Rams get better of Seahawks on special teams again/Wagoner

[RamBill]

Rams get better of Seahawks on special teams again
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...get-better-of-seahawks-on-special-teams-again

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Revisiting three things from the St. Louis Rams' 34-31 overtime win against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

1. Special teams trickery: Just when it looked like the Seahawks finally had reversed the trend of the Rams getting the better of them on special teams (especially in St. Louis), the Rams quickly recovered and eventually got the better of Seattle in the game's third phase. This time, no trickery was needed. Instead, the Rams leaned on some good, old-fashioned execution. Even if you consider Tavon Austin's 75-yard punt return touchdown a wash with Tyler Lockett's 57-yard return for a score, the Rams did enough in other areas to give them the edge. Kicker Greg Zuerlein converted both of his field goal attempts and all four of his extra point attempts from the new, longer distance.

But it was undrafted rookie Bradley Marquez who made the biggest play of the day. Kicking off to start overtime, Seattle kicker Steven Hauschka mis-hit the ball, according to coach Pete Carroll. Playing in his first NFL game, Marquez had the awareness to call fair catch as the short kick popped in the air. Marquez caught it and took a beating while hanging on to the ball to set up the game-winning points.

2. Protection priority: It wasn't exactly a banner day for either offensive line, but this is another category that would have to be considered an advantage for the Rams. Working against Seattle's reconfigured offensive line, the Rams defense got after quarterback Russell Wilson all day. Going into the game, the Rams had the most sacks against Wilson of any team in the league with 25 in six games. By the time it was over, they had six sacks, nine quarterback hits and an interception.

Meanwhile, the Rams offensive line didn't provide much better protection for quarterback Nick Foles, though the numbers weren't as daunting. The Seahawks got to Foles for only two sacks but one of those turned into a fumble recovery for a touchdown that gave Seattle a late lead. The Seahawks also had seven quarterback hits and even more pressures.

As you'd expect, both teams still have plenty of work to do when it comes to the offensive line.

3. Foles' debut: You'd be hard-pressed to find a better way for Foles to make his debut than what he was able to do against the Seahawks. As expected, rushing yards were hard to come by, but Foles and offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti did a good job of using the short passing game as an extension of the run to keep the chains moving.

Foles finished with 297 yards and a touchdown to go with a rushing score, and did it while under pressure for much of the day.

 

[RamBill]

Undrafted rookie Bradley Marquez comes up big on special teams
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...bradley-marquez-comes-up-big-on-special-teams

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- St. Louis Rams receiver Bradley Marquez is far from a household name. In fact, when he made the team's 53-man roster after the preseason, there were plenty wondering who he is, let alone how he made the team.

The answer to both questions, apparently, is a special teams ace-in-the-making. Rams coach Jeff Fisher began touting Marquez's special-teams acumen midway through the preseason, though it remained a question of whether the Rams would have room on the roster for him.

“I’ve been talking about him; he’s a very mature player right now as a rookie," Fisher said. "We trust him. We trust him to play personal protector, we trust him to play offense. He’s just a real heads-up kid."

In Sunday's 34-31 win against the Seattle Seahawks, keeping Marquez on the roster proved not only prescient but very necessary. Never was that more evident than the first play of overtime. Tied at 31, the Rams won the coin toss and elected to receive. Seattle coach Pete Carroll asked kicker Steven Hauschka to pop the kick to something in the range of the Rams' 20-yard line.

But Hauschka mis-hit the kick and popped it straight up to the Rams' first line, right at Marquez. Unfazed by the biggest moment of the game, the rookie played the part of a 10-year veteran.

"At that point in the game, it presented a time for maybe some trickery so you just have to be ready for it," Marquez said. "We alerted it and just said we’re looking out for it. It just so happened I was able to make a play on it."

It's a play that you probably wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. Marquez's job was to catch the ball and hang on for dear life as a group of angry Seahawks with a 10-yard head start pursued him with every intention of separating Marquez from the ball via any means necessary.

But before they could, Marquez provided even more situational awareness by calling for a fair catch.

"I was doing it," Marquez said. "I saw the ball get popped right up so maybe I could get some protection. It was just kind of instinct for me."

Marquez got the ball but he certainly didn't get any protection. Multiple Seahawks jumped on Marquez as he made the catch. A battle for the ball ensued from there, but Marquez managed to hang on to the ball.

"The things that go on under those piles is crazy so I was just holding on to the ball and making sure I was going to come out of that pile with it," Marquez said.

Even after coming out with the ball, Marquez had to sweat out a bizarre sequence of events when the officials threw a flag for an "invalid" fair catch call. One official said the ball had been kicked into the ground, which if true, would have made it illegal to call for a fair catch, penalizing the Rams 5 yards and causing a re-kick.

After much discussion and anger from the Rams sideline, the officials ruled that the ball never touched the ground, and Marquez's fair catch was every bit as legal as it was intelligent. In reality, it should have been a penalty on Seattle for hitting a player who called fair catch.

"I was pretty sure I saw the ball get popped up so I thought maybe something else happened," Marquez said. "But I was pretty sure that I was calling fair catch and it was legal. They were able to get it corrected and so it was an exciting play."

Without Daren Bates and with fellow special-teams leader Chase Reynolds leaving the game early with a knee injury, the Rams might have looked ripe for the picking for Seattle. That would be an incorrect assumption for Marquez -- who also impressed with a big block to spring Tavon Austin's 75-yard punt return for a touchdown -- has played one NFL game and already looks wise beyond his years.

"I have a role on this team and the majority of it is on special teams so when I’m out there, I have to be alert for anything, and I have to be as prepared as possible for any given moment," Marquez said. "It just so happened I was fortunate enough to make a play today for this team."