The Los Angeles Rams will hope to pick up where they left off when they start the regular season on Thursday by hosting the Buffalo Bills in the 2022 NFL Kickoff Game. In February, the Rams became the first NFL club to win a Super Bowl in their home stadium when they outlasted the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 to capture the Lombardi trophy. Now, they face a Buffalo team that is still desperately seeking its first Super Bowl title and is the betting favorite to do so at 6-1. Bills vs. Rams will start the 2022 NFL regular season and is the first of 16 games on the Week 1 NFL schedule.
Kickoff is at 8:20 p.m. ET. The Bills are 2.5-point favorites and the over-under for total points scored is 53 in the latest Bills vs. Rams odds from Caesars Sportsbook. Before locking any Rams vs. Bills picks, make sure you check out the NFL predictions and betting advice from SportsLine football analyst R.J. White.
White, a Fantasy and gambling editor for CBS Sports, consistently crushes as SportsLine's No. 1 expert in NFL picks against the spread. He went 445-378-24 on his ATS picks from 2017-21, which returned $2,542 to $100 players. Moreover, he's also 44-33 on NFL picks involving the Rams, lending critical insight into this matchup.
White is known for cashing out big in the Westgate Las Vegas SuperContest twice since 2015. He also cashed big on his NFL futures in 2021, including nailing Jonathan Taylor as the NFL rushing leader at 10-1. Anyone who has followed him has seen massive returns.
Now, White has studied the Bills vs. Rams Week 1 matchup from every angle and released a confident against-the-spread selection. You can head to SportsLine now to see White's pick. Here are the NFL odds and betting lines for Bills vs. Rams:
- Bills vs. Rams point spread: Bills -2.5
- Bills vs. Rams over-under total: 53 points
- Bills vs. Rams money line: Bills -135, Rams +115
- BUF: Bills have covered four of the last five meetings in this rivalry
- LAR: Rams have covered five consecutive season-opening games
- Bills vs. Rams picks: See picks here
Why the Bills can cover
Although the Bills will start the season without standout cornerback Tre'Davious White, who is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered in Week 12 of last season, the coaching staff is confident that a pair of rookies will help compensate for his absence. The Bills drafted Kaiir Elam and Christian Benford, in the first and sixth rounds respectively, and both have earned rave reviews from the coaching staff while making their share of standout plays during the exhibition season.
Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier told the media this week he expects both rookies to pick up the slack while White, who was named to the Pro Bowl two seasons ago, sits out at least the first four games of the season. "They both had good training camps for us," Frazier said. "We'll mix it up in the ballgame and see how things are going as the game goes on."
Frazier also credited third-year pro Dane Jackson for mentoring the rookies and making sure they were prepared for the start of the season. "Dane has been the one who's had to kind of step up and continue to encourage both of our young corners, and he's done that," Frazier said.
Why the Rams can cover
After last year's Super Bowl victory, defensive end Aaron Donald hinted that he might choose retirement over returning for a ninth season. The three-time NFL defensive Player of the Year eventually decided to return to the team and was rewarded with the richest contract for a non-quarterback in NFL history.
The Rams are not only grateful to have the seven-time, All-Pro selection sign a new deal, but they are thrilled he's available for Week 1 following a preseason skirmish with the Cincinnati Bengals in jeopardy. Donald was at the center of a wild brawl in which he swung a helmet at an opposing player, an offense that cost Browns defensive end Myles Garrett a six-game suspension in the 2019 season. The NFL investigated the matter and ultimately decided to leave any punishment up to the teams involved because it happened in a practice environment as opposed to a regular-season game. The Rams have said they levied a punishment against Donald but haven't disclosed the details.
How to make Rams vs. Bills picks
White has analyzed this matchup, and while we can tell you he's leaning Over on the point total, he has also discovered a critical X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. He's only sharing what it is, and which side to back, at SportsLine.
So who wins Bills vs. Rams in the NFL Kickoff Game 2022? And which X-factor makes one side of the spread hit hard? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Bills vs. Rams spread you need to jump on, all from the expert who's 44-33 on Rams picks, and find out.
