Monday Night Football picks and prop bets: The Rams have to prove themselves against the Cardinals

The Los Angeles Rams propped themselves up as a Super Bowl favorite early in the season. A 7-1 start had them fighting for the top spot in the NFC as MVP chatter swirled around Matthew Stafford’s name. Sean McVay, with a big-armed quarterback able to implement his offense, was going to get another chance to win a world title.

But it turned out the Rams’ hype train wasn’t insulated. As the temperatures dropped, so did LA’s Super Bowl chances. McVay didn’t win a single contest in November. That three-game streak was halted by a showdown with Urban Meyer’s hapless Jaguars in Week 13, the NFL’s equivalent of fixing your swing in the minor leagues. Week 14 brings the Rams back to the majors.

The Arizona Cardinals hold the NFC’s top spot despite playing multiple games without Kyler Murray or DeAndre Hopkins. Arizona’s revival has been a product of steady offensive play and a suddenly dominant defense that ranks third in the league in total DVOA. The backbone of that unit is a no-fly zone secondary that’s allowed an 83.3 passer rating in coverage and given defensive coordinator Vance Joseph the confidence to blitz more than all but two other teams in the league.

That leaves us with a showdown between Los Angeles’ fireworks factory of an offense against the foam-spraying firetrucks of the Arizona defense——along with some extremely fun cameos from guys like Murray and Aaron Donald. This should be the opposite of last week’s wind-addled, ground-heavy attack in Buffalo. So who will come out ahead?

Let’s talk about it. All odds via Tipico.