EARTH CITY, Mo. -- The St. Louis Rams and Kansas City Chiefs kick off Week 8 on Sunday afternoon at Arrowhead Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET on regional Fox coverage.

Here are three things to watch from the Rams' perspective:

1. Defending the perimeter: The Chiefs boast one of the NFL's most unique and difficult to defend rushing attacks behind running backs Jamaal Charles and Knile Davis. It's a run game that can beat defenses any number of ways but is particularly tough to stop on the edge. Through six games, the Chiefs are fourth in the league running outside the tackles with an average of 5.96 yards per attempt. That doesn't bode well for a Rams defense, which ranks last in the league in defending runs on the edge by surrendering 8.15 yards per rush on 48 carries. The Rams have struggled with their anchor points with ends William Hayes and Robert Quinn offering inconsistent performances setting the edge and outside linebacker Alec Ogletree overpursuing and missing tackles to lead to big gains out there. The Chiefs will put that to the test early and often.

2. Protection priority: When the Rams' offense is at its best, there is plenty of time for quarterback Austin Davis to throw. Pretty obvious point, right? It is but it's also one that has to be made considering what the Rams have been able to do in games in which Davis has been pressured against ones where he hasn't. In last week's win against Seattle, the Rams allowed no sacks and the Seahawks barely managed any pressure at all as Davis took what the Seahawks' defense gave him. Davis will likely have more opportunities to take deep shots against Kansas City's banged up secondary but those chances won't materialize if Davis doesn't have time to throw. Kansas City is tied for 12th in the league with 17 sacks and though it won't do much exotic blitzing, it can rely on pass rushers Tamba Hali and Justin Houston to generate all the heat it needs.

3. Handling the heat: Arrowhead Stadium is traditionally one of the toughest places to play in the NFL and with the Chiefs back to prominence after last year's playoff appearance, it's as loud as ever when the home team is rolling. While Davis has a couple of tough road games under his belt, particularly the one in Philadelphia, he has never played at Arrowhead or at Qwest Field in Seattle, the two stadiums generally regarded as the league's toughest. The Rams were able to get by Seattle last week in no small part because of their ability to play a clean game with only two penalties (one of which they took by choice) and no turnovers. The Seahawks accommodated that by committing plenty of silly infractions as the Rams posted a plus-69 penalty yard margin, their highest since Jeff Fisher arrived in 2012. But the Chiefs will offer no such help. Kansas City is the least penalized team in the league with 29 infractions for 247 yards.