A personal foul penalty on DT Fred Robbins proved fatal to the Rams’ hopes of a comeback in the fourth quarter of their 16-14 loss to the Raiders.
The Rams had five total personal fouls, other drive-halting penalties and missed a field goal in a performance that raises the question of whether things are moving in the right direction.
The Rams offense failed to ignite in the second half as the team managed just 56 net yards.
Said Rams CB Ron Bartell on the loss, “We were undisciplined and we got what we deserved.”
Rams WR Mark Clayton had a pair of touchdown catches as QB Sam Bradford exploited the matchup that didn’t feature Raiders CB Nnamdi Asomugha.
After sputtering through the first half with QB Jason Campbell, the Raiders needed only 16 plays to score 10 points after switching to Bruce Gradkowski at halftime.
Raiders RB Darren McFadden also saw a resurgence after the break as he went for 107 yards in the second half after gaining just 38 in the first 30 minutes.
Jared Veldheer, who started at center in the Raiders opener, rotated with Mario Henderson at left tackle on Sunday.
Raiders WR Darius Heyward-Bey set career highs with six catches and 80 yards receiving.
Three big hits by the Raiders on special teams fired up the crowd at the Coliseum in the second half.