Martz still laments play selection that led to loss

ST. LOUIS -- Mike Martz was still kicking himself Monday over the slow-developing pass play that knocked the St. Louis Rams from dangerous contender status to just another 5-6 team.

With 17 seconds to go, the ball on the Redskins 6 and the Rams trailing by three points with no time-outs left, Martz decided against a quick shot at the end zone. Instead, Kurt Warner took a five-step drop and was surveying the scene when linebacker LaVar Arrington knocked the ball loose to preserve the Redskins' 20-17 victory on Sunday.

"It was just a bad call on my part," Martz said Monday. "I wish I had that one back. That's a hard one to live with.

"Of all the plays I've called in the last four years, that one is probably the worst one I've called."

Warner, in his first start since breaking his right pinkie Sept. 29, had saved his best in a so-so return for the last. Starting from the Rams' 20 with 3:28 left, he was 6-for-9 for 47 yards in the final drive.

Martz wasn't faulting Warner for hanging on too long to the ball on the last play. There was a mix up in route-running by reserves Trung Canidate and Yo Murphy, who came close to colliding, but Warner was on the verge of throwing to an open Isaac Bruce in the back of the end zone when Arrington, who had zipped past offensive tackle John St. Clair untouched, arrived in the backfield.

"Just a little bit more time," Martz said, "and he gets it to him."

Warner said he couldn't second-guess himself for pump-faking and then hanging on to the ball, because he couldn't see Arrington coming.

"Of course, everybody is going to say I should have gotten rid of it and I was rusty," Warner said. "Whatever. I wish I would have known he was coming and just thrown it out of the back of the end zone, but I didn't.

"And I don't second-guess that so much as all the other things we did throughout the game."

There was plenty of blame to go around. The Rams failed to contain the Redskins' rushing game, allowing three Stephen Davis touchdowns, and experienced more special teams breakdowns. Martz counted just three pressures on Washington quarterback Danny Wuerffel.

"That was disappointing," Martz said.

The end result is the defending NFC champions probably have to win their last five games just to reach the playoffs.

"We definitely feel we have to win out," Warner said.