| Giants
(5-10) Rams (8-7)
The
Los Angeles Rams had a 30-7 fourth quarter lead in their Thursday night game with
the New Orleans Saints. The Rams had to hang tough when the Saints added two scores,
and they won the game with a 30-22 score.
On Christmas day the Giants were
mostly stagnant in the first half of their game in Philadelphia. Trailing 20-3
to the Eagles, they made a quarterback change. The Giants scored three touchdowns
after that, but it wasn't enough to avoid a 33-25 loss. Los
Angeles Rams
The Rams had losing records
for 12 straight years, including their 4-12 record in 2016. The following year
Sean McVay took over as the head coach, and had them win the NFC West division
title for the first time since 2003 with an 11-5 record. The Rams lost their wildcard
game, but McVay had them in the Super Bowl in the following year. They lost that
one to the Patriots, but in 2021 they were back again for a 23-20 Super Bowl win
over the Cincinnati Bengals. The Rams finished at 5-12 last year, which is the
worst record of any defending Super Bowl championship team in NFL history. Los
Angeles Rams Offense
The Rams offense took
a major downturn coming off their Super Bowl winning season. Then their passing
offense, with Matthew Stafford throwing threw 41 touchdowns, was ranked 5th in
the NFL. Last season Stafford was coming off an elbow procedure, and in the first
game threw 3 interceptions, was sacked 7 times and hit 16 times. Later in the
season Stafford was in concussion protocol, and then was knocked out of a game
suffering another concussion and spinal cord contusion. In the nine games Stafford
played, he threw 10 touchdowns, had 8 interceptions and took 29 sacks. Stafford
got off to a slow start this season, and the Rams had a 3-6 record, but since
then they have won five of their last six games.
Over that time Stafford 's
thrown 15 TD passes and just 2 interceptions. Wide receiver Cooper Kupp was the
MVP in the Rams Super Bowl win, but has missed games due to injuries since then.
Rookie Puka Nacua, their fifth round draft pick, has been the most targeted receiver
and leads the team with 5 touchdowns. Nacua could end up setting NFL rookie records
for receptions and receiving yards. Kupp has 4 touchdowns, and he and Nacua account
for more than half of the team's receiving first downs.
The Rams rushing offense
was near the bottom last year, and now they are in the top ten, and rely heavily
on Kyren Williams. Playing in 11 games, Williams, while averaging over 5 yards
a carry, is responsible for more than half of the teams first downs, has 6 of
their 10 total rushing touchdowns, and has caught 3 touchdowns. Royce Freeman
is the second leading rusher on the team, averaging 4.3 yards a carry, and he
has 1 touchdown. Los Angeles
Rams Defense
When
you talk about this defense, the first name that comes to mind is Aaron Donald.
He's averaged over 12 sacks a year from the start of his career in 2014-2021.
Donald missed the final seven games last season with a high ankle sprain and had
5 sacks. This year Donald and rookie Byron Young each have 6 sacks, and Kobie
Turner leads the team with 6.5. There's no doubt that teams have to account for
Donald, who brings pressure with his 21 quarterback hits, and that focus has provided
opportunities for others.
Linebacker Bobby Wagner led the team last year with
140 total tackles, but after one year with the Rams, he moved back to the Seattle
Seahawks, his former team. Jones was second to Wagner last year with 114 tackles,
and this year has 132, along with 4.5 sacks, as well as Michael Hoecht.
The
Rams secondary underwent some changes in the offseason, including trading Jalen
Ramsey to the Dolphins. Ramsey was the third-highest-ranked cornerback in the
NFL last season. Ramsey had 4 interceptions in his last year with the Rams, and
the team had a total of 7 on the season, but added two more to that in their last
game with New Orleans. Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon leads the Rams with 3 interceptions.
Safety Jordan Fuller and John Johnson III each have 2. Over the last few games,
the Rams have stepped up their rushing defense. If they contain Saquon Barkley,
then their secondary will be tested by Tyrod Taylor. Giants
Offense
After six straight starts, head
coach Brian Daboll has decided that rookie Tommy DeVito will be the backup quarterback
this Sunday, and Tyrod Taylor will be the starter. The Giants offense was going
nowhere last week, scoring just 3 points, and Daboll made a halftime switch to
Taylor, who got things moving. His experience and confidence had him throwing
deeper passes than DeVito, and that paid off, especially with his deep pass to
Darius Slayton that resulted in a 69 yard touchdown.
The Rams are one of the
best teams at disguising their pressure and coverages, and Taylor should be able
to diagnose what they will be presenting quicker than DeVito, making things a
bit easier on the offensive line. Tight end Darren Waller and a number of receivers
can be real game changers if Taylor has the time to make the throws. Saquon Barkley
might have a hard time running on the Rams defense, but aside from his four rushing
touchdowns, he also leads the team with the four that he has caught. Giants
Defense
The Rams haven't been strong with
their rushing attack the past two seasons, but that's changed this year. The Giants
are one of the top blitzing teams in the NFL, and they'll have to be mindful of
that in their attempts to get to quarterback Matthew Stafford. The Giants have
25 sacks on the season and linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux owns 11.5 of them. Opposing
teams have taken notice and have focused on Thibodeaux in the last three games.
Dexter Lawrence has 4.5 sacks and is a force up front, but the Giants have been
limiting his playing time since he's come off a hamstring injury that had him
out for one game. Considering the Giants are ranked 29th in the NFL against the
run, the Rams will be looking to see if he's not on the field on any given play.
The
Giants lost last week, but the defense did what they could. In the second half,
Isaiah Simmons forced and recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff. The offense
took advantage of good field position and scored a touchdown. After holding the
Eagles to a three-and-out, the next time the Eagles had the ball Adoree' Jackson
had a 76 yard interception return for a touchdown.
It's not good news that
cornerback Deonte Banks is listed as questionable for this game considering how
well wide receiver Puka Nacua is playing. Nacua is coming off a game where he
caught 9 passes for 164 yards and 1 touchdown. Though Nacua was dealing with a
hip injury and is listed as questionable, he is expected to play. The Rams are
averaging just about 31 points per game in their past six games, and the Giants
defense will have to play their best to knock that down. Overall
The Rams are the traveling team, but they last played at home on a Thursday night.
Meanwhile the Giants are on a short week coming off their Monday night game in
Philadelphia. The Rams could get into the playoffs with a win against the Giants,
also dependent on how some other games play out. The direction looks favorable
for the Rams, who have won five of their last six games. The Giants had won three
before losing two straight games. Despite any standings, the Giants have shown
that they are a never say quit team, and if the Rams want to win this one they
will have to give it their best efforts. NFC
East Games
Saturday at 8:15pm Lions (11-4)
at Cowboys (10-5)
Sunday at 1:00pm Rams (8-7) at Giants (5-10)
Sunday at
1:00pm Cardinals (3-12) at Eagles (11-4)
Sunday at 1:00pm 49ers (11-4) at Commanders
(4-11)
The Cowboys and Eagles are the NFC East teams favored to win in these
games.
Check out.
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Next Game
Jan
6 or 7 - Eagles at Giants
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