More notes from a Rams victory, Brady Quinn’s comments, and some NBA…starting with a fraudulent $250,000 fine.

Anyone who can’t appreciate a win like Sunday needs to immediately find another team to root for. This is a Jeff Fisher blueprint victory, especially this year, for an organization coming off the worse 5-year stretch in NFL history.

The mantra of ‘I don’t care how’ attitude. Keep the game close, pound the football, and force turnovers. That’s how the 2012 Rams win, like it or not.

Hell, Steven Jackson rushed 21 times averaging 2.3 yards per carry. It was ugly; at times hideous. But credit Brian Schottenheimer for dialing up those 27 combined rushing attempts. If the Rams abandoned the run, I guarantee the 49ers defense, ranked 2nd in the NFL, make a play as devastating as Janoris Jenkins’ fumble recovery.

What we saw were two rival defenses playing with a chip. No tie was happening Round 2. The defensive effort on both sides was about as good as she comes, just relentless.

Some Quick Thoughts …

• Credit Sam Bradford. Turnover free and smart decision-making. He threw it away when necessary, and showed off his deceptive speed during the game-tying drive. Bradford fell victim to several inexcusable dropped passes. He threw into tight windows, and never (OK, once) put a ball near a 49er. The San Francisco defense threw exotic blitz packages, and Bradford never took the bait. A strong formula to winning includes not turning the ball over, and Bradford’s conservative approach paid off.

• I can’t say enough about the Rams defense. Take it away, Sam.

• Craig Dahl has become a piñata, deservingly so, but he made a game saving tackle in OT on Frank Gore. Have to give him credit.

• Whose “concerned” about Greg Zuerlein? Legatron now has SEVEN 50-yd FG this season, one shy of the NFL record set by Morten Andersen in 1995. He has just two misses (35,37) under 50, and as for his other six: 58, 58, 52, 66. Let’s all just relax.

• The dropped passes are frustrating. Austin Pettis had a catch questionably reversed, Brian Quick let one slip, Steve Smith had an UGLY mishap, and Lance Kendricks had about four bounce off the bricks. Owen and I disagreed about the deep attempt for Isaiah Pead on whose fault it was, but Pead looked slow getting separation from LB Ahmad Brooks.

• #95 William Hayes had a loud day. Fisher drafted him in 2008 with Tennessee and he owns 4 sacks, 4 stuffs, and 24 tackles this season. Eugene Sims was also disruptive.

• Cortland Finnegan has completely changed the defensive mindset, and whatever JoLonn Dunbar brought from New Orlean$ is working quite well. All joking aside, Blake  Williams called his best game as a coordinator in the NFL.

• The Rams put themselves right back into the playoff mix. They control their destiny to a degree with games against Seattle, Tampa, and Minnesota. But all focus starts tomorrow on Buffalo, a game the Rams cannot afford a let down.

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The Chiefs needed their win over Carolina in the worst way. Emotionally for the organization, and for a resilient fan base disgusted by a 2-10 record. Brady Quinn had an interesting/inspiring quote following their game.

“The one thing people can hopefully try to take away, I guess, is the relationships they have with people,” Quinn told reporters after the game.  “I know when it happened, I was sitting and, in my head, thinking what I could have done differently.  When you ask someone how they are doing, do you really mean it?  When you answer someone back how you are doing, are you really telling the truth?

“We live in a society of social networks, with Twitter pages and Facebook, and that’s fine, but we have contact with our work associates, our family, our friends, and it seems like half the time we are more preoccupied with our phone and other things going on instead of the actual relationships that we have right in front of us.  Hopefully, people can learn from this and try to actually help if someone is battling something deeper on the inside than what they are revealing on a day-to-day basis.”

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David Stern’s decision to fine Greg Popovich $250,000 for resting healthy starters last week in Miami is absurd. Popovich rested stars Tim Duncan (36), Manu Ginobili (35), and Tony Parker (30) to voice his displeasure with the league’s scheduling. The Spurs finished a six-game, 10-day road trip which had them play four games in five nights. In Miami, the team Popovich fielded lost 105-100 despite leading much of the game.

I’m sorry, thats ridiculous. I respect the integrity, the importance to start key players for the fan’s sake, but really? $250,000 for keeping star players fresh so they can compete in June?

Popovich publicly said he would continue to rest his stars, and is disappointed with the leagues decision.

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Rasheed Wallace is back, and already has four technical fouls in 15 games played. Wallace is currently the NBA’s all-time leader, with over 300.

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Dunk of the night by Metta World Peace: