Problem is, licensed merchandisers aren't the only ones taking advantage of the hysteria that came with an NFC-best 13-3 record. And as the Rams prepare to play host to Minnesota in this city's first-ever NFL playoff game on Sunday, the NFL and local police will be on the lookout for counterfeit merchandise.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Wednesday that four teams of NFL investigators will arrive in St. Louis on Saturday to seek out those peddling counterfeit goods. One man, Ramanuel Kimble, 44, of Arlington, Texas, was indicted last month for selling fake Rams merchandise near the Trans World Dome. He faces felony charges. A trial date has not been set.

Police and league officials believe others are doing it, too.

"I know where counterfeit merchandise is right now," said Lt. Steve Harmon, a St. Louis detective. "It is popping up everywhere. I've seen it in flea markets. I've even seen it in shopping malls. It is prevalent."

The NFL, like other professional sports leagues, has licensing rights for any merchandise bearing logos and names of its teams. The agreements cover everything imaginable -- from jerseys and ball caps to pens, bumper stickers, even mouse pads. More than 1,000 products are licensed by the league's marketing arm, NFL Properties.

Since arriving in St. Louis in 1995, Rams goods have hardly been a hot item. The team was a failure -- until this season, the Rams' last winning year since 1989. Locally, McGwire's home run feats and an attractive update to the St. Louis Blues jerseys pushed Rams goods to the "50 percent off" racks.

Nationally, the Rams were barely a blip on the radar screen.

Not anymore.

"We're beginning to see fans here in New York wearing Warner jerseys," McCarthy said. "Fans like to associate with winners."

McCarthy would say only that the Rams ranked "safely in the bottom third" of team merchandise sales until this year. They've moved up to No. 15 of the 31 NFL teams -- a significant improvement in one year, he said.

"Sales are definitely up," said Ryan Heavner, a salesman at Sports Avenue in St. Louis Union Station. "Some stuff, we're having trouble keeping in stock, like Warner jerseys." He estimated that sales of Rams items have doubled since 1998.

Police said the team's success caught the eye of Kimble while he was peddling illegal Atlanta Braves merchandise during the World Series. When officers caught up with Kimble in St. Louis, he had 128 Rams T-shirts, along with dozens of other items.

Counterfeiting is a big concern for the NFL because the league gets a percentage of each sale. But McCarthy said counterfeiters also give the league and the teams a bad name.

"It's a quality control issue," he said. "What happens is (consumers) will buy a T-shirt from a counterfeiter for $5, go home and wash it, the colors bleed and it's worthless. It leaves a sour taste in their mouth."

McCarthy said league investigators will focus primarily this weekend on the area around the Trans World Dome, where the Vikings and Rams play in a second-round game. The winner will play either Tampa Bay or Washington in the NFC championship game Jan. 23, with the winner of that game going to the Super Bowl.