slowing down the vaunted rushing attack, the Rams can rely on their aerial attack to pick up the slack when other units struggle".
Now that the Rams offense has begun to gel together and fire on all cylinders, the sky is the limit for this team, and they have multiple players already in consideration for awards at the end of the season. Namely, Puka Nacua, he's the front-runner for the Offensive Player of the Year award, and with good reason, too.
To start off the 2025 season, Nacua has been virtually unguardable. His weakest performance so far was against the Eagles' defense, where he had 118 yards and 11 receptions. He's on pace to shatter multiple records for the wide receiver position, and he deserves a lot of credit for why the Rams are where they are now.
The 49ers may have the same record as the Rams, but these teams couldn't be farther apart. The hardest team the 49ers have had to face so far in 2025 was the Jacksonville Jaguars, where they lost due to their costly turnovers.
The 49ers are dealing with multiple injuries to their skill position players, including George Kittle and Ricky Pearsall. The Rams' secondary has been playing good as of late, with Quentin Lake and Kam Curl having breakout seasons.
The Rams need to take advantage of this and win over their biggest competition for the NFC West. This is their first divisional opponent of the year, and last year they swept the 49ers, so they want revenge, which means that the Rams can't afford to take their foot off the pedal at any point during their game.
The 49ers' defense has done a good job of preventing teams from passing, which means that the Rams may have to pivot away from their explosive offense and lean on their defense in this short week.
The Rams' defense has shown that it can cause plenty of turnovers and get to the quarterback consistently. If the Rams' offense doesn't make mistakes with the ball, they can win handily based on their defense alone.
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