Rams beat Cowboys in preseason opener

To be quite frank, this was a pretty dull game for the most part. But it is the preseason and we did mostly get what we came for, which was a look at how the backups, rookies, and veterans fighting for roster spots would play in the game.

The game was mostly an exchange of field goals between Rams kicker Joshua Karty and Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey. In the first half, both kickers had two field goals – Karty for 28 and 39 yards and Aubrey for 30 and 36 yards. Then in the second half, Aubrey missed a 65-yard attempt, but made a 38-yarder and then a 52-yarder in the next quarter to put the Cowboys up 12-6.

It wasn’t until the last 11 seconds that the Rams took the first lead they’d had since their first field goal in the first quarter. Quarterback Stetson Bennett threw a 6-yard pass to tight end Miller Forristall in the end zone for the touchdown and Karty’s extra point was good to give the Rams the 13-12 win over the Cowboys in their preseason opener.

Bennett’s intereceptions

Now if that’s all you knew, Bennett may have seemed like a star. However, he did throw five interceptions in the game – four which counted and one which was called back on a Cowboys penalty. He finished the game 24 of 38 for 224 yards, the one touchdown, and four interceptions.

This was Bennett’s first game since the 2023 season, but in those games, he threw three interceptions across the three games as well. Throwing the game-winning touchdown counts for something, of course, but he’ll need to get the turnovers under control if he wishes to be a true backup to Matthew Stafford.

Rams’ sixth-round rookies showing out

Wide receiver JordanWhittington, the Rams’ sixth-round draft pick, made a solid case for himself that he deserves to be there. He made several big plays and ended the game with six receptions on nine targets for 74 yards. 

The Rams’ other sixth-round pick was defensive tackle Tyler Davis, who also had himself a good game, ending with six total tackles (tied for the team lead), two solos, one tackle for a loss, and one quarterback hit.

Cowboys new defense

There has been a lot of talk about Mike Zimmer’s new defense during the offseason, and it seems like he’s picking up where Dan Quinn left off in forcing turnovers. Those fourinterceptions Bennett threw were all part of that, by Eric Scott, Julius Wood, Markquese Bell, and Brock Mogenson. Other than a fourth-quarter sack on Bennett by linebacker Jason Johnson, however, there wasn’t a lot of pressure on the Rams quarterback.

DT Mazi Smith played three series, finishing with three tackles, one for a loss. Bell, who played linebacker last season, was in at safety, and finished with nine tackles and the interception. LB Demarvion Overshown finished with three tackles, and the Cowboys fifth-round pick, CB Caelen Carson, finished with six tackles and no pass breakups.

Trey Lance 

Cooper Rush came in at quarterback for the Cowboys to start the game, leading the offense on a 58-yard scoring drive on their first possession. He finished the game 2-of-3 for 44 yards. Then Trey Lance took over. He had several overthrown passes, including two missed touchdown passes, one to Jalen Cropper, and another to Cam Johnson. He did well scrambling under pressure on several occasions, but was sacked three times.

Tyler Guyton

As left tackle Guyton was the Cowboys’ first-round pick in this year’s draft, all eyes were on him. He had been dealing with an illness over the last week, though, so his reps were limited in today’s game. He didn’t start the game but did play two series and allowed Lance to get that 19-yard scramble he had on third and 10.