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He sat there, then. Sad and unkempt.
Through ten periods of professional football, Sergio had watched his beloved 49ers struggle with the lowly Rams. They weren't really lowly, but he had been conditioned.
The Rams were two near-free wins annually for the Niners, near-free only insofar as it required the time spent traveling and playing the games as well as some basic logisitics. Free.
And yet the freedom he was accustomed to was now gone. A tie. In San Francisco. A loss in St. Louis. His world had turned on itself.
He felt somewhere between sick and the unease of a lack of control. He was still alive. He still had a future. But it was one in which the St. Louis Rams could beat the San Francisco 49ers, and he wasn't so sure that he was looking forward to tomorrow.
| Average ranking (# of rankings) | 18.00 (11) |
| Average change from last week | +3.45 |
| Highest ranking (source) | 15th (multiple sources) |
| Lowest ranking (source) | 24th (SB Nation, by Jove.) |
| Biggest positive change (source) | +6 (National Football Post) |
| Biggest negative change (source) | +2 (multiple sources) |
SB Nation: 24th (26th last week)
Six teams are ahead of them for the Wild Card. It's incredibly unlikely, but not impossible.
So, the Rams can go 4-0-1 against the NFC West, but could not beat Mark Sanchez?
NFL.com (Power Poll): 19th (22nd)
NFL.com (Harrison): 17th (22nd)
At 5-6-1 and coming off two straight wins, the St. Louis Rams deserve to be the best of the bottom half of the league. Last week in this space, we mentioned the Rams' prospects if they could get past San Francisco. They managed that. Now, with the Bills and Vikings up next, it's conceivable this ballclub could be 7-6-1 come Week 16 ... when they play in Tampa Bay in what could be a playoff elimination game. #justsayin'
CBS Sports: 17th (19th)
They are alive in the playoff chase. Can you believe? Too bad they don't play the 49ers every week.
Yahoo! Sports: 19th (21st)
Kudos to Jeff Fisher & Co. for proving that their 24-24 tie with the 49ers in Week 10 was no aberration by upsetting the 49ers with a 16-13 overtime win on Sunday. There is still much work to be done in the rebuilding process, but the Rams are armed with draft picks, have a smart GM in Les Snead, who will use those picks to put this team in contention for the playoffs real soon.
Pro Football Talk: 15th (19th)
That tie could still make things interesting down the stretch if the Rams keep winning and enough of the other contenders keep losing.
Pro Football Weekly: 19th (22nd)
Who would have pegged Rams as 4-0-1 in the NFC West?
Fox Sports: 17th (22nd)
Last season, the Rams were 0-6 in the division but this year, Jeff Fisher hasn’t lost a single divisional game at 4-0-1.
National Football Post: 15th (21st)
The Rams continue to give the 49ers problems.
Sports Illustrated: 17th (21st)
I know one team that prays St. Louis doesn't somehow scratch and claw its way into the NFC playoff field: The 49ers of San Francisco. Jim Harbaugh's team, like Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, has to be looking back over its shoulder at the Rams, muttering "Who are those guys?" With games at Buffalo and home against Minnesota in the coming two weeks, St. Louis could still be a factor in the race all the way until the end.