Dan Graziano, senior NFL national reporter 9y

W2W4: New York Giants

The New York Giants (5-9) travel to St. Louis this weekend for a 4 p.m. ET game on Sunday against the Rams (6-8) in St. Louis. Here are three things we'll be watching from the Giants' end:

1. Can the pass rush stay hot? The Giants have a whopping 22 sacks in their last three games after recording only 19 in their first 11. St. Louis' offensive line had a hard time protecting quarterback Shaun Hill in its Week 15 game against Arizona. The quarterback-challenged Rams will try to keep the Giants' pressure off by leaning on the run game -- something they couldn't do against Arizona's tough run defense. So the Giants' pass-rushers are going to have to find ways to keep the pressure on while still paying attention to Tre Mason and the Rams' running game.

2. Can they protect Eli Manning? On the flip side of that, the Giants' offensive line will have to cope with a fearsome St. Louis front that features Robert Quinn, Chris Long and rookie defensive tackle Aaron Donald. Manning hasn't responded well this year (or last!) when facing pressure, and the Giants haven't faced a defense this tough in quite a while, if all year. St. Louis had back-to-back shutouts before last week's 12-6 loss to Arizona. They haven't given up a touchdown since Week 12.

3. What can Andre Williams put on tape? The rookie running back is getting a fair bit of exposure here late in the season because of Rashad Jennings' ankle injury. Williams will get a start against the Rams. He rushed for 131 yards two weeks ago in Tennessee but only 44 in last week's victory over Washington. The Giants would like to see Williams show improved patience as a runner and better timing and trust with his blockers, especially against tough defensive fronts. This week offers as tough a test for that as he's likely to find.

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