The St Louis Rams have ended a five-match losing streak with a 21-14 victory over the Detroit Lions at the Edward Jones Done this evening.

The crowd was sparse inside the stadium, and those who turned up for the game may have been left wishing they hadn't bothered during a scoreless first quarter that saw just one drive reach opposing territory.

There was finally something for the home supporters to cheer in the second, however, as Matthew Stafford's pass intended for Calvin Johnson was picked off by Trumaine Johnson and returned all the way for a 58-yard touchdown.

Overall, though, it was a dismal half of football that saw both sides' punters kick for more yards than either team gained on offense.

Things began to improve after the interval, however, and Detroit finally got on the board when Stafford found Golden Tate from nine yards, ending a team drought of more than five quarters without a touchdown.

There was a landmark to celebrate for Stafford too as he became the fastest quarterback to reach 25,000 passing yards, but it wasn't enough to put his side ahead and the Rams soon regained the lead through a five-yard Todd Gurley run.

Gurley added another from 15 yards early in the fourth quarter to open up a 14-point lead, but Tate also notched his second of the night with just over two minutes remaining to hand the Lions a lifeline.

However, they couldn't make anything of their final possession and the Rams ran down the clock to move to 5-8 for the season, while the Lions drop to 4-9.