ST. LOUIS -- A look at St. Louis Rams players who were “up” and those who were “down” in Sunday's 24-6 win against the Cleveland Browns:
UP
CB Janoris Jenkins: One could make the argument that Jenkins is among the best players on the Rams right now, an argument only bolstered by his performance against the Browns. Jenkins got the game started right for the Rams defense by reading a receiver screen to receiver Taylor Gabriel, breaking on the ball and hitting Gabriel at the right time to jar the ball loose and force a fumble that safety Rodney McLeod returned 20 yards for the game's first touchdown. Jenkins added five tackles and two pass breakups. With each passing week, the price for the pending free agent seems to be rising.
DT Aaron Donald: The reason Jenkins isn't in the discussion as the team's best player is because of this guy, who has clearly staked a claim to the title and continues to find ways to impress every week. In one first-half sequence, Donald showed his power by driving guard Joel Bitonio into quarterback Josh McCown for an incompletion and followed it by showing his burst with a quick first step to get in the backfield for a tackle for a loss of 5 yards. Donald finished with three tackles, a sack, a tackle for loss and two quarterback hurries.
RB Todd Gurley: The tally is now at three weeks as the starter and three 125-plus-yard games. Gurley finished with 128 yards on 19 carries and scored his first two NFL touchdowns. In surpassing 125 yards again, Gurley became the first rookie to rush for at least that many yards in his first three NFL starts since Cadillac Williams in 2005. Donald holds the crown as the Rams' best player based on sample size but Gurley is quickly gaining.
DOWN
TE Jared Cook: The drop-prone tight end actually had the Rams and their fans wishing he'd dropped a pass thrown to him in the red zone in the second quarter. That would have just been a run-of-the-mill incompletion. Instead, Cook caught it and promptly fumbled it, which killed the Rams' best drive of the game to that point. He finished with just two catches for 19 yards.
K Greg Zuerlein: In a close game with points at a premium before the Rams put it away late, Zuerlein needed to be on point but he missed a 35-yard field goal in the third quarter that would have extended the Rams' lead to seven. He also missed a 63-yarder, which can be forgiven but there's no excuse for missing a kick just a few yards further than an extra point. Especially in the friendly indoor kicking confines of the Edward Jones Dome.