Los Angeles Rams better hope NFC West is clinched before Week 17 in 2018

With a regular-season finale meeting against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 17, the Los Angeles Rams better hope the NFC West is wrapped up by then.

As the Los Angeles Rams continue to prepare for next week’s NFL Draft, the main discussion from the last day or so has been the release of the schedule for the 2018 season, as the NFC West champions have plenty of reasons for excitement. From earning five games in prime time to hosting the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in December, the Rams better be ready for a whole new level of pressure they aren’t used to dealing with.

Never in a million years did anyone imagine that Los Angeles would be in this current position of being a serious Super Bowl contender heading into Sean McVay‘s second year as head coach, but here they are. After winning the division title in 2017, the Rams are the early favorites to repeat as NFC West champions, and rightfully so when looking at all of the talent McVay is fortunate enough to work with on both sides of the football.

With that being said, if football fans had to choose one team most likely to give Los Angeles the most trouble in the division, it would be the San Francisco 49ers. Not only were the 49ers one of the hottest teams to close out the regular season last December, but also Jimmy Garoppolo quickly displayed signs of a quarterback on the rise.

During his time with the New England Patriots as a backup to Tom Brady, it seemed like only a matter of time before Garoppolo received an opportunity to start in the NFL, and even though he only played in five games during the 2017 season, expectations are high for him under center. Kyle Shanahan has established a reputation over the years for being one of the best at developing quarterbacks, and now that he finally has his man in Garoppolo to work with, there’s a lot of excitement in San Francisco heading into next season.

Taking down a talented team like the Rams certainly isn’t going to be easy, but there’s a reason why the 49ers are considered a potential sleeper team to make a run at the Super Bowl. Once the schedule for the 2018 season was released on Thursday, the Week 17 matchup between Los Angeles and San Francisco was one of the games that stood out the most.

Next: 4 smart sixth-round picks for Rams to consider

Obviously, the plan for the Rams would be to have the division hopefully locked up by then if they do in fact live up to the hype as serious contenders in the NFC. But if Los Angeles ends up in a position where this Week 17 plays an impact in the final NFC West standings, San Francisco certainly won’t make it easy for them.