After a brutal stretch of games against teams that all currently have winning records, the Dallas Cowboys finally start seeing some softer competition. The 0-5 St. Louis Rams visit Cowboys Stadium on Sunday and provide a chance for Dallas to get well. The Cowboys aren't good enough to assume a victory - in fact the NFL is a dangerous place for any team to assume a victory - but they are good enough that if they play defense like they have been, their offense should be strong enough to get the job done.
The Rams entered the season with a ton of optimism after going 7-9 last year with rookie quarterback Sam Bradford. The hope was that with Bradford having a year of experience under his belt, and with the NFC West being soft (no one saw the 49ers dramatic rise), that the Rams would be competing for the playoffs. No such luck.
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The Rams offense has struggled mightily and their run defense has been brutally bad. Now they're dealing with injury to Sam Bradford, who has a high-ankle sprain. If he can manage the pain, he might be able to play but we won't likely know until Sunday. It's doubtful he practices this week. If Bradford can't go, it's A.J. Feeley to the rescue.
The Rams made a move before the trade deadline, acquiring wide receiver Brandon Lloyd. This is to help a receiving corps that has been almost non-existent. Danny Amendola went down with injury, they released Mike Sims-Walker to make room for Lloyd, and they released a guy before the season you might have heard of - Laurent Robinson. Thank you St. Louis for that.
They could see the return of receiver Mark Clayton, who was on the PUP list but is returning to practice. If they have both Clayton and Lloyd active, that greatly boosts their offense from what it was, and that was not good.
For more info on the Rams, visit Turf Show Times.
Series Notes:
ST. LOUIS RAMS (0-5) AT DALLAS COWBOYS (2-3)
SERIES
|
RAMS |
COWBOYS |
|
|
SERIES LEADER |
11-10 |
|
|
STREAKS |
3 of past 5 |
|
|
COACHES VS. OPP. |
Spagnuolo: 0-0 |
Garrett: 0-0 |
|
LAST WEEK |
L 24-3 at Packers |
L 20-16 at Patriots |
|
LAST GAME |
10/19/08: Cowboys 14 at Rams 34. Trailing 7-0, St. Louis scores 34 consecutive points en route to victory. Rams RB Steven Jackson rushes for 160 yards & 3 TDs (8, 1, 56). |
|
|
LAST GAME AT SITE |
9/30/07: Cowboys 35, Rams 7. Dallas QB Tony Romo completes 21 of 33 pass attempts (63.3 percent) for 339 yards & 3 TDs as Cowboys defeat St. Louis. |
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|
BROADCAST |
FOX (3:15 PM CT): Dick Stockton, John Lynch, Jennifer Hale (Field reporter). SIRIUS: 94 (StL.), 93 (Dal.). XM: 230 (Dal.). |
|
STATS
|
PASSING |
Bradford: 103-195-1,170-3-2-72.0 |
Romo: 126-193-1,590-8-6-91.7 |
|
RUSHING |
C. Williams: 54-226-4.2-0 |
Jones: 64-255-4.0-1 |
|
RECEIVING |
B. Gibson: 17-214-12.6-1 |
Witten (TE): 31-414-13.4-2 |
|
OFFENSE |
308.4 |
409.6 |
|
TAKE/GIVE |
-1 |
-2 |
|
DEFENSE |
403.4 |
307.6 (1C) |
|
SACKS |
Long: 3 |
Ware: 7 (T3L) |
|
INTs |
4 tied: 1 |
Lee: 3 (T1C) |
|
PUNTING |
Jones: 43.0 |
McBriar: 50.0 (2C) |
|
KICKING |
Jo. Brown: 25 (4/4 PAT; 7/9 FG) |
Bailey (R): 55 (10/10 PAT; 15/16 FG) |
NOTES
RAMS: QB SAM BRADFORD has posted 100+ rating 3 times in career & Rams are 3-0 in those contests…RB STEVEN JACKSON rushed for 160 yards & tied career-high with 3 rush TDs in only game vs. Dal. Since 2006, averages 115.4 scrimmage yards per game (8,658 yards, 75 games), most in NFL (min. 50 games). In last game vs. Dal. (9/13/09 with TB), RB CADILLAC WILLIAMS had 13 att. for 97 yards (7.5 avg.) & TD. Williams has 9 100-yard rush games in career & his teams are 8-1…With 6 catches vs. GB, WR DANARIO ALEXANDER tied career-high (12/26/10 vs. SF). WR BRANDON GIBSON leads club with 17 catches & ranks 2nd with 214 rec. yards. WR MIKE SIMS-WALKER had 8 catches for career-high 153 yards (19.1 avg.) & TD in only game vs. Dal. (10/31/10 with Jax.). When he has 120+ rec. yards, his teams are 3-0. Has 134 catches in career & 94 have resulted in 1st down or TD (70.1 pct.)…DE JAMES HALL had 1.5 sacks in last game vs. Dal. DE CHRIS LONG has sack in 5 of past 8. Has 11 sacks in past 16…
COWBOYS: In only start vs. StL, QB TONY ROMO completed 21 of 33 (63.6 pct.) for 339 yards with 3 TDs vs. 1 INT for 115.6 rating. In starts with 10+ att., when he has 100+ rating, team is 28-6 (.824). Is averaging 318 pass yards per game, 4th in NFL…RB FELIX JONES has 9 career rushing TDs (incl. playoffs) & 5 have been 30+ yards…TE JASON WITTEN is 3rd among NFL TEs with 31 catches. Since start of 2007, leads NFL TEs with 396 catches & 4,543 yards. Has TD in 2 of 3 meetings. WR-PR DEZ BRYANT is averaging 17.8 yards per catch (249 yards, 14 catches). WR LAURENT ROBINSON is averaging 17.3 yards per catch (208 yards, 12 catches)…LB DE MARCUS WARE aims for 4th in row vs. StL with sack. Has 5 sacks in 3 meetings. Had 3 sacks in last game vs. Rams & has recorded 3+ sacks in game 7 times. Has 13 sacks in past 8, incl. 2 last week vs. NE. Has sack in 7 of past 8. Since start of 2006, has 79 sacks, most in NFL. LB BRADIE JAMES had sack in last mtg. LB SEAN LEE leads NFL LBs with 3 INTs. Is only LB in NFL with 2+ INTs (3) & 2 FRs (2).