NFL Preview - St. Louis (0-4) at Washington (4-1)
By Shawn Clarke, Sports Network
The Sports Network
In addition to the regular season series, the teams have split four all-time postseason matchups. The then-Cleveland Rams defeated the Redskins for the 1945 NFL Championship, and the L.A. Rams took down Washington in a 1974 NFC Divisional Playoff. The Skins returned the favor by downing the Rams in a 1983 NFC Divisional Playoff and a 1986 NFC First-Round Playoff.
Haslett is 2-1 all-time against Washington, with all of those meetings dating back to his tenure with the Saints (2000-2005), including 2-0 in games played at FedEx Field. The Redskins' Jim Zorn will be meeting both Haslett and the Rams for the first time as a head coach.
WHEN THE RAMS HAVE THE BALL
Bulger (519 passing yards, 2 TD, 2 INT) was given back the starting job after Haslett was named head coach last week. He wasn't all to blame for St. Louis' ineptitude on offense, but he certainly didn't help the cause. Backup Trent Green (236 passing yards, 0 TD, 1 INT) started against the then-unbeaten Bills in Week 4 and finished 17-of-32 for 236 yards and an interception in a 31-14 setback before the bye. Haslett then inserted Bulger back under center for the rest of the season, barring any injuries or problems. Bulger didn't speak to the media after Linehan made the switch, but finally broke his silence after being named starter again, saying how he was upset and that it wasn't the right move to bench him. Now the West Virginia product is back with the first team hoping to put the Rams into the win column. Bulger faced the Redskins once, a 37-31 overtime victory by the Rams on December 24, 2006, and passed for 388 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. St. Louis is 26th in passing offense this season and All-Pro wideout Torry Holt (15 receptions, 1 TD) hasn't done much to help. He has had no more than 76 yards receiving in a game this year, but does lead the NFL with 768 catches and 11,263 yards since 2000. In injury news, tight end Randy McMichael was placed on injured reserve with a broken tibia and torn ligaments and is expected to miss the rest of the season. McMichael was replaced on the roster by Daniel Fells, and Joe Klopfenstein has been named the starting tight end. Former Redskins offensive coordinator and current Rams coordinator Al Saunders served as Redskins assistant head coach under Joe Gibbs from 2006-07.
Right now the Redskins are feeling confident after winning four of their first five games of the season, and the defense should not have a tough time keeping the Rams' passing attack in check. Even though Washington is 20th in the NFL in pass defense (217.6 ypg), it has a fine crop of defensive backs. Safety Chris Horton (18 tackles, 3 INT) is second in the NFL with three interceptions, while cornerbacks Carlos Rogers (21 tackles, 1 INT) and Fred Smoot (19 tackles, 1 INT) are among the team leaders in stops. Smoot started for an injured Shawn Springs against the Eagles and helped shut down quarterback Donovan McNabb, who passed for 196 yards with no touchdowns. Springs was slowed by a calf injury that he suffered against the Cowboys and may sit out another week. Safety LaRon Landry (18 tackles, 0.5 sack) is a hard-hitting ballhawk who will be looking to lay out any one of the Rams' receivers.
Jackson (269 rushing yards, 1 TD) is coming off his best performance of the season in which he recorded 110 yards and his first touchdown of the year on 24 touches against Buffalo. With an extra week of rest, the bruising running back should be even more eager to get it going at Washington. Jackson had his first 100-yard rushing game since a December 16 loss to Green Bay in 2007. The Rams average just 84.0 rushing yards a game even with Jackson in the backfield, but a lot of blame can be put on the offensive line. Jackson has also been a nice addition to Saunders' style of offense by creating mismatches out of the backfield in the passing game. Jackson, whose 27-day holdout in the preseason seems to have had no effect, also leads the team in receptions (21) and receiving yards (211). He is averaging 120 yards from scrimmage a game, the second-highest mark in the league.
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