Thursday Night Football: Matthew Stafford throws two TD passes as Rams lead 17-7

Rams lead Saints 17-7 at halftime. Stafford and Robinson shine, while New Orleans struggles on third and fourth downs. #LAvsNO #NFL

The Los Angeles Rams dominated the first half of Thursday night's game against the New Orleans Saints, taking a 17-7 lead at halftime. The Rams started strong, scoring on their first two drives with a 2-yard touchdown catch by Puka Nacua and a 20-yard field goal by Lucas Havrisik. However, Havrisik missed a 47-yard field goal attempt, leaving him with a 2-of-6 record on field goals of 40-49 yards this season.

New Orleans made a late surge in the second quarter, with quarterback Derek Carr connecting with tight end Juwan Johnson for a 20-yard gain and then throwing a 45-yard touchdown pass to Rashid Shaheed, bringing the score to 10-7 in favor of the Rams. Los Angeles then struggled with a three-and-out on their next possession, but quickly regained momentum when Matthew Stafford made a 32-yard pass to Demarcus Robinson, setting up a 4-yard touchdown pass to Robinson to extend the lead to 17-7 at halftime.

Robinson led the Rams with six catches for 82 yards and a touchdown, while Nacua caught all five of his targets for 63 yards. Stafford finished the first half with 199 yards and two touchdowns on 16-of-22 passing. On the other side, Carr had 163 yards and a touchdown on 11-of-20 passing, with Olave catching six passes for 74 yards.

The Rams had 244 total yards and 13 first downs, while the Saints had 164 yards and nine first downs. Los Angeles was 2-of-6 on third down conversions, while New Orleans was 1-of-5. The Rams were also successful on fourth down, converting one attempt with Nacua's touchdown.

As the teams prepared for the second half, the Rams were set to receive the kickoff.

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