St. Louis Rams set to host San Francisco 49ers – NFL Week 13 Preview
The last time these two sides met, the San Francisco 49ers had lead in National Football Conference (NFC) West and the St. Louis Rams were placed at the bottom of the division, but the latter still managed to give tough time to the leaders and did not allow
them to win.
Although the Rams, too, were not able to win the game as it ended in a tie, it was certainly a commendable achievement from the underdogs to stop the heavyweights.
Both sides are hoping to now get a win as they face each other yet another time on Sunday, December 02, at Edward Jones Dome.
The 49ers are still leading the division and will start with quarterback Colin Kaepernick instead of Alex Smith.
Smith was forced out with concussion during their last meeting with the Rams and Kaepernick replaced him. The latter performed well in the following games and eventually earned the starting role even though Smith had recovered.
The decision to start with Colin has irked Smith, but the team management preferred Colin because he has been in good form and can carry the winning momentum into this game.
49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh said of the starting quarterback role:
"Both deserve it. Alex over a long period of time, Colin by virtue of the last two games. What tips the scales is Colin we believe has the hot hand, and we'll go with Colin. And we'll go with Alex. Both are our guys.”
Meanwhile, Rams are coming in this game with an exceptional divisional record. Although they have lost a total of six games this season, the Rams have not lost any game against NFC West opponents.
The Rams have defeated Arizona Cardinals a couple of times, they have defeated Seattle Seahawks one time and played a tie with the 49ers.
So if they beat the 49ers it will be a remarkable achievement. However, that task is not going to be easy because the 49ers are in top form and look well on course of reaching the playoffs.
49ers lost their last game in October against defending Super Bowl champions New York Giants and have got four victories and a tie in the last five games.
Nevertheless, the Rams feel confident of beating the 49ers. They have not even given up hope of reaching the postseason, so motivation factor is present and it will be further supported by the fact that the Rams will have the home-field advantage in this
game.
Rams defensive end Chris Long shared his team’s attitude:
“Honestly, we have got to treat every week like a playoff game. That’s how you should treat every week anyway in the NFL because none of them are easy games. Certainly from here on out, they are all good teams and they all mean a lot because of the hole
we dug ourselves.”
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