How the St. Louis Rams Can Upset the Green Bay Packers

The St. Louis Rams are the worst team in the NFL.  The Green Bay Packers are the best team in the NFL.  This weekend, the St. Louis Rams have to play the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.

I guess you could chalk this one up as a loss, right, Rams fans?

Not so fast.  Sure, the Packers are the defending world champions.  Sure, they are 5-0, and they look unstoppable.  And I guess you would be right to point out that the Rams are 0-4, and they look like a fourth-place team in the SEC West or what's left of the Big 12 right now.

However, the Rams actually have a chance to shock the world this weekend.  Let me tell you how.

The last time the Packers lost a football game with Aaron Rodgers as their quarterback was on Nov. 28, 2010.  That day they played at Atlanta, where the Falcons beat them 20-17.  There are some lessons from that game that the Rams can apply to their upcoming contest with the Packers.

1. Steven Jackson is going to have to pound the Packers with the run. 

This is how the Falcons beat the Packers.  Michael Turner rushed the ball 23 times for 110 yards (4.8 yards per carry), which had a "double whammy" impact on the Packers.  First, nobody likes getting pounded like that.  Four-point-eight yards per carry means their O-line is owning your D-line, and that is never good.  Second, it means they are chewing the clock up, keeping the ball away from your offense.  Against Green Bay, anytime you can keep the ball away from Rodgers, that is a good thing.

2. Sam Bradford is going to have to complete a high percentage of passes. 

Once again, this will keep the ball out of Rodgers' hands.  Against the Packers, the Falcons' Matt Ryan completed 24 of 28 passes for 197 yards.  That stat line tells you all you need to know.  Ryan wasn't throwing deep passes, but he was "dinking and dunking" enough to keep the Falcons moving forward, and just enough to keep Rodgers on the sidelines.

3. Don't laugh, because the Packers D hasn't been that good this year. 

Don't believe me?  Just take a look at this article by Pro Football Weekly.  As it points out, the Packers are not getting to the quarterback, and they are not stopping the run right now.  They are winning simply because they have the most talented offense in the NFL, led by a truly great quarterback. 

4. Add it all up, and the Rams can play with the Packers as long as they don't get blown out early. 

They have Steven Jackson, the kind of back you need to pound it against the Packers.  They have Sam Bradford, the kind of quarterback that can be super accurate.  Now we just need to have that talk with Bradford's receivers about catching the ball...

5. But how can the Rams even dream about stopping Rodgers and that Packers offense? 

Once again, take a look at that Falcons game.  The Falcons only registered one sack.  Rodgers completed 26 of 35 passes for 365 yards and one touchdown.  Basically, the Falcons played soft, let Rodgers complete a high percentage of short passes, and tried to avoid the big play.  That is the script you have to follow against the Packers. 

It should be pointed out the Packers didn't have their top two running backs, Ryan Grant and James Starks.  They also didn't have stud tight end Jermichael Finley.  However, that doesn't change the fact that you have to play the Packers soft.  You have to keep them in front of you.  You can't allow the big play, and you can't allow those yards after catch. 

Simply put, Rodgers is just too good to blitz, blitz, blitz.  If you try that, he will pick you apart.

I'd say the Rams' chances of winning are something like one in a thousand—give or take.  However, as we saw last weekend, this is the NFL.  Anything can happen!  The Seahawks beat the Giants, the 49ers just embarrassed the Bucs, and how about that Philly "Dream Team" getting beat by Buffalo? 

Anything can happen.  Having said that, if I were a betting man, I'd bet all my money on the Packers.