MNF Recap: Rams get right over Dart-less Giants
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
29 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 22, 2026
Published
Tue, September 22, 2026
8
Player insights
6
Players mentioned
Topics
Kyren WilliamsMatthew StaffordDavante AdamsJameis WinstonMalik NabersTerrance Ferguson
Player analysis
Player insights
Davante Adams
NegativeProjection22:09
Davante Adams continues to show elite chemistry with Matthew Stafford, particularly in the red zone, where he remains one of the best fade-ball and slant winners in the league.
Insight pageJameis Winston
NegativeProjection4:53
Jameis Winston struggled in relief of Jackson Dart, finishing 11-of-27 passing and 3-of-15 for 54 yards when under pressure. The source notes the 'Jameis experience' lacks its former charm and the offense felt lifeless after the quarterback change.
Insight pageKyren Williams
NegativeUsage19:19
The source expresses concern over Kyren Williams' ball security, noting that his fumble frequency is becoming alarmingly high on a regular basis.
Insight pageNegativeUsage31:59
Kyren Williams recorded another fumble, a trend the source notes is becoming increasingly alarming.
Insight pageMalik Nabers
NegativeUsage5:23
Malik Nabers finished with only one catch for one yard, struggling against Rams cornerback Trent McDuffie, who shadowed him on 21 plays and held him to zero catches on three targets during those matchups.
Insight pageMatthew Stafford
PositiveProjection22:13
The source highlights Stafford's elite ability to attack cover two defenses, noting he previously led the NFL in EPA per dropback against such looks. He remains a top-tier quarterback for exploiting hole shots and fitting tight-window throws.
Insight pageNegativeUsage25:45
Matthew Stafford had a productive game but the source expresses concern over his willingness to scramble at age 38, noting he should prioritize throwing the ball away to avoid injury.
Insight pageTerrance Ferguson
PositiveRole24:56
Despite an uneven performance with drops, the source maintains that Ferguson will be a featured piece of the Rams' passing game. His usage has shifted significantly from last year, as he is now playing more snaps in 11 personnel than he did all of last season, indicating he is a core part of the offensive plan.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00Welcome to The Athletic Football Show. I'm Robert Mays.
0:03Week two is all done. Monday Night Football in the books.
0:06The Rams take care of business against the New York Giants.
0:09Another quarterback injury that we're having to deal with.
0:11Thankfully, it sounds like Jackson Dart is going to be okay.
0:14We really didn't dig into the timeline during this conversation just because it does seem like he's probably going to be back.
0:21Jordan Renant from ESPN reported during the game and Laura Rutwood, who I think did a really good job all game giving
0:27us context about the Dart injury, relayed that he tried to go back into the game.
0:31It doesn't sound like he's serious. Obviously, it doesn't sound serious.
0:35Obviously, he was on the sideline for a good chunk of the second half of that game.
0:39So it does sound like Jackson Dart is going to be back sooner rather than later, but still a bummer to lose
0:46him for the entirety of this game. And you really felt it for the Giants offense.
0:50We dug into that, the return of Aaron Donald, a bounce back game for the Rams offense and much, much more with me, Dave Hellman and Derrik Klassen.
0:58Let's get to it right now. Week two ends exactly as week two began.
1:02What can we just stop doing this? I'm so tired of this.
1:05Can we get through a game? Without one of the starting quarterbacks being helped off the field and us wondering when he's
1:12going to be back and how long he's going to be out and how sad that team's fan should be.
1:17This is nonsense. With the Giants specifically, did any team in the NFL have the most whiplash between week one and week two than the New York Giants?
1:25You look great on offense. Feel great about your young quarterback.
1:28Congratulations. All of your most important players are going to limp off the field at some point in this game.
1:34Because it was neighbors, too. It wasn't like it wasn't just Jackson Dart.
1:38Like the Dart thing is one thing. It's a separate issue.
1:41Andrew Thomas limped off. Brian Burns got hurt at some point in this game.
1:45My God, it was a bloodbath. Burns couldn't get into the injury tent because Thomas was in there.
1:50Like he had to wait. Unbelievable. And that stuff happened later.
1:53You got to make reservations in the blue tent if you're the Giants about a week in advance.
1:58There's something especially heinous about. It happening on like the fourth play of the game or whatever it was for the Giants.
2:04Like, you know, I mean, all injuries are terrible, especially quarterback injuries, but.
2:08At least Caleb got to the fourth quarter and Jaden Daniels got to the end of the half like this game.
2:14Some people weren't even settled into their seats when this happened.
2:17And it just I mean, it takes the air out of everything.
2:21It makes this game hard to evaluate. It makes it way less fun to watch.
2:25Just sucks. He was playing. I mean, they were driving the ball again after he looked really good in week one.
2:31And, you know, I think they're really excited. Just the staff there about what they've seen from him so far.
2:36And even you saw it on the first drive.
2:39The great Roman run game has so many checks and so many layers to it for the quarterback.
2:44He's handling all of that stuff. I mean, coming out of that week one game, I was really excited to watch him play again.
2:51And then for that to be ripped away, the Jameis experience doesn't quite have the charm.
2:55It did like 10 years ago. It's getting much worse.
2:58Yeah, we're done now. There was a stretch where and we don't have to get into all of this, but there was
3:04a stretch where there was a certain enjoyment in watching him play just because there was an aggressiveness.
3:10There was a reckless abandon. There was a we're just going to chuck it down the field.
3:14I mean, 30 touchdown, 30 interception. Jameis is not walking through that door.
3:18And so it really did suck the air out of this game to lose dart when they did.
3:23Jameis won 11 of 27 in this game. Malik Nabors finished with one catch for one yard, which I don't know how much of that is.
3:31We have to go back and watch. But the Rams playing a lot of man coverage.
3:35You know, they really did blanket the Giants offense for most of this game.
3:39But the fact that the Jameis experience is still the promise of it is supposed to be will still feed the guys that you want to see fed.
3:47And Malik Nabors had one catch for one yard by the time this game ended.
3:51How much of that is on the Giants offense and how much of that is because of the injury?
3:57I can't really say at this point. I would just say that Trent McDuffie seemed like he did a hell of a freaking job on him.
4:04You know, I mean, two, two huge moments in this game were Trent McDuffie in coverage on Malik Nabors.
4:09He got the better of him on the end zone interception.
4:12Certainly plenty of that is on the throw by Jameis Winston.
4:16But then the breakup that he had on the deep ball was just an incredibly fun play.
4:20And we talked about it after the Rams opener about just the physicality and the size of these corners.
4:26And that's why you go out and get these guys.
4:29And I was thinking about that on that play where Nabors was looking for a flag.
4:33There was so much contact. But I just I thought it was good, sturdy contact by a big physical DB.
4:39And so maybe no, not maybe it definitely looks better with Jackson Dart, even if the result is similar.
4:44But I do think I think Trent McDuffie had a hell of a night, too.
4:48He was following neighbors in this game. They had 21 plays where they were lined up across from each other on those plays.
4:55Three targets, no catches for bleak neighbors on those plays.
4:58So, yeah, you're right. Trent McDuffie does deserve a lot of credit for that.
5:02But overall, just a pretty lifeless performance from the Giants offense, essentially from the moment we lost Jackson Dart.
5:07And it feels like so much of the promise, too, with the offense was not even just what Dart had looked like in the passing game, obviously.
5:15But I think part of why the run game works and they've been under center a lot.
5:20And like it's a lot of dot formation stuff in their run game.
5:23But part of the run game promise was that you could have Jackson Dart, even if just as like a fake faint threat in the shotgun.
5:31And the fact that that immediately is, you know, pulled out of the offense and they have to go to Jameis Winston,
5:37who other than the fact that I guess these quarterbacks are both like willing to push the ball and be a little bit aggressive.
5:44There's really nothing similar about Jackson Dart and Jameis Winston other than some of their reckless abandoned.
5:49And so having to switch gears like that in the middle of this game with neighbors clearly not at 100 percent, he gets banged up.
5:56It's just like they did feel pretty lifeless after a certain point.
5:59On plays where he was pressured, Jameis finished 3 of 15 for 54 yards in this game.
6:04Let's bring it to the table. I'm glad you brought that up, Maze.
6:07Do you have next gen pulled up right now?
6:10I have it pulled up right now. What were the Rams pressure numbers?
6:1415 percent for Matthew Stafford. OK, no, but what were their numbers on Jameis?
6:18Like how often? 59 percent. He was pressured 59 percent of his drivebacks.
6:21The stat that I had was like it was so low.
6:24I was like, there's no way that's right, because the minute the Rams got ahead by enough that they had to the Giants had to throw.
6:32It just felt like Jameis was under siege. I mean, every single piece of the Rams front was just doing whatever they wanted to those guys.
6:39So I figured it was high, but I'm glad to get confirmation.
6:43And he's like he had some plays where he's holding on to the ball a little bit, but it didn't feel like
6:49every single play like he was holding on to it.
6:52It really did feel like it like they were just getting to him pretty quickly.
6:56Like the promise of the Rams having a bunch of waves in this game, even without Miles Garrett.
7:01I think you saw it tonight. I mean, even on like I hate to like talk about it with this play, but
7:07like the dart play, like it's Josiah Stewart who's like winning around the edge and beating Andrew Thomas.
7:12It's like that's what you hoped for is that your guys off the bench even would be really, really good on this front.
7:19They had four guys to finish with two quick pressures each.
7:22Byron Young, Josiah Stewart, Braden Fisk and Tyler Davis.
7:25And then Donald and McDuffie each added one. Donald got double teamed on 39 percent of his pass rush plays in his first game in two years.
7:32They have not seen him play. And they were like, we're not going to be the team that gets embarrassed first.
7:38By the way, I think it was Joe Buck during this game said that he's 280 right now.
7:43Bullshit. He's like 260 right now. He was probably never 280 when he was playing, really.
7:48He wasn't. And that's the dirty secret is that he played at a much lower weight than he was listed and he was still wrecking shop.
7:55And so the idea that he's 280 right now is very funny.
7:59I would bet some money he is not 280.
8:01And that doesn't take away from what he could potentially be.
8:04Because when he was playing a couple of years ago, that was not his week eight weight while he was the best
8:10defensive player in football, which speaks to just how absolutely ridiculous and one of one all time freak show Aaron Donald actually is.
8:17The fact that the most dominant defensive tackle both of his generation and arguably that we have ever seen was playing at
8:2340 pounds less, 35 pounds less than the average player at that position in the NFL.
8:28And was 35 percent better than almost all of them.
8:31He also I remember it happened like. Very shortly after I saw somebody posted his stats online were just like, you know, he doesn't have a tackle.
8:38He doesn't have a pressure as of yet. And immediately he was in on that TFL in short yardage where him and
8:44Cam curl just shot in and took the back down in the backfield.
8:48And like a the fact that we're like impatiently like tapping our wristwatches in his first game back in two years.
8:54Like, hey, do something incredible idiot. And then he did it like right after that.
8:58It's pretty awesome. I had a lot of he hasn't played football.
9:02He hasn't played any football in three years. That's the thing.
9:05What an unbelievable legacy that you could not play this sport for two years.
9:09And we expect we kind of expected him to like be pretty hot out of the gate.
9:14I think all things considered, he did play like a pretty good game for having not played this sport for two years.
9:20He's unbelievable. He'll ramp up. And it's I mean, he played a decent amount of snaps in this game.
9:25I don't know what the final number was. I can get it for you guys really quickly.
9:30So over the course of this game, he did finish with 32 snaps.
9:34And you look at the defensive line rotation overall.
9:36That's him and Kobe Turner played the exact same number of snaps.
9:4028 for Braden Fisk, 22 for Tyler Davis. And so it really does seem like it's going to be a rotation among all of those guys.
9:47And I would not be surprised if we saw him ramp up, even if it's not in playing time, just in quality
9:53that we feel him more over the course of these games.
9:56Because I think that is the element of this that we probably just haven't talked or considered enough.
10:02The fact that he hasn't just the feel of what it's like to be back out there hitting people, taking on blocks.
10:08Like that's just stuff that it's going to be impossible to replicate, especially in the very short time that he's been practicing.
10:14And so I expect that we will have louder games from Aaron Donald, even if, like you said, Derek, this was a
10:20worthwhile return and a pretty decent performance, all things considered.
10:23Anything else on this side of the ball that you guys want to sit with before we move on?
10:28I do think it's notable that the Rams played as much man coverage in this game as they did.
10:34It's not necessarily surprising. Obviously, you just have a lot less overall movement and moving parts to consider.
10:39I mean, teams don't play man against the Niners for a reason.
10:42I mean, just the amount of motion that you're getting having to deal with McCaffrey.
10:47There are really two players, and I don't have the numbers specifically on this, but anecdotally, when you look at coverage rates
10:53around the NFL and how teams approach certain offenses with certain players, the two guys that make man coverage pretty much a
10:59no-go when they've been at their best or just have been featured pieces within offenses have been Tyree Kill and Christian McCaffrey.
11:05Like, those are the two guys that when those are, and they happen to be in the offenses that use the most motion.
11:12So it's a double whammy. Like, when teams were playing against the Dolphins, there was not a lot of man coverage against Tyree Kill.
11:19When teams were playing against the Chiefs, there was not a lot of man coverage against Tyree Kill.
11:24And same for the Niners. And so to see the Rams ramp it up in this game probably gives us a truer
11:30sense of their intentions and how they want to play after making those moves a corner than what they did against the Niners.
11:36And I don't know if it was just because of the plan or them just feeling better rested, whatever it's going to be.
11:43I just thought the DBs looked better overall. Like McDuffie was.
11:46Yeah. Quentin Lake has been out there. Bigger gap between what we saw in Week 1 and Week 2 than anybody else on that defense.
11:53Quentin Lake was horrendous in Week 1. And part of that is, like, the Niners clearly have an unbelievable plan for what
11:59they're going to do with Mike Evans, and he was cooking him in that sense.
12:04But, like, the fact that Quentin Lake looked like the linchpin middle of the defense piece that we thought he was going
12:10to look like, on top of the corners looking like what you paid for.
12:14And again, like, I think with an 80% neighbors who even got banged up in this game and the rest of the
12:20Giants receiving core, we'll see how well that plays out over the course of the season.
12:25But the fact that, like, already they've proven that this is something they can go to, it's, again, how much it's going
12:31to matter after doing it against this team, I don't know.
12:34I don't think they could have even really done this last year with the corners that they had.
12:39Like, with Kobe Durant and Emmanuel Forbes being your starting guys, like, it just wasn't going to work, I don't think.
12:45It's the last thing you want to do. You have to play the exact opposite way with those guys.
12:50And so, again, I just, I think people were confused and a little bit, it was a curious outing in week one
12:57when they didn't play much man coverage, considering the moves that they made at corner.
13:01But again, I wasn't surprised because it was the Niners.
13:04And so, do they play it 50% of the time the way that they did tonight moving forward?
13:09I would say, I would guess probably not. My assumption is it probably lands somewhere between what we saw in week one and what we saw tonight.
13:16But this was an example and I think a declaration from Krishula that they're not going to be afraid to do it when the situation calls for it.
13:24On the other side of the ball, the Rams offense looks like the Rams offense without Pukunakua.
13:29Devontae Adams, Matthew Stafford to Devontae Adams is just very, not even quietly, but is just a connection between two of the
13:35coolest players who played in the NFL over the last 15 years.
13:39Like, that touchdown is, it just, in that moment, I was just like, oh yeah, these are two of the coolest dudes
13:45that have played professional football in the last decade.
13:48Which one? Because they were both pretty sick. Oh, the first one.
13:51The first one was so disgusting. But I loved the fade too.
13:54But yeah, the first one was better. The fade is just what they've, that's been their red zone for the last two seasons.
14:01It kicks ass. Even when Pukunakua has been playing.
14:03The cool part of that is, like, as soon as he threw it up, you're just like, got it.
14:09Like, in the bag. Like, cash it. It's just like, the fact that the connection feels like that when they're inside the 10.
14:15Like, that part is pretty special. Is he the best red zone receiver of all time that's not taller than, like, 6'4"?
14:22I mean, the stats are hard to argue with.
14:24JSN currently is pretty nuts. That's a good one.
14:27We talked about that today. We talked about that today.
14:30We talked about that today. Like, he's pretty good.
14:32He too, like, I feel like it's a little bit different.
14:35Devontae is like... Oh, it's very different. The way they do it is so different.
14:39On, like, the fades and just, like, the quick release stuff, Devontae's better.
14:43I feel like JSN is somehow always open in the back of the end zone.
14:47Like, on the back line, he's just always open.
14:50And so, I guess it's a little bit different.
14:53But, like, he really is, like, the best just fade ball or bullet slant winner for, again, a guy who's not...
14:58Like, he's not small, but he's not Mike Evans.
15:01And so, it is a pretty fun distinction. The Discord folks are going to love hearing this.
15:06And, yeah, hearing some JSN love on the Hangover tomorrow.
15:09Oh, we did, like, the whole show. We were levitating.
15:11We were levitating today talking about JSN levitating. That's what the entire conversation was between me and Derek about the game that JSN had yesterday.
15:19All right, before we move on, let's take a quick break.
15:22The other elements of the offense, aside from that connection, which was beautiful throughout the game, I mean, several just stake-to-the-heart explosives
15:28between Matthew Stafford and Devontae Adams over the course of this game.
15:31Really nice to see them back running the ball the way they were able to in this game.
15:36I mean, I don't know where exactly they finished.
15:39It was north of 55% rushing success rate on the ground.
15:4254.2, 28 carries for 163 yards, 5.8 a carry.
15:45And even that, I think, is dragged down a little bit by multiple Matthew Stafford runs in this game, which, no.
15:51At this point, just throw the ball out of bounds.
15:53Like, there is nothing in professional football right now that is less worth it than whatever he is going to do outside
16:00of the pocket with his legs on those plays.
16:02Just take the L. Like, I don't even care about the two yards.
16:06Just throw the ball out of bounds and go to second and 10.
16:10I do think that's the right approach from him in those moments.
16:13He had multiple scrambles in this game. We don't need those.
16:16He collided with the equipment cart. That can't happen.
16:19That cannot happen. He needs, like, a get-back coach or something.
16:22Somebody needs to remind him of that. And I love the competitive spirit.
16:25I love that he's willing to do that stuff at 38 years old.
16:29But we're losing quarterbacks left and right in the NFL this week.
16:33We do not need it to be Matthew Stafford.
16:35Yeah, that was one of the only flaws I could come up with in his game.
16:40Other than, I mean, the interception to Devontae was just really funny because he was like, is it open?
16:45No, it's not open. Ah, screw it. He might get it anyway.
16:48And then Javon Holland, if you're looking for a bright spot for this Giants team, Javon Holland was all over the damn place in this game.
16:56Tried to punch out the fumble like three different times.
16:59He had two forced fumbles and the pick of Stafford.
17:01To steal a Dave Hellmanism that you like, classic too much dip on his chip moment from Matthew Stafford on that interception.
17:08That is an ultimate heat check after the way the first couple drives have been going.
17:12It's kind of charming when you are that hot where you're just like, ah.
17:16I'll let him have that one. What are you going to do?
17:20This is the thing. Between that and the scrambling, we just have to accept that he's more 40-year-old Brett Favre than 40-year-old Aaron Rodgers.
17:26And that's just going to be what it's going to be.
17:29The staff, their scrambling is a no-go. If you want to throw one gross pick against a team that you're clearly outclassing
17:36and you're just kind of playing with your food over the course of these four quarters, which it did feel like the
17:42Rams were for stretches of that first half, it was sloppier than it needed to be.
17:46That's fine. But I remember when we were watching Philip Rivers in like 2019 and 2020, we joked that there was a
17:53force field around the line of scrimmage where it was impossible for him to move past the line of scrimmage.
17:58He would get an electric shock like a dog.
18:01That's what I want with Matthew Stafford. We should just have a shock collar on him but if he moves past the line of scrimmage, he gets buzzed.
18:09I'm glad you said that though because we talked about this in the preview.
18:13Like the standards we're holding this team to are unreal for good reason.
18:17And by the way, one thing I wanted to add about the Rams defense, in the third or fourth quarter, they just
18:23cut to Miles Garrett hanging out in a hospitality suite.
18:26And I was like, oh, right. He's just, he's not even doing this.
18:29And so this team has... It's weird seeing him in street clothes.
18:33Miles, I know. He's so huge. It just, he looks like Chris Evans in the Captain America movies.
18:38That's what he looks like when he's just standing there.
18:41He's wearing like a very nice tailored dress shirt and I was like, I bet they had to sew like three shirts
18:47together to put it on that guy. Like I bet that thing's the size of like a fumigation tarp.
18:52That's actually not what I meant. He looks like the animated CGI Bruce, like Hulk.
18:56Yeah. When he's wearing human clothes. That's what Miles Garrett looks like when he's just wearing like a fucking...
19:02He's got to be bigger than that. He is 280 something.
19:05There's no way. The point I wanted to make at the, like at the start of that though, was the expectations that come with this team.
19:12I think it's okay to say, yeah, they were bullshitting around for a little bit in the early going of this game.
19:19Like you had the Stafford heat check interception. Kyron had another fumble, which that number gets more alarmingly high on a regular basis.
19:25And they had a couple just very, I mean, they went three and out or like four and out to start this game.
19:32They had a couple very herky-jerky drives. And I remember thinking when Stafford got sacked early in the third quarter, I was
19:38like, what's going on with these guys? And then immediately it's like they asked themselves the same question and they just ripped
19:44off like four 20-yard gains in a row and scored a touchdown, which it's really nice to see that gear, but a little more consistency would be nice.
19:52Yeah, there were some frustrating stretches of this game, but again, they ended with a 56% success rate.
19:57They averaged 8.2 yards per play. By the time the game wrapped up, they got it together.
20:02They were cooking. I honestly, too, one thing I didn't even really, I wasn't really tracking this in like real time, but
20:08as I went back and through my notes, it was kind of interesting to me.
20:12So many of their best plays were against cover two, or at least cover two to like whatever side, like the big
20:19Devontae Adams, like he's starting to run that corner, turns it back up.
20:22It's like, well, he's just crossing the face of the deep safety.
20:26Two of their touchdowns in the red zone were also like cover two beaters.
20:30Like the Kyron touchdown is super cool. I thought like disgusting design.
20:33Absolutely disgusting, especially against a rookie linebacker. And so they get one guy running out into the flat.
20:38He holds the corner and then they get, I think it was one of the tight ends, maybe Ferguson runs like that
20:44deep, like 10 yards starts to bend. And so Reese is sitting there in the curl and he's like, well, I have
20:51to let this go vertical and I need to help my safety a little bit.
20:55So he's sitting there, but then once it passes, he just gets a little bit flat footed and he's like, well, now what?
21:01And Kyron just sprints past him up the seam and that's a touchdown.
21:05And then the Ferguson touchdown, where Matthew Stafford just uses his eyes, gets the pole runner to look one way and he rips it back the other way.
21:13Like just the fact, I just thought it was like, I didn't track it in real time that all of their best
21:19plays were against cover two, but in the league that we live in now, like that's where you got to hunt your best plays.
21:26And they, I thought did an incredible job today.
21:29We don't talk about them in quite the same way as the Niners when it comes to how dangerous they are when
21:35they can get five out in the route and how good they are manipulating and attacking space, but they are one of those teams.
21:42They just do it in slightly different ways. Like their ability to get more guys out in the route than you might
21:48expect off play action is a defining character of this offense.
21:51And so those plays you're talking about are perfect examples.
21:54Like when you watch the Ferguson touchdown, they have, it's Ferguson's on like a short post.
21:58Adams is coming on one behind him. They have Kyron on the right side, either in the backfield or kind of like,
22:05he's off set, but he's a little bit wide.
22:07He's almost like to the tackle. He runs a little angle route that kind of yanks down Tremaine Edmonds in that spot.
22:13And that creates the space right behind Tremaine Edmonds for Stafford to fit that throw into Terrence Ferguson.
22:18And so you're right. I mean, a lot of their best moments in this game came on looks like that, but this
22:25offense I think is well equipped to attack those sorts of things.
22:28I think a couple of years ago, it was either last year or the year before, Stafford led the NFL in EPA
22:34per drop back against cover two looks, which is not surprising at all.
22:38I mean, you think about who in the league is most capable and committed to attacking hole shots.
22:43Matthew Stafford is probably at the top of that list.
22:46It's attacking the hole shots. And also like, sometimes you got to throw it right under that safety when he might drive down.
22:52Stafford's like, yeah, of course I can fit it in there.
22:56Why wouldn't I be able to? Yeah, obviously. Nice to see the Terrence Ferguson experience.
23:00A little bit of a mixed bag in this game.
23:03That's where I was about to go. Remember last September when the red zone stuff with Devante was not working and they just kept doing it?
23:10That's how I felt about Terrence Ferguson in this game where they just couldn't get on the same page.
23:15And then in the second half, he had two drops in a row.
23:19One of them, maybe less his fault. The first one is not his fault.
23:23That one gets tipped. I mean, that's a tough catch.
23:26I was about to say that. It was a tougher catch because it glanced off Jermaine Edmonds' helmet.
23:31But he still, they just couldn't get it right.
23:34And it kept happening. And I just was imagining McVay and Stafford being like, we can't afford to not target you.
23:40So we're just going to keep doing it. And then they get through it.
23:43We're just going to pretend this isn't happening. And it worked.
23:47They got a touchdown at the end. The one that he, the one that he actually, so he had one play early in the game.
23:54We didn't get his head around quick enough. Stafford puts it on him.
23:57That ball goes incomplete. The one glances off of Jermaine Edmonds' helmet.
24:01Both of those are bang, bang plays. You'd like to see them made.
24:04The fact that they were is like, kind of whatever.
24:07The one he drops on the left sideline, is particularly, that's particularly tough.
24:11Because that is an insane throw by Matthew Stafford.
24:14That ball was thrown like three steps before Terrence Ferguson's out of his break.
24:17It is perfectly placed. And he somehow doesn't come, isn't able to hang out onto that one.
24:22Which, that was the one that was most frustrating.
24:25Like, that's a play that you have to make.
24:27But the fact that they came back to him multiple times on the next drive, I think that he's going to be part of their plans.
24:35And they can't afford for him to lose faith at this point in the season.
24:39I mean, not to, I'm not being flippant to shit on the Giants, but in a game where it's in hand and
24:45you are very confident you're not going to let it slip, get the young guys some work.
24:50Target Terrence Ferguson. Get him in a flow and get those opportunities in a situation where the stakes aren't very high.
24:56The other thing that I think is worth pointing out, he, last year he was, his usage was incredibly specific.
25:02Like, he was out there when they were in 13 personnel.
25:05He was the vertical player in those looks. Now, I can't remember who it was and I apologize for not getting this
25:11right, but he played more snaps in 11 personnel in the first two weeks than he did like all of last season.
25:17And so he's just going to be a more featured piece within their passing game because of the things that they're asking
25:23him to do than he ever was last year.
25:26And that was a thought coming in. I mean, I thought he might have a pretty productive year.
25:31And even if tonight was a little uneven, I don't think the first half usage from last week and then just the
25:37overall snap share and how often he was on the field tonight, nothing that I've seen over the first two games leads
25:44me to think he's not going to be a big part of what they're trying to do offensively.
25:49Anything else you guys want to hit from this one?
25:52Kind of a stinker coming out of week two, huh?
25:54I do have something else. Let's talk about special teams, specifically the Rams special teams, specifically, again, if this was anybody else,
26:01I don't think I'd care, but it's Super Bowl or bust for the LA Rams.
26:05And they missed a field goal in the two minute drive, which could have been so incredibly impressive if they had pulled it off.
26:12It didn't need to be that hard. Sean McVay wasted a timeout challenging a virtual spot, which even knowing that Sean Vay
26:18loves burning timeouts, that one kind of took my breath away.
26:21And so like the end of half field goal situation doesn't go your way.
26:25And then they botched the third quarter kickoff and pinned themselves on their own tin of their own doing.
26:30And it's just not, it's not what I want from the team that said that they're improving their special teams.
26:36It's a nitpick after you win comfortably on Monday Night Football.
26:39It's important though. Yeah, it is. It literally lost them the Seahawks game last year.
26:43Like it's going to matter. You cannot let this shit go with the considering the margins that are going to define this
26:50team's season and what they have to do to be successful.
26:53I would be pissed if I were Sean McVay and not knowing Sean McVay, he probably is.
26:58I want to be very clear about what I'm about to do.
27:01I'm not making fun of this person because I'm not in the best shape of all time.
27:06It is very funny the way that we're talking about Miles Garrett and then every time they flashed to Meebus before he's about to kick off.
27:13He looks like somebody that's playing a beer league football game.
27:16It's just the gap between some of the players wearing that uniform over the course of this game for the Rams is just very funny to me.
27:24Every time I see him, I'm like, good for him.
27:27It's a perfect sport. Good for him, man. It's like some version of like when Derek Henry and Deion Lewis played on
27:33the same team together and it's like, how are these two doing the same thing?
27:37I need the sideline shot of Miles Garrett standing next to him or just like him standing between Miles Garrett and Aaron
27:43Donald, three of the most beautiful specimens that have ever played this sport that we love.
27:48All right, that's all we've got for tonight. If you're listening to this on the podcast feed, the Monday Hangover should be available to you guys right now.
27:56Derek and I, as we said a little bit earlier, dug into Seahawks Cardinals, talked about Chiefs Colts.
28:01It's so nice that the Chiefs offense is fun to watch again.
28:04I just am so happy that the Chiefs are an enjoyable team to watch again.
28:09It makes my Sundays so much better. And then we also chatted a little bit about Steelers-Patriots, which has the exact opposite
28:15sort of feel to the conversation that we had about the Chiefs.
28:18So those are the three games that we hit.
28:21Encourage you guys to go check that out if you have not.
28:24For now, that's all we got. Appreciate you listening.
28:27We'll talk to you very soon. Thanks for tuning in.
28:30Make sure to hit that subscribe or follow button so you never miss an episode.
28:34If you enjoyed what you heard, please like, comment, and leave a rating.
28:38We'll see you next time.
