Rams-Broncos: Digging New Ground As Odds-On Underdogs

Well, it was always going to be a tough challenge.

Denver's in line to challenge for AFC supremacy yet again in 2014 holding a 7-2 record atop a competitive AFC West. The Rams, perhaps unexpectedly but not shockingly, are behind the curve yet again at 3-6 at the bottom of the NFC West.

So the oddsmakers came out with an eight-point line that has already jumped to favor the Broncos. It's not surprising. You've got a Rams team struggling to take advantage of the opportunities the talent on the roster is affording them (such as, I dunno, a 4th-quarter lead over the team with the best record in the NFL...) that has a 1-2 record against Peyton Manning with the two losses coming the most recently during his prime. He's coming off of a Super Bowl appearance and record statistics in 2013 and showing few signs of slowing down despite being 38 years old. It was going to be a big line regardless, but eight points seemed awfully kind to a Rams team bringing the Broncos to the Ed.

With the season out of reach at this point, we'll see what kind of answers Jeff Fisher and the rest of the staff are looking for on Sunday. The questions are relatively clear.

Is Tavon Austin going to be a meaningful part of the offense moving forward? Last Sunday suggested not. Is Tre Mason now entrenched as the Rams' workhorse back? What does that mean for Zac Stacy? Is the offensive line going to require a near-complete overhaul? Does Austin Davis have a future with the Rams? And defensively, is the ascendance of Aaron Donald and Alec Ogletree going to be enough to help turn this defense into a top unit?

Time to start figuring things out for 2015...which is a pretty crappy operation to begin in mid-November 2014.

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