By Nick Wagoner
Senior Writer
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Through puffy and bloodshot eyes, Rams defensive end Leonard Little could see the play develop before it even happened.

With 4:46 to go in Sunday’s game against Jacksonville, Jaguars quarterback David Garrard dropped back to pass and decided to check down to running back Greg Jones in the right flat, presumably a safe play that could protect a three-point lead.

Little, dehydrated and worn down after battling strep throat for the past three days and worn down by a second half in which it seemed he was on the field the entire time, had other ideas.

Reading Garrard’s eyes the whole way, Little stepped in front of Jones, deflected the ball to himself, pulled it in and raced toward the end zone. Garrard was all that stood between he and the end zone and Little opted to take the Superman route as he dived from the 5 into the corner of the end zone for a touchdown and a four-point Rams lead.

“I don’t even know what happened,” Little said. “I just know I ended up with the ball in my hands. I just tried to get to the end zone as quick as I could. That’s all I remember about the play.”

It’s the type of play that can turn a game, if not a season.

“That was a shocker, especially in his condition,” defensive tackle Clifton Ryan said. “For him to make a huge play like that is a testament to his character. That’s something he has been doing for years, making big plays. After he scored I thought this is our chance.”

But in the NFL, things don’t always go according to Script. The Jaguars and Rams battled back and forth and fittingly went into overtime where Jacksonville won the coin toss and kicker Josh Scobee booted a 36-yard field goal for a 23-20 win at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

The hard-fought loss drops the Rams to 0-6 while Jacksonville improved to 3-3.

Even after Little’s stunning play, Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said he knew there was too much football left to feel confident that the outcome would break the Rams’ way.

“I looked at the clock and said no, we have some game to go,” Spagnuolo said. “It’s a play that usually turns it that way but give Jacksonville some credit. Their backs were against the wall a little bit there and they responded and made a play.”

After the touchdown, Little and his defensive teammates had to go right back on the field. Jacksonville promptly marched 75 yards on nine plays against the Rams’ fatigued defense, capped by running back Maurice Jones-Drew’s 3-yard touchdown run to give Jacksonville a 20-17 lead with 1:53 to play.

“This is the NFL, it’s never over,” Little said. “I just felt like we had to stop them. We had a chance to win the game but they put together a good drive.”
With less than two minutes to go, it was the offense’s turn to come up with a resilient drive and that’s precisely what it did when it was needed most.

On the first play of the possession, offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur called for a screen to the right for running back Steven Jackson. Quarterback Marc Bulger dumped it off and Jackson darted between defenders and dragged about six Jaguars with him to the Jacksonville 30.

It was the type of play that let both sides know there was plenty of football to be played.

“I would say I am surprised by it but I wasn’t,” Spagnuolo said. “That’s Steven. There was a lot of grit and determination in that one run. He was huge.”

Bulger hit a couple of big completions to give the Rams a second-and-goal at Jacksonville’s 9 with 15 seconds to play. But Bulger had to throw it away on that second down play after scrambling. The play took up about eight seconds and left a decision for Spagnuolo.

Ultimately, he opted to have Josh Brown boot the 27-yard field goal to tie it on third down to ensure nothing happened to cost his team an opportunity at overtime.

“It was too close,” Spagnuolo said. “We would never have wanted something to happen. We just couldn’t take the chance. One more tick on the clock, we can probably go there. I think it was the right thing to do.”

As is often the case in the NFL, the team that wins the coin toss scores to win the game. Unfortunately for the Rams, Jacksonville won the toss and promptly marched 62 yards to set up the game winning field goal from Scobee.

“That’s why this is the NFL,” Ryan said. “You have to play 60 minutes and sometimes you have to play 60 minutes plus. They had the ball first in the overtime and we couldn’t get a stop.”

From the outset, it appeared the Rams might not have much need for any extra time to get their first victory.

On the game’s opening possession, the Rams pieced together perhaps their most fluid and impressive drive of the season. Bulger hit on all five of his pass attempts for 70 yards and a 17-yard touchdown pass to Donnie Avery.

With the aerial attack clicking, it appeared it could be a big day for the offense but Avery suffered a hip injury early in the second quarter that took away the Rams’ top deep threat.

“It definitely takes our explosiveness down the field away,” Jackson said. “I think the guys who came in did a heck of a job because we are pretty limited at that position.”

And though the likes of Danny Amendola and Keenan Burton elevated their play, the Rams offense did not visit the end zone again and struggled to gain traction in the second half.

In the final 30 minutes, the Jaguars had the ball for 22 minutes and 45 seconds and were able to wear down the Rams with the running game, converting eight-of-11 third downs in the second half and overtime.

Regardless, the Rams found ways to counter punch every time the Jaguars threw the first blow. Unfortunately for the Rams, they ran out of opportunities and came up just short again.

“(I was) impressed or feel good about how hard we fought but that doesn’t give us anything,” Spagnuolo said. “There are no moral victories. That was a tight football game. We win and lose together. It’s not an offense, defense, special teams thing. There’s a lot of good there. I know I say that every week. I do think we are getting closer. A couple plays here and there, the outcome could have been different.”