The NFC has an impactful matchup in Week 8 as the Los Angeles Rams will be heading to AT&T Stadium to take on the Dallas Cowboys. The Rams are third in the NFC West with a 3-4 record and are coming off a 24-17 home loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Cowboys are second in the NFC East with a 20-17 road win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 16.
These teams are both trying to make the postseason and have some strong spots on their roster. Let’s take a deeper dive into the Rams and the Cowboys to figure out which side we should be betting.
Rams vs. Cowboys Odds and Match Details
| Team | Spread | Total | ML |
| Los Angeles Rams | +6.5
-115
|
O45
-112 |
+220 |
| Dallas Cowboys | -6.5 -105 |
U45
-108 |
-270 |
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook
- Fixture: Los Angeles Rams @ Dallas Cowboys
- Date and Time: October 29, 2023 at 1:00 p.m.
- Location: AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas
- Weather Forecast: Thunderstorms and 52 degrees
- Field Surface: Turf
Rams vs. Cowboys Injury Report
Rams Injuries
- Kyren Williams (RB)-Ankle: OUT
- Stetson Bennett (QB)-Illness: OUT
Cowboys Injuries
- Trevon Diggs (CB)-Knee: OUT
- Leighton Vander Esch (OLB)-Neck: OUT
- CJ Goodwin (DB)-Pectoral: OUT
Rams Key Stats
The Los Angeles Rams offense has been a middle-of-the-pack offensive team throughout the season as they are 16th in the league with 22.1 points per game. They have a heavy pass attack as they are averaging 253.1 yards per game (seventh) while running for 112.0 rushing yards per game (15th). Quarterback Matthew Stafford has been struggling a bit this season as he is 153-of-256 (59.8 completion percentage) for 1,908 yards with seven touchdowns to six interceptions.
When discussing the Rams offense, the emergence of rookie wide receiver Puka Nucua has been incredible. So far this season, he has recorded 58 receptions on 82 targets for 752 yards (13.0 yards per catch) with a pair of touchdown grabs. If he can continue to be an outstanding WR2 with Cooper Kupp on the other side of the formation, it will help the Rams dominate going forward.
Their defense has been hovering right around average as they are currently tied for 14th with 20.1 points per game allowed while giving up 337.7 total yards per game. Their defense needs to step up as they are allowing 4.1 rushing yards per attempt against them this season and need to be better at getting the special teams unit on the field more consistently.
Cowboys Key Stats
The Dallas Cowboys have been doing extremely well scoring the football without moving down the field as well. The team is fifth in the league as they are scoring 25.7 points right now while ranking 20th in passing yards (210.7) and 10th in rushing yards (119.7) per game. Quarterback Dak Prescott has been doing pretty well but not finding many trips to the end zone as he is 132-of-190 (69.5 completion percentage) for 1,333 yards with six touchdowns to four interceptions.
Running back Tony Pollard has been seeing an increase in his workload this season and doing a good job as the main back as he has 96 rushing attempts for 370 yards (3.9 yards per carry) with a pair of rushing touchdowns while adding 25 catches for 176 yards (7.0 yards per reception). He has been a big figure in this Cowboys offense.
The defense for the Cowboys has been banged up but is still their biggest strength as they are fourth in football with 16.7 points on 304.3 total yards per game. Their defense has forced 12 takeaways (eight interceptions, four fumble recoveries) and linebacker Micah Parsons is their best player on this side of the ball He has 20 total tackles (11 solo, nine assisted), five sacks, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble and a pass deflection.
Game Prediction
This game is going to be very interesting but I like the Los Angeles Rams to cover the spread on the road here. The Rams are 1-2 in their last three games but faced the Steelers and Eagles and lost by single digits in both games. Los Angeles has an exciting offensive team and does decent enough on the defensive side of the field.
The Cowboys are going to run the ball and not look to have a dominant offensive performance. Dallas is averaging 15 points in their last two games so that means 10 points by Los Angeles would cover. All in all, take the Rams getting almost a full possession in this game.
Final Pick
