Neither team featuring in tonight’s NFL action is in playoff position…
…but a win for one could open the door for a second-half push.
Rams Look To Hang Tight
What Happened: In action on Monday Night Football tonight are two teams currently on the outside looking in, playoffs-wise.
The Miami Dolphins (2-6) currently hold a 5% chance of qualifying for the postseason, per the NFL’s own projections. A win tonight would bump Mike McDaniel’s team up to an…8% chance.
The 4-4 Los Angeles Rams, due to circumstances within their own division, present a much more interesting case for playing meaningful games in January with a victory tonight.
Why It Matters: L.A.’s playoffs odds sit at 20% entering play tonight, and a win would boost those to 26%. It helps Sean McVay and his team that the 49ers, the NFC West favorite entering the season, are just 5-4 themselves, and perhaps even lucky to have a winning record after yesterday.
The Arizona Cardinals are atop the division at 6-4 and riding a four-game winning streak. But Vegas doesn’t have faith in this team just yet; the Niners (-180) are a safer bet to finish in a playoff spot than the Cardinals (-114) are.
Which leads us back to the Rams. A win tonight (they are -2.5 at home and -142 on the ML) would see L.A. leapfrog the Niners and into second place. Amid so much divisional uncertainty, McVay and Matthew Stafford’s productive experience might make them a pretty attractive option for bettors trying to make sense of it all.
What We’re Watching Today
Dolphins at Rams (8:15 PM ET) – Tua Tagovailoa returned to the lineup two games ago, but Miami still lost in both. Now Tyreek Hill is a game-time decision due to a wrist injury, and a loss here would cement this as a lost season for Mike McDaniel and Co.
Clippers at Thunder (8:00 PM ET) – The Clippers started slow, but have reeled off four straight wins behind a productive stretch for Norman Powell and a vintage James Harden performance on Saturday. OKC’s 8-2 record is great, but Chet Holmgren suffering a pelvic fracture is a major blow to a team with title aspirations.
The Look Ahead
Jonnu Smith ANYTIME TOUCHDOWN – We like this dart throw, especially considering Tyreek Hill’s health status. Smith has garnered a nice chunk of Miami’s target share recently, with Dolphins QBs throwing Smith’s way 27 times across the last four games. The tight end has produced just one TD this season (Week 7) but he’s had 21 catches on those 27 targets, so the volume points to Smith having a decent shot at finding the end zone.
