The Rams (0-0) open the 2024 season on the road and in primetime, traveling to Detroit to take on the Lions (0-0) at Ford Field. Kickoff on Sunday, Sept. 8 is scheduled for 5:20 p.m. pacific time on NBC.
In advance of the contest, here is your First Look at Rams-Lions.
Notable Lions additions
- Selected Alabama CB Terrion Arnold No. 31 overall in this year's draft: One of the Lions' biggest offseason focuses was remaking their secondary, and drafting Arnold represented one of the moves toward that goal. The 2023 First-Team All-American tied for the SEC lead with five interceptions last season.
- Signed K Jake Bates on June 18: Bates garnered national attention with his 64-yard, game-winning field goal in his United Football League debut this spring, and after joining the Lions this summer, eventually won the starting kicker job over veteran Michael Badgley.
Top performers in 2023
QB Jared Goff completed 407 of 605 pass attempts (67.3%) for 4,575 yards with 30 touchdowns against 12 interceptions.
RBs David Montgomery (219 carries for 1,015 yards and 13 touchdowns) and Jahmyr Gibbs (182 carries for 945 yards and 10 touchdowns) helmed Detroit's backfield.
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown led Lions receivers with 119 catches for 1,515 yards and 10 touchdowns in a breakout third season.
DE Aidan Hutchinson's 11.5 sacks paced Detroit's defense, which also had three different DBs record at least three interceptions: Kerby Joseph (four), Brian Branch (three) and Jerry Jacobs (three).
On special teams, K Riley Patterson made 15 of 17 field goal attempts and 35 of 37 extra point attempts, while P Jack Fox averaged 46.4 yards per punt across 57 punts.
Early storylines to watch, and what they mean for the Rams
While much will be made about this being a rematch of the thrilling wild card playoff game from last season between the two teams, the focuses should be on the line of scrimmage and in each team's secondary.
The Rams will be without starting left tackle Alaric Jackson, while tackle Rob Havenstein's status is still to be determined. Add in the fact that head coach Sean McVay said there's a "good possibility" Jonah Jackson starts at center rather than Steve Avila for the season-opener, and Los Angeles' offensive line combination could look much different than what either team envisioned when this matchup was announced back in late May.
Both teams also changed up their secondaries, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out respective to each passing attack. Cornerback is where the most turnover was – the Rams signed Tre'Davious White, Darious Williams and Kam Curl; the Lions acquired Carlton Davis III in a trade with the Buccaneers, drafted Arnold and signed Amik Robertson. Compared to the lineups from the wild card playoff game, each defense will have three new starters in their secondaries, factoring in the safety position as well.
