Rams defense holds and trail the Steelers at half 9-3

By Michael Condon | Sep 27, 2015

The St. Louis Rams and Pittsburgh Steelers entered Week 3 as a highly anticipated match up touting one of the leagues best defensive and offensive units. In a way it seems only the Rams can, even this match up started in a unique way. During the St. Louis player introductions one of the fireworks from the field went rogue and caused part of the turf to catch fire for about 10-15 seconds. The burned turf would ultimately be repaired, but not without causing a 25-minute delay.

More from Rams News

Once the game began, the Pittsburgh Steelers came out slinging it. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger started the game 7 for 7, and finished the half 16 of 19 for 151 yards. He tossed his first interception of the year on an errant pass intended for Markus Wheaton. The overthrow allowed Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins to make a play on the ball that would start the Rams only scoring drive of the half.

On the other side Rams quarterback Nick Foles started slow, but got better as the half went on. He would finish the half 9 of 12 for 89 yards, and should consider those numbers a serious accomplishment after his start.

Sep 27, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams quarterback Nick Foles (5) throws the ball past Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Cameron Heyward (97) during the first half at The Edward Jones Dome. Mandatory Credit: Joshua Lindsey-USA TODAY Sports

Antonio Brown is as good as advertised. Brown set an NFL record with his 34th consecutive game with at least five catches and 50 receiving yards. Brown has nine catches at the half for 86 yards and has proven to give the St. Louis defense serious problems. Brown has been the focal point of the Steelers offense this afternoon as he looks to be on the verge of another big game.

Today’s game also features the debut of two highly praised running backs. Le’Veon Bell of the Steelers and rookie Todd Gurley for the Rams. Bell came out hot as he took his first reception of the season for a first down to open things up offensively for Pittsburgh. Through 30 minutes of play Bell has 34 rushing yards on 10 carries and a touchdown. He has added 39-yards receiving.

Gurley has been limited splitting carries with starter Tre Mason. Hurley has only gained two yards on his three carries, but if nothing else, served as a nice bit of motivation for the offense. He has looked strong in his limited action and that’s promising for St. Louis moving forward.

Once again the Rams have struggled to control the clock. The Steelers for 17 minutes in the first half and at one point held a 15min-4min advantage in clock control. However, even with that advantage, the Rams defense has held strong allowing only one rushing touchdown and a couple of field goals.

St. Louis has work to do in the second half, and they were more successful when they opened up the offensive as opposed to running the ball in the first half. The offense needs to continue to look down field because it’s only a matter of time before the Steeler’s offense begins to settle in.