The NFC West is up for grabs on Sunday when the Los Angeles Rams travel to CenturyLink Field to battle the Seattle Seahawks.
It wouldn't be winter if the Rams didn't make their annual visit up to the rain-soaked city, as the team has travelled to Seattle each of the last eight seasons to play the Seahawks in either December or January.
Over the span of those last eight years, the Rams have been mostly bad. Struggling to stay above .500, while the Seahawks seemingly won the division each year, including four out of the last five years.
This year is different however, as the Rams enter the game in first place in the NFC West, and have a winning record this late in the season for the first time since 2003.
Despite the fact that the Rams have been subpar over the last few seasons, they've still managed to play the Seahawks well, as the two teams have split the last head-to-head matchups against each other.
"It's going to be a big one," Rams QB Jared Goff said about the game. "A big one for us, and a big one for them."
Goff isn't lying. Both teams are coming off disheartening losses in week 14, and are looking to bounce back. The Rams (9-4) need to win, in order to put two games between them and the Seahawks, with two games left to play in the season, all but guaranteeing themselves the division title.
Sports
Get today's sports news out of Los Angeles. Here's the latest on the Dodgers, Lakers, Angels, Kings, Galaxy, LAFC, USC, UCLA and more LA teams.
Meanwhile, the Seahawks (8-5) need a win over the Rams to move into a first place tie in which they would hold the tiebreaker over the Rams. If both teams somehow finish with an identical record at the end of the season, the Seahawks would be crowned the winners of the NFC West, and the Rams likely would have to play a road game in the Wild Card round of the playoffs, if they even make the playoffs at all.
The Rams will be without starting CB Kayvon Webster who was lost for the season with a ruptured achiles, but WR Robert Woods is expected to return after missing the last three weeks with a shoulder injury.
The Seahawks are riddled with injuries and are expected to be without starting safety Kam Chancellor, DE Nazir Jones, LB K.J. Wright, and perhaps All-Pro LB Bobby Wagner.
The Rams and Seahawks will kickoff at 1:05 PM PST from CenturyLink Field in Seattle, WA. The game will air live on FOX. The game can be live streamed here and on FuboTV.
Fantasy Football Start/Sit:
Start: Russell Wilson, Todd Gurley, Mike Davis, Doug Baldwin, Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods, Jimmy Graham, Greg Zuerlein, Seahawks Defense.
Sit: Jared Goff, Paul Richardson, Sammy Watkins, Tyler Higbee, Gerald Everett, Blair Walsh, Rams Defense.
Betting Odds (Courtesy of Bovada):
Rams: +1 (-105)
Seahawks: -1 (-115)
O/U: 47
Prediction: 30-28 Seahawks
Each and every week, NBC LA reporters Michael J. Duarte and Nick Hamilton bring you an NFL podcast entitled, "Bolts by the Horns," as the writers breakdown what's going on inside the worlds of both Los Angeles based football teams including; insider information, interviews with players and experts, latest injury updates, previews, predictions, betting odds, fantasy advice and more.
Give it a listen below:
