Sam Bradford is going to be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. The St. Louis Rams believe so, and that’s why they took him No. 1 overall in the 2010 NFL draft.

In my opinion, Bradford’s ascension is a matter of when, not if.

So when can we expect the former No. 1 overall pick to play like a franchise quarterback? That is a complicated question with a simple answer—when Bradford gets more help.

Bradford was drafted No. 1 overall, meaning he was selected by the worst team in the NFL. The Rams were coming off of a 1-15 record in 2009. That is the mess that Bradford inherited. He responded by helping the Rams to a 7-9 record last season, and the Rams were picked by many to win the NFC West in 2011.

However, a combination of a tough schedule, poor personnel decisions, awful coaching and injuries to key players derailed the Rams’ season almost before it ever got started. Surrounded by a very poor supporting cast, Bradford regressed.

Simply put, Bradford has not been a good quarterback in 2011.

However, we shouldn’t jump to conclusions about Bradford based on one bad season. Consider these stat lines of some pretty good quarterbacks.

QB 1: 26 TDs, 23 INTs, 62.7 percent passing, 84.1 QB Rating

QB 2: 19 TDs, 24 INTs, 60.9 percent passing, 72.2 QB Rating

QB 3: 24 TDs, 22 INTs, 56 percent passing, 76.9 QB Rating

QB 4: 22 TDs, 23 INTs, 52 percent passing, 70.2 QB Rating

QB 5: 18 TDs, 15 INTs, 60 percent passing, 76.5 QB Rating

Those quarterbacks are, in order: QB 1 is Peyton Manning (4th year in the NFL), QB 2 is Brett Favre (3rd year in the NFL), QB 3 is Dan Marino (7th year in the NFL), QB 4 is John Elway (3rd year in the NFL), QB 5 is and Sam Bradford (rookie season).

So if you break it down, our very own Bradford, playing with an awful supporting cast last season, put up numbers comparable to some of the best QBs to ever play the game at the same point in their career.

In the words of Adam Sandler, that’s “not too shabby.”

Now let’s go back and take a look at some of the players that these Hall-of-Fame QBs got a chance to play with.

Peyton Manning had Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Edgerin James, not to mention a very good offensive line. He also got to work under the same head coach and the same offensive coordinator for several years.

Favre had Sterling Sharpe (great player before he was injured), Donald Driver, Ahman Green, Antonio Freeman, Robert Brooks, Javon Walker and Andre “Bad Moon” Rison (sorry, I couldn’t help myself). Favre also had a great offensive line, and he got to work in the same offense—the West Coast offense—for his entire career.

Marino had Mark Clayton and Mark Duper. He played for Don Shula for crying out loud. Elway had Hall-of-Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe, and he had the great Terrell Davis running behind him late in his career. He also played for a couple of very good coaches in Mike Shanahan and Dan Reeves.

Compare all of that to Bradford.

Poor Bradford’s best receiver to this point in his career has been Danny Amendola, a non drafted free agent who was picked up from Philly’s practice squad. When Bradford finally got of a good receiver to work with this season (Brandon Lloyd), Bradford was too banged up to play.

Speaking of banged up, look at the offensive line Bradford has to play behind. Jason Smith, the former No. 2 overall pick in the draft, is a bust at right tackle. I mean, honestly, who spends the No. 2 pick in the entire draft on a right tackle? The fact that Smith had to be moved to right tackle means he is already a bust, never mind the fact that he is a lousy right tackle!

Bradford was sacked on over nine percent of his passing attempts this season, a staggering number. Consider that Manning was never sacked on more than five percent of his passing attempts in a season, and the amount of abuse Bradford has endured is truly staggering.

So add it all up: Bradford was drafted onto a terrible team, with zero playmakers available to throw to in the passing game, and he was put behind a terrible offensive line where he was forced to take a beating week after week after week…

The only part of the blueprint for “How to ruin a young QB” that is missing would be the part where you make him change coordinators two or three years in a row.

Oh wait, he will probably be playing for his third offensive coordinator in a row next year, so we’ve got that one covered also.

And we can debate a lot of things—will Bradford be an elite QB or not? But there is one thing we can all surely agree on. The only chance Bradford has to reach his potential is a total regime change in St. Louis. Because without some major changes in St. Louis, Bradford won’t wind up on any list with names like Manning, Favre, Marino and Elway.

Poor Sam will end up on a list with David Carr and Marc Bulger, and none of us want to see that happen to Bradford.

Sam Bradford is going to be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. The St. Louis Rams believe so, and that’s why they took him No. 1 overall in the 2010 NFL draft.

In my opinion, Bradford’s ascension is a matter of when, not if.

So when can we expect the former No. 1 overall pick to play like a franchise quarterback? That is a complicated question with a simple answer—when Bradford gets more help.

Bradford was drafted No. 1 overall, meaning he was selected by the worst team in the NFL. The Rams were coming off of a 1-15 record in 2009. That is the mess that Bradford inherited. He responded by helping the Rams to a 7-9 record last season, and the Rams were picked by many to win the NFC West in 2011.

However, a combination of a tough schedule, poor personnel decisions, awful coaching and injuries to key players derailed the Rams’ season almost before it ever got started. Surrounded by a very poor supporting cast, Bradford regressed.

Simply put, Bradford has not been a good quarterback in 2011.

However, we shouldn’t jump to conclusions about Bradford based on one bad season. Consider these stat lines of some pretty good quarterbacks.

QB 1: 26 TDs, 23 INTs, 62.7 percent passing, 84.1 QB Rating

QB 2: 19 TDs, 24 INTs, 60.9 percent passing, 72.2 QB Rating

QB 3: 24 TDs, 22 INTs, 56 percent passing, 76.9 QB Rating

QB 4: 22 TDs, 23 INTs, 52 percent passing, 70.2 QB Rating

QB 5: 18 TDs, 15 INTs, 60 percent passing, 76.5 QB Rating

Those quarterbacks are, in order: QB 1 is Peyton Manning (4th year in the NFL), QB 2 is Brett Favre (3rd year in the NFL), QB 3 is Dan Marino (7th year in the NFL), QB 4 is John Elway (3rd year in the NFL), QB 5 is and Sam Bradford (rookie season).

So if you break it down, our very own Bradford, playing with an awful supporting cast last season, put up numbers comparable to some of the best QBs to ever play the game at the same point in their career.

In the words of Adam Sandler, that’s “not too shabby.”

Now let’s go back and take a look at some of the players that these Hall-of-Fame QBs got a chance to play with.

Peyton Manning had Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Edgerin James, not to mention a very good offensive line. He also got to work under the same head coach and the same offensive coordinator for several years.

Favre had Sterling Sharpe (great player before he was injured), Donald Driver, Ahman Green, Antonio Freeman, Robert Brooks, Javon Walker and Andre “Bad Moon” Rison (sorry, I couldn’t help myself). Favre also had a great offensive line, and he got to work in the same offense—the West Coast offense—for his entire career.

Marino had Mark Clayton and Mark Duper. He played for Don Shula for crying out loud. Elway had Hall-of-Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe, and he had the great Terrell Davis running behind him late in his career. He also played for a couple of very good coaches in Mike Shanahan and Dan Reeves.

Compare all of that to Bradford.

Poor Bradford’s best receiver to this point in his career has been Danny Amendola, a non drafted free agent who was picked up from Philly’s practice squad. When Bradford finally got of a good receiver to work with this season (Brandon Lloyd), Bradford was too banged up to play.

Speaking of banged up, look at the offensive line Bradford has to play behind. Jason Smith, the former No. 2 overall pick in the draft, is a bust at right tackle. I mean, honestly, who spends the No. 2 pick in the entire draft on a right tackle? The fact that Smith had to be moved to right tackle means he is already a bust, never mind the fact that he is a lousy right tackle!

Bradford was sacked on over nine percent of his passing attempts this season, a staggering number. Consider that Manning was never sacked on more than five percent of his passing attempts in a season, and the amount of abuse Bradford has endured is truly staggering.

So add it all up: Bradford was drafted onto a terrible team, with zero playmakers available to throw to in the passing game, and he was put behind a terrible offensive line where he was forced to take a beating week after week after week…

The only part of the blueprint for “How to ruin a young QB” that is missing would be the part where you make him change coordinators two or three years in a row.

Oh wait, he will probably be playing for his third offensive coordinator in a row next year, so we’ve got that one covered also.

And we can debate a lot of things—will Bradford be an elite QB or not? But there is one thing we can all surely agree on. The only chance Bradford has to reach his potential is a total regime change in St. Louis. Because without some major changes in St. Louis, Bradford won’t wind up on any list with names like Manning, Favre, Marino and Elway.

Poor Sam will end up on a list with David Carr and Marc Bulger, and none of us want to see that happen to Bradford.

Read More: Kellen Clemens (QB – STL), A.J. Feeley (QB – STL), James Hall (DE – STL), Sam Bradford (QB – STL), Robert Quinn (DE – STL), Cincinnati Bengals, St. Louis Rams

With A.J. Feeley out and Sam Bradford reportedly shut down today for the season, the St. Louis Rams will take on the Cincinnati Bengals today with their third string quarterback under center. That quarterback, Kellen Clemens, was signed off waivers from the Houston Texans just two weeks ago. It gets worse from there: Along with Bradford, the Rams will be missing starting DE James Hall, who is likely to be replaced in the starting line up by rookie DE Robert Quinn.

Here is the full inactive list for Week 15:

• QB Sam Bradford
• LB Justin Cole
• QB Jay Feeley
• DE James Hall
• CB Justin King
• OT Mark LeVoir
• RB Quinn Porter

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. For more on the Cincinnati Bengals, check out Cincy Jungle. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Read More: Kellen Clemens (QB – STL), Sam Bradford (QB – STL), Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans, St. Louis Rams

In Week 14, the St. Louis Rams pushed QB Sam Bradford into action against the Seattle Seahawks with an injured ankle and watched him put up the third lowest quarterback rating (49.9) of his young career. Bradford has been listed as doubtful for the Rams’ Week 15 match up vs. the Cincinnati Bengals, and on Sunday morning he was downgraded to out, according to a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

In his place will be Kellen Clemens, the one-time New York Jet who was claimed off waivers by the Rams from the Houston Texans a mere few weeks ago. It’s been an ugly season for the Rams, and with a quarterback who has only been with the team for two weeks going up against the leagues 11th rated passing defense, it doesn’t look like the trend will be broken on Sunday.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. For more on the Cincinnati Bengals, check out Cincy Jungle. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

By Ryan Van Bibber

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Dec 16, 2011 – St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford is officially listed as doubtful for his team’s Week 15 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Bradford watched the Rams practice on Friday while wearing a walking boot on his sprained left ankle. According to the team, Bradford has not officially been ruled out, but head coach Steve Spagnuolo acknowledged that it would be a stretch for Bradford to play this week. 

Bradford suffered a high ankle sprain in October, which caused him to miss two games that month, including a Week 8 upset over the New Orleans Saints. The nagging injury refuses to go away, thanks in part to a Rams’ offensive line decimated with injuries and disappointing play. 

The Rams decided to play Bradford last week, even after he missed all but one practice leading up to the game. The second-year quarterback re-aggravated the injury in a Monday night thrashing by the Seahawks in Week 14. With just three games left to play, there is already talk about whether or not the Rams should shut Bradford down for the season. 

Kellen Clemens worked with the first team again in Friday’s practice, and will make the start this week in Bradford’s place. The Rams acquired Clemens prior to their Week 14 game on Monday. Clemens was released by the Houston Texans prior to joining the Rams. Clemens has not started a regular season game since 2009. 

For more on Bradford and the Rams, check out Turf Show Times. 

Read More: Kellen Clemens (QB – STL), Sam Bradford (QB – STL), Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, St. Louis Rams

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One telling sign: For the first time in several weeks, Bradford is back in a walking boot.

“I will say it is becoming more and more frustrating to go out there and play and then after the game feel like I’ve been set back and feel like we’ve gone back,” Bradford said after sitting out practice Wednesday.

“I think if it feels good enough Friday to get out there and test it, I’m sure we will just see where we’re at. But if it doesn’t, I don’t think we’re going to push it and set it back again.”

Coach Steve Spagnuolo seemed pessimistic about Bradford’s chances.

“But we’ll see,” Spagnuolo said. “He’s a tough guy, so he’s trying.”

Kellen Clemens, who was signed last week and will likely start if Bradford can’t go, got in some extra work after Wednesday’s practice. Backup A.J. Feeley remains sidelined with a fractured right thumb and has only limited mobility after missing Monday night’s loss.

“I feel prepared,” Clemens said. “It’s a short week, which doesn’t help, but I’m going to get three practices this week instead of two so I think by Sunday afternoon I should be ready to go.”

Clemens appeared close to playing Monday night after Bradford took a hard hit on a failed flea-flicker during the Rams’ third play, hitting his helmet on the turf. While doctors were checking out Bradford, Clemens was warming up on the sideline.

But Clemens said he was just staying loose on a cold night.

When Bradford returned after missing Games 6 and 7, it was easier to recover. He believes the setback is from general wear and tear rather than a specific instance.

“When I came back the first time I was able to make it through those first three or four games without going backwards,” Bradford said. “It got better each week, it wasn’t sore after the game.”

Bradford said the injury has compromised his mechanics and put more stress on his arm. He was just 12 for 29 for 193 yards with an interception and no touchdowns against the Seahawks.

“It’s not easy to come through and fully torque and get everything I have into it,” Bradford said. “I’m not sure if it reduces arm strength, it just kind of limits your ability to put your entire body into throws at times.”

The Rams lost another player, placing fullback Britt Miller on injured reserve with cartilage damage to his right knee, and re-signed cornerback Nate Ness. Miller has been most valuable on special teams, and had three receptions for 41 yards and five carries for 14 yards.

Miller did not make the trip for the Seattle game.

“It was a long night talking to my family, and that seemed to be the best way to go about this thing,” Miller said. “Steven Jackson always makes you look a little better than you are, so that helps.

“To be out here in kind of a tough season, I really wanted to finish with my teammates.”

Ness rejoined the team eight days after getting waived. He was first signed to the practice squad in October, and first elevated to the roster Nov. 16.

Notes: Neither of the Rams’ defensive ends practiced Wednesday. James Hall has a chest injury and Chris Long has been playing the last few weeks without practicing to protect an ankle sprain. Long is among the league leaders with a career-best 12 sacks. “At least we’ve been able to get him to the games, which is huge,” Spagnuolo said. … S Craig Dahl (right ankle), CB Josh Gordy (abdomen), OT Mark LeVoir (groin), DE Eugene Sims (ankle) and TE Stephen Spach (concussion) also did not practice.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

If Wednesday had been game day, Sam Bradford said he would not have been able to play. He didn’t seem at all optimistic that a few more days would help, either.

The St. Louis Rams quarterback played in Monday night’s loss at Seattle after missing the previous game because of a persistent high left ankle sprain. With a short week and a very sore ankle, he believes it’ll be a challenge to get ready for Sunday’s home game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

One telling sign: For the first time in several weeks, Bradford is back in a walking boot.

“I will say it is becoming more and more frustrating to go out there and play and then after the game feel like I’ve been set back and feel like we’ve gone back,” Bradford said after sitting out practice Wednesday.

“I think if it feels good enough Friday to get out there and test it, I’m sure we will just see where we’re at. But if it doesn’t, I don’t think we’re going to push it and set it back again.”

Coach Steve Spagnuolo seemed pessimistic about Bradford’s chances.

“But we’ll see,” Spagnuolo said. “He’s a tough guy, so he’s trying.”

Kellen Clemens, who was signed last week and will likely start if Bradford can’t go, got in some extra work after Wednesday’s practice. Backup A.J. Feeley remains sidelined with a fractured right thumb and has only limited mobility after missing Monday night’s loss.

“I feel prepared,” Clemens said. “It’s a short week, which doesn’t help, but I’m going to get three practices this week instead of two so I think by Sunday afternoon I should be ready to go.”

Clemens appeared close to playing Monday night after Bradford took a hard hit on a failed flea-flicker during the Rams’ third play, hitting his helmet on the turf. While doctors were checking out Bradford, Clemens was warming up on the sideline.

But Clemens said he was just staying loose on a cold night.

When Bradford returned after missing Games 6 and 7, it was easier to recover. He believes the setback is from general wear and tear rather than a specific instance.

“When I came back the first time I was able to make it through those first three or four games without going backwards,” Bradford said. “It got better each week, it wasn’t sore after the game.”

Bradford said the injury has compromised his mechanics and put more stress on his arm. He was just 12 for 29 for 193 yards with an interception and no touchdowns against the Seahawks.

“It’s not easy to come through and fully torque and get everything I have into it,” Bradford said. “I’m not sure if it reduces arm strength, it just kind of limits your ability to put your entire body into throws at times.”

The Rams lost another player, placing fullback Britt Miller on injured reserve with cartilage damage to his right knee, and re-signed cornerback Nate Ness. Miller has been most valuable on special teams, and had three receptions for 41 yards and five carries for 14 yards.

Miller did not make the trip for the Seattle game.

“It was a long night talking to my family, and that seemed to be the best way to go about this thing,” Miller said. “Steven Jackson always makes you look a little better than you are, so that helps.

“To be out here in kind of a tough season, I really wanted to finish with my teammates.”

Ness rejoined the team eight days after getting waived. He was first signed to the practice squad in October, and first elevated to the roster Nov. 16.

Notes: Neither of the Rams’ defensive ends practiced Wednesday. James Hall has a chest injury and Chris Long has been playing the last few weeks without practicing to protect an ankle sprain. Long is among the league leaders with a career-best 12 sacks. “At least we’ve been able to get him to the games, which is huge,” Spagnuolo said. … S Craig Dahl (right ankle), CB Josh Gordy (abdomen), OT Mark LeVoir (groin), DE Eugene Sims (ankle) and TE Stephen Spach (concussion) also did not practice.

By Steve von Horn

– Newsdesk contributor

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Dec 13, 2011 – Things are just terrible for the St. Louis Rams, who lost once again in Week 14 and fell to 2-11 overall. There has been very little to praise from any angle, and most fans are probably fine that at least the Rams avoided an embarrassing performance on the national stage. Even so, it’s another loss.

SB Nation’s Joel Thorman has released his Week 15 NFL Power Rankings, and the Rams still are firmly entrenched as the lowest-ranked NFC team, at No. 31:

Is this just a bad season for Sam Bradford? Is it injuries? Or is Sam Bradford bad? I didn’t think I’d be asking that question.    

Here are the top and bottom five teams in the NFL, according to SB Nation’s rankings:    

Top Five Teams

1. Green Bay Packers (13-0, LW: 1)

2. New Orleans Saints (10-3, LW: 2)

3. Baltimore Ravens (10-3, LW: 3)

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-3, LW: 5)          

5. New England Patriots (10-3, LW: 6)            

Bottom Five Teams

28. Cleveland Browns (4-9, LW: 27) 

29. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-9, LW: 29)

30. Minnesota Vikings (2-11, LW: 30)

31. St. Louis Rams (2-11, LW: 31)

32. Indianapolis Colts (0-13, LW: 32)      

Will the experts from around the web see it the same way? Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more Power Rankings Updates, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Read More: Sam Bradford (QB – STL), Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers, St. Louis Rams

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SEATTLE (AP) — Tarvaris Jackson threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin with 6 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Seattle Seahawks a 20-6 lead over the St. Louis Rams on Monday night.

After a 23-yard field goal by Steven Hauschka extended Seattle’s lead to 13-3 midway through the period, the Rams mounted their best offensive drive of the game.

Sam Bradford caught Seattle in a blitz and tossed a screen pass to Steven Jackson that went for 50 yards to put the Rams in the red zone for the first time. Richard Sherman was called for pass interference on the next play, giving St. Louis first-and-goal from the 1. But the Rams sputtered again — Bradford was called for intentional grounding, pushing them backward and forcing a 29-yard field goal by Josh Brown.

The Seahawks finally managed to get in the end zone on the ensuing drive. A big kick return from Leon Washington gave Seattle good field position and Tarvaris Jackson hit Baldwin on consecutive plays. The first pass went for 22 yards and the next one gave Seattle a 20-6 cushion.

Michael Robinson returned a blocked punt 17 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter to get the Seahawks on the board.

Baldwin made three big plays on special teams for the Seahawks. He returned the opening kickoff 37 yards, downed the team’s first punt at the Rams 6-yard line and blocked the St. Louis punt.

Seattle later went on a 14-play drive that stalled deep in Rams territory before Hauschka made a 42-yard field goal to give the Seahawks a 10-0 lead.

After recommitting to the ground game around midseason, the Seahawks were working on five straight games with at least 100 yards rushing. Marshawn Lynch topped 100 yards himself in four of those five games, with the one time he was held under the century mark coming against the Rams, when he finished with 88 yards.

Lynch had 128 carries over the previous five games after getting 74 carries in the first six. Yet he had just 28 yards on nine carries in the first half Monday night.

Bradford started for the Rams despite a high ankle sprain that forced him to miss last week’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. Bradford was 6 of 18 for 50 yards through three quarters.

With Bradford struggling, Steven Jackson started to carry the Rams’ offense early in the second quarter. He broke three runs of 10-plus yards as St. Louis drove into Seattle territory. K.J. Wright came up with a sack of Bradford that stalled the drive and forced the Rams to settle for a 46-yard field goal by Brown.

Tarvaris Jackson led the Seahawks back into St. Louis territory, but a fumbled exchange between him and Lynch gave the ball back to the Rams and kept Seattle from adding to its lead.

Jackson was 17 of 27 for 174 yards and a touchdown through three quarters.

For the Rams, Steven Jackson had 56 yards on 15 carries to lead the way for a sputtering offense. Despite 14 career games against the division-rival Seahawks, he had never rushed for 100 yards against Seattle.

After a Seattle drive lost yardage and set up the Rams with good field position, St. Louis decided to go for a fourth-and-1 at the Seahawks 36. Instead of riding Steven Jackson, the Rams went to play-action and Bradford’s pass for Danario Alexander was broken up by Richard Sherman to force a turnover on downs.

Seattle was looking for its fourth win in five games and was trying to keep its slim playoff hopes alive. The Seahawks would likely need to win out and get to 9-7 for any chance of reaching the postseason for a second straight season.

SEATTLE (AP) — Michael Robinson returned a blocked punt 17 yards for a touchdown to help the Seattle Seahawks take a 10-3 lead over the St. Louis Rams at halftime Monday night.

Doug Baldwin made three big plays on special teams for the Seahawks. He returned the opening kickoff 37 yards, downed the team’s first punt at the Rams 6-yard line and blocked the St. Louis punt.

Seattle later went on a 14-play drive that stalled deep in Rams territory before Steven Hauschka made a 42-yard field goal to give the Seahawks a 10-0 lead.

After recommitting to the ground game around midseason, the Seahawks were working on five straight games with at least 100 yards rushing. Marshawn Lynch topped 100 yards himself in four of those five games, with the one time he was held under the century mark coming against the Rams, when he finished with 88 yards.

Lynch had 128 carries over the previous five games after getting 74 carries in the first six. Yet he had just 28 yards on nine carries in the first half Monday night.

Sam Bradford started for the Rams despite a high ankle sprain that forced him to miss last week’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. Bradford was 5 of 13 for 59 yards in the first half.

With Bradford struggling, Steven Jackson started to carry the Rams’ offense early in the second quarter. He broke three runs of 10-plus yards as St. Louis drove into Seattle territory. K.J. Wright came up with a sack of Bradford that stalled the drive and forced the Rams to settle for a 46-yard field goal by Josh Brown.

Tarvaris Jackson led the Seahawks back into St. Louis territory, but a fumbled exchange between him and Lynch gave the ball back to the Rams and kept Seattle from adding to its lead.

For the Rams, Steven Jackson had 50 yards on 11 carries to lead the way for a sputtering offense. Despite 14 career games against the division-rival Seahawks, he had never rushed for 100 yards against Seattle.

After a Seattle drive lost yardage and set up the Rams with good field position, St. Louis decided to go for a fourth-and-1 at the Seahawks 36. Instead of riding Steven Jackson, the Rams went to play-action and Bradford’s pass for Danario Alexander was broken up by Richard Sherman to force a turnover on downs.

Seattle was looking for its fourth win in five games and was trying to keep its slim playoff hopes alive. The Seahawks would likely need to win out and get to 9-7 for any chance of reaching the postseason for a second straight season.

It would be nice if I could plug a name in there, but quarterback alone will have to suffice, considering the Rams’ starter situation is still very much a game-time decision.

Sam Bradford did not practice at all last week but did do some light throwing in the team’s Saturday practice.

He’s still very much questionable and is a game-time decision, as he continues to struggle with an ankle injury that’s bothered him all season.

If Bradford cannot play, usual backup A.J. Feeley won’t be available, either, as he is dealing with a thumb injury. That leaves just Tom Brandstater and Kellen Clemens on deck for the team, with Brandstater likely getting the nod tonight despite Clemens seeing a number of first-team reps in practice last week.

Brandstater was drafted by the Rams in 2009 but has never started a game, instead spending most of his time on the team’s practice squad, from which he was promoted last week.

If Brandstater struggles tonight, don’t be surprised if he is pulled during the game for the recently-signed Clemens.

At this point, the Rams’ season is all but lost, so they might as well see what they have at quarterback and give opportunities to guys who would otherwise be unlikely to get a shot at starting.

By Steven Muma

– Newsdesk contributor

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Dec 8, 2011 – The Rams were without the services of quarterbacks Sam Bradford and A.J. Feeley again on Thursday, leaving Tom Brandstater to take the reps with the first team offense. Feeley said Wednesday that he’s “more than likely not” going to be able to play against Seattle, but there is a chance that Bradford will be able to go. Head coach Steve Spagnuolo commented on the uncertainty of the situation:

“There’s some balls bouncing in the air right now,” Spagnuolo said. “We’ll be hopeful on Sam, but we won’t know until we get to the end of the week.”

To compensate for these injuries, the team signed Matt Gutierrez to the practice squad and claimed veteran Kellen Clemens off waivers from Houston. Clemens, though,  wasn’t able to get to St. Louis in time to practice on Thursday.

In other Rams injury news, defensive end Chris Long, defensive tackle Fred Robbins and running back Quinn Porter also were held out of practice. Offensive tackle Mark LeVoir and defensive tackle Eugene Sims were limited.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. For more on this week’s game, visit St. Louis Rams blog Turf Show Times and Seattle Seahawks blog Field Gulls. For news and notes from around the NFL, visit SB Nation’s NFL news hub.

Read More: Kellen Clemens (QB – STL), A.J. Feeley (QB – STL), Fred Robbins (DT – STL), Mark LeVoir (G – STL), Matt Gutierrez (QB – STL), Chris Long (DE – STL), Tom Brandstater (QB – STL), Eugene Sims (DE – STL), Sam Bradford (QB – STL), Quinn Porter (RB – STL), St. Louis Rams

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Sam Bradford did not practice for the second straight day because of a nagging high left ankle sprain, but the St. Louis Rams quarterback is hopeful of playing Monday night at Seattle.

Coach Steve Spagnuolo said Thursday that Bradford could miss every practice and still play if he’s healthy enough. Bradford said at this late stage of the season he’s comfortable enough with the offense to do that.

Backup A.J. Feeley has already ruled himself out this week because of a fractured thumb on his throwing hand, so Tom Brandstater, who has never played in an NFL game, would go if Bradford can’t.

Bradford missed last week’s game and is wearing a small air cast. He said he hasn’t thought about the possibility of going on injured reserve if the ankle continues to bother him.

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