Rams defensive struggles against backups may pose a huge challenge in Week 14

If you had to cite common factors in the three losses for the 9-3 Los Angeles Rams, what might you cite as those common factors? While the first common factors to come to mind can be either poor performances on special teams or poor officiating, there is another variable that has led to struggles.

This team seems to play down to backups.

Los Angeles lost to a San Francisco 49ers offense that relied heavily on backups in Week 5. The same facing-backups conundrum challenged Los Angeles in Week 13. In both cases, the team lost to a team that fielded multiple backups. And in both cases, LA lost a game that they were expected to win.

Well, don't look now, but here we go again.

While the Arizona Cardinals still have tight end Trey McBride and wide receiver Michael Wilson, they will face LA without wide receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. (heel) and Greg Dortch (chest). While they are not solely responsible for their offense, they do comprise one-third of the aerial touchdowns. On paper, LA's inconsistent secondary ought to play well.

But that hasn't been the way games have turned out so far this season.

Chris Shula's squad knows its stand up or shut up time

Defensive coordinator Chris Shula may be heading up one of the least expensive defenses in the NFL, but don't tell him that. He has his unit at 13th place in terms of yards allowed per game. When it comes to scoring, Shula's defense is the runner-up in stinginess.

But Week 14 cannot be a college try. This is a game with deep implications for seeding teams in the upcoming NFL playoffs. Because the Cardinals are division rivals, multiple NFL playoff tie-breakers are in play. And a loss to the Cards in Week 14 puts the Horns on the losing side of multiple tie-breakers, even if they are in play.

LA boasts a record of 9-3. But so do the Seattle Seahawks, a team that will almost certainly crush the Atlanta Falcons. Right behind both teams are the San Francisco 49ers, a team enjoying a late BYE and benefitting from a last-place team's schedule.

Too dramatic? Hardly. Once Los Angeles loses the advantage, there is little hope for other teams to knock off their division rivals. That forces this team to win or face the consequences. Can the team do so in Week 14? Well, it will need to prove it can overcome facing backups. And so far this season, that is not a certainty.

As always, thanks for reading.