Why the LA Rams match up well to the Commanders in Week 15

Okay, the home stretch is upon us. The LA Rams have climbed to a record that, if this team failed to win any additional games, would still be a far cry better than one year ago. And four games remain on the schedule. So there is a concrete basis for optimism over this Rams roster. You see, the Rams could also win every game remaining on their schedule, which would drop the Rams at 10-6 and very likely a sixth or seventh seed in the NFC for a playoff spot.

Standing in their way this week is an NFC East team, the Washington Commanders (4-9). While not mathematically eliminated, the Commanders have far too many dominos that must fall in the right direction for their postseason possibilities to survive. So the Commanders are now a spoiler team, a team that has the opportunity to knock off playoff-hopeful teams like the LA Rams along the way to the end of the season.

Rams getting better at the right time of the season

The Rams roster is definitely partially powered by young players, a group of 15 (14 drafted, one undrafted) rookies who have been acclimating via On the Job Training (OJT) over the course of the first 13 games. But with each game, the young players have become more proficient at their individual roles. In essence, they appear to play more like NFL veterans, and less like first year NFL players.

That adds up to a Rams team that has been slowly but steadily waxing into a more competitive team. While the progress before the Rams Week 10 BYE week has been obscured from view, the Rams have been far more obvious in the 3-1 record after the BYE. But each week poses a new opponent, and therefore, a new set of challenges. The Rams have fought hard to get this far, but the job's not done. So the Rams have four more games to prove to the NFL and the world that they deserve a shot at competing after the season ends.

Now, here's why they are unlikely to upset the Rams in Week 15.