Kurt Warner and the Rams got their hands on the George Halas Trophy.

So go ahead, Dick Vermeil, don't hold back the tears. Same with you, Georgia Frontiere, the team owner and namesake in the Rams' ubiquitous "Going to Georgia for Georgia" rallying cry (though can we ask for a moratorium on renditions of "Georgia on My Mind" and "Midnight Train to Georgia"?).

And don't try to contain yourselves either, Ram cheerleaders, most of you with enough mascara running down your cheeks to have it be considered a feminine form of eye-black.

Enjoy the moment, London Fletcher, waving a gigantic Rams flag at midfield. You too, Ray Agnew, with two young children sporting No. 99 uniforms -- just like their proud dad. You as well, offensive line coach Jim Hanifan, in your 27th season in the NFL and walking quietly and alone to the locker room amidst the hoopla around you.

And what the heck -- you guys, too, Brent Musburger and Ron Jaworski -- the former Vermeil's ex-broadcast partner and the latter Vermeil's former quarterback in Philadelphia. Hug away.

All right. That's enough.

Now, how about those Tennessee Titans? The same Titans who handed the Rams their first loss of the season in Week 7 with a 24-21 victory in a game that the Titans led 21-0 at halftime.

That ought to snap a dose of reality into the situation.

"We know all about Tennessee," said Fletcher, flagless in the Rams locker room. "They scored an awful lot of points today against Jacksonville, and they did a pretty good job against us earlier this year. They like to run the ball, and they've got a great defense.

"Nothing is going to be easy."

It wasn't for the Rams the first time the two teams met. The Rams arrived as the league's last unbeaten team at 6-0. The Titans had beaten Jacksonville a couple of weeks earlier to get some national attention, but quarterback Steve McNair was making his return to the lineup after back surgery.

On Halloween Day, the Titans scored 21 first-quarter points - on a 1-yard pass from McNair to Lorenzo Neal, a 17-yard pass from McNair to Eddie George and a 10-yard McNair run.

The Rams battled back, getting to 24-21 late in the fourth quarter. St. Louis even recovered an onside kick with 2:09 remaining and moved to the Tennessee 20, but a potential game-tying field goal by Jeff Wilkins sailed wide right with seven seconds left.

Warner was 29-for-46 for 287 yards against the Titans. McNair threw for 178 yards, but was relatively quiet in the second half. The Rams left town with a healthy dose of respect for the Titans.

"We know what we are up against," Rams coach Dick Vermeil said. "And we will be ready to play."

The Rams will have to prepare for an extra weapon in McNair, who crushed Jacksonville with a long run in the fourth quarter that ended the Jaguars' comeback hopes.

"He's another weapon, that's for sure," Fletcher said. "He hurt us last time with a lot of third-down conversions."

They also have a big, explosive back in George, who ran for 68 yards on 17 carries in the first meeting between the two teams. But the Rams defense, unnoticed amidst the offensive heroics, was the second-best overall in the NFC, and ranked first in the NFL against the rush.

The Titans mirror the Buccaneers in one respect on defense: they're exceptionally quick, starting with Jevon Kearse. Tampa Bay's team speed on defense helped hold the Rams without a touchdown in the first half for the first time since Week 7 of the season.

That's the same Week 7 when the Rams were at Tennessee.

"There is definitely something there about getting revenge against the Titans," Rams defensive tackle D'Marco Farr said. "We lost to them at their place. We're familiar with them, and I'm sure they are looking forward to playing us."

"We have the rematch," added Todd Collins. "Tennessee is a good team. They have proven that on the road (Sunday). We'll enjoy it tonight and get back to work (Monday)."