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Rams report card vs. Seahawks
By Bill Coats
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
SEATTLE – Here’s one blogger’s grades for the Rams after Sunday’s 28-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks:
QUARTERBACK: He was sacked three times, but Marc Bulger didn’t get much done even when he had plenty of time to throw. Bulger, playing with his injured right pinky finger taped, looked tentative in the pocket never did get into a rhythm. He wasn’t intercepted, but completed just 47.2 percent of his passes and earned a poor 63.5 passer rating. When a team gets shut out, most of the blame falls on the QB. GRADE: F
RUNNING BACKS: Steven Jackson didn’t have much room to operate, but he didn’t bring much juice, either, getting just 67 yards on 16 carries. His 4.2-yard-per-carry average was propped up by some late bursts well after the outcome was determined. Only two passes were thrown Jackson’s way, and he caught neither. One was a flat-out drop. GRADE: D-
RECEIVERS: WRs Donnie Avery and Laurent Robinson, and TE Randy McMichael combined for 15 catches and 177 yards. But that was about the extent of the receivers’ contributions. WR Keenan Burton, who had trouble getting separation, had just one receptions, as did TE Daniel Fells. GRADE: C-
OFFENSIVE LINE: The pass blocking wasn’t terrible, despite the three sacks. There were few holes for Jackson to exploit. Rookie RT Jason Smith gave up one of the sacks but generally was OK. G Richie Incognito’s two personal-foul penalties were killers, and his undisciplined play dragged down the entire unit. GRADE: D-
DEFENSIVE LINE: Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck was rarely touched, and he torched the Rams for 279 yards and three TDs. Again, the Rams were gashed on the ground. Seattle rolled up 167 rushing yards, including a 62-yard TD run by Julius Jones in which he was barely touched. DE Leonard Little was whistled for a 15-yard personal foul that extended Seattle’s first TD drive. GRADE: D-
LINEBACKERS: Rookie James Laurinaitis was stout in the middle, collecting 14 tackles in the unofficial press-box stats. He had some miscues in coverage, but overall it was an impressive debut. David Vobora was active at SLB, but also had a couple of breakdowns. WLB Will Witherspoon had six stops and forced a fumble that Laurinaitis recovered. GRADE: C
SECONDARY: Safeties Oshiomogho Atogwe and James Butler had interceptions that snuffed promising Seahawks drives. CB Ron Bartell was generally strong in coverage, and Jonathan Wade did OK in his start at the other corner, although at times the DBs gave the receivers too much cushion. GRADE: C+
SPECIAL TEAMS: Donnie Avery fumbled away the opening kickoff. Josh Brown missed a 37-yard FG. A blocked FG and subsequent TD run was wiped out by an inexcusable 12-men-on-the-field penalty. Donnie Jones was his usual steady self, averaging 50.8 yards on eight punts. Rams returns were OK, their coverage pretty good. GRADE: D-
COACHING: There were problems getting personnel into the game, which cost the Rams a couple of timeouts. HC Steve Spagnuolo had a generally rough debut, but he earned points for temporarily benching, but not burying, Richie Incognito after his second personal foul. OC Pat Shurmur’s play-calling was timid and uninspired. The Rams failed to capitalize on the three early turnovers that DC Ken Flajole’s unit provided. The defense remains soft vs. the run, and there was little pressure on Hasselbeck. Tom McMahon’s special-teams committed a couple of major gaffes. GRADE: D-
By Bill Coats
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
SEATTLE – Here’s one blogger’s grades for the Rams after Sunday’s 28-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks:
QUARTERBACK: He was sacked three times, but Marc Bulger didn’t get much done even when he had plenty of time to throw. Bulger, playing with his injured right pinky finger taped, looked tentative in the pocket never did get into a rhythm. He wasn’t intercepted, but completed just 47.2 percent of his passes and earned a poor 63.5 passer rating. When a team gets shut out, most of the blame falls on the QB. GRADE: F
RUNNING BACKS: Steven Jackson didn’t have much room to operate, but he didn’t bring much juice, either, getting just 67 yards on 16 carries. His 4.2-yard-per-carry average was propped up by some late bursts well after the outcome was determined. Only two passes were thrown Jackson’s way, and he caught neither. One was a flat-out drop. GRADE: D-
RECEIVERS: WRs Donnie Avery and Laurent Robinson, and TE Randy McMichael combined for 15 catches and 177 yards. But that was about the extent of the receivers’ contributions. WR Keenan Burton, who had trouble getting separation, had just one receptions, as did TE Daniel Fells. GRADE: C-
OFFENSIVE LINE: The pass blocking wasn’t terrible, despite the three sacks. There were few holes for Jackson to exploit. Rookie RT Jason Smith gave up one of the sacks but generally was OK. G Richie Incognito’s two personal-foul penalties were killers, and his undisciplined play dragged down the entire unit. GRADE: D-
DEFENSIVE LINE: Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck was rarely touched, and he torched the Rams for 279 yards and three TDs. Again, the Rams were gashed on the ground. Seattle rolled up 167 rushing yards, including a 62-yard TD run by Julius Jones in which he was barely touched. DE Leonard Little was whistled for a 15-yard personal foul that extended Seattle’s first TD drive. GRADE: D-
LINEBACKERS: Rookie James Laurinaitis was stout in the middle, collecting 14 tackles in the unofficial press-box stats. He had some miscues in coverage, but overall it was an impressive debut. David Vobora was active at SLB, but also had a couple of breakdowns. WLB Will Witherspoon had six stops and forced a fumble that Laurinaitis recovered. GRADE: C
SECONDARY: Safeties Oshiomogho Atogwe and James Butler had interceptions that snuffed promising Seahawks drives. CB Ron Bartell was generally strong in coverage, and Jonathan Wade did OK in his start at the other corner, although at times the DBs gave the receivers too much cushion. GRADE: C+
SPECIAL TEAMS: Donnie Avery fumbled away the opening kickoff. Josh Brown missed a 37-yard FG. A blocked FG and subsequent TD run was wiped out by an inexcusable 12-men-on-the-field penalty. Donnie Jones was his usual steady self, averaging 50.8 yards on eight punts. Rams returns were OK, their coverage pretty good. GRADE: D-
COACHING: There were problems getting personnel into the game, which cost the Rams a couple of timeouts. HC Steve Spagnuolo had a generally rough debut, but he earned points for temporarily benching, but not burying, Richie Incognito after his second personal foul. OC Pat Shurmur’s play-calling was timid and uninspired. The Rams failed to capitalize on the three early turnovers that DC Ken Flajole’s unit provided. The defense remains soft vs. the run, and there was little pressure on Hasselbeck. Tom McMahon’s special-teams committed a couple of major gaffes. GRADE: D-
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