Silver linings: Rams at Raiders

[Nick]

Silver linings: Rams at Raiders
By Mike Sando
Sep 20 10:21AM ET

The facts: The Rams dropped to 0-2 with a 16-14 road defeat to the Oakland Raiders in Week 2.

The upside: Even the worst defeats tend to feature a bright spot or two.

* The Rams scored touchdowns on two of their three possessions inside the red zone.

* Receiver Mark Clayton caught two touchdown passes, matching his total with Baltimore in 2009. He has 12 receptions for 143 yards in two games since joining the Rams via trade from Baltimore.

* Quarterback Sam Bradford completed his first seven pass attempts for 98 yards and one touchdown. Even after struggling for a stretch, Bradford capitalized on a late Raiders turnover, quickly finding Clayton for a touchdown to pull the Rams within two points in the final minutes.

* Steven Jackson started quickly, taking pressure off Bradford early in the game.

* Tight end Daniel Fells made a one-handed reception for a 36-yard gain.

* Rookie Jerome Murphy and veteran James Butler picked off passes for the Rams.

* Rookie Mardy Gilyard had a 30-yard kickoff return.

* Linebacker James Laurinaitis had nine tackles and a sack. Defensive end James Hall also generated some pressure. He had five tackles and a sack.

* The Rams played well enough defensively in the first half for the Raiders to make a quarterback change at halftime.

Looking ahead: The Rams return to the Edward Jones Dome for a game against the Washington Redskins in Week 3.

[TekeRam]

How about we were a rare missed FG away from winning, despite seemingly going 3 and out for most of the 2nd half?

[RamsInfiniti]

How about we were a rare missed FG away from winning, despite seemingly going 3 and out for most of the 2nd half?

Last year, we would have lost 30-14 ... no doubt in my mind ....

[berg8309]

Last year, we would have lost 30-14 ... no doubt in my mind ....

We would have scored 2 touchdowns?

[MACD]

What great effort by Fell for that finger-tip reception!!! He came back in didn't he?

[mikhal5569]

What great effort by Fell for that finger-tip reception!!! He came back in didn't he?

Not trying to derail the thread here...but... Fells was very lucky he didn't break his leg coming down. Any word on his status? The game I was streaming didn't say a word about it and they showed the fewest replays I have ever seen in my life.

[Nick]

Not trying to derail the thread here...but... Fells was very lucky he didn't break his leg coming down. Any word on his status? The game I was streaming didn't say a word about it and they showed the fewest replays I have ever seen in my life.

According to the play by play, Fells was on the field at least once after being injured as Bradford attempted a pass to him. Haven't heard anything definitive about the injury, though.

[Torry Holt]

According to the play by play, Fells was on the field at least once after being injured as Bradford attempted a pass to him. Haven't heard anything definitive about the injury, though.

I see Fells on the field again after the hit, I was really surprised by the way.

Craig Dahl is a bright spot on this defense, he is often around the ball and looks solid. I prefer him over James Butler even if he made a nice interception.