2002 St. Louis Rams season

NFL team season August 2023 March 2026 St. Louis Rams 2002 7–9 2nd NFC West Mike Martz Georgia Frontiere Edward Jones Dome Did not qualify RB Marshall FaulkLT Orlando Pace Rams seasons 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.Martin, Jill. ‘2002: When the Patriots Were a Cinderella Team.’; Cable News Network, January 24, 2019 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 Beginning in the offseason before the 1999 season, the Rams traded for Marshall Faulk, a running back. They then signed the quarterback, Trent Green and drafted a young wide receiver prospect, Torry Holt thereby making significant changes to their front line. Unfortunately, Green experienced a season-ending injury which brought in Kurt Warner, a relatively unknown player with little experience in the NFL The injury marked the decline of Kurt Warner and the end of the so called "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 SubtractionsFS 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) DE Sean Moran (49ers) 2002 expansion draft 2002 NFL expansion draft + St. Louis Rams selected during the expansion draft Round Overall Name Position Expansion team——18Brian AllenLinebackerHouston Texans Draft 2002 NFL draft 2002 St. Louis Rams 1 31 Robert Thomas LB UCLA yes 2 64 Travis Fisher CB Central Florida yes 3 84 Lamar Gordon RB North Dakota State yes 3 95 Eric Crouch WR Nebraska 4 130 Travis Scott G Arizona St no 5 167 Courtland Bullard LB Ohio St yes 6 205 Steve Bellisari QB Ohio St 7 243 Chris Massey FB Marshall yes Undrafted free agents + 2002 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeJames BroylesGuardSouthwest Missouri StateAlonzo CunninghamGuardIowaMaurice DouglasRunning backNorthwest Missouri StateMarques GlazeRunning backBloomsburgTodd HowardCornerbackMichiganAndy KingGuardIllinois StateMichael MalanRunning backBrown Roster 2002 St. Louis Rams 53 7 5 10 Marc Bulger  4 Scott Covington 12 Jamie Martin 24 Trung Canidate 28 Marshall Faulk 34 Lamar Gordon 44 Chris Hetherington FB 42 James Hodgins FB 25 J. R. Niklos FB 80 Isaac Bruce 88 Troy Edwards 81 Torry Holt 89 Dane Looker 87 Ricky Proehl 18 Terrence Wilkins 84 Ernie Conwell 86 Brandon Manumaleuna 60 James Broyles G 50 Andy Eby G 65 Frank Garcia C 63 Heath Irwin 68 Andy King G 67 Andy McCollum C 76 Orlando Pace T 70 John St. Clair T 62 Adam Timmerman G 94 Bryce Fisher DE 97 Tyoka Jackson DE 92 Damione Lewis DT 91 Leonard Little DE 79 Ryan Pickett DT 98 Grant Wistrom DE 66 Brian Young DT 90 Jeff Zgonina DT 53 Hakim Akbar MLB 57 O. J. Brigance OLB 51 Courtland Bullard OLB 58 Don Davis OLB 59 Jamie Duncan MLB 52 Tommy Polley OLB 55 Robert Thomas OLB 31 Adam Archuleta SS 32 Dré Bly CB 23 Jerametrius Butler CB 37 Chad Cota SS 22 Travis Fisher CB 20 Kim Herring FS 21 Dexter McCleon CB 41 Nick Sorensen SS 27 James Whitley CB 17 Mitch Berger P 45 Chris Massey LS 14 Jeff Wilkins K 54 Kole Ayi LB (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 30 Steve Bellisari S (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 61 Tom Nütten G (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 64 Travis Scott G (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 13 Kurt Warner QB (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 35 Aeneas Williams CB (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 77 Grant Williams T (IR) Image:Injuryicon.jpg 49 Dauntae Finger TE 75 Robert Haws T 15 Ryan Helming QB 73 Gary Hobbs G 39 Todd Howard CB 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, 2002 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 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, 2002 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, 2002 San Francisco 49ers W 31–20 7–9 Edward Jones Dome 66,118 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Game summaries Week 7: vs. Seattle Seahawks St. Louis Rams 2002 2;text-align:center; autocollapse Week 7: Seattle Seahawks (1–4) at St. Louis Rams (1–5) – Game summary October 20 12:02pm local Seahawks 0 14 0 6 Rams 7 6 10 14 Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri 65,931 indoors Terry McAulay Fox Scott Graham, Sean Jones, Martin Kilcoyne Gamecenter, Gamebook First quarter STL – Marshall Faulk 6-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 6:00 (STL 7–0) Second quarter STL – Jeff Wilkins 31-yard field goal, 7:11 (STL 10–0) SEA – Koren Robinson 79-yard pass from Trent Dilfer (Rian Lindell kick), 6:51 (STL 10–7) STL – Jeff Wilkins 45-yard field goal, 0:29 (STL 13–7) SEA – Maurice Morris 97-yard kickoff return (Rian Lindell kick), 0:16 (SEA 14–13) Third quarter STL – Marshall Faulk 3-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 5:08 (STL 20–14) STL – Jeff Wilkins 47-yard field goal, 3:23 (STL 23–14) Fourth quarter STL – Marshall Faulk 2-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 12:12 (STL 30–14) STL – Marshall Faulk 1-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 6:05 (STL 37–14) SEA – Chad Eaton 1-yard fumble return (PAT failed), 3:28 (STL 37–20) Top passers SEA – Trent Dilfer: 8/25, 232 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT STL – Marc Bulger: 22/40, 265 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Top rushers SEA – Shaun Alexander: 12 car, 30 yds STL – Marshall Faulk: 32 car, 183 yds, 3 TD Top receivers SEA – Koren Robinson: 3 rec, 166 yds, 1 TD STL – Torry Holt: 3 rec, 71 yds Team – pass passing yards – rush rushing yards – total total yards – to turnovers SEA – 240 – 50 – 290 – 3 STL – 260 – 218 – 478 – 2 Week 9: vs. St. Louis Rams St. Louis Rams 2002 2;text-align:center; autocollapse Week 9: St. Louis Rams (2–5) at Arizona Cardinals (4–3) – Game summary November 3 2:15 p.m. MST Rams 7 10 0 10 Cardinals 0 7 0 7 Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona 47,819 76 F C Ron Blum FOX Curt Menefee, Tim Ryan Box Score First quarter STL – Ricky Proehl 31-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 11:18. Rams 7–0. Second quarter STL – Jeff Wilkins 24-yard field goal, 13:09. Rams 10–0. ARI – Frank Sanders 8-yard pass from Jake Plummer (Bill Gramática kick), 2:31. Rams 10–7. STL – Torry Holt 7-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 0:53. Rams 17–7. Third quarter No scoring plays Fourth quarter ARI – Justin Lucas 35-yard interception run (Bill Gramática kick), 10:36. Rams 17–14. STL – Jeff Wilkins 42-yard field goal, 3:46. Rams 20–14. STL – Marshall Faulk 13-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 1:53. Rams 27–14. Top passers STL – Marc Bulger – 20/29, 245 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT ARI – Jake Plummer – 19/30, 193 yards, TD, INT Top rushers STL – Marshall Faulk – 27 rushes, 178 yards, TD ARI – Thomas Jones – 12 rushes, 25 yards Top receivers STL – Troy Edwards – 4 receptions, 63 yards ARI – Frank Sanders – 6 receptions, 67 yards, TD Team – pass passing yards – rush rushing yards – total total yards – to turnovers STL – 245 – 192 – 415 – 2 ARI – 193 – 64 – 235 – 3 Week 10: vs. San Diego Chargers St. Louis Rams 2002 2;text-align:center; autocollapse Week 10: San Diego Chargers (6–2) at St. Louis Rams (3–5) – Game summary November 10 12:00 p.m. CST Chargers 7 10 7 0 Rams 7 0 7 14 Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri 66,093 N/A (game played indoors) Ed Hochuli CBS Gus Johnson and Brent Jones Box score, Game Book First quarter STL – Ernie Conwell 17-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 11:43. Rams 7–0. Drive: 5 plays, 85 yards, 3:17. SDG – Ryan McNeil 5-yard fumble return (Steve Christie kick), 7:36. Tied 7–7. Second quarter SDG – Steve Christie 41-yard field goal, 14:01. Chargers 10–7. Drive: 12 plays, 52 yards, 6:50. SDG – LaDainian Tomlinson 1-yard run (Steve Christie kick), 8:54. Chargers 17–7. Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 3:26. Third quarter STL – Isaac Bruce 27-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 9:12. Chargers 17–14. Drive: 6 plays, 87 yards, 2:22. SDG – Donnie Edwards 82-yard fumble return (Steve Christie kick), 5:09. Chargers 24–14. Fourth quarter STL – Isaac Bruce 34-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 3:06. Chargers 24–21. Drive: 6 plays, 94 yards, 1:52. STL – Isaac Bruce 7-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 1:14. Rams 28–24. Drive: 9 plays, 54 yards, 1:52. Top passers SDG – Drew Brees – 12/20, 139 yards, 2 INT STL – Marc Bulger – 36/48, 453 yards, 4 TD Top rushers SDG – LaDainian Tomlinson – 24 rushes, 120 yards, TD STL – Marshall Faulk – 13 rushes, 36 yards Top receivers SDG – Tim Dwight – 4 receptions, 53 yards STL – Isaac Bruce – 10 receptions, 163 yards, 3 TD Week 11: vs. Chicago Bears St. Louis Rams 2002 2; text-align:center autocollapse Week 11: Chicago Bears (2–7) at St. Louis Rams (4–5) – Game summary November 18, 2002 9:00 p.m. Bears 0 6 7 3 Rams 7 7 0 7 Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri 66,250 None (indoor stadium) Gerry Austin (34) ABC Al Michaels, John Madden and Melissa Stark Recap, Game Book 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 Week 14: at Kansas City Chiefs St. Louis Rams 2002 2;text-align:center; autocollapse Week 14: St. Louis Rams (5–7) at Kansas City Chiefs (6–6) – Game summary December 8 12:00 p.m. CST Rams 10 0 0 0 Chiefs 14 21 0 14 Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri 78,601 Mostly cloudy, 38 F C Bill Leavy Fox Sam Rosen, Bill Maas, and Joel Goldberg Recap, Game Book First quarter STL – Jeff Wilkins 36-yard field goal, 12:01. Rams 3–0. Drive: 5 plays, 13 yards, 1:47. KC – Dante Hall 88-yard kickoff return (Morten Andersen kick), 11:49. Chiefs 7–3. KC – Duane Clemons 42-yard fumble return (Morten Andersen kick), 10:16. Chiefs 14–3. STL – Isaac Bruce 8-yard pass from Jamie Martin (Jeff Wilkins kick), 1:43. Chiefs 14–10. Drive: 4 plays, 51 yards, 2:05. Second quarter KC – Priest Holmes 2-yard run (Morten Andersen kick), 8:52. Chiefs 21–10. Drive: 8 plays, 66 yards, 4:56. KC – Dante Hall 86-yard punt return (Morten Andersen kick), 6:58. Chiefs 28–10. KC – Priest Holmes 1-yard run (Morten Andersen kick), 1:57. Chiefs 35–10. Drive: 7 plays, 57 yards, 3:25. Third quarter No scoring plays. Fourth quarter KC – Marc Boerigter 6-yard pass from Trent Green (Morten Andersen kick), 9:56. Chiefs 42–10. Drive: 12 plays, 89 yards, 7:48. KC – Mike Cloud 1-yard run (Morten Andersen kick), 5:24. Chiefs 49–10. Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 3:56. Top passers STL – Jamie Martin – 24/35, 218 yards, TD, 2 INT KC – Trent Green – 10/15, 100 yards, TD Top rushers STL – Lamar Gordon – 5 rushes, 14 yards KC – Priest Holmes – 24 rushes, 132 yards, 2 TD Top receivers STL – Isaac Bruce – 5 receptions, 47 yards, TD KC – Tony Gonzalez – 5 receptions, 38 yards Week 16: at Seattle Seahawks St. Louis Rams 2002 2;text-align:center; autocollapse Week 16: St. Louis Rams (6–8) at Seattle Seahawks (5–9) – Game summary December 22 1:05pm local Rams 0 3 7 0 Seahawks 3 10 10 7 Seahawks Stadium, Seattle 63,953 cloudy, 45 °F °C, 76% humidity, wind SE 5 mph km/h Mike Carey Fox Kenny Albert, Tim Green & Brent Ringenbach Gamecenter, Gamebook First quarter SEA – Rian Lindell 31-yard field goal, 8:46 (SEA 3–0) Second quarter SEA – Rian Lindell 36-yard field goal, 12:12 (SEA 6–0) STL – Jeff Wilkins 45-yard field goal, 5:43 (SEA 6–3) SEA – Shaun Alexander 1-yard run (Rian Lindell kick), 3:43 (SEA 13–3) SEA – Shaun Alexander 1-yard run (Rian Lindell kick), 8:58 (SEA 20–3) Third quarter STL – Torry Holt 5-yard pass from Jamie Martin (Jeff Wilkins kick), 3:17 (SEA 20–10) SEA – Rian Lindell 22-yard field goal, 0:06 (SEA 23–10) Fourth quarter SEA – Darrell Jackson 38-yard pass from Matt Hasselbeck (Rian Lindellc kick), 11:16 (SEA 30–10) Top passers STL – Jamie Martin: 31/48, 259 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT SEA – Matt Hasselbeck: 20/32, 303 yds, 1 TD Top rushers STL – Marshall Faulk: 9 car, 13 yds SEA – Shaun Alexander: 26 car, 79 yds, 2 TD Top receivers STL – Torry Holt: 9 rec, 92 yds, 1 TD SEA – Koren Robinson: 4 rec, 94 yds Team – pass passing yards – rush rushing yards – total total yards – to turnovers STL – 254 – 17 – 271 – 5 SEA – 292 – 100 – 392 – 1 Standings Division NFCWest2 h h St. Louis finished ahead of Seattle in the NFC West based on better division record (4–2 to 2–4). Conference References St. Louis Rams Category:St. Louis Rams seasons St Louis Category:2002 in St. Louis