2010 RECORD: 7-9-0
(2nd in NFC West)
HEAD COACH: Steve Spagnuolo
Offense: When the 2011 season gets going, the Rams once again will look to quarterback Sam Bradford to be the leader.
Bradford threw for 3,512 yards and 18 touchdowns with 15 interceptions. Not too shabby as far as rookie numbers go. The backup signal caller is veteran A.J. Feeley.
The running backs are led by Steven Jackson (1,241 yards, 3.8 ypc average, six TD), who continues to be the workhorse for the Rams' backfield. Cadillac Williams comes over from Tampa Bay after finishing last season with 437 rushing yards and two touchdowns as well as making 46 receptions for 355 yards and a score.
Jerious Norwood, Keith Toston and fullbacks Brit Miller and Michael Hoomanawanui will be asked to provide depth for St. Louis.
The wide receivers include Brandon Gibson (53 receptions, 620 yards, two TD), Danny Amendola (85 grabs for 689 yards and three scores), Mark Clayton (23,306, two TD), who was re-signed by the Rams, Mike Sims-Walker (43, 562, seven TD with Jacksonville last year), rookie Greg Salas (Hawaii) and Donnie Avery, who along with Clayton was injured for most of last season.
The tight ends are Lance Kendricks, a rookie from Wisconsin and Michael Hoomanawanui.
The offensive line is comprised of center Jason Brown, guards Jacob Bell and Harvey Dahl and tackles Rodger Saffold and Jason Smith.
The Rams must improve the output after finishing 26th offensively in the NFL last year, averaging 303 yards per game. The running game averaged 99 yards per game with 204 passing yards per game. The Rams scored 289 points, which ranked 26th overall.
Defense: The Rams defense saw a big difference in the pass rush from year's past as they registered 43 quarterback sacks in 2010.
Leading the way is defensive end James Hall (10.5 QB sacks). who teams with Chris Long (8.5 sacks) at the other end spot. The tackles include newcomers Daniel Muir and Justin Bannan, along with Fred Robbins (six sacks) and Gary Gibson on the defensive front.
The linebackers have James Laurinaitis in the middle with outside backers Brady Poppinga and Zac Diles. Josh Hull and Chris Chamberlain provide depth at linebacker.
In the secondary, newcomer Quintin Mikell teams with James Butler at safety. Jermale Hines, Craig Dahl and Darian Stewart also are ready in the safety spots.
The corner men include Ron Bartell and Bradley Fletcher (four interceptions to lead team) along with reserves Al Harris, Jerome Murphy and Justin King.
St. Louis finished 19th in total defense last year, giving up 337 yards per game, which was a big improvement from the past three seasons. The Rams also had 14 interceptions in 2010.
In addition, St. Louis gave up 328 points, which ranked 12th overall and their 43 sacks ranked seventh in the NFL.
OUTLOOK: With Bradford continuing to develop at quarterback and the running game featuring two solid backs, along with a new influx of speed at wide receiver, look for St. Louis to put up more than the 289 points (total from last year) on the board this season.
The defense is an opportunistic one that helped stake the team to good field position and also to thwart opposing offenses from lighting up the score board, which was most often the case the previous three seasons.
Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo likes an aggressive defense and has seen improvement in his first two years on the job.
The Rams were real close to winning the NFC West last season and making the playoffs, and are eager to show they belong in the post-season in 2011.
Barring any major injuries to key players, expect this team to at least do the same as they did last year in the win-loss column. A .500 record could win the division and the Rams are likely to go 8-8 this season, which could get their ticket punched to the post-season.
TEAM SCHEDULE:
Week 1- vs. Philadelphia
Week 2- at NY Giants
Week 3- vs. Baltimore
Week 4- vs. Washington
Week 5- BYE WEEK
Week 6- at Green Bay
Week 7- at Dallas
Week 8- vs. New Orleans
Week 9- at Arizona
Week 10- at Cleveland
Week 11- vs. Seattle
Week 12- vs. Arizona
Week 13- at San Francisco
Week 14- at Seattle
Week 15- vs. Cincinnati
Week 16- at Pittsburgh
Week 17- vs. San Francisco
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