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Rams vs 49ers
By: Jay Pounds (@jaypoundsnfl)
Dynasty Owners! Welcome back to another edition of the Monday Night Football preview! In this week’s article, we have the all-in Rams traveling to the Bay Area to take on the disappointing 49ers. Before we dive right into this week’s game, let’s jump back and look at last week’s debacle we called Monday Night Football. The Steelers and Bears game ended in controversy with a referee seemingly hip checking a player and calling that same player for taunting seconds later. The penalty in question kept the Steelers’ drive alive and ultimately ended up securing the win for Pittsburgh. As crazy as it may sound it was not the only debacle last week as I selected Diontae Johnson for my Value of the Game, all the while Darnell Mooney had two touchdowns up his sleeve at a cheaper salary. In all fairness to myself, Diontae Johnson was an easy pick, and I did mention the only other player I would consider was Darnell Mooney. I was half right, right? All of that aside I will try to nail this week’s Value of the Game a little later in the article.
What to Watch For
As mentioned earlier we have the Rams vs the 49ers in tonight’s prime-time matchup. The 49ers were a team I expected good things out of this season, and it has been quite the opposite thus far. The Rams are one of, if not the most, all-in team the league has ever seen and that has been made much more evident by the acquisitions of Odell Beckham Jr. (OBJ) and Von Miller over the past couple of weeks.
Now let’s get to the important part of what I am watching for in tonight’s game. The main story I will be watching for in this game is the addition of OBJ and how he will be used after joining the team just a few days ago. I will also be looking to see how the injury of Robert Woods affects the Rams offense. Woods is much more than a receiver and has been praised numerous times throughout his career for doing the dirty work you don’t see on the highlight reel. On the other side of the ball, we have the struggling 49ers, and I am honestly ready to say it is time for Trey Lance the rest of the way, if healthy of course. The 49ers are seemingly out of the playoff race, and they may as well let the young signal caller learn the hard way throughout the last half of the year. The last thing I will be watching for on the 49ers side of things is how the pass catchers’ fare. Deebo Samuel has been the bread and butter in this offense up to this point but George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk came on strong last week and I am looking for that to continue. In just a few short hours all these questions will be answered.
Jay’s Monday Night Prediction
Los Angeles Rams 28 | San Francisco 49ers 17  |
Over/Under Projections
Rams
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Matthew Stafford | QB | $27,000,000 | 27.4 | Over |
| Darrell Henderson | RB | $1,053,001 | 16.7 | Under |
| Cooper Kupp | WR | $15,750,000 | 23.0 | Over |
| Van Jefferson | WR | $1,402,784 | 13.0 | Over |
| Tyler Higbee | TE | $7,250,000 | 11.9 | Under |
49ers
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Jimmy Garoppolo | QB | $27,500,000 | 21.7 | Under |
| Elijah Mitchell | RB | $915,892 | 13.9 | Over |
| Deebo Samuel | WR | $1,811,869 | 16.7 | Under |
| Brandon Aiyuk | WR | $3,132,835 | 12.6 | Over |
| George Kittle | TE | $15,000,000 | 15.3 | Over |
Jay’s Dynasty Owner Games of the Week
Each week I will pick two games that are close in score and will likely be decided during Monday Night Football. If you happen to find yourself in this situation on Sunday night, please get ahold of me on Twitter (@jaypoundsnfl) and I will gladly feature your game here.
Game 1 – League #27443
Basket Full of Puppies – George Kittle in Starting lineup left to play
Heading into the Monday Night match-up, Basket Full of Puppies find themselves in one of the closest projected finishes I have ever witnessed. The teams in the match-up we are looking at are projected to finish within .24 points of each other with Basket Full of Puppies having George Kittle left to play. I know it’s never fun watching Monday Night Football just waiting for your player to score enough to secure a victory, but at least Basket Full of Puppies gets to watch a healthy George Kittle.
Da Bears – No one in Starting lineup or on Bench left to play
Da Bears find themselves in what I consider the worst spot in fantasy, projected to lose a close game heading into Monday with no one left to play. I tend to always dread this spot and it honestly seems like my teams always find a way to barely lose in these situations. I hope you can find better luck than I in this situation, but I would prepare mentally for a loss with Kittle left to go for the opposing squad.
Game 2 – League #27449
Blue Mountain State – Cooper Kupp in Starting lineup left to play
While a win in this matchup would not be David slaying Goliath, it would be a great moment for Blue Mountain State if they are able to knock off the top team in the Chase for the Ring standings. In another closely projected matchup, Blue Mountain State is projected to come up just under a point short even as they still have one Cooper Kupp to play. I honestly am not too sure Blue Mountain State has much to worry about with Superman Clark Kupp left to play. This may be one of those scenarios you feel comfortable counting your chickens before they hatch.
The Road Warriors – No one in Starting lineup or on Bench left to play
As I kind of blatantly gave away when talking about Blue Mountain State, The Road Warriors are currently the Number 1 team in our Chase for the Ring standings. While The Road Warriors have suffered defeat two times already this season, they have still been able to have consistently high scoring weeks to find themselves in this position. Can The Road Warriors pull out a win, or at least stay on top of the Chase for the Ring standings?