ST. LOUIS - The Seattle Seahawks struggled on offense against the scrappy St. Louis Rams, so they had to leave Monday night’s game in the hands of one of the NFL’s most stingy defenses.
With its back on the goal line, the defense answered the challenge.
The Seahawks stuffed Daryl Richardson on third-and-goal, and then caused Kellen Clemens to overthrow his intended target in the corner of the end zone on the final play of a nerve-wracking 14-9 victory.
“The defense did a tremendous job, coming up with a huge stop there,” said Seahawks star Russell Wilson, who was sacked a career-high seven times.
The outcome capped a lousy night for St. Louis sports fans. The Cardinals lost 3-1 to the Boston Red Sox in Game 5 of the World Series, played just up Broadway at Busch Stadium.
“I’m proud of our guys,” Rams Coach Jeff Fisher said. “We felt like we had a chance.”
Seattle (7-1) extended the franchise’s best start despite gaining just 135 yards, with 80 coming on Wilson’s second TD pass to Golden Tate.
It was the third-fewest yards in a victory for the Seahawks, and their seven first downs were the fewest in a victory in franchise history.
“We were very fortunate,” Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll said. “Under the circumstances with a new quarterback, they did a great job. We just couldn’t get going on offense. Fortunately, the defense hung together and gave us a chance to win the game.”
Clemens finished with 158 yards passing in place of the injured Sam Bradford, but he also threw two interceptions. Zac Stacy ran for acareer-high 134 yards to pace the Rams (3-5).
“It’s not always going to be pretty,” said Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, who grabbed his fourth interception of the season. “You have to be able to win ugly.”
The World Series no doubt contributed to the stale atmosphere inside the Edward Jones Dome, where the announced crowd of 55,966 was in reality much smaller. Many of the fans who did show up wore Cardinals gear, and Cardinals-Red Sox highlights were shown on the big screen.
Greg Zuerlein staked St. Louis to an early lead with his first of three field goals, but Sherman’s interception put the Seahawks in business. Seattle scored six players later, when Wilson threw to Tate from the 2-yard line.
Zuerlein got the Rams within 7-6 late in the third quarter, but the Seahawks answered.
Wilson went deep down the sideline to Tate, who made an acrobatic leaping catch over Janoris Jenkins. Tate regained his balance and then mockingly waved atsafety Rodney McLeod as he ran to the end zone, earning an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
“He just was so in the moment and just made an unbelievable catch,” Wilson said. “You’ve got to give him credit for just attacking the football right there.”
Sports, Pages 19 on 10/29/2013