Rams plenty tough, but still a bit lacking at the end

FOXBOROUGH - Hamstrung from the outset with workhorse running back Steven Jackson inactive because of a thigh injury, the St. Louis Rams arrived at Gillette Stadium looking to quarterback Marc Bulger, reserve running back Antonio Pittman, and a collection of receivers to carry the offense against the Patriots.

"I just think it was important for us to play our part," said Keenan Burton, speaking on behalf of the receiving corps. "We're a part of this body and what we try to do every week is just go out there and be productive. That was a our goal for the day."

While the Rams managed to win some of the skirmishes, the overall battle wound up being won by the Patriots, who scored a 23-16 victory yesterday before a sellout crowd of 68,756.

One of the most productive receivers was rookie Donnie Avery. The 5-foot-11-inch, 192-pounder made the Rams' braintrust look very smart for selecting him in the second round, grabbing six passes for 163 yards, both career highs.

"He's definitely explosive, very explosive," Burton said of Avery. "He can run any route that we have in the playbook and that's what makes him so dangerous. You can guard him deep, but at the same time, he can run comebacks, he can run slants, so it's hard to guard a guy like him, especially with his speed.

"He's probably one of the fastest on the team and I would bet my last dollar that he's one of the fastest in the league."

Avery gave the Rams a 10-7 lead with 14:14 left in the second quarter when he went streaking downfield on a post route and hauled in a 69-yard touchdown, on which safety James Sanders and cornerback Ellis Hobbs collided at Patriots 30, enabling Avery to glide the rest of the way. At the end of the third quarter, he made a 44-yard catch to spark an eight-play, 57-yard scoring drive that culminated with Josh Brown's 25-yard field goal, giving the Rams a 16-13 lead with 12:25 left in the game.

And while his numbers were impressive, the modest rookie did not feel like it was his place to gloat.

"The numbers don't count if you can't win," said Avery. "We need to go out next week and get it done. We are a team and everyone has to put in, that's what we did today. We just didn't get it done."

Which explained why Avery was a tad uncomfortable talking about his achievements in a locker room filled with glum men who came up empty after pushing their chips all in.

Interim coach Jim Haslett came in intent on rolling the dice. Haslett went for broke when he decided to go for a fourth-and-1 attempt from the St. Louis 41 that kept alive the Rams' first possession; called for an onside kick to start the second half which was successful; and even plotted to go for a 2-point conversion and the win if the Rams, who threatened in the fourth by driving to Patriots' 33 just three plays inside the two-minute warning, had scored.

"You have to do what you have to do to try and win the game," Haslett said. "And we thought that was the best thing for us. If we would've scored at the end, I would've gone for 2 to win the game."

Deltha O'Neal never let it come to that when he intercepted a Bulger pass with 1:08 left.

"That's his style," Bulger said of Haslett. "That's not going to change. NFL games are won and lost by a couple of plays. We prepared hard and played hard and we just didn't get it done."

Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.