St. Louis Rams vs. NFC West Review: Seattle Seahawks

The St. Louis Rams finished the season with the best interdivision record among teams in the NFC West going 4-1-1.  Over the next few weeks I am going to look back at the Rams games against each of their division opponents starting with the Seattle Seahawks.  The Seahawks are the only team in the division to hang a L on the Rams this season, and that game itself was very tightly contested that came right down to the wire.  The NFC West proved to be one of the toughest divisions in football this season as the division champion San Francisco 49ers secured the 2nd seed in the NFC Playoffs, while the Seahawks went on the road in the wild card round and knocked off the Washington Redskins.  The Rams are a very young team that showed a few glimpses of what is to come under Jeff Fisher and Les Snead.  I have put together a table compiling the statistical totals for both games against the Seahawks, and in several cases the statistics ended up being nearly identical.  The two main advantages that the Seahawks had over the Rams in their matchups was offensive efficiency, both in the ability and commitment to running the ball, as well as the efficient use of the passing game.  Wilson certainly didn’t put up eye popping numbers against the Rams like some of the elite QB’s in the NFL did, but he was efficient and effective.  Sam Bradford was much less efficient against the Seahawks but considering how stifling their secondary is, and how rare it is to see a Rams wide receiver wide open it is hard to fault Bradford for his sub 60 completion percentage and low yards per attempt number.  One thing I have noticed about the Seahawks this season is that they seem to have receivers, whether it be a true wide receiver a full back or a tight end, running free more than any other team I have watched all year.  Give plenty of credit to offensive coordinator Darrel Bevell for how he has managed to bring along rookie Russell Wilson, and make the Seahawks offense fit his skill set.  As for the table below, it probably wont clear anything up in terms of why each game went the way it did since they were both very hard fought games where one lucky bounce was all it took to secure the game (think about the Lynch fumble in Seattle), but it was fun to put together and to see that the statistics support my feeling that the Rams are one or two playmaker away from returning to the playoffs.  Thanks for reading and as always Go Rams!!!

Seattle Seahawks

St. Louis Rams

Total Score

33

32

1

st

Downs

36

35

Passing

16

26

Rushing

19

6

Penalty

1

3

3

rd

Down Conversion

7/21 (33.33%)

7/24 (29.17%)

4

th

Down Conversion

0-0

2/3 (66.67%)

Total Plays

116

121

Total Yards

681

617

Yards Per Play

5.87

5.10

Drives

21

22

Passing yards

349

463

Attempts/Completions (%)

32/44 (72.73%)

42/73 (57.53%)

Yards/Pass Attempt

7.93

6.3

INT

3

2

Sacks – Yards Lost

8-61

2-12

Rushing

332

154

Attempts

64

46

Yards/carry

5.19

3.35

Red Zone Possessions (TD%)

3-6 (50%)

2-4 (50%)

Penalties – Yards

15-135

20-135

Turnovers

3

2

Fumbles Lost

0

0

INT

3

2

Def/ST TD

0

0

Time of Possession

62:41

57:19