The Los Angeles Rams are heavier favorites tonight against the San Francisco 49ers than they’ve been in any game this season. That seems hard to believe considering their division rivals are 3-1 and always seem to give them trouble, but San Francisco is missing a number of key starters and fresh off a home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

None of that means the Rams can begin looking past the 49ers ahead of next week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens. San Francisco is still a formidable opponent coached by Kyle Shanahan and Robert Saleh. Sean McVay will have his players ready for what’s sure to be a tough, physical game at SoFi Stadium.

As favorable as this one looks for the Rams, there are still reasons for concern. Here are the four biggest.

Absence of Rob Havenstein at RT

The Rams are most likely going to be without Havenstein tonight; he’s listed as doubtful due to an ankle injury. We don’t know who will be his replacement, whether it’s D.J. Humphries, David Quessenberry or Warren McClendon Jr., but they’re all bound to be a downgrade from the veteran Havenstein.

His injury opens the door for a bad 49ers pass rush to potentially wake up. The Rams may need to give their new right tackle some extra help against San Francisco’s edge rushers by chipping with a tight end or back, or even double-teaming if Havenstein’s replacement begins to struggle.

Christian McCaffrey

McCaffrey is the team’s leading rusher and has the most receptions, too. That trend is likely to continue tonight with the 49ers missing their top two receivers, putting even more pressure on McCaffrey to perform.

The 49ers can’t really afford to take him off the field much because of their lack of weapons on offense and he has historically been a Rams killer. In four career games against them, he’s rushed for 407 yards and four touchdowns, caught 28 passes for 244 yards and added another touchdown, giving him an average of 651 yards from scrimmage per game.

He’s struggled this season but he’s never a player to take lightly.

Robert Saleh’s Scheme

Saleh was the 49ers’ defensive coordinator from 2017-2020, so he faced the Rams twice a year for four seasons. The Rams’ point totals in those games were 41, 13, 39, 48, 7, 31, 16 and 20.

It was a mix of good and bad, but in the last two years, outside of that 31-point outburst in a 34-31 loss, the Rams struggled to move the ball against Saleh’s defense. Granted, San Francisco’s defense was much better in those years than it is right now but the 49ers have given Sean McVay trouble over the years.

Overlooking Mac Jones

Brock Purdy is unquestionably a better quarterback than Jones, but it’s not as if the drop-off is from an All-Pro to a UFL quarterback. That’s almost how the spread movement is making it seem, going from -3.5 to -8.5 with all of the 49ers’ injuries – led by Purdy.

Jones was decent in his two starts this season, leading the 49ers to wins in both games. He had four total touchdown passes and one interception, averaging a respectable 7.0 yards per attempt. He’s fairly mobile and actually has a higher passing grade than Purdy at PFF this season, so the Rams still have to be ready for him to air it out.

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This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams’ 4 biggest causes for concern vs. 49ers on Thursday night
Reporting by Cameron DaSilva, Rams Wire / Rams Wire
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