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Sloppy Performance Dooms St. Louis Rams; Fall 24-10

By Matt LaPan

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The St. Louis Rams were riding high following a dramatic Week 1 win over the Seattle Seahawks. That feeling was quickly reversed, as the Washington Redskins took it to the Rams and handed them their first loss of the season, 24-10.

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Both teams stalled on their opening drives, but it was on the Redskins’ second drive that they found a weakness in the right side of the Rams defense. Washington used the running duo of Alfred Morris and Matt Jones to dominate the Rams defense. It took just three plays to go 72 yards before Jones scampered 39 yards for a touchdown. The score gave Washington the 7-0 lead.

The Rams offense continued to struggle against the Washington defense, going 3-&-out again. The Rams were only able to gain 37 yards on their opening three drives.

Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; St. Louis Rams running back Benny Cunningham (36) carries the ball as Washington Redskins inside linebacker Keenan Robinson (52) chases during the first half at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Washington continued to move the ball well, this time getting a big play through the air. Kirk Cousins found Ryan Grant on busted coverage for a 35-yard completion. Following the play, the Rams defense finally locked down. They did not allow the Redskins to go any further, forcing a 46-yard field goal from Dustin Hopkins. The field goal gave Washington a 10-0 lead with less than one minute left in the opening quarter.

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The Rams continued to struggle, especially on the ground, throughout their next drive. The Washington defensive line, led by Terrance Knighton, held the Rams to no running room and forced another punt. The Rams finished the drive with only seven rushing yards on the game. Those seven yards came on six attempts.

The Rams defense continued to bow their backs, forcing a 3-&-out on the next Washington drive. They nearly broke a big play when Trumaine Johnson stepped in front of a Cousins pass – but dropped the interception.

The offense continued to struggle, however. They went 3-&-out again without moving the ball. The Rams went 3-&-out for the third time in five drives.

The disastrous half continued for St. Louis as Cousins marked the Redskins back down the field. Washington went on a 12-play, 82-yard drive. The touchdown was a four-yard pass from Cousins to Pierre Garcon, giving Washington the 17-0 lead.

The Rams finally were able to get a 1st down on their next drive, but the success did not last. The 1st down came on a jet-sweep to Tavon Austin, but then the Rams were unable to move again. They failed on another 3rd down, making them 1-7 on 3rd downs in the half.

The Rams had another chance to get on the board after stopping the Redskins and an 18-yard punt. They started on the Redskins side of the field, and ran out of time before they could do anything with the field position. The half ended with the Rams trailing 17-0. They were out-gained 247-77 yards.

The Rams started the 2nd half on defense, and appeared to gain some momentum. They forced the Redskins to go 3-&-out. Lamarcus Joyner made a terrific stop on a screen attempt from Washington to end the drive.

The Rams offense appeared to gain some traction in their opening drive, gaining yards with Tre Mason on the ground. While the drive stalled, the Rams got their first points of the game with a 52-yard field goal from Greg Zuerlein, cutting the Washington lead to 17-3.

The Rams defense came through again for the Rams, not only stopping the Redskins on their next drive but forcing a turnover. Robert Quinn knocked the ball free from Matt Jones and TJ McDonald recovered to give the Rams great field position.

Just two plays later the Rams found the end zone. Nick Foles executed a great play-action pass deep down field to Kenny Britt for a 40-yard touchdown. The play was the longest of the game for the Rams and cut the deficit to 17-10. Foles did a terrific job creating separation for Britt by giving three pump fakes on the pass attempt.

The Rams forced another 3-&-out on the ensuing drive with Robert Quinn making the play of the drive. The Redskins attempted to run at Quinn, but he shed his blocker and stacked up Morris for a loss. This forced the Redskins to punt, giving the offense good field position.

The Rams offense was unable to take advantage this time, however. A facemask on Jared Cook and a false start on Rodger Saffold pushed the Rams back. They were unable to overcome and were forced to punt the ball back to Washington.

Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; St. Louis Rams quarterback Nick Foles (5) attempts a pass as Washington Redskins defensive end Jason Hatcher (97) rushes during the first half at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

While Washington mounted a bit of a drive to start the 4th quarter, the Rams defense were able to get another stop to give the offense the ball back. The big defensive play on the drive was a great pass rush by Aaron Donald. He shot the gap and flushed Cousins from the pocket, and was held while in pursuit. That stalled the Washington drive.

The Rams attempted to use the short passing game to attack the Redskins, but it did not work as they were forced to end their drive with another Johnny Hekker punt. It was the eighth punt of the day for Hekker, who was averaging 46 yards per punt.

The Redskins got the ball back and went on a drive that not only took a ton of time off the clock, but made it a two-score game. In 12 plays the Redskins went 77 yards before Matt Jones plunged in for his second touchdown of the game. The Redskins converted a 3-&-8 on the drive to keep it alive. The score extended the lead to 24-10 with just 2:38 left in the game.

The Rams were unable to do anything with the ball on offense, ending any chance of a comeback. The Redskins ran out the clock to take a 24-10 win, moving both teams to 1-1. The Rams offense ran just eight plays on the Redskins side of the 50 yard line.

Nick Foles finished 17-of-32 for 150 yards and one touchdown. Tavon Austin led the team in rushing with four carries for 40 yards, but as a team the Rams only managed 67 yards on the ground. Matt Jones was the story for Washington, gaining 122 yards and scoring two touchdowns. The Rams will have to regroup as the welcome the Pittsburgh Steelers into St. Louis next week.

Next: Houston Texans: Already Time for a Quarterback Change

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