Rams Win and They’re In
St. Louis Coach Mike Martz couldn’t care less that his team finished .500. Somehow, the Rams are in the playoffs.
The Rams clinched a postseason berth when Jeff Wilkins kicked a 31-yard field goal in overtime to beat the New York Jets, 32-29, Sunday. They got a little help earlier in the day when Minnesota lost.
“This is why you coach, for moments like this,” Martz said after the Rams extended their up-and-down season. “It really is.”
The Rams (8-8) won a finale that, in the end, they needed more than the Jets. For much of the game, they played more like the team that was supposed to be one of the best in the NFC than the seemingly crumbling franchise that had lost four of five entering the final weekend.
Now they will play at Seattle in the first round Saturday afternoon. St. Louis won both regular-season meetings.
“We’ve just had a million things go wrong, and goofy things happen all year,” guard Adam Timmerman said. “We kept fighting and fighting, and to get in the playoffs is one of those really sweet things.”
The Jets (10-6) qualified as an AFC wild card before the game even ended, when the Buffalo Bills lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets play at San Diego on Saturday night.
“I hate to lose getting in,” Coach Herman Edwards said. “But we’ll take it. Now all we have to do is get in the playoffs and win.”
Marc Bulger completed 29 of 39 passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns, and Wilkins won it with 3:03 left in overtime for the Rams’ fourth playoff berth in five seasons under Martz.
Despite the loss, New York made the playoffs for the third time in four seasons under Edwards. But the Jets enter the postseason on a downer, having lost six of 11 after a 5-0 start.
They also lost wide receiver Wayne Chrebet (concussion) in the first half, but he is expected to play next week.
Shaun Ellis had three sacks for the Jets. He also tipped a pass that Jonathan Vilma returned 38 yards for a score to give the Jets a 26-21 lead late in the third quarter.
“The feeling would have been a lot better had we won,” Ellis said. “We just have to put this game behind us and get ready for next week.”
Curtis Martin had 153 yards in 28 carries, winning the NFL rushing title with 1,697 yards, one more than Shaun Alexander of the Seahawks, while moving into fourth place on the NFL career rushing list. The Jets played to win in overtime, keeping Chad Pennington and Martin on the field. Doug Brien’s miss on a 53-yard field goal try opened the door for the Rams’ final drive.