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Opponent Profile: St. Louis' Pass Rush Poses Giant Threat To Big Blue's Offense

By Curt Macysyn

Yes, the New York Football Giants (5-9) have won two games in a row, but that accomplishment is hardly a cause for celebration. In fact, New York should be riding a three-game winning streak, if not for a second half meltdown in Jacksonville. This week's opponent, the St. Louis Rams (6-8), are in the third year of the Jeff Fisher rebuilding program. A loss to the Giants on Sunday would mean that the Rams could no longer achieve a .500 record, and the team would also be facing the Seattle Seahawks in their season finale.

Even though the Rams play in a difficult division, hopes were high as the team was hoping to see the assets acquired in the blockbuster Robert Griffin III trade to Washington begin to bear fruit under the Gateway Arch. Unfortunately, former franchise quarterback Sam Bradford injured his knee again in the preseason, and the Rams have scuffled to find their equilibrium. 

Tre's Bien

The joke is on Rams' head coach Jeff Fisher because franchise quarterback Sam Bradford was lost for the season with a left knee injury for the second time in two years, and St.Louis did not see fit to put a competent backup in place in 2014. Veteran journeyman Shaun Hill currently starts at quarterback for the Rams, and he completes 59.4 percent (95 of 160) of his passes. He has thrown six touchdowns and four interceptions on the season. If the Rams need for Hill to win them the game, then they may want to rethink that strategy.Hill's quarterback rating is 82.9 in seven games this season, and his latest effort, against the Arizona Cardinals on Dec. 11, garnered him a 58.6 quarterback rating.

The receiving corps is nothing to write home about either, as perennial problem-child Kenny Britt leads the receivers with 607 yards. That total represents a good month for Giants rookie Odell Beckham, Jr. Britt has three touchdown catches on the season, which represents the amount of touchdown receptions that Beckham had last week against the Washington Redskins.

Tight end Jared Cook has 44 receptions for 556 yards and three TDs, as a secondary target. Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin are old college teammates of New York Jets' quarterback Geno Smith, and both are having about as much success as Smith. Bailey has 27 receptions on the season, and Austin has 26 receptions on the year. The passing attack should not instill fear in the hearts of the Giants' defense.

Rookie Tre Mason has taken over the duties at running back for St. Louis. In just ten games this year, he has 660 rushing yards behind a leaky offensive line that lost left tackle Jake Long in the preseason. Mason, who would have been a nice fit in the Giants' scheme, was drafted with the selection right after the G-men selected Jay Bromley in the third round. 

Quinn Is Essential

The Rams have a stout defense that is led by an aggressive front four that should give the Giants offensive line all it can handle on Sunday. Defensive end Robert Quinn leads the team with 10.5 sacks, after accumulating 19 quarterback sacks last season. Defensive tackle Aaron Donald was on some draft boards as the Giants' first round selection, not that anyone should be complaining about how that turned out, and the rookie from Pittsburgh has been impressive with eight quarterback sacks. He is also graded (+32.4) by Pro Football Focus (subscription required), which is number one for all defensive/nose tackles in the NFL. This match-up may feature the NFL offensive (Beckham) and defensive (Donald) NFL rookies of the year.

Inside linebacker James Laurinaitis is a tackling machine with 91 total tackles on the season, but he plays to a (-10.2) grade by Pro Football Focus. Second-year outside linebacker Alec Ogletree leads the Rams in tackling with 93 on the season, and he also has a negative grade (-3.7) from PFF. Eli Manning needs to keep an eye for cornerback Janoris Jenkins. Jenkins has two interceptions on the year, and both picks have gone for six points. In his three-year NFL career, Jenkins has returned five interceptions for touchdowns.

Cornerback Trumaine Johnson has three interceptions to lead the team, and those INTs have come in just seven games. Before you go wow, understand that two of the three came in the week 13 blowout (52-0) of the Oakland Raiders.

Notes

The Rams lead the all time series with the Giants 26-15-0, but New York has won the last five meetings. The series started in 1938 when the Rams called Cleveland their home. The most memorable game of the series was the 1990 NFC playoff game at Giants Stadium, when Rams' receiver Flipper Anderson caught a touchdown in overtime to beat the G-men 19-13 on Jan. 7, 1990.

Rams' receiver Kenny Britt is a native of Hoboken, N.J. and attended Rutgers University. He was the first-ever number one draft pick from the university. Britt was one of five Rams players who did a "hands-up" protest on Nov. 30th before the game against the Oakland Raiders. The former Scarlet Knight was suspended for the first game of the 2012 NFL season, reportedly for numerous incidents involving police. It has been reported in many circles that Britt has had nine incidents involving police since he entered the league in 2009, including a traffic chase in 2011.

For more Giants news and updates, visit Giants Central.

Curt Macysyn has been covering the New York Football Giants for the past two seasons for Examiner.com. Born and raised in northern New Jersey, Curt has followed and covered the New York Metropolitan sports scene for 35 years. He attended Seton Hall Prep School in South Orange, NJ and is a graduate of Rutgers University, New Brunswick. His work can be found on aExaminer.com.

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