Rams Bounce Back in Dominant Fashion With 28-6 Win Over Giants

The Los Angeles Rams entered Week 2 against the New York Giants with their backs against the wall. However, with no Puka Nacua and no Myles Garrett, the Rams had no problem beating the Giants on Monday Night Football, winning 28-6.

Without Nacua, the offseason work that Matthew Stafford and Davante Adams put together showed up on the field. Stafford and Adams connected eight times for 195 yards and two touchdowns, with Adams finishing 11 yards shy of his career high.

Stafford bounced back after a Week 1 performance that wasn’t up to his standard. He finished 22-for-31 for 327 yards and four touchdowns. Stafford also passed Philip Rivers for sixth all-time in NFL history in touchdown passes.

While it took a few drives for the Rams to get going, the offense eventually looked like the unit many expected to see coming into the year. The Rams found explosive plays with running back Blake Corum and Davante Adams to get into scoring range. Finally, Stafford hit Davante Adams over the middle from 31 yards out to score.

Matthew Stafford with a strike to Davante Adams for the TD 🎯@NYGvsLAR on ESPN
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/zFXrkI6gkg
— NFL (@NFL) September 22, 2026

On the next drive, Stafford hit Adams again, this time for 61 yards to set up a touchdown pass to Kyren Williams. It was the old man show in Los Angeles as the 38-year-old quarterback consistently connected with the 33-year-old wide receiver. After struggling to find any rhythm last week, the Rams led 14-0 and looked to be on their way to an early blowout.

When the Rams were without Nacua last season against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the offense put together one of its most efficient performance. In that game Stafford found 10 different wid receivers. He may have only completed a pass to nine different wide receivers, but the result was the same.

Out of his first 10 completions, four went to Adams, three went to Terrance Ferguson, two went to Williams, and one to Colby Parkinson. No wide receiver outside of Adams had a reception in the first half.

After coming into the game facing a lot of criticism following their performance against the San Francisco 49ers, the defense came to play. With Aaron Donald making his debut after two years away, defensive coordinator Chris Shula called a much more aggressive game.

The defense played much tighter and Shula brought the blitz on third down more often. They also kept the Giants’ run game in check after getting gashed by the 49ers. While the pass rush didn’t impact the game last week, they consistently got after the Giants’ quarterbacks. Undrafted free agent and preseason standout Wesley Bailey got his first career sack and Byron Young added a sack of his own later on.

Wesley Bailey gets his first career sack in primetime. 💪

📺 @ESPNNFL | #RamsHouse pic.twitter.com/AQQHc3uPrF
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 22, 2026

Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart left the game on the first drive with a knee injury and didn’t return. With Jameis Winston under center, the Rams’ defense gave the veteran quarterback a lot of issues throughout the game. He completed just four of his first 12 passes, including an interception in the red zone to Trent McDuffie. Winston finished 11-for-27 for 111 yards.

Every time the Rams had an opportunity to put the Giants away in the first half, self-inflicted errors kept their opponent in it. Much like last week after the defense intercepted Brock Purdy, Stafford immediately gave the ball right back with an interception of his own, forcing the ball downfield to Adams.

When the offense had an opportunity to put together a drive at the end of the half, Kyren Williams fumbled at the Rams’ own 11-yard line to set up the Giants in scoring range. On the next drive, the Rams found some urgency and got into scoring range following the Giants’ field goal. However, Harrison Mevis missed a 43-yard field goal. Instead of taking a commanding lead into the half, the Rams led 14-3.

The connection between Stafford and Adams continued into the second half. Stafford found Adams three times for 50 yards and a touchdown to put the Rams ahead 21-3 in the third quarter.

As the defense continued to show up and get to Winston and the Giants’ offense, Stafford and the offense found the end zone once again in the fourth quarter. Stafford hit Ferguson in the back of the end zone to give the Rams a 28-6 lead. Ferguson’s six receptions in the game marked a career high. While the second-year tight end had a few missed opportunities, the upside was evident.

Matthew Stafford finds Terrance Ferguson for his 4th TD of the night 💰

(via @RamsNFL)pic.twitter.com/cuqZKTY389
— ESPN (@espn) September 22, 2026

It may not have been pretty or perfect, but this was exactly the type of win the Rams needed after their Week 1 loss. Even with Dart sidelined, Winston struggled against the Rams’ defense all night.

The Rams still have their kinks to work out, and it’s too early to say they are back to being a Super Bowl favorite. However, it was too early to say they were finished after their loss last week. At the very least, in a must-win game, the Rams did just that. They won a game they were supposed to win and were dominant defensively and efficient enough on offense when it mattered without their best playmaker.

Now, they’ll have a short week before heading to Denver to play the Broncos on Sunday Night Football in Week 3. This is exactly the type of win the Rams needed to give them some confidence as they enter one of their most difficult stretches of the season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google