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No Puka Nacua for the Rams on Sunday at Wembley, but there are other weapons at Matthew Stafford's disposal. Though the real fear vs. the Jags is their various ballhawks that can account for a quick change in direction, having recorded at least three takeaways on multiple occasions already this season. Short of that help, however, Trevor Lawrence and the offense can struggle as last week vs. Seattle, though the game-winning drive vs. the Chiefs two weeks ago suggests not to underestimate Liam Coen's offense. Still, as long as the Rams aren't haunted by their kicking issues (which have cost them their two losses), and don't let the Jags defense hijack their drives, J'ville's avenues to win become restricted. Play Rams (at Wembley Stadium)
This line is just about right, though I did expect it to come down a tad with Puka Nacua sidelined. While the Jaguars have played more international games than any NFL team (7-6) and enter with more days locally in the UK, their 30th-ranked pass defense (now without Devin Lloyd) should get torched by Matthew Stafford, who will pepper Tutu Atwell instead. Los Angeles has proven it can win games in a variety of ways, while Jacksonville recently showed how weak it stands at the line of scrimmage. It may not be a high-scoring game, but the Rams should do enough to cover.
This London game is expected to be impacted by weather. Reports show rain and wind gusts likely to persist throughout the game. The Rams will be without WR1 Puka Nacua & RT Rob Havenstein, and Jacksonville’s defense has been much improved under DC Anthony Campanile. The Rams defensive line should keep Trevor Lawrence & the Jags offense uncomfortable, who struggled last week against the Seahawks putting up just 12 points. This total opened up at 46 and was bet down, but I still feel there is value at Under 44.5 or better.

DraftKings. Travis Etienne has cooled after a strong start this, staying under this line in three of his last four games. The three games he’s cleared this line, he’s managed an explosive run of at least 30 yards. The Rams not only have a solid run defense (tenth in DVOA, per FTN), but they’ve held the last five running backs they’ve faced to under a longest rush of twelve yards (the list of opponents includes Jonathan Taylor, Christian McCaffery, Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley). I don’t anticipate Etienne garnering enough volume, as he only averages 17 total touches per game. With Brian Thomas and Travis Hunter both emerging, I only have Etienne projected at 68 yards. I’d bet this down to under 74.5 combined yards.

As expected, Puka Nacua has been officially ruled out against the Jaguars. That's a lot of vacated targets to go around and I expect a good number of those targets to go to Jordan Whittington. The Rams are expected to pass the ball on this secondary as Stafford is projected for nearly 250 yards and 22 completions. There's history with Whittington being on the field and getting work when Nacua has been out and I think that history repeats itself. Expect Tutu Atwell to get plenty of work downfield (along with Davante Adams) and expect Whittington to work the short and medium area and secure some reliable targets.

The Rams are likely to be without Puka Nakua for their Sunday morning matchup against the Jaguars, setting the stage for Davante Adams to have his first explosion game of the season. The Jaguars will have to worry about stopping Kyren Williams and it should let Matthew Stafford and Adams cook. I gave this out at +105 in my "Bet It Now" column on CBS Tuesday -- you can still use a FD 30% international boost to get it up to +105 from the current number if you want a plus number. Adams leads the NFL in red zone targets (12) but has just two catches (both TDs) and is due for some positive regression.
What gives me confidence in the Rams in this game over the resurgent Jaguars, is the fact that they have consistency in their approach on both sides of the ball. It feels like week to week, there's nothing the same from the Jags, which will ultimately hurt them in this matchup vs Los Angeles.
I like getting a full field goal with a Jaguars’ team that is accustomed to playing in London. The Jags arrived in London a few days earlier than the Rams, who only flew Friday. I’m not expecting Puka Nacua to play, a huge blow to the Rams’ offense. Expect both teams to emphasize the ground game and rely on their above-average defenses. Grab the points.
Playing under the LA team total worked well last week in the elements in Baltimore. Sounds like it will rain Sunday in London (shocker), but I believe that Wembley Stadium is mostly covered or can be. That's not why I'm playing this anyways: More because the Rams will almost surely be without WR Puka Nacua, a top Offensive Player of the Year candidate, and they could be ragged anyways spending this week in Baltimore before flying over Friday. Interesting choice. Our model has LA at 22 points, and I'd only play 24.5 and not 23.5 even though JAX has a top-10 scoring defense (20.0 PPG).
The Rams are not expected to have Puka Nacua in this game, and considering he was the best receiver in football prior to injury he's basically irreplaceable. I don't expect the Rams to come out explosive in this game with the early start time, and with both these teams ranking top six in EPA per play on defense, this might just be a low-scoring game overall. Each team has been involved in just one game that's topped 7 points in the first quarter all year, so missing out on the Under here would be against their performance in a situation where you'd expect scoring to be at a premium anyway.

Going to fade Etienne again, but this time his rushing attempts line which was set at 15.5. Etienne has gone under this line in consecutive games and significantly cooled off after a hot start that saw him rip off some big runs. Those big runs simply are not sustainable and it hasn’t looked pretty nor effective without them. It’s only a matter of time until Bhayshul Tuten gets some additional opportunities, especially considering the current coaching staff did not draft Etienne, meanwhile Tuten has flashed. I also like that the Rams defense is 11th in EPA Allowed Per Rush, in addition to ranking 7th in Success Rate.
Team Injuries







