SportsDirect Inc. staff
Dec 26, 2010
Rookie Sam Bradford threw for 292 yards and a touchdown on Sunday as the host St. Louis Rams kept their playoff hopes alive with a 25-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Bradford completed 28 of 37 passes as the Rams moved to 7-8 overall and eliminated the 49ers (5-10) from playoff contention.
St. Louis came into the day tied with the Seattle Seahawks for first place in the NFC West. The Rams travel to Seattle next Sunday with the division title and a playoff berth at stake in the regular-season finale.
Steven Jackson had 48 yards rushing on 24 attempts for the Rams, including a 1-yard touchdown for the game's first score. Danario Alexander had six catches for 99 yards and Danny Amendola had eight catches for 53 yards.
Amendola finished with 177 return yards, including an 84-yard kickoff return after Jeff Reed's 47-yard field goal with 5:41 to play had cut St. Louis’ lead to 22-17.
Brandon Gibson had three catches for 69 yards, Daniel Fells added three receptions for 28 yards and Laurent Robinson caught three passes for 25 yards for the Rams. Jackson also had three receptions for 19 yards.
Trailing 25-17 and with the ball at its own 19 with 1:06 remaining and no timeouts left, San Francisco drove to the St. Louis 44 but Ted Ginn failed to step out of bounds following a 22-yard catch as the clock expired.
Alex Smith completed 10 of 15 passes for 120 yards while starter Troy Smith completed 7 of 19 passes for 153 yards, a touchdown and an interception before being replaced.
Brian Westbrook led San Francisco with 40 yards rushing on 10 carries. Michael Crabtree caught three passes for 122 yards, including a 60-yard TD reception from Troy Smith in the second quarter. Vernon Davis had three receptions for 70 yards for the 49ers.