Rams (3-3) at Falcons (1-5)

Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, MercedesBenz Stadium, Atlanta

TV: Fox

Danny Sheridan’s line: Rams by 3 ⁄2

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Rams’ keys to victory: DT Aaron Donald and the rest of the defensive line need to slow Atlanta’s early attempts to establish the run game because getting an early lead has been the recipe for beating the Falcons thus far. Offensively, the Rams can’t be conservative while going against a struggling and injured Atlanta secondary. QB Jared Goff is sixth in the NFL in passing yards per game, and that’s where the Rams can really take advantage of the Falcons.

Falcons’ keys to victory: Atlanta must spread out the Rams’ defense and use TE Austin Hooper over the middle to open things up the way it did in Week 6 against the Arizona Cardinals. Defensively, the Falcons should consider blitzing Rams QB Jared Goff if their front four continues to struggle. The Falcons have lost three straight games and haven’t sacked the opposing quarterback in any of them. That must change if they are to slow down the Rams’ potent offense.

Matchup to watch: Rams WR Cooper Kupp vs. Falcons CB Isaiah Oliver. Oliver struggled while filling in for Desmond Trufant against the Cardinals. If Trufant misses more time, Oliver again will have a lot on his plate. He’ll have to be sound in his technique to limit the production of Kupp, the Rams’ leading receiver. Kupp can be slippery because of his speed and small size.

Who wins? The Falcons will be competitive, but they might have checked out on defense. The Rams will be motivated to break their three-game losing streak and have too much offense for the Falcons.

Rams, 31-28