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Don't look now, but Rams have chance to contend
• By Joe Strauss
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_d7c86c8e-d1f9-5396-9f7d-225c1c5d0752.html
Warning: Your trusted correspondent may be reporting today from the intersection of Pollyanna & Naivete, located within an easy walk of The Yellow Brick Road.
Whenever conversation turns to the Rams and relevance within the NFC West, consumers reflexively check their wallets, their sanity or the ties between the club and media outlet offering such propaganda. This is, after all, one of only two NFL franchises seeking its first winning season since 2003 and the only member of its division not to see the playoffs within the last three years.
But still ...
The Rams exit a bye week staring Opportunity in the face.
Yes, they are a pedestrian 2-3 in possession of the league’s lowest-ranked offense.
Yes, at last glance quarterback Nick Foles was throwing four interceptions behind a porous line in a surprisingly winnable game at Green Bay.
Yet this season’s NFC West offers a different dynamic: a 2-4 defending conference champion in Seattle embarrassingly unable to hold a fourth-quarter lead, a vulnerable rebuilding team in San Francisco suddenly skeptical of its franchise quarterback, and a division leader the Rams defeated in the Arizona desert two-plus weeks ago. The NFC West carries an abysmal 3-9 road record, with the Seahawks responsible for three losses.
Whether the Rams are making progress will be determined in their next five games against an ordinary grouping consisting of Cleveland, San Francisco, Minnesota, Chicago and Baltimore. The fivesome enters the weekend 10-19, a significant comedown from the 18-12 bunch the locals already have faced.
“It’s an opportunity. But every week in this league represents an opportunity,” said linebacker James Laurinaitis following Tuesday’s practice at Earth City. “You really can’t afford to look at games as a group. Each week is its own challenge.”
Laurinaitis has been on campus since 2009. The leading tackler in franchise history has never experienced anything better than a 7-8-1 season here. He’s been around long enough to hear the preseason happy talk followed by fits of inconsistency. He’s enjoyed three home wins the last four seasons against the Seahawks and a 4-1-1 division record in 2012 but stewed over lapses in seemingly more favorable match-ups.
“We’re hardly in a position where we can assume a win over anybody,” he said. “There are probably teams that still view us that way.”
The Rams possess a top 10 defense. They rank as the league’s best first-down offense; however, they’re confounding on third down, the opposite of a Browns team that labors early in possessions but is among the league’s most prolific on third down. Asked about the road ahead, coach Jeff Fisher moves away from the long view. His team hasn’t won three straight since 2012. It followed up a season-opening home overtime win over Seattle with a jarring loss at Washington, where the Rams were favored.
Fisher likes Foles, imported from Philadelphia for his efficiency but coming off the worst single-game passer rating (23.8) of a four-year career.
He likes the impact wrought by rookie rusher Todd Gurley, who ranks eighth among NFL rushers despite starting only twice. Gurley is the only NFC back who has twice rushed for more than 145 yards. Fisher would like it a bit more, however, if a young offensive line more quickly congealed. No Rams receiver has amassed more than 169 yards. The league counts 43 receivers with at least 300 yards, including five who have at least matched tight end Jared Cook’s team-high yardage total with a single game.
Fisher’s first Rams team found itself 6-6 after 12 games and entered that season’s last game with a mathematical chance at making the playoffs. A winning record the next five weeks could re-energize a fan base tired of the tease.
Consider: Through five games the Rams have encountered three of the NFC’s top five defenses and the AFC’s second-best pass defense (Pittsburgh). Of the next five opponents, only the Chicago Bears’ defense ranks among its conference’s top half. The 49ers statistically rank as the league’s second-worst pass deterrent; the Browns enter the Edward Jones Dome Sunday as the NFL’s worst rush defense.
The Rams have been outscored 37-7 in the first quarter, hardly a recipe for success. If the trend continues this weekend at home, concerns should mount. But one would think a team with fresh running legs and a dangerous pass rush should expose a pass-happy team that has surrendered 22 sacks. Their next five opponents sport a minus-142 point differential compared to the previous five’s plus-176.
But Fisher has seen all this before. His team has ambushed Indianapolis, New Orleans and Denver when those teams were dominant and folded at Washington, Miami and New York when those clubs were anything but.
“You have to go week to week in this league. You have to,” said Fisher, citing the heavy percentage of games decided every Sunday by a single possession. For example, only 16 points total separate the Browns from its last four opponents. “It’s just the way the league is. The differences week to week are often so small that every team represents its own challenge.”
If not for a double-digit fourth-quarter rally against Seattle, the Rams might be 1-4.
If not for their inability to score a touchdown in a 12-6 loss to Pittsburgh, they might be 3-2.
These Rams remain young but may not be classified as inexperienced, especially on defense. First-year offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti has better incorporated former first-round pick Tavon Austin into the scheme. The next several weeks will show whether the season-ending loss of veteran right guard Rodger Saffold (shoulder) is crippling or an inconvenience.
Success comes with a cost in the NFL. Salary cap constraints eventually invade every successful locker room. Intrigue may be part of the price the Seahawks are paying for their epic Super Bowl fail against New England. The 4-2 Cardinals still carry a burden of proof as they’ve so far enjoyed a soft-serve schedule.
The NFC West has become a softer, more vulnerable neighborhood. The Rams, still as capable of frustrating as they are of shocking, now resemble a team that could go either direction, a decided upgrade over those days when they lived on a one-way, gravel road pointed toward a December cul-de-sac.
• By Joe Strauss
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_d7c86c8e-d1f9-5396-9f7d-225c1c5d0752.html
Warning: Your trusted correspondent may be reporting today from the intersection of Pollyanna & Naivete, located within an easy walk of The Yellow Brick Road.
Whenever conversation turns to the Rams and relevance within the NFC West, consumers reflexively check their wallets, their sanity or the ties between the club and media outlet offering such propaganda. This is, after all, one of only two NFL franchises seeking its first winning season since 2003 and the only member of its division not to see the playoffs within the last three years.
But still ...
The Rams exit a bye week staring Opportunity in the face.
Yes, they are a pedestrian 2-3 in possession of the league’s lowest-ranked offense.
Yes, at last glance quarterback Nick Foles was throwing four interceptions behind a porous line in a surprisingly winnable game at Green Bay.
Yet this season’s NFC West offers a different dynamic: a 2-4 defending conference champion in Seattle embarrassingly unable to hold a fourth-quarter lead, a vulnerable rebuilding team in San Francisco suddenly skeptical of its franchise quarterback, and a division leader the Rams defeated in the Arizona desert two-plus weeks ago. The NFC West carries an abysmal 3-9 road record, with the Seahawks responsible for three losses.
Whether the Rams are making progress will be determined in their next five games against an ordinary grouping consisting of Cleveland, San Francisco, Minnesota, Chicago and Baltimore. The fivesome enters the weekend 10-19, a significant comedown from the 18-12 bunch the locals already have faced.
“It’s an opportunity. But every week in this league represents an opportunity,” said linebacker James Laurinaitis following Tuesday’s practice at Earth City. “You really can’t afford to look at games as a group. Each week is its own challenge.”
Laurinaitis has been on campus since 2009. The leading tackler in franchise history has never experienced anything better than a 7-8-1 season here. He’s been around long enough to hear the preseason happy talk followed by fits of inconsistency. He’s enjoyed three home wins the last four seasons against the Seahawks and a 4-1-1 division record in 2012 but stewed over lapses in seemingly more favorable match-ups.
“We’re hardly in a position where we can assume a win over anybody,” he said. “There are probably teams that still view us that way.”
The Rams possess a top 10 defense. They rank as the league’s best first-down offense; however, they’re confounding on third down, the opposite of a Browns team that labors early in possessions but is among the league’s most prolific on third down. Asked about the road ahead, coach Jeff Fisher moves away from the long view. His team hasn’t won three straight since 2012. It followed up a season-opening home overtime win over Seattle with a jarring loss at Washington, where the Rams were favored.
Fisher likes Foles, imported from Philadelphia for his efficiency but coming off the worst single-game passer rating (23.8) of a four-year career.
He likes the impact wrought by rookie rusher Todd Gurley, who ranks eighth among NFL rushers despite starting only twice. Gurley is the only NFC back who has twice rushed for more than 145 yards. Fisher would like it a bit more, however, if a young offensive line more quickly congealed. No Rams receiver has amassed more than 169 yards. The league counts 43 receivers with at least 300 yards, including five who have at least matched tight end Jared Cook’s team-high yardage total with a single game.
Fisher’s first Rams team found itself 6-6 after 12 games and entered that season’s last game with a mathematical chance at making the playoffs. A winning record the next five weeks could re-energize a fan base tired of the tease.
Consider: Through five games the Rams have encountered three of the NFC’s top five defenses and the AFC’s second-best pass defense (Pittsburgh). Of the next five opponents, only the Chicago Bears’ defense ranks among its conference’s top half. The 49ers statistically rank as the league’s second-worst pass deterrent; the Browns enter the Edward Jones Dome Sunday as the NFL’s worst rush defense.
The Rams have been outscored 37-7 in the first quarter, hardly a recipe for success. If the trend continues this weekend at home, concerns should mount. But one would think a team with fresh running legs and a dangerous pass rush should expose a pass-happy team that has surrendered 22 sacks. Their next five opponents sport a minus-142 point differential compared to the previous five’s plus-176.
But Fisher has seen all this before. His team has ambushed Indianapolis, New Orleans and Denver when those teams were dominant and folded at Washington, Miami and New York when those clubs were anything but.
“You have to go week to week in this league. You have to,” said Fisher, citing the heavy percentage of games decided every Sunday by a single possession. For example, only 16 points total separate the Browns from its last four opponents. “It’s just the way the league is. The differences week to week are often so small that every team represents its own challenge.”
If not for a double-digit fourth-quarter rally against Seattle, the Rams might be 1-4.
If not for their inability to score a touchdown in a 12-6 loss to Pittsburgh, they might be 3-2.
These Rams remain young but may not be classified as inexperienced, especially on defense. First-year offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti has better incorporated former first-round pick Tavon Austin into the scheme. The next several weeks will show whether the season-ending loss of veteran right guard Rodger Saffold (shoulder) is crippling or an inconvenience.
Success comes with a cost in the NFL. Salary cap constraints eventually invade every successful locker room. Intrigue may be part of the price the Seahawks are paying for their epic Super Bowl fail against New England. The 4-2 Cardinals still carry a burden of proof as they’ve so far enjoyed a soft-serve schedule.
The NFC West has become a softer, more vulnerable neighborhood. The Rams, still as capable of frustrating as they are of shocking, now resemble a team that could go either direction, a decided upgrade over those days when they lived on a one-way, gravel road pointed toward a December cul-de-sac.
:seizure::effemine: