Game notes: Los Angeles Rams 21, New Orleans Saints 14

Game notes: Los Angeles Rams 21, New Orleans Saints 14

• The Saints lost to the Los Angeles Rams 21-14 on Sunday and are now 4-8. They will return to action on December 8th when they play the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Kickoff will be at 12:00 p.m. CT and the contest will be televised regionally on FOX (aired locally on WVUE FOX 8).

• New Orleans shut out the Rams in the first half. It marked the first time in head coach Sean McVay’s tenure, which dates back to 2017, that Los Angeles was shut out by a team in the first half of a regular-season contest.

• New Orleans won the possession battle 32-37-27-23.

• Rams QB Matthew Stafford’s 23-yard passing total in the first half was his lowest first-half total since being acquired by the Rams in a trade in 2021.

• QB Derek Carr finished 24 of 37 for 184 yards and one touchdown pass and zero interceptions while adding two runs for 12 yards on the ground. The decisive throw came on a 28-yard shot in the fourth quarter by WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Carr did not throw an interception in four games, the first time as a Saint that he has not done so and the first time he has not done so in four consecutive games dating back to eight contests from December 8, 2019 to October 4 . 2020, as a member of the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders.

• RB Alvin Kamara continued to be productive in the Saints’ backfield with 23 carries for 112 yards and added four receptions for seven yards. His 1,344 yards from scrimmage this season are his highest total since 1,387 in 15 games in 2022. Kamara now has 894 rushing yards this season and needs 39 to set a new career high and 106 on Sunday at the Giants to reach 1,000 yards rushing for the first time.

• His 112 rushing yards now give him 6,723 career rushing yards, passing Mark van Eeghen and former Saint Chuck Muncie and moving to 76th all-time on the NFL’s all-time rushing yards list.

• Valdes-Scantling finished the game with two balls for 36 yards and the score. It was the first time in his seven-year NFL career that he scored touchdowns in three consecutive contests. The last Saints to score touchdowns in three consecutive contests was WR Marquez Callaway from November 7-21, 2021.

• TE Taysom Hill got the Saints’ tying score in the second half because of a knee injury before leaving the game, finishing with five grabs for 37 yards and 10 yards rushing.

• TE Juwan Johnson had a team-high five catches for 36 yards.

• DT Bryan Bresee increased his career and team-high sacks to 6.5 in 2024 after dropping Rams QB Matthew Stafford for a loss of nine yards in the third quarter. He is tied with La’Roi Glover (1997) and Nick Fairley (2016) for the sixth-highest single-season defensive tackle total in team history.

• DB Ugo Amadi led the defense with nine tackles (eight solo) and added pass defense.

• DT Nathan Shepherd recorded his first full sack of the season in the first half.

• P Matthew Hayball hit three times for 128 yards (42.7 gross/net average), including two hits inside the 20-yard line.

• K Blake Grupe made two 54-yard field goals and had a special teams tackle.

• DB JT Gray recorded one special teams stop and had a career-high 20 this season, becoming the first Saint since CB Usama Young in 2007 to have 20 coverage stops in a season.

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