4 things Rams learned from Sunday's games: Are LaFleur's Cardinals...good?
· Yahoo Sports
The Los Angeles Rams watched Sunday's action from home after playing their first game of the season last Thursday night. They don't play again until next Monday, so they've got a lot of time to flush their Week 1 loss and move on to the New York Giants.
As always in the opening weekend of the season, there were plenty of surprises and new developments across the league. Here are four things the Rams learned about their foes in the NFC, including a couple of impressive upcoming opponents in the Cardinals and Giants.
Visit esporist.com for more information.
Cardinals won't be the easy out many people expected them to be
The Cardinals' projected win total was set at 3.5 before the season started. After just one game, they're already a quarter of the way toward eclipsing that number set by oddsmakers. They beat the Chargers convincingly on Sunday, 26-14, in Mike LaFleur's head coaching debut. And they were on the road in L.A., too.
The Cardinals will visit SoFi Stadium once more when they face the Rams in Week 6, and that may not be as easy a win as many were expecting it to be for L.A. Jacoby Brissett impressed, Trey McBride was Trey McBride and the defense was significantly better than anticipated. Anyone who penciled the Rams in for a 2-0 record against the Cards may have to rethink that.
Giants will be a legitimate test for the Rams
The Cardinals weren't the only team that surprised on Sunday. The Giants did, too. They beat the Cowboys, 28-20, on Sunday Night Football, which was John Harbaugh's first game at the helm in New York. Jaxson Dart was poised and confident in the pocket and the Giants played keepaway from the Cowboys, maintaining possession for almost 37 minutes by going 9-for-11 on third down.
If the Rams can't get stops on third down next Monday, the Giants are going to wear them out and keep the ball out of Matthew Stafford's hands.
Bears can't be forgotten in the NFC
Much of the attention has been on the Rams, Seahawks, 49ers, Eagles and Packers in the NFC, but the Bears made a statement on Sunday afternoon with their 59-37 win over the Panthers. They moved the ball up and down the field at will, scoring eight touchdowns with just two punts.
Their defense is still shaky after allowing 37 points to the Panthers, but they continue to be a turnover machine with three takeaways. The Rams don't face Chicago this season but if they meet again in the playoffs, it could be a shootout.
Eagles look like the Eagles again
With Sean Mannion as the new OC, the Eagles' offense was much better than last season. Jalen Hurts was hitting deep shots, Saquon Barkley had running lanes again and even without A.J. Brown, the Eagles moved the ball through the air with A.J. Brown, Dontayvion Wicks and Dallas Goedert.
They only beat the Commanders by two points, 24-22, but the defense held Washington under 300 yards and only allowed five conversions on 15 third-down attempts. The Eagles and Rams square off in Week 4 when Los Angeles will still be without Myles Garrett. That game's in Philadelphia, too.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: 4 things Rams learned from Sunday's games: Are LaFleur's Cardinals...good?