On their way to the Super Bowl last season, the 49ers couldn’t solve one team: the Rams. St. Louis beat San Francisco once and the teams played to a tie, rare blemishes on the 49ers’ record.
Jim Harbaugh’s team gets another shot at the Rams on Thursday night, and the 49ers (No. 12 in the AP Pro32) are three-point favorites over No. 23 St. Louis.
Coming off successive losses in which their offense was awful, the 49ers are in turmoil. Linebacker Aldon Smith is taking a leave of absence to deal with personal problems. At least in a short week, they have no choice but to concentrate heavily on football.
“I think it’s a distraction to whoever wants to think about it, to whoever wants to pay attention to it,” 49ers cornerback Carlos Rogers said. “When I get out there on the field and play, I’m thinking about playing whatever team, I’m not thinking about Aldon and whatever situation went on with him.”
Pretty good advice, especially facing Jeff Fisher’s Rams, who also come off a poor outing. One of the NFL’s top coaches for two decades, Fisher is likely to have St. Louis ready for the defending NFC West champs.
“We’ve been on the losing end of a lot of games, this organization has,” Fisher said. “Now last year, we got our feet back on the map, but I don’t think there’s a rivalry yet. It’s a division opponent. It’s a big challenge for us on a short week, but I don’t necessarily see it as a rivalry yet. Hopefully, it will become one.”
This game could help do that. ... 49ERS 20-16

No. 29 New York Giants (plus 4½) at No. 6 Kansas City — Giants yielded seven sacks to Panthers. Chiefs really know how to get after QBs. ... CHIEFS, 20-17
No. 21 Philadelphia (plus 10½) at No. 1 Denver — Eagles will score some points. Broncos will score many, many points. ... BEST BET: BRONCOS, 40-24
No. 3 Chicago (plus 2½) at No. 15 Detroit — Was tempted to make this BEST BET, too. ... UPSET SPECIAL: BEARS, 26-13
No. 8 Baltimore (minus 3½) at No. 24 Buffalo — Along with UPSET SPECIAL, another road team win. ... RAVENS, 23-20
No. 9 Cincinnati (minus 4½) at No. 25 Cleveland — And another. ... BENGALS, 20-13
No. 26 Washington (minus 3) at No. 30 Oakland — You get the message. ... REDSKINS, 22-17
No. 2 Seattle (minus 3) at No. 11 Houston — A real road test for Seahawks. Win convincingly and they rule the NFC. Nope ... TEXANS, 21-20
No. 7 Miami (plus 6) at No. 4 New Orleans, Monday night — A real road test for Dolphins. Win in any manner and playoff goals look real. Nope ... SAINTS, 27-20
No. 10 Indianapolis (minus 8½) at No. 32 Jacksonville — Lay the points against Jags until they show something. ... COLTS, 24-10
No. 5 New England (plus 1½) at No. 16 Atlanta — Falcons need to figure out their problems now. Tough chore, but doable. ... FALCONS, 24-21
No. 28 Minnesota (plus 1) vs. No. 27 Pittsburgh — The first of two London games. What a dud the Brits are getting. ... STEELERS, 17-15
No. 22 Arizona (plus 3) at No. 31 Tampa Bay — Turmoil in Tampa leaves Bucs vulnerable, even to injury-ravaged Cardinals. ... CARDINALS, 23-20
No. 18 New York Jets (plus 4) at No. 17 Tennessee — Two coaches on hot seats whose teams are producing. ... JETS, 24-19
No. 13 Dallas (minus 1½) at No. 19 San Diego — Would Cowboys clinch NFC East with win? Not quite. ... COWBOYS, 30-23

• 2013 RECORD:
Against spread: 8-7-1 (23-22-3). Straight up: 10-6 (33-15).
Best Bet: 2-1 against spread, 3-0 straight up.
Upset special: 1-2 against spread, 1-2 straight up.