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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Kurt Warner's sore shoulder is history.
"I feel really good," Warner said after throwing two
first-half touchdown passes in the St. Louis Rams' 31-27 preseason
loss to the Buffalo Bills on Saturday night. "I didn't notice it
at all. I never thought it was anything serious to begin with."
|  | | Rams quarterback Kurt Warner drops back to pass in the first quarter Saturday against the Bills. Warner (14-for-21) threw for 196 yards. |
The NFL's MVP was held out of practice for two days following
the Rams' Monday night loss at Tennessee, but played most of the
first half. He hit Marshall Faulk and Torry Holt for scores of 21
and 27 yards and was 14-for-21 for 196 yards.
"There was a slight bit of pain, but it was similar to
something I went through last year," said Warner, who didn't let a
sore shoulder the second half of last season stop him from throwing
41 touchdown passes. "I knew once I got out and got warmed up
properly and got into the game that it wouldn't bother me."
Warner missed a third touchdown pass when Roland Williams,
attempting to vault into the end zone, fumbled at the goal line for
a touchback. Williams said maybe he should have bulled his way into
the end zone.
"Hindsight is 20-20," he said. "I was thinking he might try
to chop my ankles out and knock me out of bounds at the one. You
see it a million times."
In the Rams' first two preseason games, Warner threw only six
passes, completing four for 65 yards. The only curious aspect to
his outing is he was removed in the middle of a drive. Warner said
that was because the Bills turned the ball over and backup Trent
Green hadn't had a chance to warm up.
Buffalo's Rob Johnson also had a big half in an often sloppy
game, going 8-for-12 for 237 yards and three touchdowns. Johnson
hit a wide-open Jeremy McDaniel for a 51-yard gain to the Rams 5 on
the third play of the game. He and McDaniel also hooked up for an
85-yard touchdown with 2:32 left in the first quarter.
"We played the world champs pretty well," Johnson said.
"Hopefully we can get more consistent and sustain some drives, but
big plays are nice."
McDaniel said he took advantage of double coverage on Eric
Moulds on his long score.
"Eric was bringing a whole lot of attention to him, being the
great receiver he is," McDaniel said. "They broke down in
coverage and I was just sitting there wide open."
Johnson hit Jay Riemersma for a 5-yard score and Bobby Collins
from 26 yards.
Faulk also got a lot more action, with 58 yards on 10 carries
and three catches for 15 yards. Faulk totaled 16 yards on five
carries with no receptions the first two games, and topped his
rushing total with a 20-yard run on his first carry.
Holt also caught a 22-yard pass from Green as the Rams (1-2)
scored 17 points in the last 4:07 of the second quarter to take a
24-21 halftime lead. Holt, St. Louis' first-round pick last year,
caught six passes for 109 yards in the half.
The Rams committed three turnovers, two interceptions by Green
and a fumble on a kickoff return by Curtis Jackson, in a span of
three plays to hand the Bills the lead in the second half. Shawn
Bryson scored on a 3-yard run on the first play of the fourth
quarter to give the Bills a 28-27 lead.
Jon Hilbert added a 36-yard field goal with 12:30 to play for
the Bills (2-1), who met the Rams in the preseason for the first
time since 1976.
The Bills stopped the Rams at the Buffalo 28 with 17 seconds to
go. The Rams' second-team defense had a highlight in the third
quarter, with a goal-line stand that stopped the Bills at the 1 to
preserve a 27-21 lead. The last three plays came from the 1.
New Rams coach Mike Martz twice challenged rulings in the first
half, and he won one and lost one. An apparent touchdown return by
Sam Cowart off a fumble was overruled by replay in the first
quarter, but the touchback ruling on Williams' fumble into the end
zone was upheld.
Rams offensive tackle Orlando Pace strained the patella tendon
in his left knee in the second quarter and did not return. Safety
Devin Bush strained his right groin in the second quarter and
cornerback Dre' Bly injured his right hamstring in the third.
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