The Rams beat the Colts 27-24 in a close game on Sunday, and will now face the defending Super Bowl champs at home. This will be one of the Rams’ toughest games this season and should be a great one. Both teams are talented on Offense and Defense and this might be a preview of the NFC Championship game. These two teams faced each other last season which resulted in a Rams win, but both are new, better teams now. I listed Rams vs Buccaneers as the best game of week 3 and both teams are ready to perform come Sunday.

Offense

Let’s start with the monster that is the Buccaneers’ offense. Through this week they’ve scored 79 points which ranks first in the league. Brady has all the weapons he could want, and the trio of Evans, Godwin, and Brown will be a problem for the Rams secondary. Their passing yards per game rank 5th in the NFL, but their run game on the other hand has struggled. Their rush yards per game rank 31st in the league, and they have yet to score a rushing TD. The Rams have performed well against the pass, and decently against the run, so it’ll be interesting to see how they fare against this offense. The last time Rams vs Buccaneers happened, it was an aerial shootout with a close Rams win.

The one weakness their offense has is turnovers; they currently are tied for first in the league with 5. The last time these two teams met, then-rookie Jordan Fuller picked Brady twice and helped the Rams win by 3. The Arians system has a tendency to produce QBs with high interception numbers, and Brady will have to be careful who he targets in a deep Rams unit. As for fumbles, the Bucs have the most in the league with their RBs having the most. If the Rams D-Line can get to Brady and make him mess up, there’s a good chance they’ll win.

Defense

Now let’s talk about the Rams defense. They currently rank 12th in yards given up and 8th in points which are both solid. Something that might look different from last year is the turnover ratio. This Rams team has been able to take care of the ball much better, while also producing similar turnover numbers. The Falcons D-Line was able to hit Brady 6 times, force a fumble. and sack him 3 times, so the Rams should have no problem matching those numbers. 

The Bucs defense, on the other hand, is not as good as people might remember. Their front 7 is one, if not the best in the league, but their secondary is one of the worst. Out of their total defensive yards allowed (799), 85% of those are passing yards. The Rams passing game will have to step it up and attack their weak spot if they want to win. A Rams pass catcher not named Cooper Kupp will have to step it up, as Kupp will be likely be shadowed by Carlton Davis.

Keys to win

To win next week, the Rams will have to rely on attacking a weak Bucs secondary and making Brady mess up. The Rams offense has been very efficient this season, with bigger plays, more scoring, and fewer turnovers. They’ll face the best team on their schedule so far, and this game will be the true test of their offense.