| Giants
(1-0) Rams (0-1)
The Los Angeles Rams first
game of the season was played against the San Francisco 49ers in Australia. The
Rams did not play well, and some feel it was a mistake for the Rams to stay at
home until less than two days before kickoff. The 49ers traveled the 16-hour trip
a week earlier. The Rams scored the lowest amount of points in the week one NFL
games, losing to the 49ers 27-7.
The Giants
faced off with the Dallas Cowboys in their home opener at MetLife stadium. They
started off with an opening drive touchdown, and led the Cowboys 14-7 at the half.
The Giants never let up and continued to hold their lead through the rest of the
game. With the Giants scoring a touchdown in every quarter of this game, they
treated their fans to a 28-20 victory over the Cowboys.
Garrett has a quiet debut While San Francisco's
Fred Warner and Nick Bosa both had big moments in their first games back from
lengthy injury absences, Myles Garrett was practically invisible in his Rams debut
after missing much of training camp with aches, recording zero tackles. The reigning
AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year finally acknowledged after the game that his
knee injury has him at less than full health. “This was the worst version of myself
that I’ve put out there, and I’ve got to be better,” Garrett said. Rams' travel
plans are scrutinized.
Rams' travel plans are scrutinized Much of the pregame
talk for this trip centered around the teams’ starkly differing methods of preparation:
The 49ers ingratiated themselves to the local fans as their body clocks adjusted,
while the Rams stayed home until less than two days before kickoff, keeping their
body clocks on California time. “I know there’s gonna be a lot of narratives that
appropriately put the blame on me, and then we’ll move forward the right way,”
coach Sean McVay said Los Angeles' ugly
season-opening loss in Australia created legitimate concern, especially with Myles
Garrett now on injured reserve and Aaron Donald's return timeline uncertain. Still,
the Rams have a talented secondary and an offense loaded with playmakers that
somehow scored fewer points than any NFL team to begin the new year. Sean McVay
should clean up his team's mistakes, while John Harbaugh will try to carry forward
the momentum from a primetime home win over the Cowboys in his Giants coaching
debut. Big Blue has plenty of weapons, and a ground game that produced 165 yards
should test the Garrett-less Rams front. But, back home with extra rest, Los Angeles
should do just enough to eke out a win. Los
Angeles Rams
The 2004 Rams finished off
their 2004 season with a with a divisional playoff loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
After that, they weren't even able to come up with a winning season until 2017.
That's when Sean McVay became their head coach, and their 11-5 record got them
into the wildcard playoffs. They didn't win that one, but in McVay's nine years,
the team has been to the playoffs seven times, with two Super Bowl appearances,
winning the second one. It was a 23-20 Super Bowl LVI victory over the Cincinnati
Bengals played in Los Angeles.
Last season the Rams fell on game short of
playing in the Super Bowl, losing the NFC Championship game to the Seattle Seahawks,
who went on to win the Super Bowl. The Rams sure would like to do what they did
to finish off the 2021 season, notch another Super Bowl win on their home turf,
SoFi Stadium where the game will be played. Los
Angeles Rams Offense
They
sure got off to a poor start t week with a 27-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Matthew Stafford last year led the led the NFL with his 46 touchdown passes and
4707 passing yards, and he won the league's MVP award. In Austrailia Stafford
threw for 155 yards, with no touchdowns and one interception. Wide receiver Puka
Nacua was Stafford's top target last year, and top in the league with his receptions
and receiving yards. Stafford targeted Nacua 9 times last week, but only 5 were
completed. Davante Adams was Stafford's next go to, just as he was all last year
when he led the NFL with 14 touchdown catches, and he came up with just 3 catches
on 6 targets for 26 yards.
Both teams got off to a slow start, and it was running
back Kyren Williams scored the first touchdown of the game in the second quarter
to put the Rams up 7-3. Blake Corum had one less carry, but more yards, and Ronnie
Rivers rounded out the running backs total of 114 yards. After Williams scored
his touchdown, that was it for their scoring. The offense couldn't get going,
and made only 13 first downs. The 49ers kept at it scoring 24 more points. You
can expect the Rams to do much better playing on their home field. Nacua has missed
some practice with a hip injury and is listed as questionable for this game. Matthew
Stafford – The reigning NFL MVP is coming off a rough season opener in which he
threw for just 155 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. But it was just
last year that the veteran quarterback led the NFL with 4,707 yards and 46 touchdowns.
The key to limiting Stafford on Monday night will be to make him uncomfortable
in the pocket.
RB Kyren Williams – Williams was held to just 41 yards on 11
carries in Week 1, although he did add 24 yards on three receptions and scored
LA's lone touchdown.
WR Puka Nacua – Similar to Williams and Corum, Nacua and
Davante Adams make up one of the NFL's top wide receiver duos. While Adams led
the NFL with 14 touchdown catches last year, Nacua registered the most receptions
(129) and receiving yards (1,715). Even in a down game for the offense last week,
Nacua still caught five passes for 74 yards, including a deep 41-yard catch. .
Los Angeles Rams
Defense
They will be missing Myles Garrett,
who they expected to have working in tandem with Aaron Donald at the start of
the season. Garrett broke the NFL single-season sack record last year, with his
total of 23 sacks. They could have used Donald last week in their efforts against
the 49ers, but chose to not have him make the trip. Garrett had been dealing a
knee injury and wasn't effective in the game.
No sacks were delivered by a
team that was ranked seventh in that area last year. Garrett had surgery this
week, and has been placed on iinjured reserve. That brings us back to Donald coming
off a two year retirement after spending the
last eight years of his ten year career playing with the Rams. Talented player
that Donald is, we'll have to see how well he can transisten back to the field
in his first game out.
Giants had some long scoring drives last week which
worked effectively against the Cowboys. This Rams defense was relied on to do
their job when Sean McVay decided to go for a fourth-down conversion on the San
Francisco 1-yard line. It failed as his defense couldn't get the 49ers off the
field until they went the full 99 yards for a touchdown. You still can't ignore
edge rushers Byron Young and Josaiah Stewart, and up-and-coming second year outside
linebacker Josaiah Stewart will have more opportunities to show what he can do.
In the secondary, safety Kamren Kinchens has been ruled out for this game. The
49ers ran for 174 yards (5.6 yards per carry). The safeties led the team in tackles,
never a good sign. Making matters worse for the Rams: their linebackers aren’t
very good. DT Aaron Donald – The last
time we saw Donald on the field was in 2023, when the star defensive lineman racked
up eight sacks, 16 tackles for loss and 23 quarterback hits across 16 games. Giants
ball-control offense resulted in them having the ball for 36 minutes and 40 seconds
and limited the Cowboys to just two possessions in the second half. The Rams struggled
mightily trying to stop the run in their opener, giving up 174 yards on 30 carries. Harbaugh
expects Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald to play "like Aaron Donald" if he suits
up on Monday. They are planning as if he will play. He's a "game-wrecking" player
inside. Rams coach Sean McVay said Monday that they are "going to continue to
work his process, and we'll see what that looks like." Donald unretired last month
but did not travel to Australia for the team's season opener. The Rams are already
preparing to play without another future Hall of Famer on defense, Myles Garrett,
who will undergo knee surgery and be placed on injured reserve. The two-time NFL
Defensive Player of the Year will miss at least the Rams' next four games. Giants
Offense
Jaxson Dart looked good from the
onset in the season opening game with the Dallas Cowboys. He completed 79.3 percent
of his passes for 230 yards, and Dart ran with the ball 8 times for 59 yards before
takung three knees to end the game. Everyone was wondering if Dart would have
wide receiver Malik Nabers available, coming off a torn ACL he suffered last year.
It wasn't a sure thing until until the inactive list came out just before the
game started. Nabers was active for the game, and he caught 6 passes for 69 yards.
That put him second in catches behind Isaiah Likely .The sure handed tight end
caught all of the 8 passes Dart threw to him for 78 yards, and 2 touchdowns. Running
back Devin Singletary wasn't ignored bt Dart who connected with him four times
including one touchdown.
Cam Skatteb was also back coming off his season ending
ankle injury. Skattebo carried the ball 18 times for 81 yards, and 1 touchdown.
His yards after contact were very impressive, though some of his wanna-be first
contact defenders were shoved away by Patrick Ricard. The experienced powerful
fulback certainly did his job for both runners and receivers, working from various
spot on the field. Dart saw some opportunities, and ran with the ball 11 times
for 54 yards. Singletary was next in carries and yards, and Tyrone Tracy didn't
get his hands on the ball in the second half, after he fumbled on his secod carry
late in the second quarter. More snaps
could come the way of Najee Harris then. While Cam Skattebo is the primary running
back, Harris could serve as the RB2 over Tracy. After all, Harris has just five
fumbles in his entire career.s. Jaxson
Dart had a promising start to his second NFL season. The 23-year-old quarterback
completed 23 of 29 passes (79.3 percent) for 230 yards, three touchdowns and no
interceptions. This earned him a passer rating of 134.2, by far the highest mark
of his 13 NFL starts. Dart also continued to be a threat on the ground, adding
59 yards on eight carries (7.4 avg.) prior to his final three attempts in victory
formation. fullback, usually a big, burly
type whose primary job is to get his hands dirty in the run game by blowing open
holes for the running backs to power through.. That’s the reason Harbaugh wanted
Patrick Ricard, his fullback for nine years with the Baltimore Ravens, in New
York.. The 32-year-old Ricard is off to a great start in his role with Big Blue.
According to NFL+, Ricard was part of 48.5% of the Giants' plays in their Week
1 win over the Dallas Cowboys, Big Blue’s highest percentage for a fullback since
2018.. The big storyline heading into
Week 1 was the health of wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Skattebo did his best
to downplay it all afterward. All the attention in the lead-up to the game was
on wide receiver Malik Nabers, who was returning from a torn ACL suffered four
weeks before Skattebo's injury last year. It was the first game back from serious
injury for both. It shouldn't be taken lightly what they overcame to return. . Malik
Nabers‘ status for the opener was in doubt until the inactive list came out an
hour and a half before the game, and he wasn’t on it. The third-year wideout was
solid in his first game in 11 months, catching six passes for 69 yards.
Now
that he’s had a game under his belt and has been tackled, he should feel even
more confident in his knee. Nabers’ longest reception last week was for 16 yards,
but expect his route tree to open up a bit more on Monday. The
Giants will make big plays from their passing game, but the offense’s primary
goal is to wear down their opponents with their physical ground game. Against
Dallas, they ran the ball 37 times for 165 yards, led by Cam Skattebo’s 18 carries
for 81 yards and a touchdown.
Their ball-control offense resulted in them having
the ball for 36 minutes and 40 seconds and limited the Cowboys to just two possessions
in the second half. The Rams struggled mightily trying to stop the run in their
opener, giving up 174 yards on 30 carries... Giants
Defense
This defense can expect to see a
lot of what they saw last week when they went up against a top offensive unit.
The Rams passing offense was ranked the best in the league, and just as Dak Prescott
had his two top receier targets, Matthew Stafford has his own, Puka Nacua and
Davante Adams. He could be without Nacua, and it doesn't help that Jordan Whittington
is listed as doubtful after sustaining a quadriceps injury in last weeks game.
If Stafford is short on targets, he'll be looking for his strong group of tight
ends Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, and Tyler Higbee, and running back Kyren
Williams.
It should be noted that there were no sacks on Stafford last week,.
He has great awareness, and works behind an offensive line that allowed just 23
sacks last year, the lowest in the NFL. They also made room for the running backs
to average 126.6 yards a game 7th highest in the NFL. The Rams were able to run
the ball last week, so the Giants will have to do as they did last week limiting
the Cowboys running backs Javonte Williams and Emari Demercado to 48 rushing yards.
Stopping
the Cowboys on third down plays was a problem last week, and it resulted in long
drives. The Cowboys were able to convert on 72.7 percent of their third-down attempts.
They'll have to do better. The secondary did a nice job last week holding CeeDee
Lamb and George Pickens to 8 receptions for 72 yards and just one touchdown. This
week in the secondary, cornerback Paulson Adebo was placed on injured reserve
with a knee issue. Deonte Banks has missed practice dealing with a calf injury,
and is listed as questionable. It would be great if defensive pressure up front
limits the Rams opportunites to test that area.. Edge rushers Brian Burns, Abdul
Carter, and Kayvon Thibodeaux, and linebackers Tremaine Edmunds, and Arvell Reese
need to do their part. With Adebo on
IR, the Giants’ healthy cornerbacks include rookie Colton Hood, Reed, Dru Phillips,
and Nic Jones. Ar’Darius Washington can also play cornerback if need be. After
a knee injury in the season opener, the former top free-agent. Adebo, who injured
his knee in the Week 1 opener against Dallas, has been placed on injured reserve
by the team, in part to make room for cornerback Nikko Reed, whom the team plucked
off the Los Angeles Chargers practice squad late Thursday. New
York’s defense was dominant in the season opener, holding the Cowboys to just
244 yards of total offense. The only task the defense was unable to accomplish
was sacking Dak Prescott. Despite being dominated in their loss to the 49ers,
the Rams were able to keep Matthew Stafford upright and did not allow a sack.
But this week they’ll face a tougher task in having to try to block Brian Burns,
Abdul Carter, and the rest of the Giants’ front seven. New York is supposed to
have one of the best front sevens in the league, especially with the addition
of Arvell Reese.
Deonte Banks, Greg Newsome II, and the rest of the corners
deserve a ton of credit for containing the Cowboys’ dynamic receiving duo of CeeDee
Lamb and George Pickens. They held Lamb and Pickens to eight receptions for 72
yards and a touchdown. Overall
Many
expeced that this week two matchup would feature a game between the 0-1 Giants,
and the 1-0 Rams. Coaching plays a big part in winning and losing, and there are
many factors for them to consider for the team and the players. The Giants had
that going for them, and the Rams might have fell short with their travel plans.
This game will be played at at SoFi Stadium, so the well rested Rams won't have
those concerns. The Giants will have to travel and show that can be a force at
home and away. NFC East
Games
Sunday at 1:00pm Eagles (1-0) at
Titans (0-1)
Sunday at 4:00pm Commanders (0-1) at Cowboys (0-1)
Monday at
8:15pm Giants (1-0) at Rams (0-1)
The Eagles and Cowboys are the NFC East
teams favored to win in these games.
Check out.
Giants
On The Air. Listen to the Radio Broadcasts.
TeamGiants on Twitter.
Next Games
Sept
27 Titans at Giants
Oct 4 Cardinals at Giants
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