#nfc-west

#nfc-west

Midnight Mode, indeed. On the day the Rams donned black uniforms for the first and only time this season, the offense largely went dark. Red-hot quarterback Matthew Stafford cooled. Star receivers Davante Adams and Puka Nacua struggled to consistently make the clutch plays that they often make look routine. But safety Kamren Kinchens and the Rams' defense managed to keep the Seattle Seahawks at bay - just barely.

Entering Week 10, the Rams have a 37.1% chance to win the division, followed by the 49ers (35.0%) and Seahawks (27.6%), according to ESPN Research. It's the sixth time since 2002 that there are three teams from the same division with at least six wins each through Week 9, according to ESPN Research. It happened last season in the NFC North with the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.

He will have the misfortune of having to take on the Minnesota Vikings in London, but at least that is expected to be a neutral-site game, even if the NFL schedule lists Cleveland as the home team. Gabriel is not going to come out there and light the world on fire. But it will be interesting to see how he performs against one of the best-coached defenses in the NFL.

Both teams have playoff aspirations for 2025, but it is the Rams who look much better place to contend to go all the way, with terrible injury luck continuing to severely hamper the 49ers as it did during the 2024 season, when they slumped to a 6-11 record after going within a play of winning the Super Bowl in the prior campaign.

Rams coach Sean McVay jokingly blames his grandfather for creating 49ers fans everywhere. The Rams could see another large contingent of visiting 49ers fans at SoFi Stadium for their NFC West showdown on Thursday night. Both teams enter at 3-1, with 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy's status uncertain because of a toe injury.