Rams-Cardinals Post Game Media Coverage

[RamBill]

Rams Fall to Cardinals, 27-3

By Myles Simmons

View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Rams-Fall-to-Cardinals-27-3/eb77f04a-cabc-4a43-b713-a4f4f36c0fed


ST. LOUIS -- Once again, St. Louis had a rough day offensively managing only 212 yards and nine first downs en route to a 27-3 loss to division-rival Arizona on Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome.

“It’s kind of a broken-record thing here with the offense,” head coach Jeff Fisher said after the game. “We have to get the offense fixed."

“There isn't really too much to say,” wide receiver Tavon Austin said. “Personally, I think the offense hasn't jelled yet. We have to keep on pushing and get back to practice. There's not anything else. We practice hard, we come out on Sunday and just can't put it together right now.”

The game was firmly in Arizona’s hands throughout from both an offensive and defensive standpoint. The Rams had only 82 yards and three first downs in the first half. And four of the Cardinals’ five scoring drives went for at least seven plays and 80 yards.


According to Fisher, part of the issue was the offense not sustaining drives.

“Three first downs at halftime. I think we had six to start the fourth quarter -- it doesn’t give yourself the chance to be productive or win games,” Fisher said. “Defensively, [we were] on the field way too much. Way too much. Against that kind of offense, they’re going to score points.”

“We have to worry about what [we] can control and we have to improve,” defensive end Chris Long said. “They ran the ball too much today. Twenty-seven points isn't going to do it. [We] need to be a lot better.”

Starting in place of Case Keenum, quarterback Nick Foles finished 15-for-35 with 146 yards and an interception. On the other side, quarterback Carson Palmer excelled, throwing for 356 yards and two touchdowns with 8.9 yards per attempt.

Keenum did clear the concussion protocol and was active as the backup quarterback for Sunday’s game. Fisher reiterated Keenum will be the starter next week.

“He was good enough to be a two, he just didn’t have the reps [to start]. That’s all,” Fisher said of Keenum. “I’d rather have Case at the two, because of the understanding and experience, than Sean [Mannion]. That doesn’t mean to say that Sean’s not going to get an opportunity to play down the stretch, but I’d rather have Case as a two. So we’ll go back and he’ll be our starter.”

“I’m going to do everything I can to help Case along and help him succeed out there and help this team succeed,” Foles said. “Whatever I can do to help Case with, I’m going to do, just like he’s always done for me.”


The game got off to an inauspicious start even before kickoff. With Greg Zuerlein already inactive with a right hip injury, his replacement, Zach Hocker, suffered a quad strain during pregame warmups. The result was Fisher going around the locker room and asking members of the team if they had kicked before.

“Fortunately, we didn’t have to get to that point,” Fisher said. “What we did do, however, is we kept [Hocker] warm. We had a real good feel for his distance and such for field goals and extra points. It didn’t make enough sense for him to kickoff.”

Punter Johnny Hekker ended up performing the kickoffs, and Hocker was able to hit a 35-yard field goal for the Rams’ only points. Hekker had an outstanding day punting, too, averaging 54.5 yards on eight attempts with five landing inside the 20. He also tied his career long with a 68-yard punt.

“We're hard-working guys,” Hekker said. “We have a team full of blue-collar workers and we're going to continue to grind and do what we can to put our best foot forward come next Sunday.”

The Cardinals got on the board first with a touchdown on the game’s opening drive. With Palmer and running back David Johnson leading the charge, Arizona went 80 yards in 10 plays. The Cardinals capped the drive with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Palmer to wide receiver J.J. Nelson to take an early 7-0 lead.

The two teams mainly traded punts throughout the rest of the first half, with two significant Rams sacks keeping it that way. Aaron Donald recorded one of those quarterback takedowns in the second quarter. The defensive tackle broke through the line to get to Palmer for his eighth sack of the season, bringing the signal-caller down at the St. Louis 37 for a 4-yard loss. Donald leads the team in the category.


A similar situation occurred later in the second quarter, as safety Maurice Alexander recorded his second sack of the season. Alexander came on a blitz from the left side and beat the right tackle with his speed. He then took down Palmer for a nine-yard loss to move Arizona from the St. Louis 31 to the 40 and induce a punt.

But the Cardinals got back on the board just before halftime. After a Hekker punt set the visitors up at their own 40, the Cardinals used chunk-yardage plays to quickly move into St. Louis territory. But Donald induced a holding penalty, which backed the visitors up 10 yards. From there, the Rams kept Arizona out of the end zone and went into the locker room down 10-0.

St. Louis got on the board early in the third quarter with the help of a big play from running back Todd Gurley. The rookie out of Georgia burst through a hole for a 34-yard gain to the Arizona 17 -- his longest run since his long touchdown against San Francisco. The Rams turned the red-zone opportunity into a field goal, cutting the lead to 10-3.

The ensuing drive started off well for St. Louis, as running back Kerwynn Williams fumbled the ball out of bounds at the Arizona two-yard line. But the Cardinals got off another methodical drive, highlighted by a deep ball from Palmer to Michael Floyd for 31 yards on 3rd-and-3. The next play, Johnson broke through the line for a 23-yard gain to get into St. Louis territory. Eventually, Palmer hit Johnson with a 10-yard touchdown pass on 3rd-and-8 to increase the visitors’ lead to 17-3.


It didn't take long for Arizona to find the end zone again. After a Rams three-and-out, the Cardinals got the ball back at their own 19 and found the end zone in seven plays. Williams got the handoffs on that drive, opening it up with a 15-yard gain, and closing it out with a 35-yard touchdown run. With the TD, Arizona took a commanding 24-3 lead.

In the fourth quarter, the Rams had a chance to put more points on the board but could not execute in the red zone. Foles' passes to Austin and Kenny Britt got the drive going on the right foot, and a Foles pass to Jared Cook moved the chains on 4th-and-4 at the Arizona 19. But from there, Foles threw three incomplete passes and the signal-caller’s fourth-down pass to Bradley Marquez came up four yards short of the goal line to turn the ball over on downs.

Arizona added a late field goal to go up 27-3 and close out the scoring.

“We know we have to get our stuff together -- we don't need anyone to tell us that,” Gurley said. “We're just as frustrated as the fans. We're just as frustrated as them.”

“We just have to pick our heads up,” defensive back Lamarcus Joyner said. “These guys are grown men. It's a job for us. We get paid do to what we do and we have to do what we do really good. Guys have to pick their heads up and go out there and win the next game.”

Injury-wise, Janoris Jenkins and Lance Kendricks each left the game with a concussion and will be in the protocol heading into next week.

With the loss, the Rams fall to 4-8 on the season. Their homestand continues with the Lions at the Edward Jones Dome next Sunday at Noon CT.

“We have four more games -- let's go out here and wreak havoc,” defensive tackle Michael Brockers said. “I think that's what we have to do.”

 

[RamBill]

Johnny Hekker up, Nick Foles, run defense down in Rams' loss
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...r-up-nick-foles-run-defense-down-in-rams-loss

ST. LOUIS -- A look at St. Louis Rams players who were "up" and those who were "down" in Sunday's 27-3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

UP

P Johnny Hekker -- Hekker should probably get more credit than he does for his consistent excellence working behind an abysmal Rams offense. But Hekker was in the spotlight even more Sunday because he had to handle kickoff duties with Greg Zuerlein out with a groin injury and Zach Hocker apparently tweaking his leg in pre-game warmups. Hekker punted eight times with an average of 54.5 yards and dropped five of those punts inside the 20. Not many Rams are deserving, but Hekker absolutely belongs back in the Pro Bowl.

DT Aaron Donald -- Donald gets a spot here in perpetuity, especially now with so many of his teammates failing to offer much help. But Donald was his usual, disruptive self again in this one. He had seven tackles, a sack and three quarterback hits.

DOWN

QB Nick Foles -- Foles started again because Case Keenum hadn't cleared the concussion protocol earlier in the week, and he was atrocious again, going 15-of-35 for 146 yards with no touchdowns and an interception for a passer rating of 43.3. Not that we should be surprised. Both statistically and from the eye test, the Rams are getting the worst quarterback play in the NFL.

The run defense -- It's hard to put much blame on the defense when the offense is so bad, but the Rams have had issues stopping the run in recent weeks and the Cardinals took advantage even without the services of veteran Chris Johnson. Arizona rookie David Johnson and running mate Kerwynn Williams pounded away to the tune of a combined 158 yards on 28 carries with a 35-yard touchdown from Williams to boot.

The offense -- While many of the offensive woes fall at the feet of Foles, everyone should share in the blame, including the coaching staff. The game plan remains dull and the production continues to match it. Before garbage time (the final five minutes), the Rams had just nine first downs, 207 yards and had the ball for more than 17 fewer minutes than the Cardinals.

 

[RamBill]

Rams' upset recipe nowhere to be found in latest loss to Cardinals
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...where-to-be-found-in-latest-loss-to-cardinals

ST. LOUIS -- In better days, the St. Louis Rams upset the Arizona Cardinals behind rookie running back Todd Gurley's breakthrough performance, a stingy defense that almost exclusively yielded field goals and a dominant performance in the turnover battle.

In Sunday's rematch at the Edward Jones Dome, none of those things were present, so the result was unsurprising: a 27-3 loss. For the Rams, it's their fifth consecutive defeat and their first loss to an NFC West opponent this season.

Yes, Sunday's game played out as so many have this season, with the Rams' offense flailing around with no signs of improvement to be found and the defense doing what it can to keep them in the game before capitulating. But the Rams pinned their hopes on the idea that returning to NFC West play would help right the ship.

The only way that would happen, though, would be to follow the same blueprint that led to their 24-22 win against Arizona on Oct. 4. In that game, Gurley ran for 146 yards, the Rams were plus-3 in turnover margin, and they held Arizona to one touchdown. This time, Gurley finished with 41 yards on nine carries, the Rams were minus-1 in turnover margin and the Cardinals tripled their trips to the end zone.

Perhaps lost in the Gurley-mania that followed the game was the fact that the Rams had some fortuitous bounces and calls that went their way. Absent those things, the Rams are the same team they've been for more than a month, which isn't a good thing.

What it means: At 4-8, the Rams have now guaranteed themselves a 12th consecutive season without a winning record, lost five in a row and made their incredibly slim playoff chances even slimmer. For coach Jeff Fisher, it's four successive non-winning years as coach of the Rams and his sixth straight overall.

Where Fisher stands: Sunday's loss also means that as Fisher completes his 20th full season as a head coach, he's guaranteed a 14th year without a record above .500. For frame of reference, the last coach to go four straight years without a winning record and get a fifth year was Fisher with the Titans from 1995-1998. Of coaches with a losing record (meaning no seasons even at .500) in their first four seasons, Cincinnati's David Shula was the last to get a fifth year in the early-mid-1990s. According to Elias Sports Bureau, there have been three coaches who had at least five straight full losing seasons with one team: Philadelphia's Bert Bell (1936-41), Dallas' Tom Landry (1960-64) and Washington's Bill McPeak (1961-65). Fisher also drew within one loss of Dolphins coach Don Shula for the third most losses by a head coach in NFL history at 155. Fisher has been a head coach for a little more than 20 ½ seasons. Shula coached 33 years.

Fantasy watch: There's not much in the way of fantasy value to be found for the Rams right now as Gurley was mostly bottled up, save for a 34-yard run in the third quarter. The passing game has reached such lows that it's not worth starting anyone aside from Gurley or perhaps Tavon Austin and hoping they reach the end zone.

Ouch: On the opening drive, Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins left the game to be tested for a concussion after safety T.J. McDonald whiffed on receiver Michael Floyd and hit Jenkins square. Jenkins was able to return to the game but not until after his replacements allowed a touchdown pass to receiver J.J. Nelson. In the third quarter, Jenkins ran into linebacker Mark Barron and again had to be evaluated for a concussion. This time, he did not return. Tight end Lance Kendricks also left to be evaluated for a concussion and did not return.

What's next: The Rams host the second game of a three-game homestand next Sunday as the Detroit Lions come to town after their devastating loss on Thursday night.

 

[RamBill]

Big Red run roughshod over Rams
• By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_61ab3018-1ff6-559a-a88f-1b8b3c0d16d3.html

For those scoring at home, Sunday's 27-3 loss to Arizona was a "clincher" for the St. Louis Rams.

After their fifth consecutive loss, the Rams sit at 4-8 and are now guaranteed their 12th consecutive non-winning season. Yes, as the late great announcer Jack Buck would say, that's a dozen cousin.

Even if they sweep their final four contests — and who in their right minds expects that to take place? — the best they can do is 8-8 this season.

The Rams finished the regular season 8-8 in both 2004 and 2006 — and that's the high-water mark since the 2003 squad won the NFC West title with the remnants of the Greatest Show on Turf.

No matter which way you measured it Sunday, the Cardinals (10-2) ran roughshod over the Rams with 524 yards total offense, 29 first downs, and 175 yards rushing against the once-formidable St. Louis defense.

The Rams were also non-competitive on the other side of the ball. They finished with only 212 yards of total offense; Arizona had more than that by halftime. The Rams had only three first downs at halftime, and have failed to score more than 18 points in any of their eight losses. Sunday's offensive harvest was a measly three points, on a Zach Hocker field goal in place of the injured Greg Zuerlein.

"It's not good," quarterback Nick Foles said. "It's not good."

Foles had another poor day at the office, completing a mere 42.9 percent of his passes (15 of 35) for 146 yards and a passer rating of 43.3. He threw his fourth interception in five quarters in the opening quarter at the Edward Jones Dome on an overthrown pass intended for Kenny Britt.

Coach Jeff Fisher announced after the game that Case Keenum would be his starter next week against Detroit. Keenum cleared the concussion protocol on Saturday and dressed as the team's No. 2 quarterback against the Cardinals.

"I want to be out there," Foles said. "But at the same time, I respect Coach Fisher and I'm going to do everything I can to help Case along and help him succeed out there and help this team succeed."

Foles doesn't appear to be playing with much confidence these days. In fairness, he got next to no help from his receivers against the Big Red. Several catchable passes somehow eluded tight end Jared Cook, as well as Britt and Brian Quick.

Running back Todd Gurley managed a 34-yard run in the third quarter, his first gain of more than nine yards in a month. But he otherwise found the going tough, finishing with nine carries for 41 yards.

"We have to stay positive," Gurley said. "At the end of the day, things could be a lot worse. We've still got a job, and it's the game we love. At the end of the day, whether we're in the playoffs or not, we do this for living. We love this game, so we're gonna keep going."

The Rams certainly aren't going to the playoffs this year. And if this nosedive continues, there may be more than a couple of players out of a job at the end of the year, not to mention Fisher and his staff.

"We have to get the offense fixed," Fisher said for the umpteenth time. "Three first downs at halftime, I think we had six to start the fourth quarter. It doesn't give yourself the chance to be productive or win games.

"Defensively, we're on the field way too much. Way too much. Again, that kind of offense, they're going to score points."

• REPORT CARD: Rams fail all over the field

Even though it was giving up lots of yardage to Arizona's top-ranked offense, the Rams' defense found a way to keep the game close for more than 3½ quarters.

Arizona marched 80 yards for a touchdown on its opening drive, capped by a 22-yard pass from Carson Palmer to J.J. Nelson. The Big Red then tacked on a Chandler Catanzaro field goal just before the half to take a 10-0 lead into intermission.

A long punt return by Tavon Austin, albeit one that was more than cut in half by a holding penalty, followed by Gurley's 34-yard run. That led to the Hocker field goal with 11 1/2 minutes to play in the third.

As the third quarter wound down, the Rams were still in the contest, trailing 10-3. After Kerwynn Williams fumbled out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff, the Cardinals took over on their 2. For just a moment, it looked like the Rams had a flicker of a chance to make this a wire-to-wire game.

But on third-and-3 from the Arizona 9, Big Red wide receiver Michael Floyd outleaped Janoris Jenkins on a 50-50 ball for a 31-yard gain down the right sideline. It was the kind of aggressive, contested catch that has been few and far between for Rams receivers this year.

On the next play, rookie David Johnson gained 23 yards, and just like that the Cardinals were in St. Louis territory at the 37. Johnson, making his first NFL start, scored a few plays later on a 10-yard reception from Palmer. On the play, Jenkins went for the interception, and missed, allowing Johnson to reach the end zone.

Williams, who was on the Arizona practice squad a week ago, scored late in the third quarter on a 35-yard run. Catanzaro added a fourth-quarter field goal, and that was that.

The Rams have been outscored 58-10 their last two Sundays, and simply do not look like a competitive football team.

"It hurts the same for everybody," said defensive end Chris Long, who is in the midst of his eighth consecutive losing season as a Ram. "That's losing in embarrassing fashion five games in a row. The guys in here are not happy, I can guarantee that. That doesn't make it OK. That doesn't make it OK at all."

Here are the updates posted by football writer Joe Lyons during Sunday's game:

The Arizona Cardinals exacted a bit of revenge, blowing past the Rams 27-3 Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome.

On Oct. 4, the Rams beat the Cardinals 24-22 at the University of Phoenix Stadium.

“We don't worry about what happened in the past because there's nothing we can do to change it,'' Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson said. “All that mattered today was how we played today. And we put together a great game — on offense, on defense and on special teams.''

Sunday's victory was the sixth in succession and seventh in eight games for the Cardinals, who improved to 10-2 overall while maintaining their three-game lead atop the NFC West. Arizona is now 3-0 in road games against the Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers.

Meanwhile, the Rams dropped their fifth straight game and fell to 4-8 this season. They'll next face the 4-8 Detroit Lions in a noon Sunday game at the Dome.

In the fourth quarter, the Rams drove deep into Arizona territory, reaching the Cardinals 9 on a fourth-down pass from Nick Foles to Jared Cook. After three incomplete passes, a fourth-and-goal pass from Foles to rookie Bradley Marquez was good for just five yards, allowing the Cardinals to take over on downs.

A 68-yard bomb down the right sideline from Carson Palmer to John Brown helped set up a Chandler Catanzaro field goal from 29 yards out. The field goal, with 4:09 to play, closed out the scoring in the Cardinals' 27-3 victory.

CARDS LEAD RAMS 24-3 WITH A QUARTER TO PLAY

The Rams' Tavon Austin provided a spark early in the second half with a 68-yard punt return to the Arizona 2, but the Rams were called for holding during the return, pushing the starting point for the drive to the Rams' 49. On first down, Todd Gurley broke free for a 34-yard burst to the to Cardinals' 17.

After a Gurley run for no gain and two incomplete passes, Zach Hocker booted his first field goal as a Ram. The 35-yarder with 11:30 to play in the third quarter cut the Cardinals' lead to 10-3.

The Cardinals responded with a 10-play, 98-yard drive to make it 17-3.

On a first-down play near the Rams' 15, Mark Barron knocked the ball away from Arizona's David Johnson, but defensive tackle Michael Brockers rolled out of bounds before he could gain control of the loose ball. The Rams challenged the ball but to no avail.

Two plays later, Carson Palmer threaded the needle between Rams' defenders Janoris Jenkins and Mark Barron for a 10-yard touchdown pass to David Johnson. Chandler Catanzaro's kick with 5:53 to play in the third quarter pushed the Arizona lead to 17-3.

After forcing a punt, Arizona moved 81 yards on just seven plays, stretching its lead to 24-3 when Kerwynn Williams took a draw play 35 yards. Catanzaro's kick, with 1:30 to play in the third quarter made it 24-3.

“We missed on a lot of chances early, with sacks knocking up out of field position,'' Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer said. “But we kept at it, eliminated some of the mistakes and played much better and much sharper after halftime.''

ARIZONA UP 10-0 AT THE HALF

Arizona added to its lead on its final play of the first half, going up 10-0 on a 33-yard field goal from Chandler Catanzaro with six seconds to play before the break. The kick capped an eight-play, 45-yard drive.

Some halftime numbers:

• The Cardinals have 245 yards of offense to just 82 for the Rams. St. Louis has rushed nine times for six years — an average of .70 per play.

• Nick Foles has completed 7 of 12 passes for 76 yards with an interception. Todd Gurley has seven yards on six carries. Jared Cook has two catches for 12 yards. Punter Johnny Hekker is averaging 57.2 yards on four punts.

Marcus Roberson and Janoris Jenkins have four tackles apiece.

• For Arizona, Carson Palmer has completed 14 of 23 passes for 192 yards with a 22-yard TD pass to J.J. Nelson. Making his first start, David Johnson has rushed 14 times for 66 yards. Michael Floyd has four catches for 53 yards. Larry Fitzgerald and John Brown each have three catches.

CARDINALS LEAD 7-0 AFTER ONE QUARTER

The Cardinals opened the game with a 10-play, 80-yard drive, going up 7-0 on a 22-yard pass from Carson Palmer to J.J. Nelson with 10:07 to play in the opening quarter. On the scoring play, Nelson managed to get behind defenders Lamarcus Joyner and Maurice Alexander to make the catch in the back corner of the end zone.

Highlight plays of the drive were Carson passes to Darren Fells (22 yards) and Michael Floyd (20) on a third-and-seven from near midfield.

On the drive, the Rams lost starting cornerback Janoris Jenkins when he was hit by teammate T.J. McDonald on a pass completion. Jenkins was checked for a possible concussion and returned on the next drive.

RAMS WITHOUT THREE INJURED STARTERS

In a game featuring two teams heading in different directions, the Rams (4-7) take on the Arizona Cardinals (9-2) in a noon Sunday game at the Edwards Jones Dome.

The Rams, who entered November above .500 for the first time since 2006, dropped all four contests last month. Meanwhile, the Cardinals have won five in a row and six of seven since losing 24-22 to the visiting Rams on Oct. 4.

Arizona enters Sunday's action with a three-game lead atop the NFC West. The Rams are 3-0 against division foes this season.

Both teams enter dealing with significant injuries.

Defensive end Robert Quinn, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, will sit out his third consecutive game with back issues while cornerback Trumaine Johnson (thigh) and kicker Greg Zuerlein (right hip) sit out again after missing last week's loss in Cincinnati.

DE Eugene Sims, CB Marcus Roberson, K Zach Hocker will start.

Other inactives for the Rams are quarterback Sean Mannion, offensive lineman Andrew Donnal (knee), center/guard Brian Folkerts (Hazelwood Central) and defensive lineman Ethan Westbrooks.

After passing the concussion protocol, Case Keenum is the No. 2 quarterback behind Nick Foles. Rookie tackle Isaiah Battle is dressed out for the first tine.

Chris Johnson, the Cardinals' leading rusher with 814 yards, fractured his tibia in Arizona's 19-13 win at San Francisco and is done for the season and his backup, Andre Ellington, is out with turf toe. That leaves rookie David Johnson, a third-round pick from Northern Iowa, as the primary running back. Making his first NFL start, David Johnson has rushed for 139 yards and three TDs while catching 19 passes for 241 yards and four scores this season.

The Cardinals will also be without cornerback Jerraud Powers (calf) and defensive tackle Frostee Rucker (knee). Other inactives for Arizona are defensive tackle Cory Redding (ankle), quarterback Matt Barkley, tackle D.J. Humphries and guard/tackle Earl Watford.

With the Rams' October win, the teams' series is knotted at 36-36-2.

The Rams are wearing their 1999 throwbacks — blue jerseys and gold pants. And the 50-yard line features the blue and gold helmet logo. The Cardinals are in all white with red trim.

 

[RamBill]

Ten Takeaways from the Rams’ 27-3 Loss to the Cardinals

Posted by: Randy Karraker

http://www.101sports.com/2015/12/06/ten-takeaways-rams-27-3-loss-cardinals/

Before an actual crowd of perhaps 35,000 despite 51,000 tickets being distributed, the St. Louis Rams turned in another feeble performance in a 27-3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

They’ve lost five in a row, and prospects for one more win don’t look promising. Here are ten takeaways…

1) For a normal business or sports franchise wishing to succeed in the market it inhabits, failure that leads to apathy would be an alarming thing. There’s no doubt that the St. Louis fan base has reached the point of apathy. They don’t show up at the games, and it’s completely understandable. With the threat of relocation and a terrible team, any emotion left toward the business is negative. But that’s exactly what the Rams want. The owner wants to move the team to Los Angeles, so what has happened over the last five weeks, with a five game losing streak, couldn’t be more convenient.

They’ve tried to ruin the football market, and they’ve virtually done it.

2) We heard after the Sam Bradford-Nick Foles trade that Chip Kelly had determined that he couldn’t win with Foles. Now we know what he meant. Foles continues to flounder, and following another dreadful performance on Sunday, coach Jeff Fisher announced that Case Keenum will start at quarterback again next week. Only an injured Andrew Luck has a lower completion percentage than Foles, who looks like he has no idea where the ball is going when it leaves his hand. Either he had a deal with the Devil two years ago when he threw 27 touchdowns with two interceptions, or his abilities and fundamentals have deteriorated in an extraordinary fashion.

3) During the five game losing streak, the Rams ineptness has reached astounding levels. They’ve averaged just over ten points per game, and have scored four touchdowns in the five games. How can that happen in 2015? The league’s average is 23 points per team, per game, and the average yardage is 355 per game. The Rams average 15.8 points and 296 yards. Those averages have declined over the last five games.
nick foles-10

Rams QB Nick Foles hands off the ball to RB Tre Mason in the first half of Sunday’s game. Arizona held the Rams to 66 rushing yards.

4) The Cardinals had eight plays of twenty or more yards, and the Rams had three. Todd Gurley had a 34 yard run, and Foles hit Kenny Britt for 30 yards and Tavon Austin for 24. That’s it for the Rams explosive plays. In a sport of explosive plays, Fisher’s St. Louis teams have continued to fail to evolve with the rest of the league.

5) Even Fisher admitted that the lack of offense is affecting the defense. Arizona essentially had the ball for 40 minutes to 20. “Defensively, (they were) on the field way too much. Way too much. Against that kind of offense, they’re going to score points.” And the Cardinals did, gouging the Rams for five plays of 23 or more yards after halftime.

6) With the Cardinals up 24-3 in the fourth quarter, Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer was 4-7 for 84 yards. It was 27-3 when Drew Stanton came on at QB, and he threw three passes, going 1-1 for six yards and also drawing two pass interference penalties. Think Cardinals coach Bruce Arians wants to stick it to the Rams?

7) With Trumaine Johnson out with an injury, the Rams only dressed two real cornerbacks, Marcus Roberson and Janoris Jenkins. Jenkins left the game twice, causing Lamarcus Joyner to cover one of the Cardinals outstanding receivers. Palmer was 26-40 for 356 yards and two touchdowns. The roster composition of the team doesn’t lend itself to a great deal of success if injuries hit anywhere except the defensive line.

8) Speaking of which, there’s a segment on ESPN’s College Gameday called “You had one job.” I was thinking of that segment early in the third quarter when Tavon Austin returned a punt 67 yards to the Cardinal 3 yard line, but it was called back. Chase Reynolds was called for holding and instead of having the ball at the Cardinal 3, they had it at their own 49. Chase, you’re a running back who hasn’t run a single play from scrimmage all year. You’re a special teams specialist. You had one job! And you were called for holding and cost your team at least three points, maybe seven. One job!

9) The Rams were a colossally bad 1-12 on third down. Eight percent. For the season, the Cardinals, Falcons and Saints are all at 46% for the season in third down conversions. San Francisco is 30th at 33%, and Miami is 31st at 28%. The Rams are last at 24%. 38 for 155. Amazingly bad. When your offense can’t stay on the field, the rest of the team is going to suffer. And the Rams have stayed on the field on 3rd down 38 times in twelve games. An average of three third down conversions per game.

10) I must admit I had to go to Thesaurus.com, but here are fifteen words to describe the Rams offense. Abominable, appalling, awful, disgusting, dreadful, frightful, ghastly, grim, grisly, gruesome, horrendous, horrid, odious, repulsive and terrible. There are plenty of words for this offense. After being 4-3, 4-12 looks like a distinct possibility.

There’s another word in the dictionary that means rickety or shaky. That word is Ramshackle. And you can’t spell it without R-A-M.

 

[Ballhawk]

Too many poorly coached and undisciplined guys that just play stupid. You can't win a marathon when you've shot yourself in both feet!

 

[RamBill]

Familiar woes bring familiar result for overmatched Rams
• By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_4edb3d07-c0b6-58e7-8b87-b7e2e86e4fa9.html

It’s now official. The Rams have reached the broken-record stage of the 2015 season. The offense can’t score. The team can’t win. Repeat this cycle once per week.

And this just in: The coach has run out of answers.

Last week, the answer was: “Kiss my (bleep).” To anyone questioning the team’s effort, that is.

This week? After Sunday’s 27-3 loss to Arizona, Jeff Fisher was almost at a loss for words. For weeks, reporters have asked him about what’s gone wrong — to the point where there’s almost no way left to ask the same old questions about the same old Rams.

The feeling is mutual, apparently.

“Coach is almost out of answers,” Fisher said with an air of exasperation. “My responsibility is to say, ‘Hey, I’m gonna get this thing fixed.’ I mean, we’re not efficient on offense.”

The way Fisher sees it, the Rams have too many good players on offense for that to be the case.

“We’ve got guys that can produce,” Fisher said. “We have an outstanding running back and we have a dynamic receiver. We’re starting to get a little bit better on the offensive line, and so we’ll keep working. But it has to get better. It’s not good.”

Actually, it’s much worse than “not good.” It’s awful. As awful as anything the Rams put on the field offensively under Fisher predecessors Steve Spagnuolo and Scott Linehan.

The Rams lost their fifth in a row Sunday, scoring a season-low three points and gaining a season-low 212 yards. They have been outscored 58-10 over the last two Sundays and have lost by margins of 24 points in three of the past four games.

For those scoring at home, the latest loss puts the Rams at 4-8 for the season, and guaranteed to have their 12th consecutive non-winning season. The 2004 and 2006 teams both finished 8-8 — everything else has been below .500 since the 2003 squad won the NFC West title.

The official mood of the Rams’ postgame locker room Sunday? Numb, bordering on shell-shocked.

“We’ve just gotta pick our heads up,” defensive back Lamarcus Joyner said. “We’re grown men. It’s a job for us. We get paid to do what we’re doing. ... We gotta go out there and win the next game next Sunday.”

No matter how you measured it, the Cardinals (10-2) ran roughshod over the Rams with 524 yards total offense, 29 first downs and 175 yards rushing against a once-formidable St. Louis defense.

The Rams were also non-competitive on the other side of the ball. They have failed to score more than 18 points in any of their eight losses.

“It’s not good,” quarterback Nick Foles said. “It’s not good.”

Foles had another poor day at the office, completing a mere 42.9 percent of his passes (15 for 35) for 146 yards and a 43.3 passer rating. He threw his fourth interception in two games in the opening quarter on an overthrown pass intended for Kenny Britt.

Fisher announced after the game that Case Keenum would be his starter next week against Detroit. Keenum cleared the concussion protocol Saturday and dressed as the team’s No. 2 quarterback against the Cardinals.

“I want to be out there,” Foles said. “But at the same time, I respect Coach Fisher and I’m going to do everything I can to help Case along and help him succeed out there, and help this team succeed.”

Foles isn’t playing with much confidence these days. Then again, he got next to no help from his receivers against the Big Red. Several catchable balls eluded tight end Jared Cook, as well as Britt and Brian Quick.

Running back Todd Gurley managed a 34-yard run in the third quarter, his first gain of more than 9 yards in a month. But he otherwise found the going tough, finishing with nine carries for 41 yards.

“We have to stay positive,” Gurley said. “At the end of the day, things could be a lot worse. We’ve still got a job, and it’s the game we love. At the end of the day, whether we’re in the playoffs or not, we do this for living. We love this game, so we’re gonna keep going.”

The Rams certainly aren’t going to the playoffs this year. And if this nose-dive continues, there may be more than a couple of players out of a job at the end of the season, not to mention Fisher and his staff.

“Coach Fisher has had our back,” defensive end Chris Long said. “We’ve got Coach Fisher’s back. He’s a heck of a football coach. At the end of the day, we have to make plays on the field.

“We’re far too often in position to make plays and we don’t make plays. We don’t do the little things. Just do your job. It’s not necessarily about Coach, it’s about doing your job. And it takes 11 guys to do that. We’re playing way too often where one or two guys aren’t doing that.”

Even though it was giving up lots of yardage to Arizona’s top-ranked offense, the Rams’ defense found a way to keep the game close for more than 3½ quarters. After a Zach Hocker field goal 3½ minutes into the second half, the Rams trailed by only 10-3.

(Hocker once again was replacing an injured Greg Zuerlein.)

When Kerwynn Williams fumbled out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff, the Cardinals took over on their 2. For just a moment, it looked like the Rams had a flicker of a chance to make this a wire-to-wire game.

But on third-and-3 from the Arizona 9, Big Red wide receiver Michael Floyd outleaped Janoris Jenkins on a 50-50 ball for a 31-yard gain down the right sideline. It was the kind of aggressive, contested catch that Rams receivers rarely make. At least not this year.

What became a 98-yard drive culminated in a 10-yard pass from Carson Palmer to rookie running back David Johnson. That was the back-breaker, giving Arizona a 17-3 lead with 5:53 to play in third. The way the Rams were malfunctioning on offense, it might as well have been 170-3.

“We have to get the offense fixed,” Fisher said for the umpteenth time. “Three first downs at halftime, I think we had six to start the fourth quarter. It doesn’t give yourself the chance to be productive or win games.”

No it doesn’t. But we’ve heard that over and over again.

 

[RamBill]

Lack of takeaways, Nick Foles' struggles doomed Rams vs. Arizona
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...k-foles-struggles-doomed-rams-against-arizona

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Looking back at the three things to watch from the St. Louis Rams' 27-3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday:

1. Getting the bounces: The cliche about turnovers making the difference in a game is cliche for a reason: Because it's true. In the Rams' win against Arizona back in week 4, they were plus-three in turnover margin, getting three takeaways and not giving up any of their own. It was just enough to steal a two-point victory.

St. Louis figured to need a similar margin in order to have a chance against Arizona on Sunday. Opportunities presented themselves for takeaways as linebacker Mark Barron had an interception thrown directly to him that he dropped and defensive tackle Michael Brockers was unable to recover a fumble in bounds. But ultimately, the game's only turnover came on an interception by Rams quarterback Nick Foles. Because of this, the Rams never really had a chance.

2. Red zone denials: In the first meeting, the Rams defense kept them in the game by forcing Arizona to settle for field goals instead of touchdowns when the Cardinals traveled inside the Rams' 20-yard line. The Cardinals had just one touchdown on five such trips in that meeting, allowing the Rams to keep it close enough to finish the job.

Sunday's game had all the makings of a repeat early before being on the field for most of the game finally caught up to the Rams. Arizona finished with two touchdowns on four red zone trips but with the state of the Rams' offense, two touchdowns was more than enough for the game to be over.

3. A Foles repeat: If there was some silver lining to be found in Foles returning to the starting quarterback job this week with Case Keenum still in the concussion protocol, it was to be found in the fact that Foles had played one of his two best games earlier this season against Arizona. In that game, Foles managed things well with zero turnovers and three touchdown passes.

To get another win against the Cardinals, the Rams needed Foles to offer another strong performance. It didn't happen -- not even close. Foles was 15-of-35 for 146 yards with no touchdowns and an interception on Sunday for a passer rating of 43.3. It wasn't his worst start of the season, but it wasn't far behind his struggles in the loss to Green Bay.