As the 2013 season opening game gets closer to becoming a reality, the St. Louis Rams tried helping their cause in the third preseason game, only to be handed a 27-26 loss to the Denver Broncos.
The Denver Broncos offense led by Peyton Manning moved the ball up and down the field against the Rams defense. Yet the Broncos trailed going into halftime 20-10, thanks largely to plays made by rookie linebacker Alec Ogletree.
The first-year starter displayed some great athleticism with a touchdown-saving pass deflection and then showed off his range when he intercepted Manning and made it into the end zone with a touchdown on his own.
Fellow rookies Tavon Austin and T.J. McDonald also made key plays in the first half against the Broncos.
Austin finally got a chance to show off his skills as a punt returner with an 81-yard punt return. He would have scored if Ogletree had been able to throw one more block. It was a thing of beauty watching him cut from one side of the field to the other with the ball cradled in his arm as the turf moved quickly underneath his cleats.
McDonald also chipped in on specials teams with a blocked field goal.
Second-year kicker Greg Zuerlein blasted a 58-yard field goal that looked like it would have been good at 65 yards, and punter Johnny Hekker kicked very well outdoors in Denver last Saturday night.
Sam Bradford wasn’t bad, going nine for 16 for 110 yards and one touchdown pass to tight end Jared Cook.
That’s about it when it comes to what the Rams did good in the loss to Denver. The Broncos had more first downs, 27-11, outrushed the Rams 133-50, held the ball nearly 10 minutes longer, and executed its no-huddle offense well against the Rams defense.
Manning had 234 passing yards in the first half. In one half, he threw for more yards than all three Rams quarterbacks combined for the entire game.
Thank goodness this is still the preseason. The Rams offense hasn’t quite yet clicked. Newly named starter Daryl Richardson gained only 10 yards on five carries and didn’t look good while trying to pass-protect. Isaiah Pead did a little better, gaining 22 yards against the second and third string of the Denver Broncos.
But the ugliest number of the night: the Rams were two for 13 on third-down conversions. That’s something to be concerned about with this squad. I haven’t seen this team move the ball consistently at all in the first three games, and maybe that’s why they are 0-3.
Then again, it’s still August, the month of vanilla football. Come September, that vanilla football had better have added more flavor for the sweet taste of victory.
