2015 St. Louis Rams season

79th season in franchise history, final one in St. Louis

2015 St. Louis Rams season
Edward Jones Dome
Local radio	WXOS-FM
Results
Record	7–9
Division place	3rd NFC West
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	Aaron Donald, DT Todd Gurley, RB Johnny Hekker, P
Uniform
← 2014 Rams seasons 2016 (Los Angeles) →

The

St. Louis, Missouri, their home since the 1995 season

.

The Rams improved on their 6–10 record from 2014 by going 7–9 for the 2015 season, but tied a record set between 1956 and 1966 by missing the playoffs for the eleventh consecutive season.

After the season, an

Los Angeles, California, where the team played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for four seasons at until their stadium in Inglewood, California was complete. They were originally slated to play at the Coliseum for only three seasons; delays in the construction of the new venue resulted in the added season for which they would play at the historic Coliseum. Kroenke's request to move the team to Los Angeles was approved on January 12, 2016, at a meeting in Houston, Texas.^[1]

The Rams' starting quarterbacks during the season,

Super Bowl MVP

.

2015 draft class

Main article: 2015 NFL draft

2015 St. Louis Rams Draft
Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	10	Todd Gurley	RB	Georgia
2	57	Rob Havenstein	OT	Wisconsin
3	72	Jamon Brown	OT	Louisville
	89	Sean Mannion	QB	Oregon State
4	119	Andrew Donnal	OT	Iowa
6	201	Bud Sasser	WR	Missouri
	215	Cody Wichmann	OG	Fresno State
7	224	Bryce Hager	ILB	Baylor
	227	Martin Ifedi	DE	Memphis

Compensatory selection

Draft trades

• The Rams traded their original fourth- and sixth-round selections (Nos. 109 and 184 overall, respectively) to the
  safety Mark Barron
  .
• The Rams traded
  quarterback Sam Bradford and their fifth-round selection (No. 145 overall) to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for quarterback Nick Foles, the Eagles' fourth-round selection (No. 119 overall) and the Eagles' second round selection in 2016. The trade also includes a conditional selection in 2016 that the Eagles could receive depending on Bradford's playing time in 2015
  . The Eagles will receive a 2016 fourth-round selection if Bradford plays fewer than 50 percent of the snaps; the selection will upgrade to a third-rounder if Bradford does not play at all in 2015. Bradford started for the Eagles Week 1, eliminating the possibility of the third-round upgrade.
• The Rams traded one of their two seventh-round selections (No. 249 overall – acquired in a trade that sent wide receiver Greg Salas to the New England Patriots), along with their 2013 second-round selection to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for the Falcons' 2013 first-, third- and sixth-round selections.
• The Rams traded their second round selection (No. 41 overall) to the Carolina Panthers (used to select Devin Funchess, WR, Michigan) for Carolina's second round selection (No. 57 overall, used to select Rob Havenstein), third round selection (No. 89 overall, used to select Sean Mannion) and sixth round selection (No. 201 overall, used to select Bud Sasser).
• The Rams traded RB Zac Stacy to the New York Jets for their seventh round selection (No. 224 overall, used to select Bryce Hager).

Supplemental draft

The Rams selected Clemson offensive tackle Isaiah Battle in the 2015 Supplemental draft. As a result, the team will forfeit their fifth-round selection in the 2016 draft.^[3]

Staff

2015 St. Louis Rams staff

Front office Owner/chairman – Stan Kroenke Owner/vice chairman – Chip Rosenbloom Executive vice president of football operations/coo – Kevin Demoff General manager – Les Snead Director of college scouting – Brad Holmes Director of player personnel – Taylor Morton Director of pro personnel – Ran Carthon Head coaches Executive vice president/head coach – Jeff Fisher Assistant head coach – Dave McGinnis, Rob Boras Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Rob Boras Quarterbacks – Chris Weinke Running backs – Ben Sirmans Wide receivers – Ray Sherman Tight ends – Kenan Smith Offensive line – Paul Boudreau Assistant offensive line – Andy Dickerson Offensive quality control – Andy Sugarman

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Gregg Williams Defensive line – Mike Waufle Assistant defensive line – Clyde Simmons Linebackers – Frank Bush Assistant linebackers – Joe Bowden Secondary – Chuck Cecil Assistant secondary – Brandon Fisher Defensive quality control – Dennard Wilson Special teams coaches Special teams coordinator – John Fassel Assistant special teams coordinator – Paul F. Boudreau Strength and conditioning Head strength and conditioning – Rock Gullickson Assistant strength and conditioning – Adam Bailey Assistant strength and conditioning – J. Aggabao

Final roster

2015 St. Louis Rams final roster

	Quarterbacks  5 Nick Foles 17 Case Keenum 14 Sean Mannion Running backs 39 Malcolm Brown 36 Benny Cunningham 30 Todd Gurley 27 Tre Mason 34 Chase Reynolds Wide receivers 11 Tavon Austin 18 Kenny Britt 15 Bradley Marquez 83 Brian Quick 81 Nick Toon 19 Wes Welker Tight ends 89 Jared Cook 46 Cory Harkey 88 Lance Kendricks		Offensive linemen 61 Tim Barnes C 77 Isaiah Battle T 64 Andrew Donnal T 67 Brian Folkerts C 79 Rob Havenstein T 60 Eric Kush C 71 Garrett Reynolds G/T 65 Demetrius Rhaney G 73 Greg Robinson T 69 Cody Wichmann G Defensive linemen 90 Michael Brockers DT 99 Aaron Donald DT 95 William Hayes DE 91 Chris Long DE 63 Matt Longacre DE 97 Eugene Sims DE 62 Louis Trinca-Pasat DT 93 Ethan Westbrooks DE		Linebackers 56 Akeem Ayers OLB 26 Mark Barron OLB 53 Daren Bates OLB 54 Bryce Hager MLB 55 James Laurinaitis MLB 50 Cameron Lynch OLB Defensive backs 31 Maurice Alexander SS 37 Christian Bryant SS 38 Cody Davis FS 32 Troy Hill CB 21 Janoris Jenkins CB 22 Trumaine Johnson CB 20 Lamarcus Joyner CB 23 Rodney McLeod FS 47 Marcus Roberson CB Special teams  6 Johnny Hekker P 44 Jake McQuaide LS  4 Greg Zuerlein K		Reserve lists 12 Stedman Bailey WR (NF-Inj.Tooltip Non-football injury and illness) 68 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 98 IRTooltip Injured reserve)  2 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 33 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 25 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 52 Alec Ogletree OLB (IR-DFR) 24 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 94 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 76 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 42 Trey Watts RB (Suspended) 63 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 92 IRTooltip Injured reserve) Practice squad 66 David Arkin G 48 Justice Cunningham TE 57 Zack Hodges OLB 45 Zach Laskey FB 87 Deon Long WR 51 Matthew Wells OLB 35 Melvin White CB 16 J.J. Worton WR Rookies in italics 53 active, 13 inactive, 8 practice squad

Schedule

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	August 14	at Oakland Raiders	L 3–18	0–1	O.co Coliseum	Recap
2	August 23	at Tennessee Titans	L 14–27	0–2	Nissan Stadium	Recap
3	August 29	Indianapolis Colts	L 14–24	0–3	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
4	September 3	Kansas City Chiefs	L 17–24	0–4	Edward Jones Dome	Recap

Regular season

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	September 13	Seattle Seahawks	W 34–31 (OT)	1–0	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
2	September 20	at Washington Redskins	L 10–24	1–1	FedExField	Recap
3	September 27	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 6–12	1–2	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
4	October 4	at Arizona Cardinals	W 24–22	2–2	University of Phoenix Stadium	Recap
5	October 11	at Green Bay Packers	L 10–24	2–3	Lambeau Field	Recap
6	Bye
7	October 25	Cleveland Browns	W 24–6	3–3	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
8	November 1	San Francisco 49ers	W 27–6	4–3	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
9	November 8	at Minnesota Vikings	L 18–21 (OT)	4–4	TCF Bank Stadium	Recap
10	November 15	Chicago Bears	L 13–37	4–5	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
11	November 22	at Baltimore Ravens	L 13–16	4–6	M&T Bank Stadium	Recap
12	November 29	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 7–31	4–7	Paul Brown Stadium	Recap
13	December 6	Arizona Cardinals	L 3–27	4–8	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
14	December 13	Detroit Lions	W 21–14	5–8	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
15	December 17	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 31–23	6–8	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
16	December 27	at Seattle Seahawks	W 23–17	7–8	CenturyLink Field	Recap
17	January 3	at San Francisco 49ers	L 16–19 (OT)	7–9	Levi's Stadium	Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Seattle Seahawks

Week One: Seattle Seahawks at St. Louis Rams – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Seahawks	7	3	3	18	0	31
Rams	0	10	14	7	3	34

at

St. Louis, Missouri

• Date: September 13
• Game time: 12:00 p.m.
  Laura Okmin
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information

First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers SEA – Russell Wilson 32-41, 251 yds, TD, INT STL – Nick Foles 18-27, 297 yds, TD Top rushers SEA – Marshawn Lynch 18 car, 73 yds STL – Benny Cunningham 16 car, 45 yds Top receivers SEA – Jermaine Kearse 8 rec, 76 yds STL – Jared Cook 5 rec, 85 yds Top tacklers SEA – Earl Thomas 6 tackles, 3 assists STL – Lamarcus Joyner 7 tackles, 0 assists

The Rams opened their 2015 season at home against Seattle. In Nick Foles' Rams debut, he threw for 297 yards and a touchdown.

The defense, for the most part, sacked Russell Wilson several times and limited Marshawn Lynch to just 73 rushing yards.

The game was hard fought and the Rams would win in overtime, 34-31.

Week 2: at Washington Redskins

Week Two: St. Louis Rams at Washington Redskins – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	0	10	0	10
Redskins	10	7	0	7	24

at

FedExField, Landover, Maryland

• Date: September 20
• Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT/12:00 pm. CDT
• Game weather: 72 °F (22 °C), cloudy
• Game attendance: 74,486
• Referee: Ed Hochuli
• TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, David Diehl and Kristina Pink
• Preview, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers STL - Nick Foles 17-32, 150 yds, TD WAS – Kirk Cousins 23-27, 203 yds, TD Top rushers STL – Tavon Austin 4 car, 40 yds WAS – Matt Jones Top receivers STL – Jared Cook 5 rec, 47 yds WAS – Jordan Reed 6 rec, 82 yds Top tacklers STL – WAS –

The Rams traveled to Maryland to take on the Redskins. They struggled offensively and defensively all game. The defense, for the most part, struggled to contain Matt Jones on the ground as Jones had a big day with 123 yards rushing along with two touchdowns.

Week 3: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Week Three: Pittsburgh Steelers at St. Louis Rams – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	3	6	0	3	12
Rams	0	3	0	3	6

at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

• Date: September 27
• Game time: 12:00 pm. CDT
• Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
• Game attendance: 52,433
• Referee: John Hussey
• TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Trent Green and Jamie Erdahl
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers PIT – STL – Top rushers PIT – STL – Top receivers PIT – STL – Top tacklers PIT – STL –

Prior to kickoff, the game was delayed due to the turf being caught on fire, coming from the fireworks.

The Rams struggled offensively and defensively all game long. The defense, for the most part, sacked Ben Roethlisberger until he left the game with an apparent knee injury. Michael Vick took over for the rest of the game.

Late in the fourth quarter Kenny Britt's catch was overturned. The Steelers would go on to beat the Rams, 12-6.

Week 4: at Arizona Cardinals

Week Four: St. Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	7	3	7	7	24
Cardinals	3	6	3	10	22

at

University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

• Date: October 4
• Game time: 3:25 pm. CDT/1:25 pm. Arizona time
• Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
• Game attendance: 63,146
• Referee: John Parry
• TV announcers (Fox): Thom Brennaman, Charles Davis and Tony Siragusa
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers STL – ARI – Top rushers STL – ARI – Top receivers STL – ARI – Top tacklers STL – ARI –

The Rams traveled to Phoenix to meet the red-hot Cardinals, the 2nd highest-scoring team in the league. Todd Gurley earned his first start as Rams' running back and he finished the game with 146 rushing yards. After the game, Bruce Arians commented that Gurley, "played like a rookie". The Rams defense, for the most part, held the Cardinals to field goals, and sacked Carson Palmer four times. With the close win, the Rams improved to 2-2.

Week 5: at Green Bay Packers

Week Five: St. Louis Rams at Green Bay Packers – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	10	0	0	10
Packers	14	0	7	3	24

at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin

• Date: October 11
• Game time: 12:00 pm. CDT
• Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C), clear
• Game attendance: 78,432
• Referee: Brad Allen
• TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle, Dan Fouts and Evan Washburn
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers STL – GB – Top rushers STL – GB – Top receivers STL – GB – Top tacklers STL – GB –

Traveling to Lambeau, the Rams looked to end the Packers' hot streak at 4-1. However, they failed to do this, as Nick Foles was intercepted four times. On defense, James Laurinitis intercepted a pass from Aaron Rodgers, Rodger's first interception thrown in Lambeau in 20 games. However, the defense, for the most part, struggled to contain the Packers explosive receiving corps all day long. With the loss, the Rams dropped to 2-3.

Week 7: vs. Cleveland Browns

Week Seven: Cleveland Browns at St. Louis Rams – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	3	3	0	6
Rams	10	0	7	7	24

at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

• Date: October 25
• Game time: 12:00 pm. CDT
• Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
• Game attendance: 51,523
• Referee: Pete Morelli
• TV announcers (CBS): Brian Anderson and Chris Simms
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information

First quarter STL – Greg Zuerlein kick), 12:06. Rams 7–0. STL – Greg Zuerlein 39-yard field goal, 7:40. Rams 10–0. Drive: 4 plays, 4 yards, 1:42. Second quarter CLE – Travis Coons 25-yard field goal, 14:07. Rams 10–3. Drive: 14 plays, 73 yards, 8:28. Third quarter CLE – Travis Coons 44-yard field goal, 11:53. Rams 10–6. Drive: 6 plays, 54 yards, 3:15. STL – Todd Gurley 1-yard run (Greg Zuerlein kick), 2:20. Rams 17–6. Drive: 4 plays, 88 yards, 1:55. Fourth quarter STL – Todd Gurley 16-yard run (Greg Zuerlein kick), 8:18. Rams 24–6. Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 4:06. Top passers CLE – Josh McCown – 26/32, 270 yards STL – Nick Foles – 15/23, 163 yards Top rushers CLE – Robert Turbin – 5 rushes, 30 yards STL – Todd Gurley – 19 rushes, 128 yards, 2 TD Top receivers CLE – Gary Barnidge – 6 receptions, 101 yards STL – Tavon Austin – 4 receptions, 43 yards Top tacklers CLE – Jordan Poyer – 5 tackles, 5 assists STL – Mark Barron – 10 tackles, 6 assists

For the first time since Week 8 of 2007, the Rams hosted the Cleveland Browns in St. Louis. In the first quarter, Rodney McLeod returned a fumble to the end zone to give the Rams the game's first points. Todd Gurley was limited to just 45 yards in the first half, but he managed to turn things around in the second half, rushing for 83 yards and two touchdowns.

With the win, the Rams went to 3-3.

Week 8: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week Eight: San Francisco 49ers at St. Louis Rams – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
49ers	3	3	0	0	6
Rams	2	18	0	7	27

at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

• Date: November 1
• Game time: 12:00 pm. CST
• Game weather: Played indoors (domed stadium)
• Game attendance: 51,207
• Referee: Jerome Boger
• TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, David Diehl and Kristina Pink
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers SF – STL – Top rushers SF – STL – Top receivers SF – STL – Top tacklers SF – STL –

The Rams wore their 1973-1999 throwbacks against the San Francisco 49ers for the first time in the season. Todd Gurley had another productive day, and he rushed for 133 yards, including a 71-yard run for a touchdown. The Rams used two Tavon Austin touchdowns for the final score. Although Chris Long did not play, the Rams executed defensively, putting pressure on Colin Kaepernick all game long.

With the win, the Rams improved to 4-3, making it the first time since 2012 the Rams were above .500 excluding a Week 1 victory.

Week 9: at Minnesota Vikings

Week Nine: St. Louis Rams at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Rams	6	9	0	3	0	18
Vikings	10	0	8	0	3	21

at

Minneapolis, Minnesota

• Date: November 8
• Game time: 12:00 pm. CST
• Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C), sunny
• Game attendance: 52,406
• Referee:
  Ron Torbert
• TV announcers (Fox): Thom Brennaman, Charles Davis and Tony Siragusa
• Recap, Gamebook

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers STL – MIN – Top rushers STL – MIN – Top receivers STL – MIN – Top tacklers STL – MIN –

Nine years after Week 17 of 2006, the Rams traveled to Minnesota to take on the Vikings. In that game, the Rams easily defeated the Vikings, 41-21, which stunned the Vikings fans. The game was played at the Metrodome.

In the duel of running backs, between Todd Gurley and Adrian Peterson, Gurley was held to just 89 yards. Peterson was the game's leading rusher with 125 yards.

Without several defensive starters including Robert Quinn, the Rams defense struggled to contain the Vikings offense, especially their explosive receiving corps, all game long.

In the second quarter,

In the second half, Lamarcus Joyner hit Teddy Bridgewater in the head, forcing Teddy to leave the game with a concussion. Thom Brennaman called the hit on Bridgewater "dirty". Shaun Hill, who played for the Rams last year and returned to Minnesota for his second stint in the off-season, took over for Teddy for the game's remainder.

With the Rams trailing 18-15 in the fourth quarter, Zuerlein booted another field goal, forcing the game into overtime. However, in that period, Minnesota's Blair Walsh nailed the game-winning field goal to give the Vikings the final score.

With the narrow loss, the Rams dropped to 4-4.

Week 10: vs. Chicago Bears

Two years after Week 12 of 2013, the Rams hosted the Chicago Bears.

Prior to Week 10, Stedman Bailey was suspended for 4 games for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Later, the Rams acquired free agent Wes Welker, who last played for the Denver Broncos last season. He helped the Broncos to the Super Bowl in 2013.

The Rams struggled all game especially on defense in which they could not contain the Bears offense, especially the running game despite an injury to Matt Forte. Nick Foles struggled all day and this time it would force Case Keenum to take over late in the fourth quarter. Much like last week at Minnesota, Todd Gurley was once again held to 89 yards. Newly acquired Welker was no help, either.

With the embarrassing loss, the Rams dropped to 4-5.

Week 11: at Baltimore Ravens

Case Keenum started in place of the incumbent Nick Foles.

Late in the fourth quarter, with the game tied at 13, Greg Zurlien missed a 52-yarder which would have sealed the Rams victory. With a second left, Justin Tucker nailed a 41-yarder to give the Ravens the final score.

The Rams defense could not contain the Ravens offense all game, especially the running game.

With the loss, the Rams fell to 4-6, extending their losing streak to 3 games.

Week 12: at Cincinnati Bengals

The Rams suffered a blowout loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

A rejuvenated Nick Foles got his starting job back after being benched in favor of Case Keenum, who suffered a concussion after last week's loss in Baltimore. However, Foles' return was marred as he struggled to find open receivers and was picked off three times by the Bengals ranked defense. He also took hits throughout the game and he was sacked a few times. The only Rams score was a 5-yard run by Tavon Austin on a reverse play in the second quarter.

St. Louis' defense was not a factor all game as they struggled to stop the high-powered Bengals offense led by quarterback Andy Dalton, and receivers A. J. Green, and Tyler Eifert, (the latter left the game with a stinger) who is leading the league in touchdown catches.

With the loss, the Rams extended their losing streak to 4 games, making their record 4-7.

Week 13: vs. Arizona Cardinals