The San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams will clash tonight in the second of two games for NFL Monday Night Football to conclude Week 1 of the new NFL 2016 season. The game has a scheduled start time of 10.20 p.m. ET and takes place from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The game can be watched on TV on the ESPN network or online through live stream via the link below.
This NFC West face off marks the beginning of a new era for the Rams. They have moved back to California, and although they will have to wait until next week for their home debut, they will open up their new era here today against the 49ers.
Preparations for the Rams have not been smooth by any means though. There were high hopes for the new season when they acquired rookie quarterback Jared Goff. However, throughout preseason he has looked decidedly off the pace. He went 22 of 49 for 232 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. His 4.7 yard per attempt average has set alarm bells ringing in Los Angeles, and he has been dropped further and further down the pecking order ahead of this season opener.
First overall draft quarterbacks generally are expected to be the starter for the new season, however, Goff is still very much a work in progress, and it seems the talk about him being pro-ready ahead of the draft was very premature.
It is likely the Rams will look to run the ball as much as possible and play tight defense, however, they are in desperate need of other weapons to change things up, or they could end up going the same way as last season when they ended up 7-9 and way behind the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks in the race for the Playoff spots in the NFC West.
One shining light for them today is that despite their difficult time last season, the 49ers had things even worse. San Francisco finished bottom of the division with a poor 5-11 record.
But Chip Kelly has come in to try and turn things around. He will be hoping he can replicate his team's form from 2013 when he led the Philadelphia Eagles to a divisional title. That was his first season in charge there, and his early success raised a lot of hopes and expectations - ultimately expectations that he was unable to fulfill.
Kelly was fired last season by the Eagles with one game still to go, but has been installed by the 49ers to try and help them turn things around. It will be a tough job as the 49ers' roster is certainly on paper not as rich as the Eagles' roster he left behind. This could be a tough night for Kelly and the 49ers, but with the Rams still trying to find their own feet, Kelly will be hoping his 49ers can get out of the blocks faster and claim an opening game win here today in front of their home fans.
Today's big NFL Monday Night Football 2016 between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams has a scheduled start time of 10.20 p.m. ET and can be watched on TV on the ESPN network or online through live stream by clicking here.
