St. Louis Rams Defense, key in the win against the Saints

by Tevin Broner on Oct 31, 2011 4:00 PM CDT in 2011 NFL regular season

ST. LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 30: Chris Long #91 of the St. Louis Rams sacks Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints at the Edward Jones Dome on October 30, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. The Rams beat the Saints 31-21. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

The first win is always the sweetest. Coming into this game, no one expected the St. Louis Rams to pull off an upset against the Saints. Instead, for most of the game, the Rams beat up on the Saints in every facet of the game. This game wasn't a fluke; the Rams outplayed and out coached their opponent.

It took eight weeks, but the Rams finally played the way they should have been playing this season. Averaging around 9 points a game before yesterday, the Rams decided to wait till this week to score 31 points on a good team.

The Rams offense played well, especially with the play of a very emotional Steven Jackson and some clutch catches by Brandon Lloyd. What's been kind of overlooked is how the Rams defense played...

...The Saints offense was riding high after scoring 62 points on the winless Colts, but against the Rams the Saints only scored two offensive touchdowns and one was in garbage time. Rams defense did its job on third downs, limiting the Saints to a 47% conversion rate.

The Rams two defensive ends stole the show on defense. Chris Long has been quiet for weeks, but this week he pulled in three sacks and was a frequent visitor in the Saints backfield. Rookie Robert Quinn also showed up this week getting a sack and blocking a Saints punt, resulting in great field position for the Rams offense. I'm sure I speak in the majority when I say this is what we have been waiting for from these two players.

The Rams linebackers also played solid. The outside linebackers didn't get exposed this week, which is a big improvement over what we have seen this season. Middle linebacker James Laurinaitis continues to have a solid season, racking up 10 tackles, a sack and deflected two balls in Sunday's game.

The biggest surprise was how well the Rams secondary played. The Saints average 326 yards a game, and even though Drew Brees threw for 200+ yards, he didn't get most of the yards until late in the 2nd half. Every player in the secondary played well. Gordy and Stewart both had interceptions; the latter's going for a touchdown. The Rams might be missing their top three corners, but they didn't miss them this week.

If the Rams defense continues to play this well, maybe they can win a good amount of games in the second half of the season. Holding the the number two offense in the league to a couple of offensive touchdowns, as well as shutting them out in the first half, is a great place to start.

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Well I woke up this morning and checked to see if this really happened

Its amazing how good of a mood you can be in after watching this game. I just downloaded it cus I was out of town, bout to start watching it. And yeah quinn long, laurinaitis combo is just sick

M-V-TEAGUE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Upon hearing that the nfl lockout was over, I faced in the general direction of Seattle and gave them the finger. GO RAMS
Follow me at @Th3_Prophet

by Throw on Oct 31, 2011 4:13 PM CDT reply actions

oh and I finally get a reason to watch espn

M-V-TEAGUE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Upon hearing that the nfl lockout was over, I faced in the general direction of Seattle and gave them the finger. GO RAMS
Follow me at @Th3_Prophet

by Throw on Oct 31, 2011 4:21 PM CDT up reply actions

Thank god.

2 men enter 1 man leaves. THOSE ARE THE RULES OF THUNDER DOME!

by RAMpage28 on Oct 31, 2011 4:23 PM CDT up reply actions

lol ive been the same way..it had gotten to the point where I was only watching espn on saturdays for the college games

by diehardram87 on Oct 31, 2011 4:25 PM CDT up reply actions

I still can't watch

Cause after praising Tebow all last week, it’s John Fox’s fault and the Lions were just mean. Right, Tebow isn’t bad, the Lions just were mean to him.

Note to Douglas M: Remember that 99% of what I say involves BS

by King Sam Rules! on Oct 31, 2011 4:42 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions

Good game

I must say Long had a great game finally. But i still do think he has living up to draft status, but you can’t pick were drafted. I hope it’s a sign of things to come from him & Quinn who has sick speed of the edge. It was also nice to see that they figured out you gotta have outside backers with some speed. Did they get lucky with that new cb Gorde not bad & Al Harris WOW his last two wks did someone tell this cat he’s not 50yrs old? Can’t wait to see more from the tweaked def. GO RAMS…… THANX FOR 16 GREAT YRS TONY WHAT A RIDE

by SHAWN .B on Oct 31, 2011 4:19 PM CDT reply actions

Got to wear my SJ39 jersey to class today for the first time all season. It was sweet

Formerly JBaccSTL. Been losing sleep over Rams football since 1999.

by Joe Mazzi on Oct 31, 2011 4:24 PM CDT reply actions

Same here.

2 men enter 1 man leaves. THOSE ARE THE RULES OF THUNDER DOME!

by RAMpage28 on Oct 31, 2011 4:27 PM CDT up reply actions

there is still a lot of holes

on this team that need to be filled, but it was great seeing them win despite that. the best teams in the league have holes, they just learn how to get by with them. hopefully this is a sign that the rams are starting to do the same

by unleash-the-beast#39 on Oct 31, 2011 4:32 PM CDT via mobile reply actions

This is the best I've seen the defense play in years

very happy with the performance

Follow @brandonbirkhead

by Brick Top on Oct 31, 2011 4:40 PM CDT reply actions

I think this is a turning point for this team.

There still may be a chance of winning this division if the 49ers drop some games.

2 men enter 1 man leaves. THOSE ARE THE RULES OF THUNDER DOME!

by RAMpage28 on Oct 31, 2011 4:44 PM CDT reply actions

Hey guys, can you tell me what kind of defense the Rams run?

I’m sure it is a 4-3, but we’re unsure.

Thanks for the help and congratulations on the win. I’d rather see you guys win the West than any of the other teams.

Bring back Aaron Brooks! He's the only one who can save us from the evil that is Drew Brees!!
Dallas’ misery will always be my delight
-TexansDC

by Jon Banks on Oct 31, 2011 4:50 PM CDT reply actions

you got it right, Spags runs the 4-3 D just like he did with the Giants.

Two things about me will never change. I will always root for the Rams, and I will always root against the Niners.

by DuhhhRams! on Oct 31, 2011 4:52 PM CDT up reply actions

That's what I thought, thanks!

Bring back Aaron Brooks! He's the only one who can save us from the evil that is Drew Brees!!
Dallas’ misery will always be my delight
-TexansDC

by Jon Banks on Oct 31, 2011 4:53 PM CDT up reply actions

It’s a 4-3 base d. But it’s mixed w a lot of 3-2-6 and usually with a safety like mikell playing next to jl55 as the second lb

by markg1127 on Oct 31, 2011 4:53 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions

Ok, that may help explain why others thought it was a 3-4.

Bring back Aaron Brooks! He's the only one who can save us from the evil that is Drew Brees!!
Dallas’ misery will always be my delight
-TexansDC

by Jon Banks on Oct 31, 2011 4:55 PM CDT up reply actions

Great win for ya'll

I knew Steven Jackson and Chris Long were going to give us fits but I didnt count on the rest of your defense they stepped up big

by mississippisaintsfan on Oct 31, 2011 5:52 PM CDT reply actions

Jackson and Long were beasts out there.

The whole defense showing up was a surprise for almost all of us. I didn’t think our secondary had a prayer with the injuries we had. I was pleasantly surprised. Good luck with the rest of your season. Maybe by some miracle the Rams will make it to the playoffs and see you there! haha

Two things about me will never change. I will always root for the Rams, and I will always root against the Niners.

by DuhhhRams! on Oct 31, 2011 6:54 PM CDT up reply actions