The San Francisco 49ers head to SoFi Stadium to face the Los Angeles Rams in Week 8, and here are three things to look forward to as a Niners fan.
After coming off of back-to-back losses in Weeks 6 and 7, the San Francisco 49ers are in dire need of a win against their NFC West rival Los Angeles Rams in Week 8.
The last two Niners games against the Atlanta Falcons and the Kansas City Chiefs were extremely painful losses, too, and the team now sits at 3-4 and is searching for answers, as things seem in disarray on both sides of the ball.
For context, through their first five games, San Francisco only allowed 12.2 points per game to opposing teams’ offenses. In the last two games, the 49ers defense ceded an average of 36 points per game to opposing offenses.
The Niners offense, on the other hand, allowed a season-high five sacks to the Chiefs in Week 7. Now, “wide back” Deebo Samuel, who typically has big games against the Rams, is ruled out with a hamstring injury that he suffered a week ago.
On top of all that, the 49ers are playing on the road and they have a 1-3 record when playing away from Levi’s Stadium.
It seems as though the outlook is very bleak for San Francisco.
However, there is actually a lot to look forward to ahead of the matchup with the Rams at “Levi’s South.” The 49ers have a great chance to right the ship of the season against a team they have had enormous success against in the regular season as of late.
Let’s take a look at three things that fans can look forward to ahead of the Week 8 matchup against head coach Sean McVay and the Rams.
No. 3: Christian McCaffrey with a full week of 49ers practice
Running back Christian McCaffrey was traded by the Carolina Panthers to the 49ers on the night of Thursday, Oct. 20, for a slew of draft picks. The Niners looked to be taking advantage of a player that is a dual threat as a runner and a pass catcher.
After a 2019 season in which the versatile McCaffrey earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections, he only played a combined 10 games in the last two seasons due to injury.
In 2022, McCaffrey looks to be making a comeback from a numbers perspective. In his first six games with Carolina this season, he topped 100 scrimmage yards in all but his Week 1 game.
In his first game with San Francisco, notably on a short week after having only had two full days with the team’s playbook, he put up numbers and showed a penchant for being a quick learner. McCaffrey rushed eight times for 38 yards and caught two passes for 24 yards while appearing in only 29 percent of snaps on offense.
If we figure that once McCaffrey has had a full week to learn the playbook head coach Kyle Shanahan has put together, he should be available on roughly 85 to 90 percent of offensive snaps.
Extrapolate his sample numbers against Kansas City across a full offensive workload, and we could see McCaffrey having well over 150 scrimmage yards.
That alone is a lot to look forward to in Week 8.
No. 2: 49ers’ recent success vs. Rams
If we look at the recent success the Niners have had against the Rams in the regular season, then history is on San Francisco’s side in Week 8.
The 49ers lead the series all-time with a record of 76-68-3 against their NFC West rivals, and that includes a streak of 7-0 in the last seven regular-season games the teams played.
In the last three meetings between these squads going back to last season, the Rams averaged 14.3 points per game. San Francisco, on the other hand, averaged 27.3 points per game. In those past three matchups between the two teams, the 49ers recorded 14 sacks, and defensive end Nick Bosa accounted for 3.5 sacks in that same stretch.
Read More: 49ers vs. Rams: Week 8 injury report, betting odds and how to watch
Now, consider that the Rams have had a myriad of injuries to starters along their offensive line, and Bosa along with the rest of the defensive line could be feasting on Sunday.
With history on the Niners’ side, the Week 8 game could be just what their top-tier defense needs to bounce back and right the ship that is the 2022 season.
No. 1: 49ers running wild vs. Rams
San Francisco has been extremely successful with running the ball in the last few regular-season meetings against Los Angeles. In the last three regular-season bouts, the 49ers have averaged 126.3 rushing yards per game.
Under Kyle Shanahan, the team is consistently known for running the ball well, but they have done so with extreme efficiency against the Rams for whatever the reason.
Also, the addition of Christian McCaffrey in the backfield adds to what will surely be another run-heavy attack with lots of varied schemes to get him and fellow running back Jeff Wilson Jr. into open space to work.
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If the 49ers can continue this efficiency in the run game against LA’s defense and have at least 28 rushing attempts, they should be able to churn out a victory again on Sunday against their division rivals.
Week 8 between San Francisco and Los Angeles will kick off on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 4:25 p.m. ET.