Defensively, the St. Louis Rams made Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos’ potent offense look pedestrian in a 22-7 victory last Sunday.

The Rams harassed Manning into two interceptions, sacked him two times and had the Broncos on their heels the entire contest. St. Louis held the Broncos to 397 yards, including just 28 yards on the ground.

So how did they do it?

“It was a team effort,” Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said. “We ran the football, and Shaun [Hill] did a nice job of keeping the offense on the field through most of the game, with respect to third-down conversions.

“Our hope and intention going in was to do that – win time of possession and be able to run the football. And, of course, we got some pressure on him at times, and we came up with the two turnovers. And then I thought our special teams did a nice job with respect to covering kicks and field position.”

Added St. Louis middle linebacker James Laurinaitis: “We were aggressive on their short routes. We were able to affect Peyton pre-snap and post-snap. And really we just played fast. The challenge is how can we play fast again here this week against a very similar offense – with some differences – but very similar scheme-wise.”

Laurinaitis said a point of emphasis for his defense will be making sure to watch the ball and not anticipate Rivers’ cadence. Rivers coaxed four false-start penalties from the Oakland Raiders last week. Laurinaitis said Rivers is one of the best quarterbacks in the league at drawing defenses offside.

“Being an aggressive defense, we definitely have to be cognizant of that, because if we’re not, those are easy yards,” Laurinaitis said. “And it’s not only the 5-yard penalty, because a lot of times it’s similar to Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay, when somebody jumps offsides, most quarterbacks go up top.

“Philip does a lot more deep shots and deeper passes that we need to be very aware of. Peyton was a lot more timing stuff and anticipation. Philip has the arm strength and just really the guts to throw it deep. He goes up top to [Malcom] Floyd a whole bunch, and we have to be disciplined in the back end.”

Fisher said Rivers’ anticipation and ability to direct the offense at the line of scrimmage makes San Diego’s offense tough to stop.

“He sees so well and makes good decisions,” Fisher said. “He’s accurate, and he’s got a good group around him. I think the offensive line is playing well. They’re giving him time. I’d say they’re doing more things just from a formation standpoint that kind of puts stress on the defense.

“They create matchups. And with the up-tempo, he’s usually putting them in the right situation all the time, run or pass. I think he’s doing a lot more on the line of scrimmage than he has in the past.”