Photograph by John Martinez Pavliga
Yeah, that's about right—the St. Louis Rams got two safeties from a heretofore-dormant defense, Sam Bradford and Steven Jackson both put up impressive per-attempt numbers in Bradford's first game back from his high ankle sprain, Brandon Lloyd showed he's everything the Rams could have hoped he would be, and they lost 19-13 on a punt returned for a touchdown in overtime after winning the coin toss. That's how the Rams would have to go 1-7.
Oh, and Greg Salas broke his leg—he's done for the season, just after emerging as the perfect replacement for Danny Amendola, who's also done for the season. Mark Clayton's due back about now, but if I were him I'd be at least a little worried about my health.
There was some good to take from this game, however brutal it was, and that's what makes it so painful—this is a team that doesn't always lose bad, it always just loses. Bradford looked competent for a guy who hadn't really practiced in two weeks, and Steven Jackson looked pretty good for somebody who has to have memorized Danny Glover's "I'm too old for this—" line reading. Brandon Lloyd looked like a number one receiver.
And 383 total yards on offense—23 first downs—turned into 13 points. No touchdowns, three field goals, two safeties, and another loss. If I were Steve Spagnuolo, I'd be—well, I just wouldn't want to be Steve Spagnuolo right about now. The Rams have won so many moral victories that each one just becomes more grating than the last against the backdrop of yet another loss; whatever slack they had left after their tough schedule left them 1-6 has been pulled taut after a loss to the Arizona Cardinals, especially a loss that looks like this.
