Zachary Engberg
2 min read • October 30, 2022
Posted in
The 49ers went all-out and brought back a handful of key injured starters to defeat the Chiefs in Week 7 but still fell flat and are facing the Rams without Deebo Samuel, Kyle Juszcyzk, and five defensive starters.
Samuel was ruled out with a hamstring injury the week after newly-acquired Christian McCaffrey made his 49ers debut and gained 62 yards on 10 touches.
Brandon Aiyuk, who leads the team with 32 receptions, 402 yards, and three touchdowns, has 11 targets and over 80 yards in each of the last two games and scored two touchdowns against the Falcons.
Starting tackles Trent Williams and Mike McGlinchey are both in line to play once again after showing limitations in return from ankle and calf injuries, respectively, in last week’s loss.
Both starting defensive tackles, Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw, are out once again while they nurse lingering foot and knee issues, respectively.
Likewise, starting outside linebackers Azeez Al-Shaair and Dre Greenlaw were ruled out with lower-body injuries and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles and Oren Burks are expected to start for the duo.
On the back end, cornerback Emmanuel Moseley is out for the season and veteran Jason Verrett is questionable after practicing all three days coming off of the PUP list.
While all of these absences were exploited by the Chiefs, the Rams’ offense has struggled this season and is similarly hurt in key positions up the middle.
The Rams have lost seven consecutive regular season games to the 49ers but will have a strong chance to take down their beat-up Northern rivals off of their bye in Week 8.
The defending champions lost left tackle Joe Noteboom for the season, their third starting lineman out this week, joining guards David Edwards and Tremayne Anchrum Jr.
Center Brian Allen is back from a multi-week absence and will try to help settle the offense that is second-worst in the league in rushing at 70.5 yards per game and has scored 11 touchdowns and committed 13 turnovers.
Cam Akers will miss his second game for personal reasons as the Rams reportedly work to grant his trade request, leaving them Darrell Henderson Jr. and veteran Malcolm Brown.
Speedy wide receiver Van Jefferson, who had 50 receptions for 802 yards and six scores on 16.9 per catch, is expected to return this week from multiple offseason knee surgeries.
While Los Angeles’ rushing attack is slim-to-none, the passing offense has an 81.7 SIC score versus a 63.5 SIC score for the 49ers.
The Rams’ defense is without safety Jordan Fuller but is expected to get back cornerback Troy Hill against the Deebo Samuel-less San Francisco offense.
The Rams are favored by 1 point and the over/under is 41.5, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
For injury-based picks throughout the season, sign up for SIC picks here.
Our staff is 61% on player props through Week 7 and 70% on live bets.
Written by Zachary Engberg
