Eagles beat writers make their predictions for the Rams game in Week 5: Trap game for the Birds?

The Eagles visit the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. Here are the game predictions from the beat writers for Week 5.

The Rams are off to a solid start this season, beating good teams in the Seattle Seahawks (second in the NFC West) and Indianapolis Colts (first in the AFC South) and losing by a touchdown to the undefeated San Francisco 49ers (first in the NFC West) and by a field goal to the Cincinnati Bengals (the 2022 AFC runners-up, now fourth in the AFC North).

Since departing the Detroit Lions in the 2020 offseason, quarterback Matthew Stafford has reached new heights, winning the Super Bowl two seasons ago. Stafford, who is dealing with a hip bruise but is expected to play, has a highly touted arm that makes the Rams offense go. This season, he leads the league in pass attempts per game (41.5) and is tied for third in passes completed per game (25.8).

Stafford has breakout rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua at his disposal. He has 39 receptions for 501 yards, which are both the most in NFL history through four career games. Plus, Stafford is expected to get Super Bowl LVI MVP Cooper Kupp (hamstring) back this weekend after his stint on injured reserve. The Rams passing attack poses a daunting task for the Eagles defense, which ranks 27th in passing yards against and 30th in passing touchdowns.

Even though defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (back) won’t play, the Eagles still boast a talented defensive front capable of giving a lackluster Rams offensive line fits. Meanwhile, the Eagles will be relying on spot starter Sua Opeta at right guard to help contain superstar defensive tackle Aaron Donald. While the Eagles may be dealing with injuries at various positions, they still boast edges in positional matchups across the board.

Prediction: Eagles 29, Rams 27

» READ MORE: Eagles slot in Sua Opeta at right guard — just in time to face the Rams’ Aaron Donald

Going into the season, this looked like one of the easier matchups the Eagles would have all year, against a depleted Rams team headed toward a rebuilding.

At 2-2, Los Angeles has overachieved mostly thanks to a resurgent offense led by Stafford and the out-of-nowhere slot receiver Nacua, which makes things more intriguing and harder to prognosticate. The Rams don’t have the talent, both up front offensively and on defense outside of Donald, to beat this Eagles team at their best. But will they be at their best?

On offense, the Eagles are going to need to give plenty of attention and resources to keeping Donald in check. They had success doing so in 2020, doubling him often and locating him pre-snap on every play. This is a bit of an oversimplification — every team comes in with a plan for Donald and the seven-time All-Pro still has logged one sack in three of the Rams’ first four games — but the Eagles should be able to keep him from wrecking the game. Los Angeles will likely try to exploit the reserve guard Opeta filling in for Cam Jurgens, but the infrastructure around Opeta should be enough of a help to keep Donald from being excessively disruptive.

If that’s the case, the Eagles should have enough favorable matchups in the passing game to gash the Rams, who rank 24th in defensive efficiency by FTN Fantasy. Maybe this is the game in which Dallas Goedert gets back to his normal productive self, but even if he has a limited impact, it’s easy to see A.J. Brown or DeVonta Smith having dominant showings.

» READ MORE: Eagles downplay Dallas Goedert’s slow start: ‘He’ll get going. I’m certain of that.’

Defensively, the Eagles’ fluid secondary will have its hands full. Nacua may be a fifth-round rookie, but he has been one of the most productive receivers in the NFL this season. Kupp’s returning from a training-camp hamstring injury will make things even more difficult, although it might come at the expense of some of Nacua’s usage in the slot. Regardless of how the Eagles handle the slot, whether it’s James Bradberry or Bradley Roby, or a mix of both, the matchups against Kupp inside will be important to watch.

The Eagles should be able to get pressure on Stafford. Rams left tackle Alaric Jackson missed most of the week of practice with a hamstring injury but is expected to play. If he’s playing at less than 100 percent, Haason Reddick or Josh Sweat could capitalize. Stafford has averaged 2.72 seconds time to throw according to Next Gen Stats, which suggests there will be opportunities.

This game will come down to which Eagles team shows up. Contrary to the belief going into the season, this Rams team is capable of putting up points and upsetting a more talented team, especially at home. If the Eagles play like they did against Washington, they could board the plane back from Los Angeles with their first loss of the season. If they put it all together, or at least most of it, they should be able to eke out an important road win.

Prediction: Eagles 28, Rams 24

Four games is typically enough to get a sense of a team, its strengths and weaknesses, its likes and dislikes. The Eagles offense’s preferences are much like they were last season. They like Jalen Hurts in the shotgun. They like their three-receiver sets but will use two- and three-tight end packages in the run game. They don’t like motion much. In fact, no other offense in the NFL motions and shifts less than the Eagles. Nick Sirianni has other built-in methods to help Hurts read defenses pre-snap, but they’re almost the complete opposite of the Rams in motion at the snap.

» READ MORE: Regrading the Eagles vs. Commanders: Film review shows LB Nicholas Morrow’s impact went beyond sacks

Sean McVay loves eye candy movement that can fool the eyes of linebackers and safeties. It’s been effective vs. the Eagles at times, other times it hasn’t. Linebackers Nicholas Morrow and Zach Cunningham, who were two of the better defenders in the Eagles’ win over the Commanders last week, will be tested. The Rams have used 11 personnel more than any other team, so whoever the Eagles have in the slot will play almost the entire game. All three of L.A.’s receivers — Nacua, Tutu Atwell, and Van Jefferson — have rotated inside. Nacua, a rookie, leads the NFL in catches and has been a revelation with the All-Pro Kupp sidelined. Kupp will be back, though, and there may not be a slot receiver who runs better routes.

Will Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai stick with Bradberry in the slot, or will he look to Mario Goodrich or the recently acquired Roby based on the matchup? The Rams have some injury questions on an offensive line that hasn’t’ been sound in protecting Stafford. The left tackle Jackson is expected to play while the right guard Joe Noteboom isn’t. Neither has been reliable this season, which could say something about the Rams’ lack of depth on the O-line. The Eagles’ D-line wasn’t as productive vs. Washington as it was in the first three games, but even though Cox (back) can’t go, Desai has numbers inside and out.

The Eagles will also be shorthanded with right guard Jurgens (foot) out. His replacement, Opeta, has been down this road before, but not against the likes of Donald. The Eagles will try to double the future Hall of Fame defensive tackle when possible, but that will leave them susceptible elsewhere. Hurts had his best passing outing last week. Did he and offensive coordinator Brian Johnson finally find some chemistry in the play calls, or was it just that Washington’s secondary was inferior? The Commanders’ 40-20 loss to the lowly Bears on Thursday night suggests it could be more of the latter.

I still like the Eagles’ chances to move the ball, of course. The Rams should blitz a fair amount, and will likely have the same formula other defenses have used to slow Hurts early this season. But the Eagles have increasingly had answers for extra rushers. Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris likes to mix up his zone-heavy coverages. But only the Eagles use Cover 6 more, and Hurts’ familiarity vs. that scheme should help him find windows to receivers Brown and Smith, and finally, the tight end Goedert.

And if that doesn’t work, look for running backs D’Andre Swift and Kenneth Gainwell to get theirs on the ground against a run defense that ranks 24th in DVOA. Until Sirianni’s group loses, I’m not picking against them despite their early inconsistency.

Prediction: Eagles 31, Rams 27

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