Manti Te'o explains why 49ers, not Rams, have NFC West's best offense

· Yahoo Sports

The Los Angeles Rams are entering the 2026 NFL season with the league's reigning MVP and two All-Pro threats in Davante Adams and Puka Nacua.

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Alongside their top stars, they are returning their entire starting offensive line, tight end room, and rushing corps. Despite their statistical prowess and on-field success, their operation is rivaled by their division foes from the north. Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers run one of the more complex and successful systems in the NFL, leading to a yearly showdown between the two sides to determine who has the better unit.

"Good Morning Football's" Manti Te'o has shared his take, and despite the Rams' undisputed success, he believes it's San Francisco with the better unit after the 49ers made offseason additions of their own. Te'o spoke about the playmakers on the 49ers offense and how they naturally induce schematic issues for the defense as his line of reasoning for his take.

"This offense, it's the most dangerous in that division, in my opinion," stated Te'o on the 49ers. "A lot of people will talk about the Rams, and rightfully so. But this is what I mean about the 49ers' offense. When you look at the Rams, you have two dynamic wide receivers, they have a great quarterback but you know this, I got a coverage that can handle that.

"What is often difficult is I don't have a coverage that can put me in the best position to play both run and pass. So when I am the San Francisco 49ers, or when I'm a defense going against the San Francisco 49ers, I can only put my defenses in two categories: one-high or two-high. One-high is good against the run. Two-high is good against the past. I don't have one that's good against both, so I have to pick my poison here."

Te'o then went into the playmakers specifically and the issues they present.

"Now, when I am looking at Christian McCaffrey, I'm going to stack the box," continued Te'o. "But then, what are you going to do with Mike Evans? You can't stack the box and have a safety over Mike Evans all the time. So, for Mike Evans, this will probably be the best situation he's been in. For Christian McCaffrey, this could be possibly the best situation he's been in because now defense says you have to pick your poison, right?"

"So, I love what they got over there in L.A. I love what they have and their ability to put a lot of points up on the board. But if I'm a defense, I'm staying up late at night trying to figure out how do I stop Christian McCaffrey, knowing that I have to guard somebody like Mike Evans out there at wide receiver. Not to mention you got George Kittle and all those guys. So I think they are the most dangerous offense in that division."

The good news for the Rams is that the NFL has yet to develop a coverage scheme to stop the Rams, with Puka Nacua individually torching several of the best secondaries in the league last season on his way to leading the NFL in receiving yards. His partner-in-pursuit, Davante Adams scored the most receiving touchdowns last year.

The Rams also are able to play both one- and two-high safety against receivers like Evans due to the addition of 6-foot-2 cornerback Jaylen Watson.

This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Manti Te'o explains why 49ers, not Rams, have NFC West's best offense

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