Clash of the Titans: Eagles at Rams in Week 12 hinges on line of scrimmage

Eagles DL vs. Rams OL

The Philadelphia Eagles have a very well-respected defensive front, and a defense overall that tops all defenses in yards allowed per game, and comes in at sixth-place in terms of points allowed. But to be fair, they have only faced two of the top 10 offenses this season, while beating the snot out of four of the bottom 10 NFL offenses. While the LA Rams enter the game no better than the 21st ranked offense, this game is not as easy as an automatic W for the visiting Eagles.

The Rams offensive line has three games of not allowing a single quarterback sack on veteran QB Matthew Stafford. When that happens, the Rams win. And before you scoff at that statistic, the Rams did not allow a single sack to the Minnesota Vikings defense, That same defense has 35 quarterback sacks this season. The Philadelphia Eagles enter the game with 28 quarterback sacks. Just for comparison, the LA Rams boast 27 quarterback sacks.

Because the Eagles often play from the comforts of a huge lead, their run defense is solid. But they have allowed an average of 4.2 yards per run. Their efficiency is based om the fact that opponents seldom run the football against them. Again, by comparison, the LA Rams defense allows opponents to run on average of 4.3 yards per run. The difference being that opponents have run the football 63 more times against the Rams than Eagles.

But the Rams offensive line is starting to ripen quickly. They may have their hands full in Week 12, but they are up to the task.

The Eagles pass rush is lead by OLB Josh Sweat, who boast 6.0 quarterback sacks so far this season. The rest of the Eagles sacks comes from seven other players who fall between 2.0 and 3.5 quarterback sacks. Sweat will likely face off against Rams left tackle Alaric Jackson. If the Rams sprinkle in some 12 personnel formations to keep Sweat off-balance, the Rams could emerge with another solid performance.

Early teams like the Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers had success at running the football against this Eagles defense. But they have handled rushing offenses better at the season has progressed. Still, even as the Rams offense is not doing well at running the football, this is a perfect opportunity to unleash the one-two punch of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. The Eagles won't expect it, and therefore won't be prepared to stop it.