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Bernie: Are players Rams wanted the players they needed?
• Bernie Miklasz
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_3eb0fdb5-8b6a-57de-bc53-1484f8d03cce.html
To adequately evaluate the Rams’ 2014 draft, I’d have to write two columns.
There are separate issues in play. One is rather simple, the other more complicated. I suppose in the end it all comes down to the strength of your belief in coach Jeff Fisher and his preferred style of football.
Let’s open with the easy commentary: In terms of Coach Fisher choosing players who reflect his vision for roster building, the Rams seem to have done a very good job over the past three days. As you know, Fisher is devoted to easily identifiable football values:
Dominate the line of scrimmage. Run the football. Stop the run. Harass quarterbacks with disruptive pressure. Have feisty, confident defenders who can swoop in for turnovers. Be physical, aggressive and play with an edge.
If the Rams’ scouting mission was to stock the roster with athletes who fit Fisher’s football aesthetic, then the Rams should be pleased. They’ve apparently done well.
OK, so why do I hedge by using the word “apparently?” Well, I don’t do draft grades. I outgrew that foolish desire a few years ago. It isn’t that I’m afraid of offering a strong opinion or upsetting anyone at Rams Park; I’m already Media Public Enemy No. 1 out there and have absolutely no problem with that. But it’s just plain stupid to judge a draft 24 hours after a draft’s completion.
I liked what Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly said Saturday when asked to assess his team’s draft.
“Honestly, I have no idea,” Kelly said. “Everybody says, ‘We got everybody we wanted.’ No one knows.”
Spot on, Coach. We’ll know in about two or three years.
But if we’re taking a first look at a draft class to see if it’s compatible to the coach’s program, then the Rams were disciplined and on target.
Of their 11 selections, 10 qualified under the guidelines of the Fisher football doctrine. There were three blockers, two front-line defenders, a runner and four defensive backs.
Fisher is clearly trying to harden his team for the next round of conflicts within the NFC West, and he’s convinced that this draft delivered a supply of players who can give the Rams brawn, muscle and added competitiveness.
Fisher has to be Fisher, or it won’t work. If Fisher tries to have a Mike Martz offense — as he did early last season, with disastrous results — the Rams have no chance to prevail in this division. That’s the truth, and everyone should realize that by now.
That leads us to a discussion of Part Two …
I respect Fisher and supported his hiring. Following a five-season stretch in which the Rams won 15 games (total), Fisher has managed to win 14 games in his two years. That’s progress.
Here’s my question: While Fisher is capable of getting the Rams to a certain point, will his philosophy produce consistent success over the long term?
Over his last nine seasons as an NFL head coach, Fisher has had two winning records.
In his first nine seasons as a head coach, Fisher’s winning percentage was .604.
Over his last nine seasons as head coach, Fisher’s winning percentage is .475.
I’m not suggesting that all of this is his fault. Fisher worked for a meddling owner in Tennessee, and the coach inherited a terrible team in St. Louis.
There is a common thread, however. Fisher’s teams haven’t scored enough points to win consistently.
Over his final seven seasons at Tennessee, the Titans ranked 17th in points and 18th in touchdowns from scrimmage. Over his first two seasons in St. Louis, the Rams have ranked 25th in points and 27th in touchdowns from scrimmage.
So while Fisher’s way of football is certainly competitive and in line with what we see in San Francisco and Seattle, there are differences. The 49ers and Seahawks have physical, ground-based offenses but also score more points than the Rams.
In my opinion the edge can be directly traced to the multi-dimensional play that the Rams’ rivals possess at the quarterback position. Seattle’s Russell Wilson and San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick use their mobility to run for first downs or escape containment to make connections on downfield throws.
This is a matter of preference. Seattle coach Pete Carroll and San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh want quarterbacks who can make plays with their feet, and Fisher remains committed to Sam Bradford’s pocket-passer prototype.
In the games with Bradford at quarterback, the Rams have held their own against the 49ers and the Seahawks over the past two seasons, going 2-2-1. But keep in mind that the Rams limited the Seahawks and the 49ers to 13 points in each of the two victories.
In eight combined games against St. Louis, Wilson and Kaepernick have a passer rating of 97 and have rushed for 279 yards, 16 first downs and two touchdowns. The Rams’ two rivals have a decided advantage in the quarterback matchup.
Fisher’s foundation of physical football is a solid platform to build on. And I recognize that he’s still building, and that the Rams remain a work in progress, and that some of the Rams’ young receivers could still develop into playmakers.
Still, unless the Rams can have a more diversified attack that finds the end zone with more regularity, it’s hard to see how they’ll manage to become the dominant team in these fierce turf wars with Seattle and San Francisco.
Of course, that’s based on the assumption of the ’Niners and Seahawks maintaining recent offensive form and production.
Over the past two seasons combined, here are each team’s touchdowns from scrimmage and respective league ranking:
Seattle: 84 touchdowns, ranked sixth.
San Francisco: 79 touchdowns, tied for 11th.
St. Louis: 59 touchdowns, 27th.
(I didn’t include Arizona in the two-year look because head coach Bruce Arians didn’t take over until last season, going 10-6 in his first year. One of his first moves was to sign quarterback Carson Palmer. After scoring only 21 offensive touchdowns in 2012, the Cardinals jumped to 36 TDs in 2013. That ranked 20th.)
I really like Fisher’s latest draft and how the players fit his philosophy. But now we have to wait and see if the philosophy can lead to a run of winning records and playoff trips.
The Rams haven’t had a winning season since 2003. Fisher hasn’t won a playoff game since 2003.
That’s a long time ago.
• Bernie Miklasz
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_3eb0fdb5-8b6a-57de-bc53-1484f8d03cce.html
To adequately evaluate the Rams’ 2014 draft, I’d have to write two columns.
There are separate issues in play. One is rather simple, the other more complicated. I suppose in the end it all comes down to the strength of your belief in coach Jeff Fisher and his preferred style of football.
Let’s open with the easy commentary: In terms of Coach Fisher choosing players who reflect his vision for roster building, the Rams seem to have done a very good job over the past three days. As you know, Fisher is devoted to easily identifiable football values:
Dominate the line of scrimmage. Run the football. Stop the run. Harass quarterbacks with disruptive pressure. Have feisty, confident defenders who can swoop in for turnovers. Be physical, aggressive and play with an edge.
If the Rams’ scouting mission was to stock the roster with athletes who fit Fisher’s football aesthetic, then the Rams should be pleased. They’ve apparently done well.
OK, so why do I hedge by using the word “apparently?” Well, I don’t do draft grades. I outgrew that foolish desire a few years ago. It isn’t that I’m afraid of offering a strong opinion or upsetting anyone at Rams Park; I’m already Media Public Enemy No. 1 out there and have absolutely no problem with that. But it’s just plain stupid to judge a draft 24 hours after a draft’s completion.
I liked what Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly said Saturday when asked to assess his team’s draft.
“Honestly, I have no idea,” Kelly said. “Everybody says, ‘We got everybody we wanted.’ No one knows.”
Spot on, Coach. We’ll know in about two or three years.
But if we’re taking a first look at a draft class to see if it’s compatible to the coach’s program, then the Rams were disciplined and on target.
Of their 11 selections, 10 qualified under the guidelines of the Fisher football doctrine. There were three blockers, two front-line defenders, a runner and four defensive backs.
Fisher is clearly trying to harden his team for the next round of conflicts within the NFC West, and he’s convinced that this draft delivered a supply of players who can give the Rams brawn, muscle and added competitiveness.
Fisher has to be Fisher, or it won’t work. If Fisher tries to have a Mike Martz offense — as he did early last season, with disastrous results — the Rams have no chance to prevail in this division. That’s the truth, and everyone should realize that by now.
That leads us to a discussion of Part Two …
I respect Fisher and supported his hiring. Following a five-season stretch in which the Rams won 15 games (total), Fisher has managed to win 14 games in his two years. That’s progress.
Here’s my question: While Fisher is capable of getting the Rams to a certain point, will his philosophy produce consistent success over the long term?
Over his last nine seasons as an NFL head coach, Fisher has had two winning records.
In his first nine seasons as a head coach, Fisher’s winning percentage was .604.
Over his last nine seasons as head coach, Fisher’s winning percentage is .475.
I’m not suggesting that all of this is his fault. Fisher worked for a meddling owner in Tennessee, and the coach inherited a terrible team in St. Louis.
There is a common thread, however. Fisher’s teams haven’t scored enough points to win consistently.
Over his final seven seasons at Tennessee, the Titans ranked 17th in points and 18th in touchdowns from scrimmage. Over his first two seasons in St. Louis, the Rams have ranked 25th in points and 27th in touchdowns from scrimmage.
So while Fisher’s way of football is certainly competitive and in line with what we see in San Francisco and Seattle, there are differences. The 49ers and Seahawks have physical, ground-based offenses but also score more points than the Rams.
In my opinion the edge can be directly traced to the multi-dimensional play that the Rams’ rivals possess at the quarterback position. Seattle’s Russell Wilson and San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick use their mobility to run for first downs or escape containment to make connections on downfield throws.
This is a matter of preference. Seattle coach Pete Carroll and San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh want quarterbacks who can make plays with their feet, and Fisher remains committed to Sam Bradford’s pocket-passer prototype.
In the games with Bradford at quarterback, the Rams have held their own against the 49ers and the Seahawks over the past two seasons, going 2-2-1. But keep in mind that the Rams limited the Seahawks and the 49ers to 13 points in each of the two victories.
In eight combined games against St. Louis, Wilson and Kaepernick have a passer rating of 97 and have rushed for 279 yards, 16 first downs and two touchdowns. The Rams’ two rivals have a decided advantage in the quarterback matchup.
Fisher’s foundation of physical football is a solid platform to build on. And I recognize that he’s still building, and that the Rams remain a work in progress, and that some of the Rams’ young receivers could still develop into playmakers.
Still, unless the Rams can have a more diversified attack that finds the end zone with more regularity, it’s hard to see how they’ll manage to become the dominant team in these fierce turf wars with Seattle and San Francisco.
Of course, that’s based on the assumption of the ’Niners and Seahawks maintaining recent offensive form and production.
Over the past two seasons combined, here are each team’s touchdowns from scrimmage and respective league ranking:
Seattle: 84 touchdowns, ranked sixth.
San Francisco: 79 touchdowns, tied for 11th.
St. Louis: 59 touchdowns, 27th.
(I didn’t include Arizona in the two-year look because head coach Bruce Arians didn’t take over until last season, going 10-6 in his first year. One of his first moves was to sign quarterback Carson Palmer. After scoring only 21 offensive touchdowns in 2012, the Cardinals jumped to 36 TDs in 2013. That ranked 20th.)
I really like Fisher’s latest draft and how the players fit his philosophy. But now we have to wait and see if the philosophy can lead to a run of winning records and playoff trips.
The Rams haven’t had a winning season since 2003. Fisher hasn’t won a playoff game since 2003.
That’s a long time ago.
