# 2002 St. Louis Rams season

The 2002 season was the St. Louis Rams' 65th in the National Football League (NFL), their eighth in St. Louis and their third under head coach Mike Martz.
Fresh off their trip from Super Bowl XXXVI which ended with a loss to the 11–5 Patriots, the Rams collapsed and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1998, losing their first five games.
The season saw the emergence of new quarterback Marc Bulger, who filled in for an injured Kurt Warner and Jamie Martin. The Rams won six straight games where Bulger started and finished, but his season ended in Week 16 at Seattle.
However, the Rams did end the season on a high note with a 31–20 victory at home against the 49ers in Week 17 and they finished the season with a 7–9 record.

## History

The years leading up to the 2002 season had the making of a roller coaster dynasty. It all began in the offseason before the 1999 season. They were able to trade for Marshall Faulk who was arguably the best running back of the time. They signed a franchise quarterback, Trent Green, who knew how to lead a team. They drafted a young wide receiver prospect, Torry Holt, and just like that their offense is completely new. Fast forward to the preseason when Green experienced a season-ending injury and all the fans thought the season was over. In comes 27 year-old Kurt Warner, who nobody knew about and who has barely played in the NFL.
This season marked the decline of Kurt Warner and the end of "The Greatest Show On Turf". This also marked the first season where the Rams did not make the playoffs under Mike Martz.
Star running back Marshall Faulk started in just 10 games due to ankle injury he suffered against San Diego. This weakened the Rams' running game and he finished the season with just 953 yards rushing, his lowest since 1996, where he rushed for 587 yards. At that time, he was a member of the Indianapolis Colts. His 953 rushing yards this season ended his streak of five straight 1,000 yard rushing seasons. Despite a down year, Faulk was still voted to play in the Pro Bowl after the season for the seventh and final time in his Hall of Fame career.
For the season, the team changed their uniforms, removing the side panels on the jersey.

## Offseason

| Additions | Subtractions |
| FS Chad Cota (Colts) | T Ryan Tucker (Browns) |
| FB Chris Hetherington (Panthers) | S Rich Coady (Titans) |
| WR Terrence Wilkins (Colts) | LB Mark Fields (Panthers) |
| LB Jamie Duncan (Buccaneers) | LB London Fletcher (Bills) |
| WR Troy Edwards (Steelers) | WR Az-Zahir Hakim (Lions) |
| P Mitch Berger (Vikings) | RB Robert Holcombe (Titans) |
| | TE/LS Jeff Robinson (Cowboys) |

### 2002 Expansion Draft

St. Louis Rams selected during the Expansion Draft :
| Round | Overall | Name | Position | Expansion Team |
| —— | 18 | Brian Allen | Linebacker | Houston Texans |

### Draft

2002 St. Louis Rams draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 31 | Robert Thomas | LB | UCLA |
| 2 | 64 | Travis Fisher | CB | Central Florida |
| 3 | 84 | Lamar Gordon | RB | North Dakota State |
| 3 | 95 | Eric Crouch | WR | Nebraska |
| 4 | 130 | Travis Scott | G | Arizona St |
| 5 | 167 | Courtland Bullard | LB | Ohio St |
| 6 | 205 | Steve Bellisari | QB | Ohio St |
| 7 | 243 | Chris Massey | FB | Marshall |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 8 | at Denver Broncos | L 16–23 | 0–1 | Invesco Field | 75,710 |
| 2 | September 15 | New York Giants | L 21–26 | 0–2 | Edward Jones Dome | 65,932 |
| 3 | September 23 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 14–26 | 0–3 | Raymond James Stadium | 65,652 |
| 4 | September 29 | Dallas Cowboys | L 10–13 | 0–4 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,165 |
| 5 | October 6 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 13–37 | 0–5 | 3Com Park | 67,853 |
| 6 | October 13 | Oakland Raiders | W 28–13 | 1–5 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,070 |
| 7 | October 20 | Seattle Seahawks | W 37–20 | 2–5 | Edward Jones Dome | 65,931 |
| 8 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 9 | November 3 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 27–14 | 3–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 47,819 |
| 10 | November 10 | San Diego Chargers | W 28–24 | 4–5 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,093 |
| 11 | November 18 | Chicago Bears | W 21–16 | 5–5 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,250 |
| 12 | November 24 | at Washington Redskins | L 17–20 | 5–6 | FedExField | 79,823 |
| 13 | December 1 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 3–10 | 5–7 | Veterans Stadium | 65,552 |
| 14 | December 8 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 10–49 | 5–8 | Arrowhead Stadium | 78,601 |
| 15 | December 15 | Arizona Cardinals | W 30–28 | 6–8 | Edward Jones Dome | 65,939 |
| 16 | December 22 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 10–30 | 6–9 | Seahawks Stadium | 63,953 |
| 17 | December 30 | San Francisco 49ers | W 31–20 | 7–9 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,118 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Game summaries
#### Week 11: vs. Chicago Bears

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bears | 0 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 16 |
| Rams | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri
* Date: November 18, 2002
* Game time: 9:00 p.m.
* Game weather: None (indoor stadium)
* Game attendance: 66,250
* Referee: Gerry Austin (34)
* TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden and Melissa Stark
* Recap, Game Book
Game information :
First quarter
STL – Ernie Conwell 1-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 10:05. Rams 7–0. Drive: 10 plays, 65 yards, 4:55.
Second quarter
CHI – Paul Edinger 37-yard field goal, 14:10. Rams 7–3. Drive: 13 plays, 66 yards, 6:59.
CHI – Paul Edinger 48-yard field goal, 6:15. Rams 7–6. Drive: 4 plays, 3 yards, 2:08.
STL – Lamar Gordon 22-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 0:42. Rams 14–6. Drive: 4 plays, 81 yards, 0:46.
Third quarter
CHI – Anthony Thomas 13-yard run (Paul Edinger kick), 9:23. Rams 14–13. Drive: 11 plays, 64 yards, 5:37.
Fourth quarter
STL – Ricky Proehl 8-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 9:01. Rams 21–13. Drive: 10 plays, 82 yards, 5:14.
CHI – Paul Edinger 50-yard field goal, 3:48. Rams 21–16. Drive: 6 plays, 32 yards, 3:04.
Top passers
CHI – Chris Chandler – 20/33, 157 yards
STL – Marc Bulger – 21/35, 347 yards, 2 TD, INT
Top rushers
CHI – Anthony Thomas – 14 rushes, 61 yards, TD
STL – Lamar Gordon – 16 rushes, 45 yards
Top receivers
CHI – Marty Booker – 7 receptions, 65 yards
STL – Isaac Bruce – 6 receptions, 141 yards :

## Standings
### Division

NFC West :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(4)}$ San Francisco 49ers | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–1 | 8–4 | 367 | 351 | L1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 4–2 | 5–7 | 316 | 369 | W1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 2–4 | 5–7 | 355 | 369 | W3 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 1–5 | 5–7 | 262 | 417 | L3 |
$^h$ St. Louis finished ahead of Seattle in the NFC West based on better division record (4–2 to 2–4).

### Conference

NFCvte :
| # | Team | Division | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | SOS | SOV |
| Division leaders |||||||||||
| 1 | Philadelphia Eagles | East | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 5–1 | 11–1 | .469 | .432 |
| 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | South | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 4–2 | 9–3 | .482 | .432 |
| 3 | Green Bay Packers | North | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 5–1 | 9–3 | .451 | .414 |
| 4 | San Francisco 49ers | West | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–1 | 8–4 | .504 | .450 |
| Wild Cards |||||||||||
| 5 | New York Giants | East | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–1 | 8–4 | .482 | .450 |
| 6 | Atlanta Falcons | South | 9 | 6 | 1 | .594 | 4–2 | 7–5 | .494 | .429 |
| Did not qualify for the postseason |||||||||||
| 7 | New Orleans Saints | South | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 3–3 | 7–5 | .498 | .566 |
| 8 | St. Louis Rams | West | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 4–2 | 5–7 | .508 | .446 |
| 9 | Seattle Seahawks | West | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 2–4 | 5–7 | .506 | .433 |
| 10 | Washington Redskins | East | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 1–5 | 4–8 | .527 | .438 |
| 11 | Carolina Panthers | South | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 1–5 | 4–8 | .486 | .357 |
| 12 | Minnesota Vikings | North | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 4–2 | 5–7 | .498 | .417 |
| 13 | Arizona Cardinals | West | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 1–5 | 5–7 | .500 | .400 |
| 14 | Dallas Cowboys | East | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 1–5 | 3–9 | .500 | .475 |
| 15 | Chicago Bears | North | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 2–4 | 3–9 | .521 | .430 |
| 16 | Detroit Lions | North | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 1–5 | 3–9 | .494 | .375 |
| Tiebreakers |||||||||||
| 1 2 3 Philadelphia finished ahead of Tampa Bay and Green Bay based on conference record (11–1 vs 9–3/9–3). 1 2 Tampa Bay finished ahead of Green Bay based on head-to-head victory. 1 2 St. Louis finished ahead of Seattle based on division record (4–2 to 2–4). 1 2 Washington finished ahead of Carolina based on common games (2–3 to 1–4) 1 2 Arizona finished ahead of Dallas based on head-to-head victory. ↑ When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest-ranked remaining team from each division. |||||||||||