Faulk Is Too Much for Rams : Interconference: He runs for 177 yards and three touchdowns to lead Colts to a 21-18 victory.

Marshall Faulk shrugged off a second-year slump as easily as he did tacklers.

Faulk, last year’s NFL offensive rookie of the year, rushed for a career-high 177 yards and three touchdowns in 19 carries as the Indianapolis Colts handed St. Louis its first loss of the season, 21-18, on Sunday.

“You might call it a break-out game. I just call it a great offensive, productive game,” said Faulk, whose rushing yardage equaled his total for the first three games this season.

“It wasn’t a great game for me, it was a great game for those guys up front, a great game for the total team. I won’t say it’s a coming-out game for me or whatever. I’m just the one who had the ball in his hands.”

The Colts (2-2) took a 14-10 lead at halftime and scored another touchdown on a one-yard run by Faulk in the third quarter.

Faulk also had 45 yards on five passes from Jim Harbaugh, and his 222 total yards are the fourth most in team history.

“Every time I get the ball, I think of breaking out,” Faulk said. “I don’t ever think about just getting five or 10 yards. I think about scoring every time I touch the ball. Today, more so than any time ever, I had more opportunities to.”

His 177 rushing yards topped his previous career high of 143 against Houston in his first NFL game.

“I felt good during the game and I feel great now,” Faulk said. “I felt like the plays were made when they were needed, and that’s the difference in the two games we lost and this game today.”

Both of the Rams’ touchdowns came on passes from Chris Miller to Isaac Bruce, including a 34-yarder and two-point conversion with 52 seconds to go. The Colts then covered an onside kick and ran out the clock for the victory.

The Rams (4-1), who had not committed a turnover in their first four games, turned the ball over three times on two pass interceptions off of Miller and a fumble by Marv Cook.

“They just came out and established themselves before we did, and we had a little trouble adapting to their style,” Ram safety Keith Lyle said. “They got us from the jump, and it was hard for us to react.”

The Colts also limited St. Louis to 37 yards rushing and twice held the Rams on downs in the fourth quarter before the final touchdown.

“They benefited because they made big plays and scored on their takeaways,” Ram Coach Rich Brooks said.

Colt Coach Ted Marchibroda said, “Turnovers are always a factor. Nobody expects them to continue that pace, so you know that’s not going to continue and we took advantage of them. We didn’t do anything special, but we did get good pressure on Miller.”

The first interception off Miller, by Damon Watts in the first quarter, and the fumble recovery by Quentin Coryatt in the third quarter, set up two of Faulk’s three touchdown runs.

The first was a 32-yard run. The second was one-yard run that came after Faulk ran 23 yards and caught a pass for 18.