Good hands - Rams' Holt tied for NFL lead in receptions

ST. LOUIS -- Earlier this season, Isaac Bruce set the St. Louis Rams' career receptions record. It's a good thing he's not close to retirement, the way teammate Torry Holt is piling up catches.

Holt has been in double figures the last two games, highly unusual for a wide receiver. He caught 11 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns in Monday night's 36-0 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, following up a career-best 12 catches for 133 yards against the Cardinals.

For the year, he already has three 100-yard receiving games and he's scored five touchdowns, one more than all last season.

"He is outrageous right now," coach Mike Martz said.

Holt leads the NFC and is in a three-way tie for the NFL lead with 41 catches along with Marvin Harrison of the Colts and Hines Ward of the Steelers. He's made a handful of highlight-reel, glue-fingered, one-handed grabs, and seven of his catches on Monday produced first downs.

It's probably no coincidence that the binge is coming after Holt signed a new seven-year, $42 million contract in July, just before the start of training camp. He had been about to enter the final season of a five-year, $10 million deal he signed as a rookie first-round pick.

"I think so much of it is that he knows he's going to be here for quite some time," Martz said. "I think he realizes that we all feel like he is going to be here and finish his career like Isaac."

Bruce, who joined the Rams as a second-round pick in 1994, is a huge reason for Holt's big year. Opposing defenses can only double-team one wide receiver, and more often than not that's been Bruce because of his skills and because he usually lines up on the strong side where there's extra defensive personnel.

Plus, the rebuilt offensive line has been airtight with only one sack allowed in three games. Quarterback Marc Bulger was rarely touched on Monday, giving Holt time to run his patterns.

"The line's giving me so much protection that you give Torry that much time to get open," Bulger said. "He's going to get open, it's as simple as that."

Both Holt and Bruce, who had four catches for 87 yards, were wide open a lot against the Falcons.

"Watching them on film, we felt we could have some success against them," Holt said. "We feel if we get one-on-one matchups, we have a great opportunity of winning."

Bruce, in his 10th season, has 646 career catches. Holt, in his fifth year, is more than halfway there with 347 receptions.

He's already fourth on the franchise reception list, passing Elroy Hirsch and the injured Marshall Faulk on Monday, and he's fifth on the franchise receiving yards list.

Bruce helped Holt with a 35-yard pass on an end around in the first half. The two had been having a lot of success on the play a lot in practice.

"Ike told me before the play, I'm going to throw it toward the sideline because the safety was deep," Holt said. "He put it right where he said he was going to put it."

Holt has a good head start on his fourth straight 1,000-yard receiving season, with 537 yards so far. The way he's going, he could challenge his career best for catches (91 last year) and yards (1,635 in 2000).

He credits better preparation for his start.

"I am paying close attention to details and picking up defenses and knowing what's going to happen before the ball is snapped to give myself a chance to be successful," Holt said. "As far as my work ethic, I'm still going out and working hard."

Noteworthy

Wide receiver Mike Furrey will miss at least one game after undergoing an appendectomy Tuesday night.

Furrey, who made the team as an undrafted free agent, has two catches for 14 yards in four games as the fourth receiver. Rookie Shaun McDonald, a fourth-round pick this year who's been hampered by a thumb injury, will move up to that slot.

Coach Mike Martz said another rookie, Kevin Curtis, could make his NFL debut Sunday against the Packers; he was listed as questionable. Curtis won the third wide receiver job before breaking his leg in the preseason.

Strong safety Adam Archuleta also was questionable with a sprained left ankle. Rich Coady is the backup at that position.

Safety Jason Sehorn and his wife, former "Law & Order" actress Angie Harmon, are the parents of a baby girl.

Finley Faith Sehorn was born at 10:55 a.m. Tuesday at a Dallas hospital, publicist Troy Mankin said. No other details were released.

Sehorn was at Monday night's 36-0 win over the Atlanta Falcons, then flew to be at his wife's side for the birth.

Harmon, 31, and Sehorn, 32, married in Dallas on June 9, 2001, a little more than a year after he proposed to her on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno."