Rams quarterback Austin Davis passed every test in his first career NFL start.
He dealt with frequently heavy pressure, converted several huge third downs and found eight different receivers all over the field on a rainy day at Tampa Bay. The third-year quarterback, who entered training camp needing to do well to earn a roster spot, demonstrated plenty of poise and confidence while leading a reasonably efficient offense, despite not throwing a touchdown pass.
But it sure looked like Davis could have found the end zone had St. Louis needed it late in the fourth quarter. Instead, the Rams ran the ball three straight times to set up the Greg Zuerlein field goal that would be the difference in the 19-17 win, capping off an impressive 12-play, 71-yard drive.
Even Brian Quick's drop on a perfectly thrown deep ball couldn't stop Davis, who wasn't even assured of starting ahead of Shaun Hill until the veteran tested his injured quad mere hours before the game. Davis still might go back to the backup role as soon as next week, but he'll never forget completing 22 of 29 passes for 235 yards to improve St. Louis to 1-1 on the season.
Of course, he needed a lot of help from his teammates as well to earn a hard-fought victory in a long game that included a 51-minute lightning delay.
FOUR DOWNS
-- Special effort from McDonald. T.J. McDonald may be the leader of St. Louis' young secondary still trying to shake the label of "weak link" on the Rams' impressive defense.
But the third-year strong safety made his biggest impact in a different way Sunday, making it possible for Davis and Zuerlein's late-game heroics. It started in the second quarter, when he broke through to block a Michael Koenen punt, setting up a short field for the first of Zuerlein's four field goals that gave St. Louis its first lead of the season.
McDonald beat his man again in the fourth quarter, this time getting off the line to block Patrick Murray's 24-yard field goal with the Rams trailing, 14-13. It was the second time Tampa Bay reached the red zone and failed to score, thanks to a great interception by Rodney McLeod in the first half.
Finally, on the game's final play, McDonald made the hit that shook up Mike Evans after he caught a Josh McCown pass for 29 yards to put the Bucs in field-goal range. But they had no timeouts remaining, so the injury resulted in a 10-second runoff to end the game.
-- Run defense struggles again. The Rams didn't give up any huge plays this week, but they hardly did any better overall in stopping the run game.
Tampa Bay tailback Bobby Rainey carried the ball 22 times for 144 yards in place of injured starter Doug Martin, and McCown scored both Bucs touchdowns on the ground. Plenty of large holes opened up at the line of scrimmage, and missed tackles again created some issues for Gregg Williams' defense.
They were undoubtedly missing defensive end and team captain Chris Long, who is expected to miss at least half the season with an ankle injury that required surgery earlier this week. But such players as William Hayes and Eugene Sims must find a way to step up and improve with Dallas' powerful running game making the trip to St. Louis next Sunday.
-- Running with power. St. Louis desperately needed to get a running game going against a weakened Tampa Bay defensive line, and Zac Stacy got off to a great start with seven yards on the offense's first play.
He continued to find a few holes to the tune of 71 yards on 19 carries, and the Bucs took another huge hit when defensive tackle Jerrell McCoy injured his hand early in the second quarter. With the exception of a costly fumble in the second half, Stacy showed why he's the Rams' workhorse in the backfield, and he scored their only touchdown so far this season on a two-yard run on the opening drive.
Benny Cunningham doesn't quite have the same ability to get downfield, but he's still a reliable option for limited touches when Stacy needs a break. An end-around play gave St. Louis a nice change of pace, first with Tavon Austin for 18 yards in the second quarter and later with Kenny Britt for 12 yards after Austin left with a knee injury and did not return.
-- Penalty problems persist. Flags continued to haunt the Rams and give new life to their opponents, especially on defense.
Tampa Bay got plenty of help in scoring on the game's opening drive, which momentarily ended with a James Laurinaitis touchdown return after he scooped up a McCown fumble. But it didn't count and might not have even happened without an offsides penalty that may have drawn a whistle before the snap and led to many players giving up on the play.
Two snaps later, Sims' horsecollar tackle nullified a key third-down stop and kept the drive alive before an eventual touchdown. A questionable roughing-the-passer call on third down allowed Tampa Bay to work its way into field position for a go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter, and even Zuerlein joined the penalty party with a 15-yard facemask at the end of a long kickoff return.
The total of 65 yards on five penalties marked a huge improvement from the 121 yards on 13 flags in last week's 34-6 loss to Minnesota. But a few other Rams infractions were declined, and it's a safe bet Fisher would like his team to play a lot more disciplined moving forward.
You can follow Luke Thompson on Twitter @FS_LukeT or email him at lukegthompson87@gmail.com.
