This week's Rams match-up is Sunday night football with the Rams hosting the
Ravens in Saint Louis. This game will feature Rams, Ravens, and running. Why
running? Well, the Ravens love to run and last week, the Rams forgot to run.
Look for Martz to establish the run on ESPN.
Let me clarify, hopefully, Martz will establish the run. We know the Ravens
will run the ball with Jamal Lewis. Lewis leads the NFL in rushing with 1,045
yards in 8 games. He's almost exactly on track to set an NFL record for rushing
in a season. He's looking to break Eric Dickerson's 2,105 yards set in 1984. And
looking at the Ravens' schedule, it's very possible.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Rams are third worst in the NFL in
rushing per game (only Cincinnati and Buffalo average less than the Rams' 86.4
yards per game) and due to injuries, have a running back committee with Marshall Faulk, Lamar Gordon, and Arlen Harris each carrying the ball. . There's no doubt
that last weeks' 8 carries for 9 yards dropped the Rams many spots in the NFL
rankings but more importantly, it shows how the Rams' running backs need to get
some action. Through 8 games, the Rams average 3.3 yards per carry which
typically won't win you many games. But it's not talent as the Rams have good
backs in Faulk, Gordon, and Harris.
On the other hand, Baltimore leads the league with rushing yards per game
with a hefty 171.5 with a nice 5.2 yards per carry. Look for them to pound Saint
Louis and continue what San Francisco did last week.
On the flip side of the ball, the Ravens' D is 10th in the league against the
run holding opponents to less than 100 yards rushing per game (okay, it's 99.5
but doesn't less than 100 sound so much better?). The Rams are not much worse.
Ranked 14th in the league, the Rams give up about 10 yards more per game at
109.6. It may surprise you but even in the 20-point loss to San Francisco, the
Rams did not give up a 100-yard rusher. They did however, give up 165 yards (80
to Hearst, 76 to Barlow, 5 to Beasley, and 4 to QB Rattay) and looked
ineffective against the 49ers. Another problem for Saint Louis.
But perhaps the running will be by the quarterbacks. The Rams will look to
fill the hole exposed in San Francisco last week. And the Rams defense will
likely want to startle starting rookie quarterback Kyle Boller. Last week the
Rams did put some pressure on SF's QB Tim Rattay. He did collect himself nicely
(and received rave reviews for his composure) but the Rams did rattle him. Look
for the Rams to try the same this week.
If the Rams fail miserably like they did last week, look for me to want to
run myself.