49ers vs. Rams: Full Week 17 preview for San Francisco

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SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 24: Marquise Goodwin #11 of the San Francisco 49ers catches a pass for a first down over Jalen Ramsey #20 of the Jacksonville Jaguars during their NFL football game at Levi’s Stadium on December 24, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Offensive & Defensive X-Factors for San Francisco

Red zone execution

Undeniably, there is a lot of positive to extrapolate from Garoppolo’s starts. But the most glaring aspect was the team’s struggles converting red zone opportunities into six points. Kicker Robbie Gould’s three-game stretch, from Weeks 13 to 15, where he made 15 field goals happened for a reason.

Then in Week 16 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, those woes went away. Six trips to the red zone resulted in four touchdowns for the 49ers — no less against one of the NFL’s best defenses. Again, that needs to be on display versus the Rams.

It would show another sign of progression from Garoppolo and the offense as a unit, signaling a step forward in the right direction for 2018.

Force the pass

With Los Angeles resting their starters, that means backup Sean Mannion is in at quarterback. It will be the first career start for Mannion, who is in his third season with the team.

That being said, San Francisco should do everything they can to pin it on Mannion to try win the game with his arm.

Mannion is obviously inexperienced at this level of play, and with the 49ers playing swarming defense over the past few weeks, collapsed pockets could be a common occurrence. Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh should ramp up the pressure to force the hand of Mannion, goading him into quick decisions to force errors.