Rams come up short despite return of team's top players

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Rams got three of their offensive stars and their best defensive player back, but it was far from the bonanza the team had been expecting.

The return of Marc Bulger, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce from injuries added up to one touchdown in a 31-16 loss to Seattle that put the Seahawks in commanding position in the NFC West on Sunday. In five trips inside the 20, the Rams (4-5) scored one touchdown.

Although Bulger threw for 304 yards after missing two games with a shoulder injury, his timing seemed to be a bit off.

"I thought he had good pocket presence and good zip on the ball and was fairly accurate," interim coach Joe Vitt said. "I think those things do take time to get back in sync, and it's something we'll continue to work on."

Holt, who missed the previous two games with a knee injury, had four catches for 45 yards and lost one sure touchdown pass when he couldn't locate the ball. He redeemed himself with a 17-yard scoring catch on a fourth-down fade pattern in the fourth quarter that gave the Rams (4-5) hope for a comeback.

Bruce, who had missed five games with turf toe, had only one catch for 16 yards.

Vitt said it appeared that Holt, who wore a protective brace, dragged the leg early in the game but "got better as the game went on." He didn't question the decision to bring both players back after the team's bye week.

"I think they're both professionals, they thought they could go and they worked hard in practice and showed in practice they could go, and they went," Vitt said. "They'll be better for it."

The return of defensive end Leonard Little didn't help the Rams much, either. Little had missed the previous two games while mourning the shooting death of a younger brother.

Vitt had other deficiencies to worry about. The Rams have used referees in practice the last two weeks yet still were whistled eight times for 49 yards, and their defense couldn't stop the Seahawks' offense at the end.

One of the penalties, an offsides call on Little, came in the final drive that started with 6:53 to go and ended with Shaun Alexander's 17-yard touchdown run with 1:18 to go.

"Very disappointing," Vitt said. "Very, very disappointing."

Three of the penalties were false starts on rookie offensive tackle Alex Barron, who has seven penalties the last two weeks. Vitt said Barron's youth and the fact he missed much of training camp in a contract holdout have conspired against him.

"He's going to be held accountable," Vitt said. "I believe this in my heart: to holler, scream and demean and all those things does anybody no good.

"He knows he was wrong, he doesn't want to be wrong and he'll work hard to get better."

The defense had a mixed day against Shaun Alexander, who gashed them for 95 yards on five of his carries and was held to 70 on the other 28.

"We pounded him pretty good," Vitt said. "To his credit he hung on to the ball and he withstood the pounding, and at the end of the game when he had to make a play and they had to keep possession, he made it."

The loss left the Rams trailing by three games in the division with seven to play, likely leaving them to fight for a wild card berth entering Sunday's game at home against the Cardinals. The Seahawks essentially have a four-game lead since they swept the season series, giving them the tiebreaker.

"When these guys came in today we didn't put candles in the room and have organ music playing and violins, and the grim reaper around the corner," Vitt said. "It is what it is. Hey, we lost the game through our own mistakes, through needless penalties."