NOTEBOOK : Rams Put Their Foul-Weather Reputation on Ice With Victory

The cold, rainy weather for Sunday’s wild-card game was supposed to favor the Eagles, who are accustomed to playing on the 100-yard slip-and-slide that is the Veterans Stadium artificial turf in a downpour.

But it was the Eagles, not the Rams, who couldn’t hang onto the football. The Rams fumbled once. Philadelphia fumbled six times.

The Rams hope this will help put an end to their reputation as fair-weather football players.

“If we could get (cornerback) Darryl Henley out from in front of the heater, we’d be all right,” linebacker Mel Owens said. “He’s the only guy who sits in front of the heater.

“But, really, I’m from Michigan and believe me, nobody gets used to cold and rain. Nobody. I don’t care who you are. Not even the birds. They seek shelter too.

“It’s the same for both teams. You put on a little sweat shirt and a little glove and you play football.”

Linebacker Kevin Greene was a little more succinct in his appraisal of the Rams’ cold-weather rap.

“Can the beach boys play in cold weather?” he asked, rather loudly, of the media mob crowded around his locker. “Well, can the beach boys play in cold weather?” he asked again, even louder.

A number of reporters mumbled something akin to “yes,” and Greene seemed satisfied.

The Rams also hope they have dispelled another popular notion: that a team with a defense ranked 21st in the league has no business being in the playoffs.

“We have the lowest-ranking defense in the playoffs and a lot of people said we didn’t deserve to be here,” linebacker Mike Wilcher said. “That gave us a lot of incentive today.”

Once again, Greene took a more emotional tact on that subject.

“Stiff all that, man,” he said. “Play with your heart. It was a question of will today and we maintained that mentality. We had the desire and we kept fighting. And we had no lulls in the whole 15 rounds.”