We touched on this back in October, but the Rams had owned fourth quarters against the Niners in winning three straight over their bitter rival. Even in defeat in Week 5, they earned a 9-3 edge on the scoreboard in the fourth. Thus, LA has outscored San Francisco by a margin of 39-6 in the fourth quarter of their last four matchups.
As we know, the 49ers squeaked out an overtime victory on a game-winning field goal in Week 5, continuing a trend of close games between Kyle Shanahan and [Sean McVay](https://www.therams.com/team/coaches-roster/sean-mcvay). Including playoffs, that was their eighth game decided by three or fewer points (hat tip to ESPN research) – tied for the third most for any NFL head-coaching matchup in NFL history after Mike Tomlin versus John Harbaugh and Curly Lambeau against George Halas. Will we get another nail-biter on Sunday in Santa Clara?
The NFC West is the only division with three teams having earned six wins. Only two other NFC teams – Philadelphia and Tampa Bay – have six dubs.
This sets up as a relatively uneventful weekend on the NFC bubble, perfect for keeping our focus on defending the West.
However, it's a very straightforward picture in the division this week. As the Rams rematch with the Niners, the Seahawks (6-2) welcome the Cardinals (3-5).
So why don't we cast a slightly wider net and highlight a few other games with playoff implications.
The Lions (5-3) can put the Commanders (3-6) out of their misery this weekend, with Washington having lost quarterback Jayden Daniels to a gruesome injury. As of this writing, Detroit is the seven-seed in the NFC Wild Card framework.
Behind the Lions, the Bears (5-3) have what should be a layup against the Giants. Chicago better bank that win, because the slope is about to get really treacherous for them the rest of the way.
Similarly, the Panthers (5-4) continue to be impressive and are favored against the hapless Saints.
And rounding out the list of four-loss contenders, the Vikings (4-4) look to build behind J.J. McCarthy as they host a hungry and increasingly healthy Ravens roster.
Should the Rams falter, that's the NFC playoff bubble on which they'd be landing. A win sets up the showdown we've been anticipating – Seattle at SoFi for the right to run the West.