Shaun Hill, Tre Mason sparks St. Louis Rams in upset win
By Ben Carter
In a week where not many were giving the St. Louis Rams much of a chance against the defending AFC Champion Denver Broncos, the horrid offense gets a spark behind veteran quarterback Shaun Hill and rookie running back Tre Mason. Now, the defense deserves the most credit in the Rams upset win, but that unit has played lights out the past months or so; it is the offense that was finally able to get something done and secure a stunning win at home.
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Under Hill, the Rams were only able to find the end zone once on a 68-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Britt, which isn’t necessarily the recipe to defeating a Peyton Manning lead team, but they were able to extend drives; which is something the Rams struggled to do with Austin Davis at the helm. The Rams dominated the time of possession game; having the ball for almost 12 minutes longer than Denver. A lot of that had to do with the decision making of Hill on third down, but also the determined running of the rookie Mason.
Mason, put up his first career 100-yard rushing game; finishing with 113 yards on 29 carries and an impressive 27-yard scamper in the second half. Over the past few weeks Mason has taken over the backfield. While he was splitting time with Benny Cunningham for the majority of the season so far, this past Sunday against Denver Mason finished with 27 more carries than Cunningham. It seems as if Mason is doing what the almost outcasted running back Zac Stacy did last season for the Rams. His downhill running style and his sneaky speed and agility gashed the stingy Denver run defense and was able to keep the ball away from Peyton. With the “easier” part of the Rams schedule coming up, it will be interesting to see how this team finishes.
The 2014 Rams may be the most interesting team in the league. They beat teams where nobody gives them a chance-Seattle, San Francisco and now Denver- but then can’t string together enough wins in a row to stay completive in the playoff push. The Rams may not be the best, or most talented team in the NFL, but with a stout defense and newly found offensive chemistry, they are a team that you should worry about when they show up on your schedule.