- Joined
- Jul 31, 2010
- Messages
- 8,874
Rams' Davis continues to impress
By Nate Latsch
http://stl.scout.com/2/1461071.html
Script a storybook ending by completing a late comeback in Philadelphia on Sunday, but the Rams’ young quarterback again put up some impressive numbers in the 34-28 loss.
Davis completed 29 of 49 passes for 375 yards and three touchdowns and a quarterback rating of 103.7. He also ran for 30 yards on three carries, giving him a total of 405 yards of total offense in the defeat.
“Overall, as I said after the game, very pleased with Austin at this point,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said Monday at his weekly day-after press conference. “What he’s done the last few weeks, he’s continued to get better. We need to do a better job around him.”
After the Eagles pulled away in the second and third quarters, pushing their lead to 34-7, Davis rallied the Rams to a trio of touchdown drives over the final 17 minutes.
Benny Cunningham scored on a 14-yard run late in the third quarter and then Davis found Kenny Britt and Brian Quick for touchdown passes in the fourth to cut the deficit to 34-28.
Davis got the Rams to midfield on their final possession with a 43-yard pass to Quick and then a 2-yard pass to Cunningham, but then the St. Louis series stalled with two incomplete passes to Austin Pettis, a delay of game penalty and then an incomplete pass to Quick on fourth down with 42 seconds remaining.
The 25 year old had his share of struggles also — namely a pair of lost fumbles, one that stalled a potential scoring drive and another that led to a Philly defensive touchdown — but it’s safe to say that the quarterback performed well in his first start after Fisher named him the starter for the rest of the season.
Davis has done plenty to merit that kind of commitment in his four games, including three starts, since Shaun Hill was injured in the first half of the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings.
He has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 1,129 yards, with 7.9 yards per attempt, to go along with six touchdowns against three interceptions, and a QB rating of 96.8.
Davis ranks fourth in the NFL in third-down quarterback rating (122.0), seventh in yards per attempt, eighth in completion percentage and 10th in quarterback rating.
In his three games as a starter, Davis has completed 67.5 percent of his passes for 937 yards (312.3 per game), 7.81 yards per attempt, six touchdowns against two interceptions, and a QB rating of 100.6.
Davis led the Rams to a come-from-behind win in Tampa in his first start and in his next two starts, at home against the Cowboys and on the road against the Eagles, he has put St. Louis in position to have a chance to win late in both games.
With Davis leading the way, the Rams (1-3) are now sixth in the NFL in passing yards per game (283.5) and eighth in offensive yardage per game (392.8).
They will need to continue to be good offensively with a rough stretch of games coming up against San Francisco (3-2) next Monday night, then against reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle (3-1) the following Sunday. After that, St. Louis goes on the road against Kansas City (2-3), San Francisco (3-2) again and then Arizona (3-1).
Fisher said Monday that he has seen signs of his team getting better.
“I think we’ve showed signs, we’re improving,” he said. “The guys are for the most part making plays, getting into position and Austin’s trusting them. He’s trusting the deep ball. He’s putting the ball down the field. We just need to be more consistent. We need to quit turning the football over. It’s hard to win games when you turn the football over like that.”
