Our defense vs their offense: Los Angeles Rams

The New Orleans Saints host the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday with a chance to get within one game of the lead of the NFC South. The Saints are trying to avenge their 30-22 loss to the Rams in SoFi last year, but they have a tall task on their hands.

The Rams offense averages about 21 points per game but have one of the more efficient passing offenses. Matthew Stafford leads the way for the Rams offense, and he has two elite receivers in Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp.

Through 11 games, the Rams average 236.7 passing yards per game, which ranks 9th in the league, but that number has increased to 250 per game over their last three. Since Kupp and Nacua got healthy, Stafford’s numbers have gotten a lot better. In his last five games, he’s thrown for 1,408 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Defensively, the Saints been one of the worst units at defending the pass. They currently rank 30th in the league in passing yards allowed per game, giving up 256 yards per contest through the air. Since Marshon Lattimore was traded, that number has risen to 277 yards per game over their last three. Jameis Winston had 395, Kirk Cousins had 306 and Bryce Young had 171. Weirdly enough, they only won the games against Winston and Cousins (but I think we all know why that is…). They’re giving up a bunch of yards through the air, but they’re keeping teams out of the end zone for the most part (their 18.0 PPG allowed over those three games ranks 9th in the NFL).

At the beginning of the season, the Rams rushing attack was rolling with Kyren Williams, who scored a touchdown in each of the Saints first six games but has since scored one in their last five. Their 95 rushing yards per game rank 26th in the league.

On the other side, the Saints rush defense ranks 25th in the league, giving up 134 yards per game, though that number has dropped to 109 in their last three (probably because opposing passers have had so much success).

In terms of sacks, the Rams do a pretty good job of keeping Matthew Stafford clean. He’s sacked a little under 2.5 times per game, which is dead smack in the middle of the league rankings. As for the Saints, they haven’t been all that great getting after the QB, averaging just 2.3 per game, but it feels like the defensive line has ramped up their productiveness over the last couple weeks.

If the Saints struggle to stop the Rams passing attack, it could be a long day for them. Stafford, Kupp and Nacua form an elite trio, and they’ll likely give the Saints some trouble. What it’ll really come down to is if the Saints can continue their bend-but-don’t-break defensive style of play. You can afford to let Stafford throw for 300 yards, but you can’t afford to give up big touchdowns.

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