Seattle beat Los Angeles, and its high-scoring offense, on the road in October.
2017 record: 9-4, first in NFC West.
Coach: Sean McVay (9-4 in first season as head coach).
Series record: Seahawks lead it 23-15, including a 16-10 win over the Rams on Oct. 8. That snapped a streak of three wins in four games for the Rams, each of the wins coming in three different cities.
By the numbers
56 Receptions for Yakima native Cooper Kupp, which is a Rams’ record for a rookie. The previous mark was 54 by Eddie Kennison in 1996.
22 Jared Goff touchdown passes, most by a Rams quarterback since Marc Bulger threw 26 in 2006.
3 Blocked punts for the Rams, including one against the Eagles Sunday. No other NFL team has more than one.
Early line: Seahawks by one point.
Star players
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QB Jared Goff: Some of Goff’s numbers aren’t quite as impressive as they were heading into the first meeting between the two teams and he ranks just 20th in ESPN’s QBR (Total Quarterback Rating). Still, his development in his first season under McVay and second season in the NFL is unmistakable. His interception rate of just 1.4 (six in 418 attempts) is sixth in the NFL and his yards per attempt of 8.1 is tied for third. But he has little to show for two career games against the Seahawks, completing just 35 of 72 passes for 423 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions and a 55.5 passer rating. His 48.9 passer rating, when he threw two picks in Seattle’s win in October, is his lowest of the season.
RB Todd Gurley: The third-year running back passed the 1,000-yard mark for the second time in his career with 96 yards on 13 carries Sunday against the Eagles and has 1,035 to rank third in the NFL. His 10 touchdowns leads the NFL and he also remains one of the most dangerous receiving running backs in the league. His 51 receptions are fourth among all running backs and his average of 11.8 yards per reception is second. Seattle held him in check in the first game as Gurley had just 43 yards on 14 carries.
WR Cooper Kupp: The former Eastern Washington standout has 18 receptions in his last three games as he has become the team’s leading receiver with 56 catches for 783 yards. Kupp has had his two highest-yardage games in the last three weeks with eight catches for 116 yards against the Saints and five for 118 against the Eagles. But Kupp is undoubtedly still ruing the pass he couldn’t bring down in the end zone on the final series of the first game against Seattle that would likely have given the Rams the win.
DT Aaron Donald: A Pro Bowl pick in his three previous seasons and a first-team All-Pro selection the last two years, Donald is having a typically good season with eight sacks and three forced fumbles, the latter a career high. Donald terrorized Seattle earlier in his career and Seahawks fans still wincingly recall how he and Michael Brockers teamed up to stuff Marshawn Lynch on a fourth-down play to clinch a win for the Rams in overtime in the season opener in 2015. But after making four sacks in his first three games against Seattle — including two in that 2015 game — he has been held without one in the last four games against the Seahawks.
About Los Angeles
Any hope that the Rams would eventually disappear after their fast start has long ago, well, disappeared, despite Sunday’s home loss to the Eagles. The Rams have continued to stay a step ahead of the Seahawks in the standings. Seattle can win the tiebreaker with a victory Sunday since it beat L.A. earlier this year.
The Rams offensive resurgence under McVay — who got the head-coaching job based on an impressive run as offensive coordinator with Washington — has shown staying power as Los Angeles is second in the NFL in points scored per game at 30.4, scoring 32 or more eight times (Seattle has hit that mark just twice). The Rams have scored less than 20 just twice, held to 10 by the Seahawks and a lone touchdown by the Vikings.
The offense could get a boost this week as receiver Robert Woods — who had 47 receptions for 703 yards in the first 10 games but has missed the last three with a shoulder injury — is expected to return.
The defense is 12th in points allowed (20.3 per game) but has been oddly vulnerable to the run, ranked 30th in yards allowed per attempt at 4.7. The Rams have allowed 100 or more yards rushing to nine of 13 opponents. One of the four who didn’t hit that mark was Seattle, whose 62 rushing yards is the second-lowest given up this year by Los Angeles.