LANDOVER - The Washington Redskins got win No. 5 courtesy of No. 56.
Washington earned its fifth victory and kept alive at least a glimmer of hope for a playoff spot when linebacker LaVar Arrington stripped St. Louis Rams quarterback Kurt Warner of the ball with 11 seconds left in regulation to preserve a 20-17 decision before 79,823 at FedEx Field yesterday.
The Redskins improved to 5-6, and the victory ended what had been their third two-game losing streak of ths season. Washington is still two games behind the New Orleans Saints (7-4) for the sixth and final playoff berth.
Arrington's heroics were timely. St. Louis (5-6) had marched from its 20-yard line to Washington's 6-yard line with 17 seconds left in the game and down only by a field goal.
But on first-and-goal, Warner dropped back into the pocket. Arrington, who said Rams right tackle John St. Clair kept grabbing his face mask to prevent the linebacker from reaching Warner, feinted right before employing a swim move to evade St. Clair and punch the ball from Warner's hand.
Defensive tackle Daryl Gardener recovered the ball at the 13-yard line, and the Redskins improved to 3-2 at home when replay officials confirmed it was a fumble.
"That's the play you dream of all your life," said Arrington, who provided a similar boost last season when he returned an interception 67 yards for a touchdown in an overtime win over the Carolina Panthers. "It was an unbelievable rush to see that he had fumbled the ball. I was just happy."
The glee wasn't limited to Arrington. Quarterback Danny Wuerffel, running back Stephen Davis and coach Steve Spurrier also answered their critics yesterday.
Wuerffel, a six-year journeyman who enered the game with twice as many interceptions (18) as touchdowns (nine) in 22 career games, capably guided an offense that had struggled to average 244 yards in its previous three games.
Although Wuerffel didn't throw a touchdown pass, he avoided getting sacked or tossing an interception as he completed 16 of 23 passes for 235 yards. Washington had 362 yards of total offense - its fourth-highest total of the season.
Asked if he thought his play removed doubts about his ability to play in the NFL, Wuerffel said, "I spent half of my life having people tell me I was better than I was. I spent the other half of my life having people tell me I was worse than I am. I just try to keep doing what I do and see what happens."
St. Louis coach Mike Martz said he wasn't shocked by Wuerffel's performance, which earned the Redskins' quarterback a rating of 102.6 -- 12 more points than Warner's 90.6 rating.
"I wouldn't say that about anybody," Martz said. "They said that about Marc Bulger. Phoenix [actually, the Arizona Cardinals three weeks ago] said they were [facing] the third quarterback. If you're playing in the NFL, you're playing here for a reason."
A week after questioning the play-calling that had him run the ball for just 59 yards on 19 carries in a muddy, two-point loss to the New York Giants, Davis posted a season-high 31 carries for 88 yards and tied a career high with three touchdowns in a game.
Davis, who last registered three rushing touchdowns on Sept. 26, 1999, against the New York Jets, scored on trips of 1, 3 and 5 yards, but it was the last touchdown that may have signaled a renewed confidence in the bruising running back.
On fourth-and-one at St. Louis' 5-yard line, Spurrier eschewed a pass play and gave the ball to Davis. He responded by sweeping left and following the lead block of fullback Bryan Johnson, walking into the end zone to give the Redskins a 20-10 advantage with 6:54 left in the third quarter.
"I wasn't surprised [that Spurrier called a running play]. I was motivated," Davis said.
Finally, the victory may have helped Spurrier silence those who have questioned his tendency to throw at all costs, his reshuffling of the quarterbacks and his acclimation to the NFL.
With 39 rushing attempts to 24 pass plays, Spurrier improved to 3-1 when the Redskins run more than they throw. By keeping the ball on the ground, Washington won the possession battle by 2 minutes, 30 seconds (31:16-28:44) against the league's second-best offense.
"We knew we had to run and try to stay on the field to make some first downs," said Spurrier, whose team gained eight first downs rushing. "We made some yards here and there. Overall, we probably didn't gain a whole bunch. ... We were able to run it into the end zone, and that's the important thing."
The Rams still posted 364 yards of total offense, and Warner completed his first 15 passes en route to connecting on 34 of 49 throws for 301 yards and two touchdowns - to wide receivers Troy Edwards and Ricky Proehl.
But Warner, who was playing in his first game since fracturing the pinkie finger on his throwing hand Sept. 29, also was sacked three times, fumbled three times (losing one), and threw one interception.