St. Louis Rams 2012 1st Quarter Recap: Revisiting Week 1 Through Week 4 Predictions

Sept. 30, 2012; Green Bay, WI, USA; A New Orleans Saints fan displays his colors during the third quarter as his team plays the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Green Bay Packers defeated the New Orleans Saints 28-27. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-US PRESSWIRE

Much like the actual game of football, team’s play in the NFL is often broken down into quarters, each telling it’s own story about how the team is progressing. After yesterday’s game between the Chicago Bears and the Dallas Cowboys, the 2012 season has now hit the end of the proverbial first quarter. There are a thousand things to analyze for any given team, especially with four games worth of stats to support your case. So, how are the Rams doing…

Well, the Rams are currently sitting at 2-2 in the NFL, likely inside the Top 20 in the minds of most analysts. They are notched right below the midline of the NFC West, behind the San Francisco 49ers and the Arizona Cardinals. Some may be surprised by the turnout of the Rams so far this season, but Ramblin’ Fan has been perfect so far in our preseason predictions for the season, at least in terms of the final outcome. Here is a recap of those predictions:

Week 1 @ Detroit Lions

Predicted Outcome: Loss – Against the Detroit Lion’s the first line of Ramblin’ Fans predictions read, “don’t expect another 44-3 blowout like last season,” which was right on point. The Rams narrowly lost the game, with the Lions on top 27-23 after scoring in the final 15 seconds. The defense of the Rams was the real surprise, pulling out three interceptions in the first half, and ending the bout allowing only one touchdown to the gun-slinging, Detroit passing game. Actual Outcome: Loss

Week 2 Washington Redskins

Predicted Outcome: Win – The anticipated win was based primarily on the St. Louis defensive pass rush, which was expected to be a dominating force throughout the season. Ramblin’ Fan said, “if Long and Quinn can be disruptive in the backfield, than this is definitely a winnable game for the Rams.” Although they have got off to a slow start, the defense definitely got after RGIII in this game. They tallied four hits on the quarterback and one sack, but, more importantly, forced Griffin out of the pocket and into the open field, which is evident in his 11 rushing attempts. Surprisingly, it the St. Louis Rams offense was the star of the show in Washington, although you wouldn’t know it by the amount of attention given to RGIII. Actual Outcome: Win

Week 3: @ Chicago Bears

Predicted Outcome: Loss – The predictions, as a whole, came out in the wake of the knee injury sustained by Brian Urlacher, which has turned out to be a non-factor so far in the season. As a result, the suggestion that “this could very well be a winnable game against a questionable defense” was a bit off, in retrospect. The defense of the Bears shut down both the St. Louis rushing and passing attack early on, and eventually would ice the game on a touchdown off of a Bradford interception late in the game. However, up until 9:45 left in the 4th quarter, the Rams were within a single score of potentially taking the lead over the Bears, but failed to show up on the road at the end of the game. Actual Outcome: Loss

Week 4: Seattle Seahawks

Predicted Outcome: Win – Of all of the prophesied outcomes through Week 4 of the regular season, this one was, by far, the most on point. The anticipated win was based solely on Pete Carroll’s decision to lean so heavily on the rookie, 3rd-rounder as the starter in Seattle.  We noted “his progression will be key if the Seahawks plan on turning their 22nd ranked passing offense around,” which has proven to be the sour note of the Seahawks’ season. Wilson has yet to throw for over 200+ in a game so far this season, even with averaging 25 throws per game. Marshawn Lynch and the Seattle D are just a potent as last year, but, unlucky for the Seahawks, the passing game is still just as placid. Actual Outcome: Win

If you did not get a chance to check out Ramblin’ Fans predictions for the season, you can still view either Week 1 through Week 8 or Week 9 through Week 17 by clicking the links provided. If the pace is kept as expected, the Rams could be looking at a 9-7 record at the end of the year. As we mentioned before, this is definitely a realistic outcome for the Rams if they can stay healthy and progress as a team, primarily on the offensive side of the ball. Looking forward to seeing if the rest of the predictions can pan out!