Having won each of their last six games, the Los Angeles Rams will try to make it seven in a row on Sunday afternoon when they take on the 6-6 Carolina Panthers. They’ll do so as double-digit favorites, too.
This is a very winnable game for the Rams, especially after taking down the 49ers, Seahawks and Buccaneers in the last three weeks. The Panthers can still be dangerous and shouldn’t be overlooked, but the Rams deserve to be heavily favored in this one.
Here are seven stats and facts to know for Sunday’s game.
Panthers have scored 16 or fewer points in 5 of their last 6 games
Putting up points has been a problem for the Panthers in recent weeks. Since Week 7, they’ve scored 16 or fewer points in five of their last six games. The only exception was a 30-point outburst against the Falcons in Week 11.
Other than that, they’ve scored 13, 9, 16, 7 and 9 points. They might have a lot of trouble moving the ball against the Rams’ defense.
Rams outscoring opponents by an average of 18.5 points in last 6 games
In their last six games, the Rams have been downright dominant. They’ve outscored their opponents by 111 points since Week 6. The next-closest team is the Patriots, who have a plus-68 point differential since Week 6.
On average, the Rams are beating their opponents by 18.5 points per game during this six-game winning streak.
Panthers struggle badly on third down
It’s no surprise the Panthers rank 28th in points per game this season. They can’t sustain drives because of how poorly they perform on third down. They only convert on third down 36% of the time, ranking 26th in the NFL. Defensively, they’re even worse.
They allow opponents to convert 44% of the time, 30th out of 32 teams. The Rams are by no means automatic on third down (16th in NFL) offensively, but they’re stout defensively, ranking fourth in the league with an allowed conversion rate of 35%.
Rams are 1st in points allowed per game
No team in the NFL allows fewer points per game than the Rams. They’ve taken over the top spot from the Texans, giving up only 16.3 points per game this season. The Texans are the only other team allowing fewer than 17 per game.
Against the 28th-ranked offense on Sunday, the Rams could improve their average even more if they can keep Carolina under 16 points.
Matthew Stafford is 3-3 all-time vs. Carolina
Stafford has only faced the Panthers six times in his career. The last time came in 2022 when he was with the Rams, leading Los Angeles to a 24-10 win at home in what was an otherwise disastrous season for the team.
In his six games against the Panthers, he’s thrown 10 touchdown passes and four interceptions with an average of 251 yards per game.
Rams have longest active streak of 2-plus turnovers in NFL
According to the Rams’ PR department, Los Angeles has forced at least two turnovers in four straight games. That’s the longest active streak in the league. All year, the Rams have 20 takeaways, which is the second-most of any team.
They’ve forced multiple turnovers in six of their last eight games, including a four-interception game against Sam Darnold and the Seahawks.
Byron Young and Jared Verse have almost as many sacks as the Panthers
The Panthers don’t exactly have a threatening pass rush. They’ve recorded only 16 sacks in 12 games, the third-fewest in the NFL. Only the Bengals and 49ers, who have been missing their top pass rushers, have fewer.
Young and Verse have almost matched the entire sack production of the Panthers by themselves. Young has nine sacks and Verse has six, giving them only one fewer than the Panthers have as a team.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: 7 stats and facts to know for Rams vs. Panthers in Week 13
Reporting by Cameron DaSilva, Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
