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New York Giants - Los Angeles Rams Gameday Blog & Community Discussion

Jackson Thompson has live updates for the Giants' Week 4 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams.
Jackson Thompson|
New York Giants - Los Angeles Rams Gameday Blog & Community Discussion
New York Giants - Los Angeles Rams Gameday Blog & Community Discussion

The Giants come into SoFi Stadium to face the Rams limping off of a 36-9 blowout loss to an injury-riddled San Francisco 49ers team. 

For the Giants, a tough opening stretch to the 2020 season will now culminate in a long road matchup against a talented Rams team that will be looking to right the ship themself after a heart-wrenching 35-32 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 3. 

The Giants also have two more injuries of concern: defensive back Jabrill Peppers (ankle)  declared out and defensive back Julian Love (knee/ankle) listed as questionable. 

For the Giants, those losses on defense have compounded the losses of running back Saquon Barkley and wide receiver Sterling Shepard on offense, and they have turned to their practice squad to help make up for those deficiencies. 

The Giants signed undrafted free agents safety Sean Chandler from their practie squad and elevated wide receiver Austin Mack from the practice squad for this game.

First-year head coach Joe Judge has been dealt a tough hand in this matchup, as he tries to lead his team to their first win against a tough and motivated Rams team. 

"I learn a lot about this team every game day," Judge said. "The more you have experience with these guys, the more you find out about them. They’ve been a resilient group up to this point. I’m very proud of the way they work, and they fight together. 

"This team has really put an emphasis on improvement right now on a weekly basis. I see a lot of it on a daily basis. We have to string it together more on Sundays."

Join in on the discussion below as Giants Country's Jackson Thompson (@Jacksonbht) will bring you updates throughout the game with senior editor Patricia Traina (@Patricia_Traina) providing updates as well.

And don't forget to log in and take part in our community chat--simply hit that FOLLOW button in the top right corner and either login if you already have an account or register for a free account, which should take less than 30 seconds to do. 

What To Watch For

  • Giants look to improve to 5-3 all-time vs. the Rams in October.
  • Aim for 5th consecutive win as a visiting team against the Rams.
  • Look to improve to 123-97-2 all-time vs. the NFC West.
  • Aim for 4th consecutive game with at least two sacks.
  • Golden Tate III aims for 6th consecutive game with at least five receptions vs. the Rams. In 11 career games vs. the Rams, Tate III has 47 receptions for 690 yards and six touchdowns.
  • Blake Martinez aims for 3rd consecutive game with a sack.
  • James Bradberry aims for 3rd consecutive game with at least three passes defended. Bradberry’s 56 passes defended are 5th in the NFC since 2016. In 2020, Bradberry leads the NFL with nine passes defended.

Pregame

The Giants are still trying to figure out their run game as they currently rank last in the NFL in rushing by a wide margin. 

With star running back Saquon Barkley currently recovering from a season-ending ACL, the Giants will have a backfield by committee for the rest of the season but they will still need a starter. 

It appears that veteran running back Devonta Freeman, whom the team signed just last week, will take the bulk of snaps for the Giants against the Rams, per ESPN. 

Freeman has had over a week now to digest the Giants' offensive playbook and build up some chemistry with his new teammates, so today's game might mark the Giants' first exposure to what Freeman brings to the offense and how he will fit in for the rest of the season. 

The other main storyline for the Giants' offense will be how quarterback Daniel Jones fares against a star-studded Rams defense and his response to his poor start to 2020. 

For Jones, the frequent turnovers have continued to be a glaring issue in his second NFL season after an offseason where cutting down on those mistakes was his biggest priority.

Jones has 10 career games with multiple turnovers, the most in the NFL since the start of last season. The Giants' offense simply can not function if that turnover rate continues, and whether those numbers change in the coming weeks will reflect heavily on the work of the coaching staff and Jones' viability as a franchise quarterback moving forward. 

Meanwhile, on defense, the Giants' cornerback carousel could continue as Isaac Yiadom is set to make his second straight start at the second cornerback spot opposite James Bradberry. 

Yiadom was benched for poor play down the stretch of last week's game, and if he doesn't play better this week, then the Giants might look to give some reps to their newest cornerback rookie Madre Harper. 

Haper, an undrafted rookie out of Southern Illinois, is active for the Giants today and brings great range and athleticism to the cornerback position. But his poor technique could also get him in trouble if the Giants put him out on the field today. 

Things will be made even more difficult for whoever is playing corner for the Giants than usual due to the absence of safety Jabrill Peppers, who is currently dealing with a low ankle sprain. 

Fellow safety Julian Love will be in the lineup for the Giants on Sunday, but has been dealing with an ankle injury himself this week, which could cause concern for his effectiveness. 

Elsewhere in the NFL, the Giants have been seemingly gifted ideal circumstances prior to the game, as the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Football Team, the two teams tied for first place in the NFC East, are currently down multiple possessions and on the path to 1-3 records if those scores hold. 

This would leave the Giants still just one game out of first place with all six of their divisional games left to play and could possibly set the Giants up for a battle for at least a share of first place in Week 4 against the Cowboys depending on whether the Eagles beat the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football. 

First Quarter

The Giants go backward on their first drive of the game once again as the Giants run three plays of zero or negative yards to fall into a 3rd-and-19. 

The Giants offense has been dramatically unproductive in the first quarter this season, especially on opening drives as they haven't scored an opening-drive touchdown this season and haven't scored in the first quarter at all since Week 1 when a muffed punt by the Steelers put them in chip-shot field-goal range.

Then the Rams march down the field on a 12-play 65-yard drive capped off by a two-yard touchdown run by back up tight end Gerald Everett on a jet sweep.  The Giants' defense is already looking a lot how it looked at the end of last week against the San Francisco 49ers. 

Rams lead 7-0

With as many mistakes as Jones has made so far this season, he continues to be the Giants' only viable answer as a rusher, as he picks up an eight-yard run. The run makes Jones the first Giant this season to amass 100 rushing yards.

Giants linebacker Blake Martinez lays a hit on Everett to force a fumble and cornerback James Bradberry recovers deep inside of Rams' territory. 

The Giants' two big defensive free-agent signings from this offseason have shown up in a big way all season and they have given the Giants their only semblance of momentum early in this game. 

Can Jones and the offense capitalize?

No ... well at least not as much as they needed to.

Jones completes a pass to wide receiver Damion Ratley to pick up the Giants first first-down own of the game. But a false start penalty on veteran offensive linemen Kevin Zeitler and Cameron Fleming pushes the Giants back and an incompletion by Jones on third down forces the Giants to settle for a 35-yard Graham Gano field goal.

Rams lead 7-3.  

The Giants has failed to capitalize on opportunities dating back to Week 1 and it's been the difference in their current losing streak. 

First Quarter

The Giants go backward on their first drive of the game once again as the Giants run three plays of zero or negative yards to fall into a 3rd-and-19.

The Giants offense has been dramatically unproductive in the first quarter this season, especially on opening drives as they haven't scored an opening-drive touchdown this season and haven't scored in the first quarter at all since Week 1 when a muffed punt by the Steelers put them in chip-shot field-goal range.

Then the Rams march down the field on a 12-play 65-yard drive capped off by a two-yard touchdown run by back up tight end Gerald Everett on a jet sweep. The Giants' defense is already looking a lot how it looked at the end of last week against the San Francisco 49ers.

Rams lead 7-0.

With as many mistakes as Jones has made so far this season, he continues to be the Giants' only viable answer as a rusher, as he picks up an eight-yard run. The run makes Jones the first Giant this season to amass 100 rushing yards.

Giants linebacker Blake Martinez lays a hit on Everett to force a fumble and cornerback James Bradberry recovers deep inside of Rams' territory.

The Giants' two big defensive free-agent signings from this offseason have shown up in a big way all season and they have given the Giants their only semblance of momentum early in this game.

Can Jones and the offense capitalize?

No ... well at least not as much as they needed to.

Jones completes a pass to wide receiver Damion Ratley to pick up the Giants first first-down own of the game. But a false start penalty on veteran offensive linemen Kevin Zeitler and Cameron Fleming pushes the Giants back and an incompletion by Jones on third down forces the Giants to settle for a 35-yard Graham Gano field goal.

Rams lead 7-3.

The Giants has failed to capitalize on opportunities dating back to Week 1 and it's been the difference in their current losing streak.

Second Quarter

It's been all of the veteran free-agent signings making plays for the Giants defense so far today, as outside linebacker Kyler Fackrell gets brings down Rams quarterback Jared Goff on third down.

For Fackrell, it's his second sack of the season and give the Giants another big boost of momentum as the offense gets to come back on the field only trailing by four.

Jones is sacked on back-to-back plays to end the drive and has already been sacked a total of four times today.

While the Giants defense has bent today, it doesn't break during the Rams' second trip to the red zone as the Rams are forced to settle for a 32-yard Samuel Sloman field goal. 

Rams lead 10-3. 

Giants rookie offensive tackle Matt Peart is finally getting his first licks as he has come in in place of Fleming, who has played poorly in the early going in run and pass blocking. 

The Giants officially have two rookie offensive tackles in the game up against a stacked Rams defensive front. How they fare today will be a good barometer for their long-term ceiling as a unit going forward. 

With Peart in, the Giants are piecing together their best drive of the game so far as Jones has led the offense into Rams territory on six plays.

Jones's drive stalls at 13 plays, setting up a 37-yard Gano field goal as time expires to cut the Rams lead to just four points before the half. 

Rams lead 10-6. 

Halftime

A strong defensive effort has kept the Giants in the game thus far, and a promising last drive on offense has made the game much more respectable from where it was headed early on. 

The Giants' last drive of the half proved to be a strong equalizer in many aspects, as it cut the Rams time-of-possession lead, as Los Angeles now only boasts a 15:53 to 14:07 time-of-possession advantage and their offensive plays run advantage to 31 to 30. 

Meanwhile, Jones has done his best to make the most out of a bad situation in regard to his pass protection and rushing offense. 

Jones was able to finish the first half without a turnover despite being sacked four times. 

If the Giants can build on the momentum they established toward the end of the first half they have a chance at keeping the game close down to the wire and possibly sneaking away with a huge upset win. 

Third Quarter

Giants rookie linebacker Tae Crowder, this year's Mr. Irrelevent as the 255th pick, appeared to get his first career interception on Goff's first pass of the first half. But after further review, officials deemed that the ball hit the ground and the turnover is overturned. 

While the defense doesn't get the turnover it was hoping for, it still gets off the field on third down again, as the Rams offense stalls around midfield. Jones will come back out with a chance to lead a go-ahead touchdown drive, and will start at his own 20-yard line. 

Giants center Nick Gates and Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald get into a scrap after the whistle and both are called for unnecessary roughness. Both Gates and Donald had positive words to say about each other in the week leading up to the game, but that doesn't appear to be the case here in the third quarter. 

The matchup between Gates and Donald in the interior will get a much brighter spotlight throughout the rest of the game and Gates will have a lot of pressure to contain the All-Pro after giving him some extra motivation. 

Giants edge rusher Oshane Ximines exited the game with a shoulder injury and is questionable to return. Ximines has been the Giants starting outside linebacker but hasn't racked up a sack yet this year. 

With Ximines out, veteran edge rusher Markus Golden comes into the game and makes his presence known right away dropping Rams' rushing leader Darrell Henderson for no gain on a violent hit assisted by defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. 

The Giants defense comes up with another big stop and has played their best game of the season so far. The unit has been just shy of dominant against the run so far as Rams running backs Henderson and Malcom Brown have only combined for 49 rushing yards so far. 

The Rams' only rushing touchdown of the game came on an end-around and was scored by a tight end in Everett. 

The Giants' running game is looking the best its looked all season on their current drive, racking up 38 yards on four carries. The Giants will look to punch it into the endzone and take their first lead of the game when the fourth quarter begins. 

Fourth Quarter 

The Giants drive stalls at the Rams nine-yard line as a Jones pass to the endzone is just a tad too high for wide receiver Darius Slayton. The Giants once again have to settle for a Gano field goal, this one from 27 yards as they cut the lead to one. 

Rams lead 10-9.

The Giants offense has not scored a touchdown for seven straight quarters and its failure to finish in the red zone has doomed the team dating back to last season. With a chance to take a lead. 

The offense once again fails to execute and it could be the missed opportunity that ends up costing them victory in another very winnable game if the Giants defense doesn't continue to dominate. 

Fortunately for the Giants, the defense does in fact continue to dominate as it forces another three-and-out against the Rams offense and Jones will get to once again come back onto the field with a chance to lead a go-ahead drive only trailing by one.

Yes, the Giants only need a field goal to take the lead. Still, missing another opportunity to score a touchdown would be an awful look for the Giants offense today and would leave their defense with a much narrower margin of error in their efforts to get their first win. 

The Giants need to put together a game-winning drive and that likely means they have to get into the endzone and end their dismal touchdown drought. 

Running back Wayne Gallman gives the Giants' offense its longest rushing play of the season on an explosive 26-yard run, which also doubles as the longest run of his career. 

The Giants' offense once again gets stalled again as Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey breaks through a block by running back Dion Lewis to violently bring down wide receiver Golden Tate and force a Giants punt at midfield. 

Ramsey's tackle reeked of added motivation as Tate and Ramsey engaged in a feud last season and are facing each other for the first time since today. 

The Giants' defense breaks as it gives up a 55-yard touchdown pass to Cooper Kupp, extending the Rams lead to eight, the largest lead of the game. 

Rams lead 17-9. 

The Giants missing scoring opportunities early in the game loom large now as they will need a touchdown and two-point conversion just to tie the game. 

The good news for the Giants is they have managed to get the run game going recently and might be able to parlay that momentum into their next drive, as they will need to put together their best drive in seven quarters. 

Otherwise, the Giants are sure to fall to 0-4. 

The Giants don't get the drive they're looking for and fail to convert on fourth down. 

The defense is able to come up with another huge stop and give Jones and the Giants on last chance to get a touchdown with 2:05 left in the game and one timeout. 

Jones won't be able to lean much on the run game here and will need to lead the Giants down the field with his arm. 

Rams cornerback Darius Williams undercuts Jones' pass to wide receiver Damion Ratley and effectively ends the Giants' comeback attempt.

Jones avoided turning the ball over throughout the entire game to this point, but his last pass of the game is intercepted and the Giants will officially go eight quarters without scoring a touchdown. 

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