And if there was some thought that the Rams might run away with the NFC West, then by all means, make them right!

A game up on the division, L.A. can separate even further by sending San Francisco to 1-3.

While the Rams are flying to the Bay Area on Sunday, what if a pair of road underdogs both lose?

Before L.A. plays in Week 4: Seattle is at Detroit; Arizona is at Carolina.

So there’s a scenario where at 5:15 p.m. on Monday, the Rams will be taking the field with a chance to go two games up on the entire division, with head-to-head road wins over the Cardinals and 49ers.

But let’s pump the breaks, here.

Because now for the third consecutive campaign, when the Rams have run up to Levi’s Stadium, the 49ers have been on the ropes. In each of the past two, the Niners have defeated the Rams in Santa Clara to salvage their season.

A year ago, the 49ers were 3-5 before a MNF win over the Rams in Week 10 got them on track to finish 10-7, win two road playoff games, and take a lead into the fourth quarter of the NFC Championship Game at SoFi Stadium.

In 2020, the 49ers were 2-3 before a prime time triumph against the Rams. They got to 4-3 that fall before Garoppolo injured an ankle. (His team crumbled to 6-10 and missed the postseason.)

At 1-2 this time, the 49ers would be far from finished, even if the Rams can win at their place for the first time since 2018. But when your rival is reeling a bit, you don’t want to be the opponent they beat to stabilize their season; you want to deliver a haymaker.

You thought last week in Arizona was a nuisance, watching the Cardinals dink and dunk against soft coverage from a repaired Rams secondary?

I’ll take that any week compared to the Week 10 game at San Francisco in 2021: Let’s not forget the 49ers ran it 44 times for 156 yards and more than 39 minutes of possession.

Just how improved is the Rams front against the run, now? Have they truly solved for Kyle Shanahan’s schemes?

In the NFC Championship last January, the Rams limited the 49ers to 50 yards on 20 carries.

This year, L.A.’s longest rush allowed is 13 yards, best in NFL. And the Rams run defense is rated fourth in efficiency by Football (*4*) DVOA.

Where did they find the physicality to rise to the challenge? Here’s one anecdotal answer that we stumbled upon this week.

Last January, before the rematch with San Francisco at SoFi Stadium, the Rams players pushed to have a padded practice.

Defensive back Grant Haley shared that with us on this week’s Rams Revealed, which was one of the more poignant episodes we’ve ever done.