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St. Louis Rams - Players to Watch

After the last Rams - Cardinals' game, all eyes will be on the St. Louis defense and the Arizona offensive line. Kevin Kolb was sacked 9 times, but can the Rams repeat their incredible performance against rookie quarterback Ryan Lindley?

Mike Ehrmann

It goes without saying - even though I will anyway - that everyone will be watching the Rams' Chris Long and Robert Quinn today. But the key to this game for the Rams won't be their defense.

Sam Bradford will be key for any chance of a Rams win. He'll need to make smart choices, and with Danny Amendola out, another receiver or two will need to step up. The Cardinals were in turnover heaven against the Atlanta Falcons last week, nabbing five interceptions and one fumble. Look for the Arizona defense to be 'ball hawking" all day today. If Sam's timing is off throwing to the "un-Dannys", it could get ugly.

Steven Jackson has five games left to establish his market value for next season. He may re-sign with the Rams, but if he wants to hit the open market he'll need decent stats from this season to entice prospective buyers. This could be a perfect game for Jackson to light up his personal stat sheet. Arizona has the #20 ranked rush defense in the NFL, and they may be without Calais Campbell today. I think Campbell will play, but he may see limited snaps due to a nagging calf injury.

Brian Quick could have a decent day, but it will mean having the rookie run routes in the middle of the field which he hasn't really done this season. He's been relegated to being set wide hoping for a man-on-man match up. Patrick Peterson will eat him alive on the outside, so his route tree needs to be expanded for him to succeed today. Chris Givens will attract safety coverage deep, so Quick could find a seem under the safety on Givens' side of the field.

The Rams offensive line is healthy... It really doesn't matter how healthy they are if they can't protect Sam Bradford though. The Arizona defense will be blitzing and stunting all day long, so it will definitely test Rams center Scott Wells. If Turner is moved to left guard, the interior line would appear to be improved, but they've been susceptible to blitzes up the middle all year. With Arizona's Daryl Washington having a Pro Bowl worthy year they'll have their hands full.