Look up at that score – Saints 28, Rams 23.  Coming into Sunday, you didn’t expect that, did you?  As a fan, I’d seen the fight the Rams had against good teams but how they’d shoot themselves in the foot, be gassed, and have a horrendous offensive showing.  Listen Rams fans, we knew this would be the first of probably two full rebuilding years before we can really get after the NFC West crown, but anybody who watched Sunday’s game should be able to say that this team was into it and really going for it.  They weren’t playing not to lose, they were playing for the win.  All around terrific effort, especially on defense, to hold the high powered New Orleans Saints to under 30 points and to put themselves in a position to win the ballgame.  Here are some notes that I saw from the game that should give us something to be excited about.

- The Ed Was Rocking All Game Long. Some people say Rams fans are fair weather fans, due to the overwhelming popularity (and consistency) of the St. Louis Cardinals.  Well, unlike cities with better records (here’s looking at you, Jacksonville), we haven’t had any blackouts.  And all game long I got chills just seeing how into it the crowd was.  When the Rams made a big play, the stadium roared like it was 2001.  It’s gotta be great as a player to see that the fans still support you through a difficult season, and I really believe they were the 12th man on the field for the Rams for much of the game.  It’s been said that due to the acoustics of the Edward Jones Dome, it can be one of the loudest stadiums in the NFL.  I hope the fans really bring it for the Cardinals game next week, and the Seahawks game on Thanksgiving weekend.

- Steven Jackson Finally Got Some Help… from one source who needed a great game and one very unlikely source.  Donnie Avery put up his career game, with two spectacular touchdown grabs (I maintain the corner route he ran on the 1st TD was the best route he’s run in his career, and the fade route for the 2nd TD showcased his ability to find the ball in the air) and no drops that I saw.  Brandon Gibson, the rookie WR acquired in the Will Witherspoon game, really took over with 7 grabs for over 90 yards.  There was one play where Marc Bulger found him on 3rd down, maybe a yard shy of the marker, and as Gibson was being tackled, he essentially dove the ball across the line.  That’s heart and toughness, and it’s something the Rams can build on.  GM Billy Devaney has a knack for finding some receivers out of nowhere, apparently, Laurent Robinson before he got hurt and now Gibson.  Avery finally being fully healthy probably helped him have his breakout game, but it was good to see the offense open up, literally.

- Marc Bulger Had His Best Game In Forever.  Would you have thought that Bulger would have 1 fewer INT than Drew Brees, more passing yards, and a higher passer rating at the end of their game?  Well he did, and save for that last drive where a spike on 2nd down would have helped instead of dumpoffs to a gassed Steven Jackson (I’ll explain that in a minute), Bulger played a complete game.  He missed on a few throws (if he lofts the pass that hit Malcom Jenkins in the back instead of side-arming it, the Rams take the lead), but overall he did a great job of reading the defense and finding open guys.  He also zipped one in to Gibson on an out route with precision; something we haven’t seen a whole lot of from him.  I know it’s probably Bulger’s last or 2nd to last year as a Ram, but in the beginning of that last drive, he scrambled.  He ran for his life…and the 1st down.  Got both of them.  He’s scrappy and maybe he’s finally hitting his rhythm a little bit.

Steven Jackson Was Gassed, But He Deserved To Be. I wrote in my keys to the game that Steven Jackson needed 40 touches for the Rams to win.  He got 35.  He rushed for 100 yards and a TD in the 1st half.  He seemed a little tired in the 2nd half, particularly by the 4th quarter, but he’d been THE OFFENSE for 8 games straight, including 3 100 yard performances.  And Samkon Gado is a significant dropoff from Steven Jackson.  He stayed on the field, and helped give us a chance to upset the Saints.  Also, the holes that were there in the 1st half weren’t nearly as open as they were in the 2nd half, so some good adjustments to the run were made by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.  But here’s a quote from Howie Long during the halftime show.  “If Adrian Peterson is 1A, Steven Jackson is 1B.”

The Offensive Line Has Some Serious Ability – Bulger had a pocket for most of the game, getting sacked twice, but one of them was a coverage sack and the other someone did get beat.  Jackson had holes, and the offensive line was getting a pretty good push.  They were getting tired too, but you know what, they really are coming together and making some plays.  There was a play where Jackson got the dumpoff, juked a guy and had like 6 or 7 defenders trying to drag him down.  At least 4 linemen bowled into the crowd, helping push it forward, including Jason Smith who singlehandedly smashed the pile forward a yard when he ran into it, all to the audience’s delight.

Take Away The Big Runs, and the Run D Was Solid. Reggie Bush had a couple of big runs, and Devery Henderson had a huge reverse, but aside from that the regular running was shut down.  Good aggression from the front 7 to sniff out the play and then make the play.  The total yardage was 200, but in a weird way it was a quiet 200 yards rushing.

Drew Brees Almost Was Neutralized – He threw 2 INTs to both of our safeties, and the game deciding TD to Robert Meachem had great coverage by Quincy Butler…Drew Brees is just that good.

The Defense Stepped Up When They Needed To. On a key 3rd down late in the game, we had a Chris Long sighting, as he dominated the LT for the Saints, barreling the two of them into an unsuspecting Brees for a sack.  We were treated to a 4th and Short stop.  David Vobora made a nice play on a pass intended for Jeremy Shockey and our ballhawking FS got his mojo back – O.J. Atogwe’s first INT since week 1.  We had a later Atogwe sighting, as Marques Colston tried to leap over him for a TD.  Atogwe stood his ground and nailed Colston, jarring the ball loose and giving the Rams a touchback.  They might be the worst team in the league on 3rd down stops, but they came to play, forcing 3 turnovers and making crucial plays to keep the Rams in the game.

Very Good Playcalling. Except for one series, the offensive playcalling was superb.  Shurmur opened up the passing attack, and it reaped dividends for the offense, and took some of the pressure off of our All-World Back, SJ.  On defense, Flajole called an interesting game – very little 3rd down pressure, preferring to rush four and drop 7.  It didn’t work a whole lot, and I remember hearing a quip, “If you aren’t going to pressure the QB, pressure the receivers.”  Seemed like they got a free release often, but only 1 receiver had a great game and that was Henderson.  Marques Colston was non-existent.

I know it sucks, but we need to take solace in the fact that we competed, and had a very good chance to beat the NFC’s best team.  If we can compete with the Saints, the Cardinals and the Seahawks need to be worried right now – this is not a walk in the park Rams team that we’ve had the past 2 years.