Rams dismantle Giants, 38-11: Everything we know from Week 6 win

The Rams made the trip across the country to face the Giants on Sunday afternoon, an early 1 p.m. ET kickoff. If the three-hour time difference had any effect on the Rams at all, it didn’t last more than one quarter.

Los Angeles fell behind 3-0 after the Giants’ opening drive and didn’t take their first lead until 10:28 left in the second quarter, but that was the start of their thrashing of New York. The Rams scored 38 unanswered points and cruised to a 38-11 victory on the road, earning their fifth win of the season.

Here’s what we know from Sunday’s win, which moved the Rams to 5-1 and sank New York to 1-5 on the year.

Final score: Rams 38, Giants 11

(AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Game notes

(Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

• The Rams got off to a slow start, getting shut out in the first quarter and falling behind 3-0 early. Their third-down defense was atrocious in the first quarter, allowing conversions on third-and-14 and third-and-8. Fortunately, they got things figured out because for a second, it looked like the Giants might have a chance to pull off the upset.

• There were some highly questionable calls that went against the Rams in this one. Their successful fake punt was called back due to offsetting unsportsmanlike conduct penalties, though the officials never announced who they were on. Darrell Henderson Jr.’s 22-yard run was also nullified by a penalty on Van Jefferson for an illegal block above the waist, which upon review didn’t look like much of an infraction at all. And on the Giants’ first drive, Robert Rochell was initially flagged for pass interference on an uncatchable ball. Thankfully, the officials picked up the flag and didn’t call a penalty, but the officiating crew was not very good in this one.

• Matthew Stafford had a terrific afternoon, only throwing six incompletions and four touchdown passes. He continues to get more and more comfortable in Sean McVay’s offense with each passing week, picking apart the Giants’ defense.

• The defense was all over New York in this one. The shorthanded Giants were held to 261 yards of offense and Daniel Jones was sacked four times for a loss of 41 yards, constantly getting swarmed by the Rams’ pass rush.

• The Rams took the ball away four times, something they never did in a single game last season. They picked off Jones three times and forced a fumble on Ogbonnia Okoronkwo’s sack.

• Los Angeles actually struggled mightily on third down, only going 2-for-11. However, they were 2-for-2 on fourth down, including Stafford’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Kupp in the second quarter.

It was over when...

… Stafford hit Henderson for a 25-yard touchdown just before halftime. That put the Rams up 28-3, and given the Giants’ situation on offense, it essentially clinched the win for the Rams.

There was no way New York was going to come back from 25 points down without Saquon Barkle, Kadarius Toney, Kenny Golladay and Darius Slayton.

3 stars of the game

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Matthew Stafford: 22-for-28, 251 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT

Taylor Rapp: 4 tackles, 1 QB hit, 2 INT, 3 passes defensed

Cooper Kupp: 12 targets, 9 catches, 130 yards, 2 TD

Play of the game

There were a lot of good plays by the Rams in this game, including the one above that Stafford and Henderson made for the team’s fourth touchdown of the afternoon, but this was the biggest. Taylor Rapp picked off Daniel Jones in the second quarter when the Rams were up 14-3, giving the offense great field position.

He read Jones perfectly and returned it to the Giants’ 14-yard line, which Henderson turned into a touchdown four plays later. This was a big turning point, padding the Rams’ lead.

What's next?

The Rams will ride their two-game winning streak into Week 7 when they take on the Detroit Lions at home. It marks Jared Goff and Michael Brockers’ first game against their former team after the Rams traded both players to the Lions this offseason, which adds a layer of intrigue to an otherwise lopsided matchup.

Kickoff next Sunday will be at 4:05 p.m. ET.

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