Rams at Cardinals: 1st and Five From the Arizona Loss

[STL-Rams]

Rams at Cardinals: First and 5 From the Arizona Loss

First...
While the St. Louis Rams once again found a way to lose a game late, the Arizona Cardinals showed why they are the NFL's best at closing out games, turning on the turbo in the final period to soundly defeat the Rams 31-14.

It doesn't hardly seem possible now, but St. Louis was still leading 14-10 at the eight minute mark of the fourth quarter. From then on, however, it was all Arizona -- as the Rams were outscored 21-0 over the final 7:49.

St. Louis was rolling along nicely well into the fourth period until an erroneous illegal block call against tight end Lance Kendricks knocked the Rams out of scoring range and ultimately altered the game's momentum.

Of course, the best teams tend to find a way to overcome poor officiating. St. Louis, though, is among the league's youngest club's for a third consecutive campaign and certainly not yet one of the NFL's upper echelon squads at 3-6.

In looking back at the incredible turn of events that followed that ill-fated flag, it is hard to deny that it was not in fact a game-changing infraction.

Did it have to be a critical turning point in the action? No, of course not. But did it end up being something that significantly impacted the affair, nonetheless? Yes, it absolutely did.

It is a shame that the NFL's officiating this season, in Rams games at least, has been officially offensive.

And 5...
1. The Cardinals entered week 10 action with the second best turnover differential in the NFL at +10. Without having the benefit of a high potency offense or defense-- just fourteenth in the league on either side of the ball entering the Rams contest -- Arizona's ability to win the turnover battle has been a critical key to their success.

​

Against St. Louis, the Big Red bettered their season's turnover differencial by finishing +2 and now stand tied with the Patriots for the league's best rate in the category at +12.

Good teams with good records typically win the turnover battle. Decades of statistical data offers undeniable proof in that regard.

On the other hand, lesser teams like the Rams usually struggle in relation to this stat. Thus, it is no surprise to see St. Louis at -5 in regard to the giveaway/takeaway numbers through the fall's first nine games.

2. It was a tale of two halves for St. Louis and quartback Austin Davis.

(For much more on Austin Davis, the defense, the physicality and potential of the Rams secondary and the steal that was/is E.J. Gaines, please check full read below. Thanks for all the great support, ROD):

http://www.insidestl.com/insideSTLc...dinals-First-and-5-From-the-Arizona-Loss.aspx

 

[Alan]

Can't find the link to your site Shane. You forgot to include the below part.

First and 5? Must have been an off sides penalty eh? I warned you about that box didn't I? Good save though.

Good stuff Shane (what I've read of it so far). I like that "It is a shame that the NFL's officiating this season, in Rams games at least, has been officially offensive." part. Do you know what kind of action the NFL/NFL Referees Association takes when there are repeated bad calls? Do they have to take an in season refresher course or what? Their mistakes this year seem to be especially egregious.

Then there's this, which makes it seem like no one knows what they're doing. Pathetic.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...iation-at-odds-with-league-office-over-calls/
NFL Referees Association at odds with league office over calls
Posted by Michael David Smith on October 2, 2014, 4:32 PM EST

AP
The NFL Referees Association, which represents the on-field officials, is hitting back at the league after two high-profile calls were described as incorrect by the league office.

According to the Referees Association, both of the two calls in question — an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Hussain Abdullah for sliding to the ground in prayer after a touchdown, and a hit on Philadelphia’s Nick Foles by Washington’s Chris Baker — were graded as correct by the officiating department. Those grades were given despite the league office announcing publicly, in both cases, that the calls were wrong.

“In the last two weeks, two penalties that were called in games that drew national attention were publicly announced to be in error by the League office, however the Officiating Department later graded the calls as correct. This has caused confusion for NFL officials as to what the League does and doesn’t want called,” the Referees Association said in a statement.

The flag on Baker, which precipitated a fracas on the field, was criticized by NFL executive V.P. of football operations Troy Vincent, who said, “Baker didn’t do anything wrong with that hit.” But the Referees Association says the official who threw that flag was told the next day that he got the call right.

The flag on Abdullah, a Muslim, had the potential to become a major controversy about religious discrimination in the NFL, as Christian players routinely pray in the end zone without getting flagged. The NFL quickly released a statement saying Abdullah should not have been flagged for his end zone prayer, as players are permitted to make religious expressions after scoring touchdowns. But the Referees Association says Abdullah was correctly flagged for sliding onto his knees, not for praying.

“The player was flagged, correctly, for the slide on his knees in the end zone, not for going to the ground in a prayerful gesture,” said former ref Scott Green in the Referees Association’s statement. “On field officials are aware of the prayer provision and respect the right of players of all faiths to express themselves.”

If the league office is telling the officials that they got a call right, while telling players, coaches and the public that the call was wrong, that’s a big problem. The NFL needs to clear this up.

 

[STL-Rams]

Can't find the link to your site Shane. You forgot to include the below part.

First and 5? Must have been an off sides penalty eh? I warned you about that box didn't I? Good save though.

Good stuff Shane (what I've read of it so far). I like that "It is a shame that the NFL's officiating this season, in Rams games at least, has been officially offensive." part. Do you know what kind of action the NFL/NFL Referees Association takes when there are repeated bad calls? Do they have to take an in season refresher course or what? Their mistakes this year seem to be especially egregious.

Then there's this, which makes it seem like no one knows what they're doing. Pathetic.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...iation-at-odds-with-league-office-over-calls/
NFL Referees Association at odds with league office over calls
Posted by Michael David Smith on October 2, 2014, 4:32 PM EST

AP
The NFL Referees Association, which represents the on-field officials, is hitting back at the league after two high-profile calls were described as incorrect by the league office.

According to the Referees Association, both of the two calls in question — an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Hussain Abdullah for sliding to the ground in prayer after a touchdown, and a hit on Philadelphia’s Nick Foles by Washington’s Chris Baker — were graded as correct by the officiating department. Those grades were given despite the league office announcing publicly, in both cases, that the calls were wrong.

“In the last two weeks, two penalties that were called in games that drew national attention were publicly announced to be in error by the League office, however the Officiating Department later graded the calls as correct. This has caused confusion for NFL officials as to what the League does and doesn’t want called,” the Referees Association said in a statement.

The flag on Baker, which precipitated a fracas on the field, was criticized by NFL executive V.P. of football operations Troy Vincent, who said, “Baker didn’t do anything wrong with that hit.” But the Referees Association says the official who threw that flag was told the next day that he got the call right.

The flag on Abdullah, a Muslim, had the potential to become a major controversy about religious discrimination in the NFL, as Christian players routinely pray in the end zone without getting flagged. The NFL quickly released a statement saying Abdullah should not have been flagged for his end zone prayer, as players are permitted to make religious expressions after scoring touchdowns. But the Referees Association says Abdullah was correctly flagged for sliding onto his knees, not for praying.

“The player was flagged, correctly, for the slide on his knees in the end zone, not for going to the ground in a prayerful gesture,” said former ref Scott Green in the Referees Association’s statement. “On field officials are aware of the prayer provision and respect the right of players of all faiths to express themselves.”

If the league office is telling the officials that they got a call right, while telling players, coaches and the public that the call was wrong, that’s a big problem. The NFL needs to clear this up.

Alan, I added the link at the bottom (after forgetting it upon original post. Sorry about that. I hope you will enjoy the full read this time

 

[Mojo Ram]

Can't find the link to your site Shane. You forgot to include the below part.

First and 5? Must have been an off sides penalty eh? I warned you about that box didn't I? Good save though.

Good stuff Shane (what I've read of it so far). I like that "It is a shame that the NFL's officiating this season, in Rams games at least, has been officially offensive." part. Do you know what kind of action the NFL/NFL Referees Association takes when there are repeated bad calls? Do they have to take an in season refresher course or what? Their mistakes this year seem to be especially egregious.

Then there's this, which makes it seem like no one knows what they're doing. Pathetic.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...iation-at-odds-with-league-office-over-calls/
NFL Referees Association at odds with league office over calls
Posted by Michael David Smith on October 2, 2014, 4:32 PM EST

AP
The NFL Referees Association, which represents the on-field officials, is hitting back at the league after two high-profile calls were described as incorrect by the league office.

According to the Referees Association, both of the two calls in question — an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Hussain Abdullah for sliding to the ground in prayer after a touchdown, and a hit on Philadelphia’s Nick Foles by Washington’s Chris Baker — were graded as correct by the officiating department. Those grades were given despite the league office announcing publicly, in both cases, that the calls were wrong.

“In the last two weeks, two penalties that were called in games that drew national attention were publicly announced to be in error by the League office, however the Officiating Department later graded the calls as correct. This has caused confusion for NFL officials as to what the League does and doesn’t want called,” the Referees Association said in a statement.

The flag on Baker, which precipitated a fracas on the field, was criticized by NFL executive V.P. of football operations Troy Vincent, who said, “Baker didn’t do anything wrong with that hit.” But the Referees Association says the official who threw that flag was told the next day that he got the call right.

The flag on Abdullah, a Muslim, had the potential to become a major controversy about religious discrimination in the NFL, as Christian players routinely pray in the end zone without getting flagged. The NFL quickly released a statement saying Abdullah should not have been flagged for his end zone prayer, as players are permitted to make religious expressions after scoring touchdowns. But the Referees Association says Abdullah was correctly flagged for sliding onto his knees, not for praying.

“The player was flagged, correctly, for the slide on his knees in the end zone, not for going to the ground in a prayerful gesture,” said former ref Scott Green in the Referees Association’s statement. “On field officials are aware of the prayer provision and respect the right of players of all faiths to express themselves.”

If the league office is telling the officials that they got a call right, while telling players, coaches and the public that the call was wrong, that’s a big problem. The NFL needs to clear this up.

Meanwhile...Rodger Goodell has been as quiet as a mouse since the Ray Rice video scandal and subsequent "investigation."

 

[Alan]

Mojo Ram noticing the high quality leadership and job performance of Goodell:
Meanwhile...Rodger Goodell has been as quiet as a mouse since the Ray Rice video scandal and subsequent "investigation."

They spend every bit of their organizational money and time doing one thing, trying to make more money. I hope Mark Cuban is right about the potential fall from grace his "leadership" might cause.

I can't think of a single thing the NFL has been on the right side of without being forced.
Retired players pensions. No.
Retired players health benefits. No.
Domestic abuse. No.
Refereeing. No.
Concussions. No.
Derogatory names of teams. No.
Forcing teams to play in England. No.
HGH testing. No.
PED testing. No.
Spygate. No.
Plus more I can't remember.

 

[STL-Rams]

Meanwhile...Rodger Goodell has been as quiet as a mouse since the Ray Rice video scandal and subsequent "investigation."

He certainly has been very, very quiet of late on a myriad of issues.

 

[Rambitious1]

Rams at Cardinals: First and 5 From the Arizona Loss

First...
While the St. Louis Rams once again found a way to lose a game late, the Arizona Cardinals showed why they are the NFL's best at closing out games, turning on the turbo in the final period to soundly defeat the Rams 31-14.

It doesn't hardly seem possible now, but St. Louis was still leading 14-10 at the eight minute mark of the fourth quarter. From then on, however, it was all Arizona -- as the Rams were outscored 21-0 over the final 7:49.

St. Louis was rolling along nicely well into the fourth period until an erroneous illegal block call against tight end Lance Kendricks knocked the Rams out of scoring range and ultimately altered the game's momentum.

Of course, the best teams tend to find a way to overcome poor officiating. St. Louis, though, is among the league's youngest club's for a third consecutive campaign and certainly not yet one of the NFL's upper echelon squads at 3-6.

In looking back at the incredible turn of events that followed that ill-fated flag, it is hard to deny that it was not in fact a game-changing infraction.

Did it have to be a critical turning point in the action? No, of course not. But did it end up being something that significantly impacted the affair, nonetheless? Yes, it absolutely did.

It is a shame that the NFL's officiating this season, in Rams games at least, has been officially offensive.

And 5...
1. The Cardinals entered week 10 action with the second best turnover differential in the NFL at +10. Without having the benefit of a high potency offense or defense-- just fourteenth in the league on either side of the ball entering the Rams contest -- Arizona's ability to win the turnover battle has been a critical key to their success.

​

Against St. Louis, the Big Red bettered their season's turnover differencial by finishing +2 and now stand tied with the Patriots for the league's best rate in the category at +12.

Good teams with good records typically win the turnover battle. Decades of statistical data offers undeniable proof in that regard.

On the other hand, lesser teams like the Rams usually struggle in relation to this stat. Thus, it is no surprise to see St. Louis at -5 in regard to the giveaway/takeaway numbers through the fall's first nine games.

2. It was a tale of two halves for St. Louis and quartback Austin Davis.

(For much more on Austin Davis, the defense, the physicality and potential of the Rams secondary and the steal that was/is E.J. Gaines, please check full read below. Thanks for all the great support, ROD):

http://www.insidestl.com/insideSTLc...dinals-First-and-5-From-the-Arizona-Loss.aspx

Hi Shane,

Very good article. Always a good read my friend.
I know the QB situation is the biggest issue that needs addressing in the off-season; however I am also concerned about the interior of the O Line.
We continually lack push in the run game and allow A gap pressure on our QB when passing.
So my question is; do you hear of, or sense any likelihood to address this issue in the off-season?

 

[STL-Rams]

Hi Shane,

Very good article. Always a good read my friend.
I know the QB situation is the biggest issue that needs addressing in the off-season; however I am also concerned about the interior of the O Line.
We continually lack push in the run game and allow A gap pressure on our QB when passing.
So my question is; do you hear of, or sense any likelihood to address this issue in the off-season?

Thanks for the kind words my friend.

I believe they will certainly address a guard spot with Robinson almost assuredly moving to left tackle long term. And although they like their depth at center, I doubt Wells will be back and I think they may look closely at options at center as well.

 

[CGI_Ram]

Great read. All of it.

But 3, 4, and 5... Absolutely !!!