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The Tennessee Titans started hot like Los Angeles this season but have fallen off in a big way of late. They need to stop the bleeding in this Week 16 matchup or be at risk of falling out of one of the wild card spots. The Titans are at home, but these are a pair of teams going in opposite directions.
The Rams are sizable road favorites as they aim to secure one of the top two seeds in the NFC this year to get a first-round playoff bye.
Watch this regular season Week 16 matchup live on Sunday, December 24, 2017, at 1 p.m. ET at Nissan Stadium.
Opening NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Los Angeles Rams -6.5
Tennessee Titans +6.5
Over/Under 48.5
Odds Analysis
Tennessee is 8-6 on the season but not playing like it, and is therefore a sizable home underdog. The spread has dipped under a touchdown margin, which could be a key figure. Los Angeles looks like a good bet right now since a win by seven points would result in a cover, and more than 76 percent of the action is going that way.
The scoring total is high and the Rams should have no problem putting up points. However, the Titans may not live up to their end of the bargain.
Injury Report
Logan Ryan —The Titans’ cornerback is considered day-to-day after sustaining an ankle injury in the Titan’s loss to the 49ers on Sunday. He suffered the injury in the second quarter and missed the entire second half against San Francisco. It’s unclear at this point how severe the injury is.
Mark Barron — The Rams’ linebacker suffered a knee injury against the Seahawks on Sunday, which was just about the only thing to go wrong in the blowout win over perennially-contending Seattle. Keep an eye on his status as the game gets closer, as Barron has turned into one of the team’s top playmakers after moving from safety to linebacker early in his career.
Key Stat
8. That’s how many wins Tennessee has, and if the season ended today, the Titans would make the playoffs at 8-6. Unfortunately, Tennessee has two more games to go and both of those matchups are against strong opponents, so it could finish the season with that many victories.
The Titans take on the Rams this week, and then close the season out with a conference matchup against the Jaguars, who are 10-4 on the season and riding a three-game winning streak coming into Week 16.
The Titans beat the Jaguars 37-16 the first time the two teams met back in Week 2, but Jacksonville presents a big challenge. Adding to the intrigue is Tennessee’s back-to-back losses to Arizona and San Francisco the last two weeks; two teams that, on paper, Tennessee looked just as good or better than, but came up short.
Tennessee was riding pretty a couple weeks ago at 8-4 but is now in major peril.
Free ATS Pick
The Rams have been one of the better teams in the NFL from the very start this season. Even though they must hit the road for this matchup, they are clearly the superior team.
If Tennessee can run the ball that should help keep the game close. But Los Angeles should be able to sell out to stop it and force Mariota to move the ball through the air.
The Rams are going to show why they are deserving of a top seed with an easy road win in Tennessee. The spread is too low in this game as Los Angeles won’t have much trouble at all despite playing on the road.
Take the Rams to cover, with the “over” the choice because the Titans are not going to be able to slow the explosive Los Angeles offense.
NFL Odds: Rams 34, Titans 17
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