Giants vs. Rams: Big Blue’s Ultimate ‘Bully Ball’ Litmus Test

Although the New York Giants’ 2026 schedule is just days away from being released and figures to be easier than the hardest slate the NFL handed them last fall, one element many fans want to know is when the organization will have to go through a miniature gauntlet in the NFC West.

While the division had three of its four teams enter the postseason dance at the end of the regular season, there was a good case to be made that the most impressive team was the Los Angeles Rams, whom the Giants will travel to SoFi Stadium to face this season.

No, the Rams did not finish as the lone team at the pinnacle of the sport–a distinction that went to their rivals in the Seattle Seahawks, who defeated them in the conference championship game before beating the Patriots in Super Bowl LX–but they did boast one of the league’s high-potent offenses that ran through the majority of their opponents in a 12-5 campaign.

Led by veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford, who seemed to be playing with a youthful resurgence in his 17th pro season, and a collection of high-profile weapons, the Rams led the NFL in both total points and yards, with both feats pushed by their scary aerial attack that averaged 268.1 yards per contest and recorded a whopping 46 touchdowns in a 17-game span.

Those eye-popping metrics didn’t mean the Rams played at a subpar level elsewhere. Instead, they also held court among the top-10 franchises in rushing yards and yards per attempt, both helping them convert late downs and redzone scores at a similar level throughout the season.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Rams have been spearheaded by some of the game's best tone setters on the defensive front and ballhawks keeping watch in the deep end. The latter has undergone noticeable change during free agency and the draft, but in a way that will make the unit even tougher to sneak big plays past them on a regular basis.

For the Giants, who’ve been working fast to revamp their roster with high-impact players on both sides that will help them win more games in 2026, how they fare in their four matchups in the West Division, particularly against the Rams, could dictate how far they go and how serious a playoff contender the rest of the league should take them in year one under John Harbaugh.

Series History

The Giants and Rams have met each other 47 times, dating back to the 1938 season, when the latter franchise was still known as the Cleveland Rams until 1945. They’ve also met twice in the postseason: once in the 1984 NFC Wild Card round and six years later in the 1990 NFC Divisional round, which had split victors.

Entering the 2026 season, Los Angeles holds a commanding 30-17 advantage over New York in the all-time series and has won the last four meetings dating back to the 2017 season, including two games by more than 27 points.

Their last matchup came during the 2023 campaign, when the Rams traveled to MetLife Stadium and defeated the Giants 26-25 in Week 17. The Giants trailed 20-10 in the third quarter before going on a 15-6 run to make it a one-point game in the final seconds, but a failed 2-point conversion attempt helped the Rams fly back to the West Coast with the win.

The last time the Giants defeated the Rams came on the road in 2016, a 37-27 victory that also marked the end of a seven-game winning streak that started when the Rams were still in St. Louis. Their last home win over the Rams came in 2011, a 28-16 finish.

Most Memorable Games

Dec. 23, 1984: The Giants, who had lost their Week 5 regular-season date against the Rams 33-12, came through when it counted most thanks to a stellar Big Blue defensive effort in the 1984 Wild Card game.  The Giants, who won the game 16-13, got three field goals from kicker Ali Haji-Sheikh and a 1-yard rushing touchdown from Rob Carpenter as New York was outgained in total yards, 192 to 214.  

Sept. 25, 1988: The Giants and Rams engaged in a scoring shootout that saw quarterback Jim Everett throw five touchdown passes to five different receivers en route to a 45-31 win and a 4-0 start.  

Jan. 7, 1990: The Rams pulled off a major upset in overtime against the heavily favored Giants in the 1989 NFC Divisional playoff round. The straw that broke the Giants was quarterback Jim Everett’s 30-yard walk-off touchdown pass to receiver Flipper Anderson, which gave the Rams a 19-13 win in overtime.  

Sept. 19, 2011: In their first Monday Night Football home appearance in eight years, the Giants trounced the Rams 28-16 to go 1-1 on the season that would later see Big Blue make it all the way to their fifth  Super Bowl berth and their fourth championship.

Key Additions 

CB Jaylen Watson

After a couple of members of their own secondary hit the open market as free agents, the Rams were among the most aggressive pursuers of the few elite cornerbacks available. They landed quite a big fish in Jaylen Watson, who was also a name on the Giants’ radar.

One of the headliners for a Kansas City Chiefs defense that ranked fourth in coverage grade last season, Watson finished with the 14th-highest rating among positional players with at least 500 coverage snaps. He held opposing receivers to a 59.3% completion rate for 447 yards and allowed zero touchdowns while forcing two interceptions.

Watson also flashed abilities to line up in the box or along the line of scrimmage to shut down run plays and put some exotic blitzes on the opposing quarterback. He has the perfect size and intangibles to continue growing into a really crafty man-coverage defender in the Rams system.

CB Trent McDuffie

As if it wasn’t enough to just snag one elite Chiefs ballhawk to improve their ranks, the Rams made a second big splash for their secondary by trading for the All-Pro Trent McDuffie in one of the biggest trades of the offseason.

McDuffie, a 2022 first-round pick by the Chiefs, was a stud within their coverage operation, posting marks above 74.7 in each of his four NFL seasons thanks to his physical traits and versatility. He was tasked with playing on the perimeter, in the slot, and with a sprinkling of snaps at nickel, and in each role, he has outlasted the competition and made it hard to score big plays against him.

Last season, McDuffie appeared in 688 coverage snaps for the Chiefs, posting the aforementioned grade while keeping opposing receivers below a 67.3% completion rate for the third season of his career. His efficiency near the endzone could use some improvement, but he boasted solid tackling to limit foes to 130 yards after the catch and nine missed tackles over the last two seasons.

McDuffie is a two-time Super Bowl champion and a two-time All-Pro defender who will bring valuable experience and skills to the Rams' third level, which needs them more than ever.

SAF Kam Curl

For the finishing touch on the trifecta of their offseason secondary moves, Kam Curl rejoins the Rams on a three-year, $36 million deal that has the potential to jump to $39 million with playing incentives added onto the contract.

Both parties wanted Curl, a 2020 seventh-round pick by Washington, to remain with the franchise as he has developed into a true cornerstone for their defense. In 33 games with Los Angeles, the 27-year-old safety has notched at least 79 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and 14 pass deflections.

The Rams can play Kurl at both strong and free safety, or throw him into the box to add an extra body and shut down the run before it can take off from the gaps. Kurl earned his career-best 84.7 run defense grade while limiting himself to an 8.5% missed tackle rate with 32 stops in 2025.

The hope is that Kurl completes a trio of ballhawks who can produce at a high volume and turn the Los Angeles secondary into one of the toughest assignments for any offense seeking to be explosive.

LS Joe Cardona

The Rams needed to find a new long snapper for their special teams department and landed a veteran player in Joe Cardona on a two-year deal pretty early in free agency.

A former fifth-round pick by the New England Patriots out of Navy, Cardona’s academy background has molded him into an exceptional leader and a durable tool that helped the Patriots’ third phase capture two Super Bowl titles during his first NFL stint.

Cardona, who has snapped the ball for an impressive 1,550 snaps over his decade-long pro career, spent one season with the Dolphins in 2025 and posted a modest 59.9 special teams grade as a contributor to their punt coverage unit, where he also made four tackles.

TE Max Klare

Given the Rams have been an offense that likes to deploy multiple tight ends as big-body pass targets over the middle of the field, it made sense for them to add one more top college prospect in Ohio State’s Max Klare to join forces with Colby Parkinson and Tyler Higbee.

Klare, the No. 61 pick in the second round of April’s draft, spent his first two seasons at Purdue before transferring to the Buckeyes program last season. He is a super-sized and athletic specimen at 6-foot-5 and 243 pounds, hauling down 43 targets for 448 (10.4 average) and four touchdowns to prove that he can be a solid vertical threat and trusted guy in the endzone.

The rookie will have to earn his reps in a room with two veteran options ahead of him, but with good hands that dropped only 2 passes in 2025, Klare could be a special role player the Rams throw into the mix in certain situations to impact the aerial attack.

Key Losses

CB Cobie Durant 

Before the Rams re-upped in their defensive secondary, one of their biggest free agent departures came from one of their two starting perimeter corners in Cobie Durant. He was a former fourth-round pick in 2022 out of Mississippi State and arguably the team’s best zone coverage player, who was key in their unit, allowing the 12th-lowest yards per completion during the 2025 season.

In three years with Los Angeles, Durant’s workload grew to 819 coverage snaps, where he held opponents to a 58.6% completion rate and allowed less than 370 yards and two touchdowns in two of them. His tackling was among the best on the team (10.9% missed tackle rate), and he was able to force three interceptions to show some prowess at taking away scoring chances.

Durant’s man coverage skills, especially near the endzone against elite receivers, became a little bit of an issue for the Rams as he gave up a career-high five touchdowns against the more talented receivers in his division, leading to the franchise searching elsewhere for a No. 1 guy.

CB Ahkello Witherspoon

Ahkello Witherspoon was a role player in the Rams’ secondary rotation during his three seasons with the organization and was more of a stronger-man coverage asset to complement the weaknesses of other cornerbacks, such as Cobie Durant.

Witherspoon, who also spent time with the San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers, appeared in six games for the Rams' defense last season and earned the best man coverage grade (67.3) by limiting his assignments to three receptions for 39 yards and forcing one interception within that scheme.

WR Tutu Atwell

Another role player on the opposite side of the ball, Tutu Atwell, was considered the “all-or-nothing” receiver in the Rams' offensive arsenal with his blend of sharp speed and crafty route-running that could create separation and big-time plays downfield.

Despite playing in just 10 games last season, Atwell averaged a whopping 32.0 yards on his six receptions that produced 192 yards (long of 88 yards) and one touchdown. He also netted 10.8 yards after the catch per reception and had zero drops on his big-time targets.

The Rams’ receiver room has been largely dominated by Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, leaving Atwell at a crossroads between staying to be an occasional target when a surprise play call arises or moving on for a larger role in another city.

CB Roger McCreary

The hits to the defensive secondary kept coming once Roger McCreary ditched Hollywood for the mean streets of Detroit in free agency. McCreary split his 2025 season between the Titans and Los Angeles, where he became a much-needed depth piece late in the campaign.

After joining the Rams, the Auburn product would appear in three regular-season contests, but his impact was more limited than the franchise had anticipated. He saw just 38 coverage snaps in that span and finished with an 83.9% opponent completion rate and an 14.6% missed tackle rate, which showed he needed to improve his craft to eventually earn starter's reps.

Edge Nick Hampton

Nick Hampton was a late-round prospect taken by the Rams three years ago and has struggled to grow as a pass rusher to stand out in a crowded department for Los Angeles. He has logged 190 defensive snaps in his stint and made just five total pressures and three stops on the ground.

Hampton did find some extra opportunity as a special teams contributor to the Rams' four major units, including his 273 snaps as both a kickoff and punt coverage man. He scored four tackles in those operations but missed five tackles to convince the Rams it was time to let him find his next home elsewhere.

Key Matchup to Watch

Having an aging quarterback like Matthew Stafford makes it extremely difficult for any offense to produce over 6,700 total yards and score a league-leading 46 touchdowns through the air. Except when one has a super dynamic receiver like the Rams do in Puka Nacua, who should be on the Giants’ radar when they visit them in 2026.

Nacua has ascended into one of the NFL’s most unstoppable pass catchers, who has quickly tallied 313 catches in 44 games for two 1,400+ yard campaigns and 19 touchdowns. He wins nearly any matchup with his speed and gifted route-running, which can confuse most overly aggressive defenders and make them miss tackles with frequency.

Last season, the 24-year-old established himself as the game’s most dangerous vertical threat with an annual resume of 129 receptions for 1,715 yards and 10 touchdowns, all of those numbers serving as career-highs. Nacua’s reliability never faded from week to week with an average of 107.2 yards in 17 contests and 27 big-time plays of 20+ air yards.

We have discussed several elite playmakers in this series that could give the Giants’ deep secondary fits in the upcoming slate, but none bring what Nacua does to the table in terms of a massive catch radius, incredible shiftiness, and creativity in how he creates separation and impacts the production of the Rams’ offense.

While they’ve brought in a couple of experienced veterans who’ve earned their stripes guarding players of his ilk, it might take a total secondary effort to make sure Nacua doesn’t terrorize the Giants from the first offensive rep and make them look silly in the open field, where their tackling was suspect at times in 2025.

The exact answer as to which addition will earn the right to post up with the two-time Pro Bowl receiver is yet to be determined, but New York and defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson better make the right choice in the player who won’t fall victim to Nacua’s play fakes that are intended to earn him calls on contested plays and make things happen in the endzone.

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