Both of these teams are off to 0-2 starts so the loser of this game will be in deep trouble this season.  The Rams would love to open up the offense in this game but Marc Bulger hasn’t been getting much time to throw the ball as evidenced by the 10 times he has been sacked this season already.  The bad news for Bulger is that the Seahawks already have nine sacks this season.  Bulger will take some shots deep to Torry Holt against a Seahawks’ defense that is allowing 252.0 yards passing per game.  With the Rams not protecting Bulger well TE Randy McMichael and RB Steven Jackson could catch a lot of passes on Sunday.  It would help the Rams cause in this game if Steven Jackson got his act together on the ground as he has only rushed for 93 yards (3.4 ypc) so far this season.

The Rams are giving up 481.5 yards per game so QB Matt Hasselbeck might get his act together in this game.  He will likely have good ground support from Julius Jones who has 172 yards rushing this season and they Rams are allowing 154.0 yards rushing per game and 4.9 ypc.  TE John Carlson will likely be Hasselbeck’s top target in the passing game on Sunday putting a lot of pressure on the Rams’ safeties.  The Rams are allowing 327.5 yards passing per game this season so if Hasselbeck can’t have success against them it’s going to be a long season.

PREDICTION:  SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 33, ST. LOUIS RAMS 27

The Rams looked just as pathetic this week as they looked last week against the Eagles.  Marc Bulger looked gunshy in the pocket again and he completed 20 of 32 passes for 177 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception (it was returned 41-yard for a TD by DE Justin Tuck of the Giants).  Steven Jackson carried the football 13 times for 53 yards (4.1 ypc) and he also caught 7 passes for 37 yards (5.3 avg).  WR Torry Holt led the Rams with 6 catches for 76 yards (12.7 avg) with a 45-yard TD reception.  The Rams finished up with 68 yards rushing on 16 carries (4.3 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 32 passes for 133 yards.

The Rams’ Defense was just as inept as the offense was against the Giants.  Linebacker Will Witherspoon (7 tackles) and DE Chris Long (4 tackles, sack) led the way on defense in this game.  The Giants finished up with 200 yards rushing on 31 carries (6.5 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 29 passes for 241 yards.  The Rams are now 0-2 on the season and the countdown is now officially on as to when head coach Scott Linehan will be fired.

This game appears to be a huge mis-match both on paper and on game film.  The Giants have had 10 days to prepare for a Rams team that was throttled 38-3 in the season opener against the Eagles.  The Giants will likely come out running the football with Brandon Jacobs (116 yards rushing) and Derrick Ward (39 yards rushing) against a Rams’ defense which allowed 108 yards rushing against the Eagles.  The Eagles had three 100+ yard receivers against the Rams so look for Eli Manning to attack the Rams deep with Plaxico Burress  (10 rec, 133 yards) and company. 

The Rams are going to attempt to run the ball against the Giants to control the clock and slow the Giants’ impressive pass rush.  Steven Jackson showed up late this season to training camp so he might not be ready to carry the kind of load that the Rams need him to if they have any hope of winning this football game.  Look for the Rams to force the ball to Torry Holt (1 rec, 9 yards) despite the Giants definately double covering him all game long.  TE Randy McMichael was targeted quite often (5 rec, 77 yards) last week by Marc Bulger but the Giants’ safeties did a great job against the Redskins’ Chris Cooley last week.

PREDICTION:  NEW YORK GIANTS 27, ST. LOUIS RAMS 10

The Rams have signed 35-year old WR Eddie Kennison to a 1-year contract.  He will likely be starting by week #3 for the Rams as he played for Offensive Co-Ordinator Al Saunders in Kansas City.  Kennison played in 8 games last season for the Chiefs and he caught 13 passes for 101 yards (7.8 avg).  Kennison has had a long NFL career and he will likely help the Rams out this season.  Kennison has now played in 176 games in his NFL career and he has caught 548 passes for 8,345 yards (15.2 avg) with 42 TD grabs.  He also has carried the ball 39 times for 282 yards (7.2 ypc) in his career.

The Rams will be without starting DE Leonard Little for the next two weeks due to a strained hamstring.  Little didn’t make any tackles in the season opener against the Eagles but he will be missed as he is the best pass rusher on the team right now.  Little has 75 sacks in his 10-year NFL career.  James Hall will replace Little in the starting lineup and he played well in the opener with 10 tackles.  But, Hall is not in the same league as Little in rushing the passer.