Rams face new kind of test against Giants

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The Rams faced a test over the past three weeks, and earned a passing grade by going 2-1.

They face a different sort of test in the next three, and this time nothing short of perfect will suffice.

By beating the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and NFC West champion Seattle Seahawks – on either side of a loss to the hot-starting division rival Arizona Cardinals – the Rams established themselves as conference title contenders.

Now they play the New York Giants on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, followed by the equally overmatched Detroit Lions at home and Houston Texans on the road, and must show they’re ruthless enough to pile up wins for the playoff chase.

The Rams (4-1) are 8½-point favorites over the Giants (1-4). Giants leading rusher Saquon Barkley and leading yardage receiver Kenny Golladay are out with injuries, and quarterback Daniel Jones is coming off a concussion. The biggest threat to the Rams might be the risk of a letdown.

Coach Sean McVay talks as if that’s unthinkable.

“Let’s put it this way. We’ve got the wrong guys if I have to convince them that they need to be ready to show up in this three-hour window of time,” McVay said this week. “There’s guys that get paid that are ready to step up if they’re (the Giants) missing some of their key players.

“We’re not the team that I think we are if we’re not able to handle them with that maturity, and let that affect our process and our ability to focus and concentrate.

“That’s the furthest thing from my mind.”

McVay doesn’t think it was a letdown, more like a reminder of how competitive the NFL is, when the Rams lost to the New York Jets as 17½-point favorites last December.

Nor did McVay see it as a lack of effort or concentration when the Rams needed a late defensive stand to squeak out a low-scoring victory over these Giants last October.

But whatever it was, the Rams’ trouble in gimme games in 2020 cost them in the playoff seedings, and the next three games will be a test of whether they’ve fixed that personality problem.

“We just got to stick to a game plan, do our jobs,” Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald said. “You can’t go in there saying, ‘We got a better record,’ or this and that. That’s how you tend not to play good games and end up losing to teams.”

Instead of simply guarding against a letdown, the Rams should look at the opportunity in front of them.

If they beat the Giants, beat Jared Goff and the Lions at SoFi Stadium, and beat the Texans on the road, the Rams will be 7-1 before a Sunday night home game against the Tennessee Titans and have a chance to be 8-1 going into their next NFC West game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara.

With the 5-0 Cardinals having to face the Cleveland Browns (away) and Green Bay Packers in their next three games, the Rams could pull into a first-place tie on wins and losses by the end of October, or even lead the division outright.

“The biggest thing for us is always trying to strive to play that game, that full game. No matter who our opponent is, it doesn’t matter,” Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “You flip the tape on, you watch New York play. I’m watching their defense, and their defense flies around.”

Nevertheless, the Giants rank 26th in points allowed and 29th in yards allowed.

The Giants’ offense has been better, but after the injuries, it will need another big game from rookie wide receiver Kadarius Toney, who caught 10 passes for 189 yards in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys last Sunday.

That’s not impossible, with the Rams’ secondary facing at least three weeks without cornerback Darious Williams (ankle), whose interception sealed their victory over the Giants last season.

In football terms, the Rams’ character has changed since that 17-9 win. They had the NFL’s leading defense then, making up for Goff’s inconsistent offense. The defense is giving up yardage in chunks now, but Stafford leads an improved offense.

“You’ve got to be alert. This guy loves the 50-50 balls down the field. A guy with arm strength like that, he’s got a lot of confidence to zip it in there and take a chance of completing it. Their receivers have done a really good job this year of making those contested catches, making a lot of big plays right there.”

They’ve done it against the Super Bowl and NFC West champs. Now, can they do it against an NFC doormat? It’s a chance they can’t let get away.

“We’ll have a big challenge (in) going on the road to a tough environment,” Stafford said. “We’re excited about the opportunity to just go out there and try and get a win.”