A St. Louis Rams Fan Behind Enemy Lines: Week 7

Oct 14, 2012; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman (25) intercepts the ball from intended for New England Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch (84) during the 2nd half at CenturyLink Field. Seattle defeated New England 24-23. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-US PRESSWIRE

Last week was a tough week for the St. Louis Rams as well as most of the NFC west with one exception, the Seattle Seahawks who pulled off the upset against the New England Patriots.  Hats off to the Seahawks for being the only team in the division to get a win this weekend, even if the magnitude of the victory has been overstated in the local and national media.  St. Louis Rams fans should be encouraged by what the Seahawks were able to do against the New England Patriots in this game, especially with how frequently the deep pass worked against the New England secondary.  So what are the things that people are talking about here in the Inland Northwest?

Defense.  It is a recurring theme in the NFC West and the Seahawks defense was a huge part of their victory over the New England Patriots.  The NFC West currently boasts 4 teams in the top 5 scoring defenses in the NFL with Chicago currently sitting at number 1 following their bye week.  My money is still on San Fransisco for best defense in the division with the other 3 teams at a dead heat for second best, but that is my opinion.  The local media would have you believe that these Seahawks were the ’85 Bears, and watching the game it was rather annoying hearing the commentators call the Seahawks the number one defense in the league.  They were number one in terms of yards per game , which is probably the most meaningless way to rank a defense when you get right down to it.  Seattle definitely has a top 10 defense but their “dominance” has been largely overstated.

Russell Wilson.  No surprise here, again the rookie quarterback will generate plenty of conversation regardless of what he does.  Against the Patriots he had his finest game as a pro and showed some real potential.  Wilson went 16/27 for 293 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Patriots, and really made his living on the deep ball with 5 of his passes accounting for 200 yards.  He did benefit from what can only be described as poor secondary play, and the final 46 yard touchdown pass is almost inexplicable, against any other defense in the league that pass is not going to be completed in that situation.  Wilson only took two sacks in this game and also ran 5 times for 17 yards.  With the things that he did well the Seahawks still only managed to convert 4-12 third downs and were completely dominated in time of possession, which is a surprise given the way this team is supposed to be built to run the ball.  The Patriots defense seemed to be gearing up to stop the run and daring Wilson to beat them and he did, that is all you can really ask of a quarterback.

Thursday Night Football.  The Seahawks will now travel to San Fransisco for a primetime matchup with the 49ers.  If the Seahawks want to have a legitimate chance at challenging anyone for the division they must win this game to avoid falling to 0-3 within the division.  This is going to be an incredibly physical football game, one in which the 49ers have the advantage at pretty much every turn.  Yes the 49ers were embarrassed at home by the Giants last weekend but last time I checked the Seahawks didn’t have Tom Coughlin coaching them or Eli Manning at quarterback.  These are two teams built to run the ball and play great defense, it just so happens that the 49ers are better than the Seahawks at both of those things.  San Fransisco averages 45 more yards per game and 2 yards more per carry than the Seahawks.  San Fransisco also has the better quarterback and wide receivers, and in my opinion the better coach.  I expect a good game on Thursday Night football but I don’t anticipate the Seahawks being within one score with less than 4 minutes to go this time, so no late game miracle for Seattle this time. 

Enjoy the game on Thursday Night and as always Go Rams!!