Quarterback Lamar Jackson resumes his push to be the NFL MVP when the Baltimore Ravens take on the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Jackson has accounted for 25 touchdowns this season (19 passing, six rushing), has thrown just five interceptions and spearheaded the Ravens' six-game winning streak. Baltimore (8-2) occupies the No. 2 spot in the AFC playoff picture behind only the Patriots and is 4-0 against the spread in its last four games. Meanwhile, the Rams (6-4) sit in third place in the tough NFC West and trail 8-3 Minnesota for the second and final wild card playoff spot. Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m. ET. Baltimore is a 3.5-point favorite in the latest Ravens vs. Rams odds after the Monday Night Football spread opened at three, while the over-under for total points scored is 47. Before making any Rams vs. Ravens picks of your own, you need to see who SportsLine's Mike Tierney is picking.
No one knows football like Tierney. The veteran sportswriter, whose work has appeared in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, has covered football of all levels for decades. And that expertise has been evident since he joined SportsLine in 2016. Last season, he went 63-46 with his NFL picks against-the-spread.
In addition, Tierney has his pulse on the Ravens. He is a perfect 7-0 on his last seven against-the-spread picks involving Baltimore, nailing the team's playoff win over the Chargers last year and six straight this year, including last week's blowout of the Texans. In addition, Tierney is 10-0 with his last 10 picks of any kind involving the Ravens. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, Tierney has zeroed in on Ravens vs. Rams and locked in another confident against-the-spread pick. You can see it at SportsLine. Now, here are several NFL betting lines for Ravens vs. Rams:
- Ravens vs. Rams spread: Baltimore -3.5
- Ravens vs. Rams over-under: 47 points
- Ravens vs. Rams money line: Baltimore -180, Los Angeles +160
- BAL: QB Lamar Jackson is 14-4 as a starter
- LAR: DT Aaron Donald has seven sacks in the last five games
Tierney knows Baltimore has the top rushing attack in the NFL. In fact, the Ravens are averaging a head-turning 203.1 rushing yards per game, which leads the league by a wide margin over No. 2 San Francisco (145.6). Behind its strong ground game, Baltimore averages 428.6 yards of total offense, which is No. 2 in the NFL and just five yards behind the league-leading Dallas Cowboys. As a result, Dallas is up to 9-2 in the latest Super Bowl odds.
In addition, Tierney has factored in that the Ravens will be facing a Rams quarterback, Jared Goff, who has struggled. His quarterback rating of 82.1 ranks just 27th out of 33 starting quarterbacks. He also has thrown 10 interceptions, which is the fourth most in the league.
But just because the Ravens may have the edge on paper does not guarantee they will cover the Ravens vs. Rams spread on Monday Night Football.
Tierney also knows that the Rams' ground game showed positive signs in last week's victory over the Bears. Behind a patchwork offensive line, Los Angeles rushed for 110 yards against the Bears' stout defense. The rushing total was the Rams' most since Week 2. In addition, running back Todd Gurley rushed for 97 yards. He has not rushed for more than that since he went for 115 in the NFC divisional playoff victory against Dallas last season.
Tierney also has factored in that Rams receiver Brandin Cooks (concussion) is set to return to the lineup. The playmaking wideout has not taken the field since suffering a concussion on Oct. 27, his second concussion in 25 days. In eight games this season, Cooks has 27 receptions for 402 yards and a touchdown.
We can tell you Tierney is leaning under, but his much stronger play is on the spread. He's found a critical x-factor that makes one side of the spread hit hard on Monday Night Football. He's sharing what it is, and who to back, only at SportsLine.
Who wins Rams vs. Ravens on Monday Night Football? And what critical x-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Rams vs. Ravens spread you should be all over Monday, all from the football expert who has hit 10 straight picks involving Baltimore.