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The Rams went three-and-out on their first drive; but their second drive was even more troublesome. Wide-receiver Mark Clayton was tripped up by Detroit safety Louis Delmas, and it appeared that Clayton injured his knee on that play; reports later indicated that it was a patella tendon tear. Clayton left the game, and will be out for the season. The Rams continued to march the ball into the Lions' red-zone, but that drive came to a halt after wide-receiver Danny Amendola fumbled the ball inside the 10-yard line.
The Rams' defense prevailed after the fumble, forcing a punt, and they were able to take it right back into the red-zone after a solid reception by Amendola, and a big run by Steven Jackson (which took the Rams to the 10-yard line). Regardless, the Rams had to settle for a Josh Brown field-goal, tying the score at 3-3 on the final drive of the 1st-quarter.
The score was not tied for long, the Lions' kick returner Stephan Logan returned a Josh Brown kick-off 105 yards for a touchdown, this made the score 10-3, Lions' lead, to start the 2nd-quarter. But the Lions' were not done doing their damage; after getting the ball back, a couple of solid runs by running-back Jahvid Best set up a 1-yard touchdown catch by star wide-receiver Calvin Johnson, making the score 17-3, with just over six minutes left in the half.
The Rams got the ball back and were able to put together a nice drive. A reception by Mardy Gilyard, which drew a 15-yard face-mask penalty, put the Rams into the Lions' red-zone. However, the Rams were ineffective in the red-zone, as Bradford threw two passes that were nearly picked off, which forced the Rams to settle for a field-goal, making the score 17-6.
The Lions were then able to put together a solid final drive of the half. They put on a clinic with their hurry-up offense, moving the ball at will, and on the last play of the drive, quarterback Shaun Hill had all the time in the world to hit TE Brandon Pettigrew for his second touchdown pass of the game. This made the score 24-6. The Rams nearly answered back with 8 seconds left on the clock; Bradford hit tight-end Daniel Fells, which put them in field-goal range, but Fells didn't go down in time, which could have given the Rams a chance to call a time-out, and kick a field-goal. Fells instead killed the rest of the time on the clock, ending the half.
The 2nd half did not start off any better for the Rams. The Rams got the ball to start the half, but they gained negative yards on the drive, which forced them to punt. The Lions, once again, answered back; this time with a 26-yard touchdown catch by wide-receiver Nate Burleson from Hill. This made the score 31-6, and that remained the score as the 4th-quarter started.
I'll just stop there...
The rest of the game was nothing but the Rams demonstrating how to not play football. The final score was 44-6. The Rams lost by 38 points... to the Detroit Lions. It was the Lions' biggest win (point differential wise) since 1995.
THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY
THE GOOD:
Well... Steven Jackson had his first 100 yard game on the season. He carried the ball 25 times for 119 yards. Meanwhile, Danny Amendola had 12 catches for 95 yards, coming close to his first 100 yard game.
THE BAD:
Everything was bad in this game. The onside-kick to start the game was questionable, especially considering the opposing team is known for their offense, meaning that handing them good field position was probably not a smart move. Amendola's fumble was a momentum changer. The kick-off returned for a touchdown seemed to be the point where the Rams went flat. Sam Bradford had plenty of poor throws, including two interceptions. The defense was lifeless, and they showed no heart at all. Steve Spagnuolo and Pat Shurmur were completely out-coached.
THE UGLY:
There was plenty of "ugly" in this game; but I'm going to go with Clayton's injury. The trade for Clayton was the answer to Donnie Avery's season ending injury. Clayton's injury looked just as serious, if not more serious, than Avery's. So how will General Manager Billy Devaney answer to Clayton's injury? This may force the team, once again, to revisit the Vincent Jackson option. Jackson would have to serve a three-game suspension, but he would be available for this team by the time they return from the bye week.
MY PREDICTIONS FOR 2010 STAYING ACCURATE
Going by my predictions, as seen in my article "Rams 2010 Season Prediction"- http://stlsport.blogspot.com/2010/08/rams-2010-season-prediction.html - I am 80% accurate so far on my predictions:
Rams vs Cardinals PREDICTION: WIN OUTCOME: LOSS
Rams vs Raiders PREDICTION: LOSS OUTCOME: LOSS
Rams vs Redskins PREDICTION: WIN OUTCOME: WIN
Rams vs Seahawks PREDICTION: WIN OUTCOME: WIN
Rams vs Lions PREDICTION: LOSS OUTCOME: LOSS
I take no pleasure in being correct about the Oakland game, or today's game. My overall prediction has the Rams going 7-9 in 2010. My prediction of the games leading up to the bye week has the Rams losing next week against San Diego, winning against Tampa Bay, and losing to Carolina (one prediction I wish I could change); hopefully I am wrong about two of those upcoming prediction, and the Rams enter the bye week with a 5-3 record. But we can only hope.
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