Just as they were last week against the Seahawks, the Rams are once again underdogs in the divisional round. And for the second week in a row, experts are giving them very little chance to pull off the upset over the high-scoring Packers.
That’s hardly surprising, with Los Angeles being a 6.5-point underdog and battling injuries to several key players, including Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp, David Edwards and Jared Goff – though Donald and Goff are certain to play. Still, it’s surprising to see how lopsided this week’s picks are among NFL experts.
According to NFL Pick Watch, a whopping 94% of pundits are picking the Packers to beat the Rams. Only the Chiefs have a higher percentage of experts backing them, with 96% picking them over the Browns.
Factoring in the spread, there’s a much closer gap between Packers and Rams backers. Only 58% are picking the Packers to cover the 6.5-point spread, which means 42% of experts believe the Rams will either win outright or lose by six points or fewer.
It’s a good bet for the Rams to keep the score close, so long as the defense plays the way it has all season long. The offense is what will decide whether Los Angeles wins or loses. The magic number for the Rams is 21, because in games where they scored at least 21 points, they were 8-1.
