Man Crush Monday: Defense Wins Championships, Right?

The Rams are (finally) living up to the hype. Over the course of 8 days, they have moved their point differential from -76 to a doughnut - 0. OK, so it was against teams with a combined 5-21...but if any team in the NFL had some karma in the bank to cash in, the Rams did. Yesterday, they took that check to the bank and used the Redskins as the mule haul away their bounty - to the tune of a 24-0 shutout. The football gods are finally smiling on the Rams.

Normally, narrowing the options for MCM is fairly difficult. Part of that is because I'm indecisive, but another part is just because of the nature of this team. You either have a boatload of players that were solid contributors to the win or nobody shows up. This week was a little different: there were three members of the Rams that clearly stood above the rest.

Honorable Mention: Jeff Fisher

The Rams Head Coach gloated a bit before the game even started. For those who missed it, the captains for the coin toss on the Rams were the players (on the active roster) that Fisher and Snead drafted with the picks acquired in the RG3 bounty. Not much for affecting the outcome of the game, but definitely worth a mention here.

1st Option: Gregg Williams

Williams' system has finally hit full speed. A week after holding the Raiders to 244 total yards, the Rams defense held the Redskins to 206. Oh - and they've tallied 13 sacks in those 2 weeks. Don't forget that a few weeks ago he engineered a defensive effort that held the high-flying Broncos to 7 points...and Peyton Manning to a 32.9 QBR.

We need to start giving this man credit where credit is due. His tenure in the 'Lou got off to a rocky start, but DAMN he's turned it up a notch!

2nd Option: Jared Cook

What you just saw was Cook fulfilling his potential. At his best, Cook is a seam-stretching TE who also has the ability to be an elite red zone target. His stats at the end of the season may not be gaudy like Jimmy Graham or Julius Thomas, but Cook has the ability to reach the tier just below them. Problem is... he doesn't always like to show that ability. Yesterday he did, so here he is.

3rd Option: Tavon Austin

Maybe I'm jumping the gun here... but I think that Schotty may have actually figured this out (gasp!). He has made the end around a staple of the Rams offense in recent weeks. In addition to running the ball for 9.2 yards per carry, Tavon took a punt return to the house and had several other big returns in route to piling up 203 total yards (3 short of outperforming the 'Skins Offense). Putting him on this list feels goooooood.

So, fellow TSTers... Make the Call!!!