ST. LOUIS — Tavon Austin scored twice, Todd Gurley topped 1,000 yards rushing and the St. Louis Rams beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-23 on Thursday night in what could be the franchise’s final game in St. Louis.
The 31st-ranked offense had an inspired effort in front of another half-filled but spirited Edward Jones Dome crowd, rolling to a 21-3 halftime lead behind Case Keenum’s two touchdown passes.
Fans chanted “Keep Our Rams! Keep Our Rams!” and carried signs, one of them reading “We Don’t Need Kroenke, We Just Want our Rams.”
Owner Stan Kroenke, who wants to move the Rams (6-8) to Los Angeles, attended the finale but kept a low profile.
The team announced 51,295 tickets had been distributed for the 66,000-capacity dome.
Up 31-13, the Rams became conservative and Jameis Winston took advantage with two touchdown passes in a big fourth quarter. He had just 125 yards passing the first three quarters, but finished with a career-best 363, his first 300-yard effort, for Tampa Bay (6-8).
Ray Rice, the former Ravens running back, doesn’t sound like he’s gotten close to signing with an NFL team, but with three weeks remaining in this regular season he has not given up.
Rice said he wants to play again despite being out of the league for nearly two full seasons.
The Ravens terminated Rice’s contract last September after video of him punching his now-wife, Janay, became public. An indefinite suspension was lifted last December.
“I do want to play football again … and I’m not ready to give up,” he said. ” … I look back at what I’ve accomplished; I am a three-time Pro Bowler and I am a Super Bowl champion. What I want to do now is, I want to go back and I want to play for my pride, for my daughter to see me hang up the cleats the right way.”
Rice said his agent handles day-to-day contact with teams.
“I told my agent to just tell me when it’s real,” Rice said.
Rice rushed for 6,180 yards in six seasons with the Ravens, but his last season was his worst.
In 2013, Rice gained 660 yards on 214 carries (averaging 3.1 yards per carry).
COWBOYS: Linebacker Sean Lee refuses to point to injuries or bad luck for a team playing out the string of a dreadful season after coming into the season with Super Bowl hopes.
Lee said the Cowboys are what they are and they earned their dismal 4-9 record, including nine losses in their last 11 games.
“We didn’t expect this at all, but this is what we’ve earned,” Lee said.
GIANTS: Odell Beckham Jr. said the illness that caused him to miss a series against the Dolphins is “still lingering” a bit, but has gotten better.
“Come Sunday, I think it’ll be all right,” he said.
Beckham caught seven passes for 166 yards in the game, and after taking two IVs to replenish his fluids after halftime, he caught the tying and go-ahead touchdowns.
LIONS: The next Detroit general manager has a critical decision to make when it comes to Calvin Johnson, but the All-Pro receiver said if he has his way he’ll retire with the team that drafted him.
“That’d be lovely,” Johnson said Thursday.
After nine seasons in Detroit, Johnson’s future with the Lions is uncertain beyond the final three games of the regular season. He’s the Lions’ all-time leader in virtually every receiving category, but at age 30 his numbers are in decline for a third straight season.
The Lions owe Johnson $15.95 million in base salary next season and he has a cap charge of just over $24 million – numbers no longer commensurate with his production on the field.
COLTS: Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck returned to practice Thursday after sitting out Wednesday with a rib injury.
Coach Chuck Pagano has said all week he believes Hasselbeck will play in Sunday’s pivotal game between the AFC South’s co-leaders, Indianapolis (6-7) and Houston (6-7).
Starting QB Andrew Luck has already been ruled out for Sunday as he continues to recover from a lacerated kidney and partially torn abdominal muscle.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.