Rams-Giants: Key Players to Watch

The St. Louis Rams were pegged as the favorites, but lost a tough match up against the Arizona Cardinals last week.

The Rams are playing to keep hope alive for the .500 season since 2006 (pretty pathetic hopes if you ask me, but I digress). They will need to get by the five-and-nine New York Giants first.

Players to Watch

Stedman Bailey

With every passing week, it is clear Stedman Bailey is becoming one of the go-to options at receiver. In the last five games, Bailey has tallied 22 receptions for 336 yards. In comparison, the two other top receiving options – receiver Kenny Britt and tight end Jared Cook – have combined 25 catches and 370 yards. Bailey has single-handedly matched their production.

Kenny Britt

Kenny Britt's Week 11 stat line (4 catches, 128 yards) shows how much of a threat he can be. Britt is one of the few truly explosive weapons the Rams have. He can completely dominant a game. But as it has been all season long with the rams, Kenny has also been inconsistent.

He does lead the Rams with 607 receiving yards, but Britt only has that one 100-yard game. Kenny is only averaging 43.4 yards per game. C'mon son. You gotta do better than that.

Janoris Jenkins

The Giants have rookie receiver extraordinaire Odell Beckham Jr. He's a tough wide-out to cover for any corner. The rookie has 972 yards along with nine TDs this season. It will be up to Janoris Jenkins and the rest of the other corners to stop Beckham.

Given Jenkins "boom or bust" play, hopefully we get a "boom" performance. Janoris' two interceptions have resulted in two INTs returned for touchdowns. While definitely a playmaker, he can definitely hinder the defense, as shown by blown coverages/miscommunications resulting in touchdowns or long catches.

Davin Joseph

Good glory, this man fucking sucks. Davin Joseph got completely manhandled by Arizona's defensive line last week. But don't feel too good about yourself, Arizona, Joseph has been getting his ass whooped week in, week out.

For this offense to get anything done, the offensive line has to provide time and lanes. Shaun Hill cannot get the ball to Bailey or Britt if he is repeatedly picking himself up off the ground. Tre Mason cannot run the ball effectively if he is consistently running into clogged up running lanes. It's a team effort, but Davin is the weakest link on that offensive line.

Tre Mason

The Giants rank 22nd against the run, giving up 99.9 yards per game. This is the perfect game for Tre Mason to get the ball rolling again. Since going off for 117 yards and two TDs against the Oakland Raiders, Mason has only gained 99 yards in the last to games. In those two games, Tre's only averaged 2.9 yards per carry. Hopefully the O-line can open up some holes for him to run through. With Mason and the running game going, things can open up for Hill and the passing game.