New England Patriots bold predictions for Week 14 against the Rams.
Over the last handful of weeks in the 2020 NFL season, the New England Patriots have been one fo the hottest teams in the league and have turned things around to get back into the AFC playoff picture through 13 weeks of action.
Having won four of its last five games, New England will look to continue those winning ways on Thursday Night Football in Week 14 when the Patriots remain on the road for a tough test against the Los Angeles Rams on national television.
Coming off of a blowout victory in Week 13 last Sunday in Los Angeles against the Chargers, New England will try and make it three wins in a row on Thursday against a Rams squad that has been playing well as of late as well.
The Patriots enter the contest at 6-6 overall, having recently defeated the Chargers 45-0 in Week 13 in Los Angeles. In that game, New England got out to a lead early on and completely shutout out Los Angeles the rest of the way.
Behind a mixed bag of special teams plays to go along with an impressive performance on both sides of the ball, New England tallied a 28-0 advantage in the first half of that game while rounding out the second half with a 17-0 edge to claim the road win while battling back to the .500 mark.
As both the Patriots and Rams look to remain in the win column in Week 14 on Thursday Night Football, let’s take a look at three predictions that will take place for New England on national television.
3. Rams offense will be too much for Patriots defense
The first thing that will take place on Thursday Night Football is that the New England defense will have a tough time in containing the plethora of weapons on the talented Los Angeles offense during the Week 14 matchup.
Coming into the game in Los Angeles, the Rams feature the third-best offense in the NFL, including the sixth-ranked passing game and the ninth-ranked running attack.
Through 13 weeks of action in the league, Los Angeles ranks eighth in total passing yards (3,372), having completed 308 passes (fourth-most in NFL) for a completion percentage of 68.4 percent (seventh-best in NFL). In the running attack, the Rams rank eighth in rushing yards (1,490), tied for seventh in rushing attempts (359) while adding 18 touchdowns on the ground (third-most in NFL).
On the other side of the line of scrimmage, the Patriots defense comes into the contest ranked 12th in the NFL in total defense, although that unit has taken a bit of a hit over the past few weeks with the exception of Week 13 against the Chargers.
In the passing game, New England’s defense has limited opposing offenses to 16 touchdowns through the air, which is tied for the third-lowest in the league. It has also managed to record 14 interceptions in 12 games, which is tied for the second-most in the NFL. On the ground, the Patriots run defense has been middle of the pack of the league in almost every statistical category, but will have its work cut out for it in Week 14.