PA Ram wrote:

Hill doesn’t excite me either.

But I sort of have a “whatever” attitude at this point. Hey–it can’t hurt. Let’s compare what Hill does to what Davis did. If nothing else it’s a back-up competition for next year(although I doubt Hill will be back anyway). I’m more concerned about what happens AFTER this year. There are no good options unless they find a hidden gem in the draft.

This feels like the Dieter Brock era, or the Toney Banks era. They just don’t have good options at the most important position on the field. And for the record, I’m not comparing a healthy Bradford to those two guys–but he’s not healthy.

Hill is better than Davis.

And better than Brock and Banks.

Rams notebook: Upon further review, Fisher agrees with officials’ call

By Joe Lyons

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot…cle_8e30d4f4-39e8-5d7e-8aac-956a7f1f1b2d.html

After watching the game tape, Rams coach Jeff Fisher says the officials got it right.

Fisher, who’s disagreed with a number of calls against the Rams this season, did not agree when tight end Lance Kendricks was flagged for a illegal blindside block in the third quarter of Sunday’s 31-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

But upon further review, Fisher supported the call during his Monday news conference at Rams Park.

“It’s’ within the rules. It was just unfortunate timing for us,’’ the coach said.

One play after Rams linebacker Alec Ogletree intercepted a pass and returned it to the Arizona 45 Sunday, Austin Davis hooked up with tight end Jared Cook on a 41-yard pass play that took the ball to the Arizona 4. On the play, Kendricks came from a position along the sideline to put a big hit on Arizona’s Tony Jefferson to spring Cook.

The illegal blindside block brought the ball back to the Cardinals’ 35-yard line.

“It was a great hit, great block,’’ Fisher said. “The blocker has the responsibility, it’s all in his hands, to avoid hitting (Jefferson) in the head and neck area. The defender was ducking, Lance was ducking. It just happened.’’

Fisher continued: “The defensive player gets defenseless player protection with respect to the blindside block if the blocker is coming from his own end line and/or parallel. The parallel part went in a couple years ago, so I’d say it’s the correct call, (even if) you don’t like it.

“His other option in that case was to go low … and you surely don’t want to see guys going low in those instances because of the potential for injury.’’

The Rams, who led 14-10 at the time of the penalty, followed up by failing to take advantage of the turnover and positive field position. After an unproductive run, an incomplete pass and a sack, they punted.

The Big Red rallied with 21 fourth-quarter points and improved to 8-1.

DEFENSIVE NUMBERS

Ogletree played one of his better games of the season against the Cardinals, sharing the team lead in tackles with 12. including six solos, to go along the interception and 44-yard return. He also had two pass breakups, a forced fumble and a quarterback hit.

“We’ve made a concerted effort to get him behind the ball,’’ Fisher said. “That’s where he’s best, just running and slipping blocks and taking on blocks. He’s been much more productive. Good pressure. … When he caught the (interception), he anticipated, read the formation, recognized the route that was coming and put himself in a position to make another play.

“He’s playing much better in the last two weeks.’’

Safety T.J. McDonald, another second-year pro, also had 12 tackles, including seven solos. He finished with a sack and two tackles for loss.

Other tackling leaders for the Rams Sunday were linebacker James Laurinaitis and safety Rodney McLeod with eight each and rookie cornerback E.J. Gaines with seven. Gaines also had a team-best three pass defenses.

Robert Quinn paced the defensive linemen with five tackles and a sack.

As a unit, the defense had three sacks, 17 quarterback pressures and 12 hits on Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer, who left in the fourth quarter after suffering a season-ending knee injury. On that play, safety Mark Barron, seeing his first action from scrimmage, had the Rams’ third sack.

“He (made an impact with) the sack, the pressure, the contact,’’ Fisher said. Barron was acquired in a trade-deadline deal with Tampa Bay. “I think you get a sense of his physical stature out there. There was a screen pass and the guard was out in space, and he took the guard on. Most DBs would be tumbling or go low. He took the guard on high, bounced off and got an assist.

“I thought he was very productive.’’

Chase Reynolds once again led the special teams with two tackles. Also making special-teams stops were McDonald, Benny Cunningham, Cody Davis, Marshall McFadden and Korey Toomer.

INJURY UPDATE

On a blitz early in the second quarter, rookie Lamarcus Joyner bounced off Palmer and ended up with a groin injury.

“Lamarcus will clearly be questionable this week,’’ Fisher said,

The Rams are already down a man in the defensive backfield with rookie Marcus Roberson nursing an ankle injury.

With Joyner out, Gaines shifted from cornerback to the nickel as the projected starters at cornerback, Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson, played together for the first time since the preseason.

“Tells you a lot” about Gaines, Fisher said. “He was fine. Got his hands on the ball. Didn’t have any problems; we didn’t have to scale down the third-down package (because) he prepares mentally for it and (I) thought he plugged in nicely.’’

Fisher said that defensive end Chris Long, who’s been on the injured reserve/designated to return list following ankle surgery, could return to practice this week.

“There’s a chance he’ll get on the field. We’re going to discuss it tomorrow with him,’’ the coach said. “He has a 21-day window to practice once he steps on the field (before he counts against the 53-man roster).’’

Fisher said both tackle Jake Long (knee) and wide receiver Brian Quick (shoulder) have undergone surgery. Both players were hurt in the Rams’ Oct. 26 loss to the Chiefs in Kansas City.

“Jake is rehabbing, doing well,’’ the coach said. “I encouraged Brian to come out to practice (but) it’s going to be probably another week or two before he comes out. There was significant damage to his shoulder. He will recover 100 percent, but it’s going to be a slow process. It’s going to be a training camp thing.’’

The fluke injury to the Rams’ top deep threat resulted in more damage than anticipated.

“He did just about everything you possibly can to the shoulder,’’ Fisher said. “You talk about rotator cuff, labrum, bicep tendon, just everything. It was a successful surgery, a successful procedure, but he’s going to be immobilized for quite some time.’’

Fisher sticking with Davis at quarterback

By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/fisher-sticking-with-davis-at-quarterback/article_96a08b19-ed02-5902-ab2a-607600aa83b5.html

It was another rough day at the office Sunday for Austin Davis — and he’s had a few of those lately. But coach Jeff Fisher said Monday he is not contemplating a quarterback change.

“No,” Fisher said, giving about as direct an answer as possible.

“He didn’t have his best half,” Fisher continued. “He missed some opportunities, he made a couple bad decisions. Said he had difficulty seeing at times. The last couple weeks, he’s thrown four interceptions, but we’re gonna hang in there (with him). He’s working real hard, so we’ll see where it goes.”

The problems for Davis in the Rams’ 31-14 loss to Arizona were more confined to the fourth quarter, when he completed only six of 16 throws for 70 yards and two interceptions. His passer rating for the quarter was 12.0.

The first of those interceptions was a badly underthrown deep ball to a wide-open Chris Givens that would’ve been a touchdown.

“I don’t really have an answer” for the interception, Davis said. “Don’t understand it; don’t know why it happened. We got the look we were looking for. I thought Chris ran a good route and won. … Ball didn’t go where I wanted it.”

The second interception was thrown high to Kenny Britt but was catchable. It went off Britt’s hands and was returned for a score. Davis later lost a fumble while getting sacked and that ball was returned for a touchdown by Arizona.

So this season, six turnovers by Davis — four interceptions and two fumbles on sacks — have been returned for touchdowns. It’s bad enough to have a turnover. But a turnover for an opposing touchdown, well, that’s a recipe for defeat.

Even while giving Davis a vote of confidence, Fisher didn’t have many good things to say about his performance at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Was pass protection an issue Sunday, or was it a case of the quarterback holding on to the ball too long?

Fisher indicated it was mostly the latter.

“Now at times, give the defense credit,” he said. “There’s gonna be an unblocked rusher, and you have to get rid of the football. The quarterback’s gotta get rid of the football. He’s gotta see that.”

As an example, Fisher pointed to the 11-yard sack taken by Davis on third-and-11 from the Arizona 36 late in the third quarter.

“Austin, he can’t take a sack in field-goal range,” Fisher said. “You’ve gotta throw the ball away.”

But Fisher did concede that the pass protection wasn’t always there for Davis.

“We had a couple pass-rush ‘games’ where we got soft (in protection),” Fisher said. “But the ball has to come out.”

Were Sunday’s woes partly a case of Rams receivers not getting sufficient separation from defenders?

“We had opportunities,” Fisher said. “We had a number of opportunities for some significant catch and run opportunities.”

So after lighting it up in his first three starts with six TD passes, only two interceptions and a passer rating of 100.6, Davis has six TD passes, six interceptions and a rating of just 73.4 over his next five starts.

Three of those five starts have been on the road. And four of those five games have come against defenses ranked in the top 5. But those are not the kind of numbers you want at quarterback, particularly the turnover numbers.

The book on facing Austin may simply be to pressure him as much as possible, especially up the middle, making it harder for him to find throwing lanes.

“I mean the position’s hard to play,” Fisher said. “This (Arizona) defense has done this to a lot of quarterbacks. Good quarterbacks. But that’s part of playing the position.

“Sometimes you’re gonna have a hard Sunday as a quarterback. He’s disappointed in what’s happened but he’ll bounce back.”

When asked if Davis was getting frustrated, Fisher shot back: “Well, choose a better word. Frustrated? Yeah. Disappointed. Whatever. He’s not pleased with what happened yesterday, but he’ll bounce back.”

The fourth quarter of games has been particularly tough on Davis lately. Among NFL passers with enough playing time to qualify for the rankings, Davis is 35th in the league in fourth-quarter passing with a passer rating of just 68.1. His fourth-quarter numbers include a completion percentage of 57.7, with four TD passes and six interceptions.

Davis is far from an excuse-maker. He’s very honest in assessing his play, and knows he must play better.

“The thing I’m learning really quick is you can play well for 3½ quarters, but you have to play four,” he said. “You can’t have a single letdown. Right now I’m having those, and it’s costing our football team.”

And a bad habit that hampered his development and advancement with the Rams before this season — keeping his eyes on the pass rush instead of the receivers — has cropped up again.

If you play quarterback long enough in the league, you’re going to get blitzed and hit and buzzed in the pocket. The key is staying calm amid the chaos that’s often all around you in the pocket.

For example, the Rams had 17 quarterback pressures, 12 QB hits and three sacks against Arizona quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton — with most of that coming, of course, against Palmer before he was injured. Facing that kind of heat often is part of the job description at quarterback.

The Arizona blitz package had defenders coming from everywhere and different times, making it a tough chore for an inexperienced quarterback such as Davis.

“So just the ability to learn from this, and get your eyes downfield and not on the rush is something that I’ve got to do,” Davis said.

On today’s Breakfast with Bernie, the Post-Dispatch’s Bernie Miklasz discusses Stan Kroenke’s “strategic” meeting with Inglewood, California mayor James Butts and what it means for the Rams.

http://cinesport.stltoday.com/saint-louis-sports/bwb-stan-kroenke-flexing-leverage/

Bernie: Rams’ problem isn’t pressure, it’s points

Bernie Miklasz

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/bernie-miklasz/bernie-rams-problem-isn-t-pressure-it-s-points/article_7ea0e485-65e4-5281-b54c-9c474325aab9.html

Understandably, there’s been a lot of talk about how the Rams can’t handle second-half pressure and are melting down with games on the line.

Well, a couple of things about that.

1. When you turn the ball over too often, it makes your team look jumpy, and rattled, and unable to cope with adversity. Giving the ball away doesn’t make you look calm and poised. So what would we expect?

2. This is more about the shaky play of young quarterback Austin Davis, a shortage of impact talent on offense, the lack of a reliable running game and the continuation of the below-average offenses we’ve seen under head coach Jeff Fisher and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer.

If others want to say this is about pressure, I would agree to an extent — especially as it applies to Davis.

But I say it’s more about points.

You have to score more of them to win in this league.

(And yes, the two theories are connected. If you don’t do a good job of coping with sudden negativity in games, then you probably aren’t going to score as many points.)

Not counting the touchdowns scored by the Rams’ defense and the special-teams returners, the Rams offense ranks 30th in the NFL with 149 points from scrimmage, averaging 16.5 per game.

This is the third season of a Fisher-Schottenheimer offense, and the Rams have done no better than rank 22nd in the league in points from scrimmage.

And their highest scoring average from scrimmage is 19 points per game, which occurred last season.

The 2012 Rams averaged 16.3 points from scrimmage, so this year’s offense has regressed to the level of Fisher’s first team.

With this offense, there’s nothing to hang your helmet on.

• What about the running game? That’s supposed to be the Fisher-Schotteneimer foundation. This season the Rams are averaging under 4 yards per rushing attempt for the first time in this regime’s three seasons. The Rams’ average of 3.9 yards per carry ranks 28th in the league. They rank 14th in percentage of runs (43.5) that produce 4+ yards. They have only 23 runs of 10+ yards and only three of 20+ yards.

• The Rams have cranked out a decent total of 10-play (or more) drives, but they don’t finish them off as well as you’d like. They’ve scored 54 points on 10-play drives, which ranks 24th in the NFL.

• What about big plays? Not much. The Rams rank 27th in the NFL in all plays that gain 10+ yards. They’re 28th with 26 plays of 20+ yards. And they’ve had only one quick-strike TD drive (fewer than four plays) this season.

• Overall the Rams are averaging 5.07 yards per play (28th), 310.2 yards per game (30th) and are 29th in offensive efficiency — having come away with points on only 29 percent of their 104 possessions.

The problem is, the Rams don’t really do anything particularly well on offense, especially with Davis unable to perform as consistently vibrant as he did earlier in the year.

Defenses have adjusted, the pass protection has been shaky, and the first-time starting QB has regressed. I don’t have to give you the numbers; you’ve seen it.

And the Rams are giving the ball away with alarming consequences. Their 16 turnovers are the 10th-most in the NFL.

What really stings is the magnitude of those turnovers.

According to STATS, LLC the opponents have scored 73 points on Rams’ giveaways; that’s only two points less than the worst team (Chicago) n the category.

More harmful … 42 of those 73 points have come on touchdowns directly scored by Rams’ opponents on interception or fumble returns.

That’s a huge number. Over the past nine seasons, the highest number defensive points surrendered by an offense is 49 … so the Rams are only one pick-six, or fumble return for a TD from matching that.

The 42 points against the Rams on INT and fumble returns is the highest in the league. You just can’t survive so many jailbreak plays.

It’s the double whammy. The Rams offense doesn’t score enough points for the Rams — and sets up too many scores for the other team. The worst possible combination, really.

The Rams defense has done an OK job of putting the fire out after giveaways by their offense, so it’s not as if the STL defense has collapsed after a non-scoring takeaway against the Rams offense.

This giveaway-related self-destruction is new for the Fisher-coached Rams. The 2012 Rams were hit for only 54 points on giveaways (21 on INT or fumble returns for touchdowns.) The 54 points were the sixth-fewest in the league.

Last year the Rams were burned for 83 giveaway points (ranking 16th in the league.) And 35 of the 83 were on INT or fumble returns for TD.

I don’t think the Rams are devoid of poise; after all they are 3-1 this season in games decided by 3 points or fewer. And the STL offense has been decent in converting third-down plays. Those are pressure plays.

The problem is the offense that blows itself up with devastating giveaways, and I don’t think any team would remain calm and cool after seeing opponents run back interceptions and scooped fumbles for touchdowns.

Seriously: how many teams really have it in them to overcome an extreme number of shock-and-awe giveaways? Good luck trying to locate one.

The Rams (42) and Jacksonville (35) are the only two NFL offenses that have allowed more than 14 points’ worth of defensive scores so far.

Of the 10 teams that have given up more than 13 points in direct defensive scores this season, only three have a winning record.

That’s what I meant when I said that any team that gives up more than a couple of defensive scores is in big trouble.

It isn’t the reaction to adversity; it’s the bad offensive plays that put points on the board for the other team. As we just pointed out, teams that do that more than a couple of times per season have a hard time winning. It isn’t a character issue. It’s the reality of the math.

Davis has turned the ball over 12 times this season, which is tied for the fourth-highest giveaway count by an NFL player so far … and six of the 12 giveaways have resulted in a defensive touchdowns. It happened again (twice) at Arizona.

A team can’t be reasonably expected to overcome so many INT-fumble touchdown returns.

So now what?

Benching Davis in favor of veteran Shaun Hill is an option.

Or, Fisher can try to take the pressure off Davis by running the ball more, and with increased effectiveness. But as we’ve explained, the Rams aren’t a strong team on the ground.

And despite that, the Rams are passing the ball at a higher frequency than Fisher’s first two teams here.

The 2012 Rams passed it on 59 percent of the plays, the 2013 Rams passed it 56 percent of the time, and this year’s team is throwing the ball on 59.5 percent of its snaps.

That doesn’t seem to make sense. But then again, the Fisher-Schottenheimer offense has never been able to generate and sustain the kind of success that wins a lot of football games.

All you have to do is look at the numbers, with the Rams dragging near the league bottom (in all three seasons) in points from scrimmage.

Except for guard Rodger Saffold, who was drafted by Billy Devaney, the Fisher and GM Les Snead regime is responsible for drafting or signing (as a free agent) every member of the current Rams offense.

In Saffold’s case the Rams’ current regime re-signed him to a lucrative contract extension.

And Schottenheimer was picked by Fisher to run the Rams offense.

Bottom line: the present Rams’ football leadership hasn’t been able to put together a good — or even average — offense. And that’s the No. 1 reason why they continue to lose so many winnable games. This offense conks out too often, with most of the stalling happening in the second half.

So I’m not sure why we would expect that to suddenly change now.

Thanks for reading…

Eternal Ramnation wrote:

When your OL allows 6 sacks we might as well put Hecker back there. Davis is the perfect fit for this horrible OL as he is durable.He won’t win many but when you allow 6 sacks you don’t win anyways.

Was that all the OL, though? It’s an important question. I put as much of that on Davis. I don’t think he handles the pressure. There are qbs that handle the blitz, and I don’t think that Davis has that yet.

Rams just can’t handle adversity

Joe Strauss jstrauss@post-dispatch.com

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/joe-strauss/strauss-rams-just-can-t-handle-adversity/article_66052119-028e-5d04-bd8e-c6b42327cedd.html

GLENDALE, Ariz. • It’s safe to say after Sunday’s meltdown in the desert that the Rams still need to grow up.

Supporting evidence exists suggesting the Rams got robbed on a third-quarter drive that could have allowed them to take a two-possession lead over the Arizona Cardinals. Instead, a questionable illegal block call against tight end Lance Kendricks on Jared Cook’s reception to the 4-yard-line cost the Rams 31 yards in field position. A third-down sack cost another 11 yards. Instead of scoring, the Rams punted with a 14-10 lead. From that point, nothing good happened to a team that is now 3-6.

Everybody knows the Rams play with little margin for error. They play in a big-boy division with a backup quarterback. Turnovers and penalties hurt every team. They crush the Rams.

What ended as Sunday’s 31-14 loss demonstrated the Rams’ playbook doesn’t include a page for desperation. Merely playing from behind represents its own Kilimanjaro.

“There’s always a momentum shift on a dramatic play,” said Cook, who scored the Rams’ second touchdown on a 59-yard pass just before the 2-minute warning. “That’s where we can learn to play better. That’s where we can learn to overcome mistakes no matter what happened, because it’s always going to be a roller-coaster game. It’s the NFL.”

In position to take down their third division rival in four games, the Rams got a whiff of adversity and folded. In player-speak, they again failed to “finish.” To be blunt, they folded.

Whether they lack talent, composure or maturity, these Rams are susceptible to collapse after calamitous plays, penalties or bad breaks. A team that has led or been tied at halftime in six of its nine games has been outscored by 73 points in the second half of their last five. The Rams have one second-half touchdown total in those five games.

Even if the official’s call against Kendricks on Austin Davis’ 41-yard pitch-and-catch to Cook was incorrect — and at the very least it was borderline — the Rams can’t collapse (again) as they did.

At various times during his postgame new conference, coach Jeff Fisher conceded and challenged the belief that his team has yet to learn how to close.

Fisher reminded questioners, “I believe in these guys, and I’m not buying into all that business about us not being able to complete a game. The record reflects it, and statistics reflect it, but we’re going to keep doing the things we’re doing because I believe in them.”

Brave talk costs less than calling out zebras. No question the Rams fell into a funk after Kendricks’ “illegal blindside block.” The Cardinals outgained the visitors 211-88 in the second half.

The NFL now legislates against its essence. Kendricks’ offense against Cardinals safety Tony Jefferson was laying a punishing hit on a smaller man. Closing on Cook, Jefferson never saw Kendricks coming and detonated on impact. A league that gets the shakes merely by mentioning “concussion” now asks its officials to play both judge and neurosurgeon.

The rule against an offensive player blocking back toward the line of scrimmage bears the name of former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver and headhunter Hines Ward. Kendricks got flagged for laying out a defensive back four inches shorter and 40 pounds lighter. It was a brutal block but did not appear to violate the rule cited.

“If it was a side block — if it was a parallel block — then the call was in question,” explained Fisher, a member of the NFL competition committee.

Fisher said he’d not viewed a replay but termed the flag “disappointing because it was a great block.”

Kendricks was more confused than regretful about the play. He merely took out a man trying to tackle Cook. It seemed like a football play, nothing more, nothing worse.

“I can’t control the call. If I had to do it again I’d try to make the same block,” he said. “I’m just playing there. Not to make an excuse, the guy is a short guy so I tried to get low. Stuff happened. All I can do is keep playing.”

The Rams would do well to follow Kendricks’ words. The NFL often appears as the Not Fair League. Replay hardly eliminates officiating as a huge variable. Teams unable to overcome iffy calls are doomed.

“I feel like that was a play that changed the momentum of the game,” said running back Benny Cunningham. “We had a tough one right there. But we have to fight through it on offense. I just don’t feel like we did that.”

Noted Fisher: “I think the game slipped.”

At the very worst the Rams should have come away with a 17-10 lead with less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter. They instead followed with the most calamitous quarter of their season.

The Cardinals, a league-best 8-1 after missing last season’s playoffs at 10-6, surged after losing starting quarterback Carson Palmer to a fourth-quarter left knee injury.

The Cardinals trailed as Palmer left the sidelines on a cart, then turned a four-point deficit into a 17-point rout.

One would think the Cardinals crippled. Instead, they sped 89 yards in four plays for a go-ahead score on backup Drew Stanton’s first series. The touchdown came on a 48-yard strike to a diving John Brown. After all, this is how mature teams answer.

So how did the Rams respond?

In their first four possessions following Stanton’s strike the Rams ran 14 plays — three runs worth 9 yards and 11 pass plays that generated two completions, a holding penalty, two interceptions and a strip sack. Davis’ second interception — a pass tipped by intended receiver Kenny Britt — became a touchdown return by Patrick Peterson. The ruinous sack led to safety Antonio Cromartie returning Davis’ fumble 14 yards for another score. Oh, the humanity.

As for the meltdown tendency, “I don’t think it’s necessarily a talent thing,” Cook said. “I think if you want to look at it, it’s an individual thing.”

Davis’ recent performance invites scrutiny, perhaps a change. The rookie’s best work came early in the season. Wins over Seattle and San Francisco were inspired by defense. Davis has committed six turnovers returned for scores. Four of them are fourth-quarter interceptions. A team ill-suited for quick-strike offense becomes doubled over by such gaffes. Davis emerges from a three-game road stretch with 481 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions. They also qualify as the worst three of his eight starts based on ESPN’s total quarterback rating.

“I think the thing I’m learning real quickly is you can play well for 3 1/2 quarters but you’ve got to play four,” said Davis. “You can’t have a single letdown, and right now I’m having those and it’s costing our football team. I’ve got to stay strong, get better and eliminate those mistakes — mostly turnovers — that are costing our football team.”

Austin Davis not the answer for Rams at QB

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/13498/austin-davis-not-the-answer-for-rams-at-qb

GLENDALE, Ariz. –The harsh reality of playing quarterback in the NFL might not have been apparent to the St. Louis Rams’ Austin Davis after his first start or his second or even his fifth.

But the past two weeks have served as a reminder that Davis has one of the toughest jobs in sports, a job that he simply isn’t capable of doing at a level that will lead his team to wins on a consistent basis. Whether that’s a permanent condition or not remains to be seen but the evidence seemed to be piling up against him in Sunday’s 31-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

After managing the game and coming up with a big play or two along the way for the first three quarters of a game the Rams led into the fourth quarter, Davis was once again unable to avoid the type of costly mistakes that have dotted his first eight NFL starts.

Austin Davis had a rough day against the Cardinals defense, accounting for three turnovers (two of which were returned for touchdowns).
A lead that sat at 14-10 in the fourth quarter quickly turned into 21 unanswered points for the Cardinals, 14 of which fell out of the hands of Davis. He threw two interceptions to Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson, one of which Peterson returned 30 yards for a game-sealing touchdown, and coughed up a fumble that Cardinals cornerback Antonio Cromartie picked up and returned 14 yards for the final margin.

“I didn’t play well enough to win today,” Davis said. “I think the thing I’m learning really quick is you can play well for three and a half quarters but you’ve got to play four. You can’t have a single letdown and right now I’m having those and it’s costing our football team. I’ve got to stay the course, stay strong and keep getting better and eliminate these mistakes, mainly turnovers, that are costing our football team.”

To be sure, Davis’ struggles in Sunday’s game weren’t limited to the fourth quarter. He struggled to identify the many exotic blitz packages the Cardinals threw at him and he got little help from his offensive line and wide receivers along the way. Despite those issues, Davis and the Rams were poised to pull off the upset until the costly fourth-quarter turnovers.

On the first, Davis had receiver Chris Givens running a deep route against Peterson. Givens actually had created some space and a strong, accurate throw might have even gone for a touchdown to get the Rams the lead back after the defense surrendered a long touchdown pass to give Arizona a 17-14 lead.

As Davis stepped up, he was unable to get enough on the throw and Peterson settled under it for an easy interception. It was the second week in a row in which Davis badly underthrew a pass that was intercepted.

“I just underthrew the ball,” Davis said. “I don’t really have an answer for it. I don’t understand it. We got the look we were looking for, I thought Chris ran a good route and won, the ball didn’t go where I wanted it to.”

The Rams survived that interception as the defense got the ball back with a quick three-and-out but Davis’ next mistake was far more costly. Looking for receiver Kenny Britt on a short crossing route, Davis fired it a little too high and though Britt should have caught it, the pass would qualify as catchable but not accurate.

Peterson was again there to secure the mistake and return it for the score that made it 24-14 and, for all intents and purposes, end the game.

“The second one, I just threw it high and it gets tipped around,” Davis said. “Two critical plays, you can’t turn the football over. We knew coming in that was kind of their thing. They kind of live off the turnover and you saw it there at the end.”

For Davis, the fourth-string-quarterback-turned-starter, costly turnovers have been all too familiar this season. He has nine interceptions on the season with four of those turning into immediate points via a return for touchdown. He also has a pair of fumbles that have been returned for touchdowns. Making those numbers hurt worse is the fact that six of Davis’ nine interceptions have come in the fourth quarter, including all four of the pick-sixes.

In nine games, Davis’ fourth-quarter passer rating is 68.1 with a QBR of 23.8, which includes a 12.0 and 0.1 on Sunday.

“It can’t happen,” Davis said. “It’s killing our defense. They’re playing their tails off. For me to have those letdowns, it’s really tough. I’ve got to get a lot better and I can’t do that.”

In terms of intangibles, Davis checks every box for what a starting NFL quarterback should be. But intangibles don’t score points or win games. While he’s done enough to earn a backup job moving forward, it’s probably best to put away any hopes that he can be the Rams’ long-term answer at the game’s most important position.

Rapid Reaction: St. Louis Rams

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/13472/rapid-reaction-st-louis-rams-21

GLENDALE, Ariz. — A few thoughts on the St. Louis Rams’ 31-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium.

What it means: Although the final score wouldn’t indicate as much, this was a game that was winnable for the Rams. They actually had the lead entering the fourth quarter and missed some opportunities to put it away. But, as has been custom all year, the Rams were unable to finish against the best fourth-quarter team in the league in terms of scoring and turnover margin. The Rams are now 3-6 on the season and any realistic hopes of mounting a second-half charge probably faded away with their latest fourth-quarter meltdown.

Stock watch: Down — Rams quarterback Austin Davis. At halftime, Davis had a passer rating of 145.8, a number that mostly reflected a 59-yard touchdown catch by tight end Jared Cook. Though the offensive line didn’t provide much cover and the receivers rarely got open, Davis struggled to recognize blitzes and sufficiently get the ball out in short order. He threw two inaccurate fourth-quarter passes that ended up as interceptions for Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson. Peterson returned one 30 yards for a touchdown to put the Rams away. It was Davis’ fourth pick-six of the season. He also coughed up a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. While Davis has done some admirable work this season, it’s become clear that pinning any future hopes on him as a starter would be foolish.

Costly call: With 4:13 to go in the third quarter, Davis hit Cook for a big gain down the right seam, a 41-yard gain that looked to set the Rams up with a prime chance to take a two-score lead inside Arizona’s 10. But after Cook broke a tackle and headed for the right sideline, tight end Lance Kendricks delivered a crushing block to Arizona safety Tony Jefferson as he turned to pursue Cook at the 20. The block sprang Cook loose for more yards but the officials flagged Kendricks for an illegal blindside block. Instead of first-and-goal, the Rams had a first-and-10 at Arizona’s 35 and ended up punting. It was a big miss that dearly cost the Rams.

Game ball: Safety T.J. McDonald. The second-year safety has had his ups and downs in his first season and a half but he was all over the field Sunday. In what was probably the best performance of his young career, McDonald finished with nine tackles, a sack, three tackles for loss and a quarterback hit.

What’s next: Their three-game road swing finally over, the Rams get to head home to take on Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos before another trip to the West Coast to play San Diego the following week.

GreatRamNTheSky wrote:

I don’t know but I’d say he has hit a mental wall. He looked confused and indecisive and maybe lacks confidence right now.
Don’t know why but he doesn’t look like the same QB he was in the Tampa game, Dallas game or the first 49ers game.

Well I think that’s a fair assessment.

But the difference between earlier games and recent games is that defenses now have film on him…and as a result, they have the book on him.

Coaching didn’t change. Davis’s situation did. Defenses are geared up for him now. They know how to play him. To keep battling he would have to develop counters, and…right now, it looks like he doesn’t have any counters.

Mackeyser wrote:

I watch every game and root til the end. Short of the bad calls, the explanations sound reasonable for why the Rams haven’t achieved. Doesn’t mean I accept it, but if this D is complicated and young people start executing later this season, then I see serious hope for the future.

That;s pretty much where I am at.

Keys to Victory: Cardinals

Join Steve Savard, D’Marco Farr, and Will Witherspoon as they break down the Rams match up before they travel to Arizona.

http://www.stlouisrams.com/videos/videos/Keys-to-Victory-Cardinals/4b776144-6b22-4aa9-878b-2110d1f40f6b

7 things to watch: Rams at Cardinals

By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/things-to-watch-rams-at-cardinals/article_5e735ac0-123c-5f76-9760-dcbcc2019d8d.html

CAN RAMS’ QUINN BEAT CARDINALS’ VELDHEER?

Just like that, the light switch is on for Rams DE Robert Quinn. He has six sacks over the team’s past three games, and after early-season struggles has recaptured the form that made him the 2013 NFL defensive player of the year as selected by the Pro Football Writers. Quinn had seven sacks against the Big Red during his first three seasons in the league, but only one has come at University of Phoenix Stadium. Quinn beat Levi Brown for three sacks in the ’13 season opener; Brown was traded a month later. Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said his team is “10 times” better equipped to handle Quinn this time around, with 6-foot-8, 321-pound Jared Veldheer at left tackle. “He’s athletic, good in space, great anchor,” Quinn said. “So bull-rushing him is gonna be tough.” Arians normally doesn’t give his tackles much help, so it could be an interesting afternoon.

CHASING CARSON

At 6 feet 5, 235 pounds, Carson Palmer doesn’t have the speed or mobility to be much of a scrambling threat. But he gets the ball out quickly, and with 12 years experience in the NFL has the savvy to avoid the rush with a step here, a couple steps there. He has been sacked only six times in the five games he’s played, missing three early season games because of a nerve problem in his throwing shoulder. All told, the Cardinals have allowed only 13 sacks this season.

GOING DEEP

Palmer still throws one of the best deep balls around, and has thrown TD passes of 81, 80, and 75 yards this season. Rookie small-school find John Brown is a burner who leads the team with four TD catches. Michael Floyd (6 feet 2, 220 pounds) combines size with deep speed, but hasn’t really been in sync with Palmer this season. Eight-time Pro Bowler Larry Fitzgerald has come on lately as a short and intermediate threat. Drops have been an issue across the board.

THIRD-DOWN SUCCESS

One of the keys to the Cardinals’ success offensively is their success on third down. Palmer leads the league in third-down passer rating (129.5). He has completed 65.6 percent of his passes on third down, on which he has thrown eight of his 11 TD passes. The Rams’ defense has struggled getting opponents off the field on third down most of the season, but held the 49ers to just a 25 percent conversion rate (three of 12) on third down last Sunday — their best effort of the season.

THE ELLINGTON FACTOR

Some in Arizona would argue that the offense runs through running back Andre Ellington, the diminutive (5 feet 9, 199 pounds) second-year pro out of Clemson. He’s averaging 20 touches a game with 149 carries for 559 yards, plus 32 catches for 313 yards. That’s 3.8 yards per carry and 9.8 yards per catch — both modest averages. But Ellington is scary fast and especially dangerous in space. He can bounce running plays outside, such as Jamaal Charles of Kansas City does.

BOWLES’ SCHEME

Arizona defensive coordinator Todd Bowles is a rising star who could be a head-coaching candidate this offseason. The Cardinals don’t have a top-tier pass rusher, but Bowles make things interesting for opposing quarterbacks with lots of blitzing. Bowles also is at the extreme edge of the spectrum in terms of making his game plans opponent specific. The Rams expect to see things they haven’t seen previously on film from Arizona. In-game adjustments will be key.

ARIZONA SECONDARY

Arizona’s among the NFL leaders in takeaways, but has given up its share of big plays. Three-time Pro Bowler Patrick Peterson played better last week, but is the most penalized player in the NFL (10 called, nine accepted) and has given up four touchdown passes. Following a late-season knee injury in 2013, Tyrann Mathieu has played more at safety than nickel back in ’14, and has been a part-time player much of the year. Antonio Cromartie has been the Cardinals’ most consistent corner.

W2W4: St. Louis Rams

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/13370/w2w4-st-louis-rams-13

EARTH CITY, Mo. — The St. Louis Rams and Arizona Cardinals kick off Week 10 on Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium. Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. ET on regional Fox coverage.

Here are three things to watch from the Rams’ perspective:

1. Getting after Palmer: The dominant Rams pass rush that many were expecting at the beginning of the season has been increasingly evident in recent weeks, showing up to the tune of eight sacks last week against the 49ers. End Robert Quinn has led the charge with six sacks and the Rams have 14 in the past three weeks. Arizona spent big money on left tackle Jared Veldheer in the offseason, no doubt with trying to slow Quinn on its mind. So far, the adjustments to the line have paid off as quarterback Carson Palmer has been sacked only 13 times through the first eight games, tied for sixth fewest in the NFL. The Rams sacked Palmer four times in their win at home against the Cardinals to open the 2013 season with Palmer coming under fire much more in that meeting. The Rams will need to ratchet it up to levels similar to last week to prevent Palmer from spreading it around to a talented receiver corps.

2. Fourth-Quarter Finish: Through the first eight games, the Rams have struggled to finish consistently and have had particular struggles in the second half. They rectified that to some extent last week when they held San Francisco scoreless in the game’s final 30 minutes but they scored only three points of their own in the process. But they’ll have to be much better in the game’s closing moments if they are to beat Arizona. The Cardinals finish games with the same mettle as former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. Arizona has outscored opponents 70-34 in fourth quarters this season, which is second in the NFL. Only Kansas City has allowed fewer fourth-quarter points. The Cardinals have nine takeaways and are plus-eight in turnover margin in the final quarter.

3. Room to run? While the Rams’ defense and pass rush have showed signs of reaching expected levels, they are still waiting for the running game to improve to the point that was expected. Coach Jeff Fisher said this week that the team hasn’t settled on just one running back, though recent trends indicate that rookie Tre Mason has emerged as the primary option. Regardless of who is getting the ball, though, running room figures to be hard to find against the Cardinals. Arizona is third in the league in rushing yards allowed per game at 79.62 and fourth in yards allowed per attempt at just 3.37. The Rams’ offense has sputtered against the better defenses in recent weeks but for it to get the ship righted, it will have to find a way to get the running game revved up.

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