Rams Win on Kick in Overtime : Dickerson Gets Back in Spotlight in 20-17 Victory Over Chargers
As for those Steve Bartkowski posters the Rams are dying to order, well, the team just might want to wait.
Not today. Not yet.
For while Ram fans entered Saturday night’s exhibition game against the San Diego Chargers desperately wanting to embrace a new hero, the best Bartkowski could do on this night was hand off to an old one.
His name is Eric Dickerson, and you might remember him. He’s the one running on the cover of the Ram media guide.
And Saturday night he awoke from his preseason of obscurity, helping the Rams score a 20-17 overtime win before a crowd of 47,045 at Anaheim Stadium.
The Rams won this the hard way, on a 27-yard Mike Lansford field goal just 20 seconds into overtime. The winning kick was set up by Ram linebacker Jim Laughlin, who intercepted a Mark Herrmann pass intended for Kellen Winslow.
The Chargers had tied the game with 59 seconds left in regulation on a 19-yard pass from Herrmann to Winslow.
Lansford’s winning kick made the night sweeter for Dickerson.
It seems that while the Rams have been out tinkering with their new offense and becoming excited over Bartkowski, they had all but forgotten Dickerson, who had just 10 yards in 6 carries in two exhibition games.
But Saturday, in one quick moment, he returned, finding a familiar crack in the Charger defense and racing 74 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
In those fleeting seconds, Dickerson reaffirmed his place in the Ram offense. As if there was any doubt.
“We got Eric going a little bit tonight,” Ram Coach John Robinson said.
You could say that.
Dickerson played only a half against the Chargers, gaining back some respect to go with 112 yards in 10 carries.
For Bartkowski, it was a nice night to step back from the spotlight.
After showing signs of brilliance in last week’s win over the San Francisco 49ers, Bartkowski was perfectly mortal against San Diego.
This was billed as a passing matchup between Bartkowski and Dan Fouts of the Chargers, but too many of their passes ended up in the wrong hands.
Bartkowski threw two interceptions in his one half of work, more than he threw in five games with the Atlanta Falcons last season.
He finished the night having completed 6 of 13 passes for 100 yards with 1 touchdown.
Fouts, the quarterback who may break every passing record in the book by the time he’s finished, never seemed to get into this game.
He left in the third quarter after completing 17 of 28 passes for just 178 yards. He had 1 touchdown and 3 interceptions.
Bartkowski looked as though he was going to pick up where he left off in the game with the 49ers--against whom he completed 11 of 15 passes for 147 yards and 2 touchdowns.
He put the Rams in the end zone in a hurry, placing a perfectly thrown pass in the hands of Ron Brown, who completed the 38-yard touchdown play with 11:43 left in the first quarter.
Bartkowski was 4 for 4 for 63 yards on the drive, but that was the highlight of his night.
Late in the first quarter, a poorly thrown Bartkowski pass was intercepted by Danny Walters.
Near the end of the half, Daryl McCoy intercepted a Bartkowski pass and returned it 30 yards, setting up the Chargers’ only score of the half.
“Steve got caught in the same thing we did,” Robinson said, referring to the passing philosophy after Brown’s quick touchdown. “We all got big eyes. That’s a dangerous part of the game. I guess we couldn’t stand that big touchdown play.”
The Ram defense could take pride in shutting down the mighty Charger offensive machine in the first half. At least it appeared that way on the scoreboard.
Actually, the Chargers could have made a killing, but they didn’t score until 23 seconds remained in the first half, when Fouts threw a one-yard pass to Trumaine Johnson for a touchdown.
It appeared for a while that Fouts would be shut out in the half, but he got one last chance on McCoy’s interception, which gave the Chargers the ball on the Ram 45 with 1:30 left before halftime. It took Fouts nine plays to get in the end zone.
As for missed chances, why not count the ways the Chargers didn’t score.
Fouts drove the Chargers to the Ram 22-yard line on the team’s first possession, but all hope of scoring ended when Rolf Benirschke hooked a field-goal attempt left.
Benirschke thought he’d redeemed himself twice early in the second quarter but walked off the field without a point.
This takes some explaining. Benirschke thought he’d made a 21-yard attempt, but play was stopped because of a 30-second clock malfunction.
So, Benirschke was forced to kick again. And he made it again, only this time the Chargers were called for holding.
Benirschke backed up 10 yards and hooked a 31-yard attempt to the left.
Ram Notes
The Rams lost two starting offensive linemen in the first half. Offensive tackle Irv Pankey suffered a hyperextended left elbow, and guard Dennis Harrah strained his right calf muscle. Both players did not return for the second half. . . . Eric Dickerson carried the ball 10 times in the first half, equaling his total for the Rams’ first two exhibition games. . . . Jerry Gray, the man on whom the Rams are counting to replace Gary Green at left cornerback, intercepted a Dan Fouts pass early in the second half. . . . Chris Faulkner, formerly a tight end with the Rams, was playing defensive end for the Chargers.
