Play PlayStation. Twiddle your thumbs. Read the Merriam Webster's 10th Edition. Watch leaves fall from trees. These are all acceptable ways to pass the time before playing the St. Louis Rams.

Here's what not to do: Call the Rams "finesse." Talk about how the Giants shut them down. Say anything that could ruffle their collective feathers.

Here's why: The Rams are simply merciless when their pride is challenged, and that pride leads them to almost insatiable levels of competitiveness.

Sunday, the Jets learned. One player, cornerback Marcus Coleman, called the Rams a "finesse" team, and the Rams answered by:

*using Kurt Warner as a lead blocker twice and a receiver once ...
*running a grab bag of trick plays, including a wide receiver option ...
*allowing Warner to sign autographs during the game ...
*and lining up for an onside kick with the team up 31-7.

The Rams are undefeated, and happy to say so. As he got dressed following the 34-14 win, receiver Torry Holt sang, "We're going back to the Lou six-and-oh."

Okay, so that didn't rhyme. It's the thought that counts.

The Rams are the Barry Bonds of the NFL -- cocky, ruthless, determined, aware. They're led by an interesting dude in his own right, Mike Martz. As the game ticked down, I talked with Bernie Miklasz, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist. "Martz is one of the funniest people you could meet, great to cover," he said. "But on Sunday he can go crazy."

After the game, reporters grilled Martz, and he defended his team. "You don't understand," he said. "We don't have different speeds on how we play. We have full speed and that's it."

Martz didn't care that most of the Jets respected the Rams' offense and publicly said so. He was out to punish his opponent, and now, there aren't any New York teams left to beat. "Maybe if they combined them and made an All-Star team," said Holt. "Then we could beat them."

Ouch. In the other locker room, the Jets practiced swallowing their tongues. Hell yes, it annoyed them to watch what the Rams did. But they learned. "You don't insult us," Holt said.

Next time, stick with PlayStation.

E-mail Seth Wickersham at seth.wickersham@espnmag.com.