Homecoming pt. 3 - 2011 Season Report - PuppyMaster's Blog

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Homecoming pt. 3 - 2011 Season Report

Posted on May 9, 2013 at 07:40 PM.

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St. Louis Rams 2011 Season Report

ST. LOUIS - Despite a strong finish the 2011 Rams ended their season on the outside of the NFL playoffs looking in. A week 17 loss to the division rival 49ers dropped the Rams to 9-7 and caused them to miss the postseason yet again.

In an up and down season defined by turmoil a few hopeful trends emerged. Sam Bradford made huge strides in his second year throwing for over 4,000 yards and 25 touchdowns while dropping his interceptions to a measly eight on the year. He developed a strong rapport with receiver Brandon Lloyd who sat out most of the pre-season and the first four games of the regular season with a strained knee. Lloyd led the Rams in catches, yards and touchdowns on his first year with the team and it remains to be seen if he'll resign with St. Louis in the off-season.

The Rams excelled as a unit offensively, racking up the fourth most points in the league. Steven Jackson continued to be oil keeping the offense running smoothly. Even though his rushing numbers were down he still broke 1,000 yards for the seventh consecutive season and punched in 10 touchdowns. His true worth, however, came in his versatility. Jackson's 53 catches and 770 yards were the most since 2006 and his four receiving touchdowns topped his previous career high of two set in 2005.

Of the three rookie pass-catchers on the team only tight end Lance Kendricks made an impact. His 70 catches, 652 yards and five touchdowns nearly doubled Austin Pettis and Greg Salas' combined numbers. Kendricks was a reliable target for Bradford all season and the rookie was rewarded by placing fifth in the NFC offensive rookie of the year race.

Unfortunately the Rams weren't as proficient. The squad ranked 31st in total yards allowed and dead last in rushing defense. Their 29 sacks placed just 27th in the league and surely contributed to their league 407 points allowed. Not all was bad for the defense, however. Their 25 takeaways ranked 5th in the NFL.

Overall it was definitely a step in the right direction for the franchise. In what promises to be a tumultuous off-season in which the finishing touches on the new stadium in California should be complete the Rams will look to gain momentum and continue improving before their relocation to the West Coast.

In the coming weeks we'll take a look at the off-season as the Rams hope to build upon their first winning season since the days of the 'Greatest Show'. It will be interesting to see how the new management handles a full off-season schedule.

For now the Rams have a daunting task ahead of them. Getting over the hump and into the playoffs is always difficult for a team that seems to have been rebuilding for nearly 10 seasons. It'll be crucial for head coach Steven Spagnuolo to keep the players focused on the game and not on the turmoil surrounding the organization.

NFL Standings - Updated: Nov 10, 2011
NFC WEST	W	L	T	PF	PA
San Francisco 49ers	11	5		421	324
St. Louis Rams	9	7		390	407
Seattle Seahawks	8	8		346	346
Arizona Cardinals	6	10		328	354

St. Louis Rams Stats - 2011
Passing	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	YDS/G	LONG	TD	INT	RAT
Sam Bradford	363/601	4163	6.9	260.1	57	25	8	89.6
AJ Feeley	32/60	358	5.9	39.7	46	2	4	54.7
Rushing	ATT	YDS	AVG	LONG	20+	TD	YDS/G	FUM
Steven Jackson	274	1,087	3.9	90	5	10	67.9	5
Cadillac Williams	103	328	3.1	66	2	2	20.5	2
Receiving	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	20+	YDS/G	YAC
Brandon Lloyd	79	1,096	13.8	6	57		91.3	208
Lance Kendricks	70	652	9.3	5	44		40.7	124
Mark Clayton	55	601	10.9	5	52		54.6	114
Steven Jackson	53	770	14.5	4	51		48.1	311
Brandon Gibson	41	410	10.0	1	48		25.6	60
Austin Pettis	33	259	7.8	2	46		16.1	-2
Greg Salas	28	309	11.0	2	46		19.3	-1
Danario Alexander	17	269	15.8	1	44		38.4	9
Blocking					PCAKE		SACK
Harvey Dahl					6		12
Jason Brown					4		4
Rodger Saffold					2		0
Adam Goldberg					2		3
Jason Smith					2		2
Mark Levoir					1		3
Jacob Bell					0		5
	Tackles			Sacks		Interceptions
Defense	SOLO	AST	TOT	SACK	TLOSS	PD	INT	TD
James Laurinaitis	109	28	137	0	4	6	2	0
Chris Chamberlain	86	28	114	0	2	2	1	0
James Butler	53	9	62	0.5	2	9	1	0
Fred Robbins	53	14	67	0	0	1	0	0
Brady Poppinga	49	29	78	0	5	0	0	0
Justin Bannan	47	24	71	7	1	2	0	0
Chris Long	44	9	53	5.5	2	3	0	0
Ronald Bartell	44	15	59	0	0	8	3	0
Robert Quinn	30	17	47	11	0	1	0	0
Al Harris	24	9	33	0	0	7	2	1
	Kickoffs					Punts
Returning	ATT	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD	RET	AVG	TD
Rod Hood	46	818	17.7	62	0	22	162	0
Brandon Lloyd	24	543	22.6	48	0	3	50	0
Jerious Norwood	16	465	29	59
	Field Goals				Extra Points
Kicking	FGM	FGA	PCT	LONG	XPM	XPA	PCT	PTS
Josh Brown	37	43	86	56	37	38	97	148
Punting	PUNTS	YDS	LONG	AVG	NET	BP	IN20	TB
Donnie Jones	95	4,276	73	45.0	38.2	0	30	10