Sean Murphy Handicapper Review & Free Sports Picks

My selection is on the 'over' between Los Angeles and San Francisco at 8:25 pm et on Thursday.

I'll back the 'over' in San Francisco on Thursday night. Last year, the 49ers didn't post their third 'under' result of the season until November 13th. Here, they have a chance to do it before we even wrap up the third week of September. I don't see it happening, however. The Rams offense has been somewhat inconsistent but has at least shown it can move the football with Jared Goff under center. I'm not sure the 49ers defense is quite as good as advertised and might come in a little high on its horse following a strong showing in Seattle. Keep in mind, we did win with the 49ers plus the points last week. We saw some flashes of brilliance from the Niners offense in the preseason but that hasn't carried over into the regular season as they've yet to score a touchdown. That should change here. I expect to see both teams take some chances in this key early season division game, as they need to figure out what they have offensively and gain some semblance of an identity. The total has been slowly shifting downward and I believe it's reached the point where it's too low. Take the over (10*).

My selection is on Los Angeles minus the points over San Francisco at 8:25 pm et on Thursday.

This is another in a long line of ugly Thursday Night Football matchups but that doesn't mean there isn't money to be made. The Rams have been installed as rare road favorites in this one but I believe the line is warranted. Los Angeles is off to an even 1-1 start after opening with back-to-back home games. There's really no shame in that, even though the Rams failed to win in a favorite role against Washington last week. I simply feel the Rams have a lot more upside on both sides of the football than the 49ers do at this stage of the season. We actually won with the 49ers plus the points in Seattle last week. San Francisco's defense held up well in that game, but keep in mind, it was up against a Seahawks squad that is still figuring things out offensively. Much was made of RB Carlos Hyde running for over 100 yards, but consider that 60+ of those yards came on one run. While it's tough to envision the Rams posting a winning record through three games, it's also easy to forget that they opened last season 3-1, including road wins in Tampa Bay and Arizona. The Rams did drop both matchups against the 49ers but that should only serve to give them extra motivation here. Take Los Angeles (10*).