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http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_6732b38b-0f44-5937-a1f8-3deeb9521aab.html
GLENDALE, Ariz. • The Rams’ Sunday in the desert could best be described as not-so-fun with numbers. For example, the Rams managed more penalties on the afternoon than they had players on the field on a fourth-quarter punt.
The comparison is especially hurtful when one realizes the Rams had 11 penalties.
A team that couldn’t run, couldn’t protect its quarterback and ultimately couldn’t properly line up to kick the ball away suffered its second abominable loss in as many weeks, this time 30-10 to the Arizona Cardinals, a team that has intercepted the Rams’ label as NFC team on the rise.
The Rams (5-8) left Arizona knowing this won’t be a winning season and once again they’ll be home for New Year’s. NFL playoff math has become a lost art in St. Louis. And after watching the San Francisco 49ers and Cardinals smother them in consecutive weeks, it’s fair to wonder whether the Rams are now losing ground within their division. The measure the Rams used to explain progress in 2012 now resembles a millstone to their 2013.
There is no masking or minimizing what happened Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium. On a day when a number of Big Red alumni convened for a reunion, Sunday’s thrashing further exposed the Rams within a division they knocked around for a 4-1-1 mark last season. If success in 2012 against the Cardinals, 49ers and Seattle Seahawks offered some sort of encouraging barometer for the future, what are we to make of this season’s 1-4 record against an even more muscular NFC West?
“If you’re going to do anything in this league you’ve got to win football games in your division, and we haven’t done that this year,” coach Jeff Fisher acknowledged during a nine-question postgame presser.
REPORT CARD: BAD GAME, BAD GRADES
The Rams have been outscored 102-43 in their four division losses. Their three rivals boast top 10 defenses. The Cardinals, long a league-wide punch line, have won five of their last six. The Rams are assured their 10th consecutive non-winning season. Yes, the Rams are young. But that’s no excuse for committing 11 penalties for a second straight week.
“It’s extremely frustrating to me. Quite frankly I don’t know if it’s a yellow or red flag but it’s something you better pay attention to,” said middle linebacker James Laurinaitis. “It’s a shot in the gut. Last year we made a statement in our division. ... You want to be great in your division. Frankly, this year we’ve been pretty poor there.”
Before continuing, let us concede the heightened degree of difficulty caused by quarterback Sam Bradford’s absence. But also remember the Rams pounded the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears by a combined 51 points behind backup Kellen Clemens in consecutive November games.
The Rams lost to the Niners by 24 at home with Bradford on Sept. 26. They lost to the defending NFC champions by 10 at Candlestick Park eight days ago.
The Rams’ offense has mustered five touchdowns in five division games, two coming in the opener.
Taking into account Bradford’s Week 1 Pick Six and Clemens’ similar mistake two plays into Sunday’s second half, the Rams’ offense has produced a net three touchdowns. Sunday also witnessed a third-quarter safety.
An axiom holds that division match-ups equate to “1 1/2 games.” When a team elevates itself, it depresses a rival. This year it’s the Rams who could use a mood lifter.
An organization builds a team to compete within its division. At present, the Rams appear disturbingly removed from accomplishing that goal. They haven’t won a division game in three months since rallying to beat the Cardinals in their Sept. 8 season opener at the Edward Jones Dome. They get one more shot in Seattle in the season finale.
In their four divisional losses the Rams have produced three touchdowns on 52 offensive possessions. They’ve committed seven turnovers in the same span.
Held to three field goals in a 14-9 loss to the Seahawks on Oct. 28, the Rams managed a meaningless touchdown against Niners reserves in the final minute of a Dec. 1 defeat. (Meaningless, that is, unless your interest included the 10 1/2-point spread. ) The Rams scored on the first play of Sunday’s fourth quarter as a follow-up to Tavon Austin’s 56-yard sprint to the Cardinals’ 3.
Sunday’s task was complicated by the Rams starting none of their first eight drives beyond their own 25, three within their own 10. They went three-and-out — or worse — on their first seven second-half drives. The Cardinals, conversely, produced a first down on every possession before taking a knee to end the game. The Rams helped the home team’s cause with seven defensive penalties a week after committing six in the first half at San Francisco.
“I know we play emotional and play on the edge,” said defensive end Chris Long. “And some of (the penalties) are up for debate as to whether they’re legitimate. But it is an issue.”
Offensive lineman Roger Saffold insisted the Rams don’t use others to measure themselves. “We set our own bar.”
The Rams now describe their primary goal as “getting better.” It sounds a bit nebulous for a team that continues to fight the same maddening tendencies Fisher promised would fade after the preseason. The Rams commit too many penalties and remain inconsistent in their secondary. When a team negates the Rams’ pass rush as the Cardinals did Sunday, this defense is quickly exposed.
“Each year is different. I’ve been part of some teams that get mathematically eliminated from the playoffs and guys checked out,” said Laurinaitis, who took the floor during a brief postgame team meeting. “What’s important for us as a young team ... there’s no checking out.”
Most maddening is that after a 5-11 season the Cardinals have become what the Rams promised. Quarterback Carson Palmer’s arrival has meshed well with a ferocious defense. Inside linebacker Karlos Dansby intercepted Clemens for a touchdown and later leveled him with a blindside hit. Outside linebacker John Abraham was in the Rams’ backfield almost as much as Zac Stacy. Palmer missed on only five of 32 pass attempts. The Cardinals took 17 more snaps and converted 11 more first downs.
“There are some things that are hard for me to understand, for lack of a better word,” Long said. “We just got beat bad today. We made a lot of mistakes today. There were flags all over the place.”
“It’s frustrating to be fourth (in the division) right now,” Laurinaitis said. “We had much bigger dreams for the season. Quite frankly, with the talent we have on this roster we’re not playing well enough.”
GLENDALE, Ariz. • The Rams’ Sunday in the desert could best be described as not-so-fun with numbers. For example, the Rams managed more penalties on the afternoon than they had players on the field on a fourth-quarter punt.
The comparison is especially hurtful when one realizes the Rams had 11 penalties.
A team that couldn’t run, couldn’t protect its quarterback and ultimately couldn’t properly line up to kick the ball away suffered its second abominable loss in as many weeks, this time 30-10 to the Arizona Cardinals, a team that has intercepted the Rams’ label as NFC team on the rise.
The Rams (5-8) left Arizona knowing this won’t be a winning season and once again they’ll be home for New Year’s. NFL playoff math has become a lost art in St. Louis. And after watching the San Francisco 49ers and Cardinals smother them in consecutive weeks, it’s fair to wonder whether the Rams are now losing ground within their division. The measure the Rams used to explain progress in 2012 now resembles a millstone to their 2013.
There is no masking or minimizing what happened Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium. On a day when a number of Big Red alumni convened for a reunion, Sunday’s thrashing further exposed the Rams within a division they knocked around for a 4-1-1 mark last season. If success in 2012 against the Cardinals, 49ers and Seattle Seahawks offered some sort of encouraging barometer for the future, what are we to make of this season’s 1-4 record against an even more muscular NFC West?
“If you’re going to do anything in this league you’ve got to win football games in your division, and we haven’t done that this year,” coach Jeff Fisher acknowledged during a nine-question postgame presser.
REPORT CARD: BAD GAME, BAD GRADES
The Rams have been outscored 102-43 in their four division losses. Their three rivals boast top 10 defenses. The Cardinals, long a league-wide punch line, have won five of their last six. The Rams are assured their 10th consecutive non-winning season. Yes, the Rams are young. But that’s no excuse for committing 11 penalties for a second straight week.
“It’s extremely frustrating to me. Quite frankly I don’t know if it’s a yellow or red flag but it’s something you better pay attention to,” said middle linebacker James Laurinaitis. “It’s a shot in the gut. Last year we made a statement in our division. ... You want to be great in your division. Frankly, this year we’ve been pretty poor there.”
Before continuing, let us concede the heightened degree of difficulty caused by quarterback Sam Bradford’s absence. But also remember the Rams pounded the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears by a combined 51 points behind backup Kellen Clemens in consecutive November games.
The Rams lost to the Niners by 24 at home with Bradford on Sept. 26. They lost to the defending NFC champions by 10 at Candlestick Park eight days ago.
The Rams’ offense has mustered five touchdowns in five division games, two coming in the opener.
Taking into account Bradford’s Week 1 Pick Six and Clemens’ similar mistake two plays into Sunday’s second half, the Rams’ offense has produced a net three touchdowns. Sunday also witnessed a third-quarter safety.
An axiom holds that division match-ups equate to “1 1/2 games.” When a team elevates itself, it depresses a rival. This year it’s the Rams who could use a mood lifter.
An organization builds a team to compete within its division. At present, the Rams appear disturbingly removed from accomplishing that goal. They haven’t won a division game in three months since rallying to beat the Cardinals in their Sept. 8 season opener at the Edward Jones Dome. They get one more shot in Seattle in the season finale.
In their four divisional losses the Rams have produced three touchdowns on 52 offensive possessions. They’ve committed seven turnovers in the same span.
Held to three field goals in a 14-9 loss to the Seahawks on Oct. 28, the Rams managed a meaningless touchdown against Niners reserves in the final minute of a Dec. 1 defeat. (Meaningless, that is, unless your interest included the 10 1/2-point spread. ) The Rams scored on the first play of Sunday’s fourth quarter as a follow-up to Tavon Austin’s 56-yard sprint to the Cardinals’ 3.
Sunday’s task was complicated by the Rams starting none of their first eight drives beyond their own 25, three within their own 10. They went three-and-out — or worse — on their first seven second-half drives. The Cardinals, conversely, produced a first down on every possession before taking a knee to end the game. The Rams helped the home team’s cause with seven defensive penalties a week after committing six in the first half at San Francisco.
“I know we play emotional and play on the edge,” said defensive end Chris Long. “And some of (the penalties) are up for debate as to whether they’re legitimate. But it is an issue.”
Offensive lineman Roger Saffold insisted the Rams don’t use others to measure themselves. “We set our own bar.”
The Rams now describe their primary goal as “getting better.” It sounds a bit nebulous for a team that continues to fight the same maddening tendencies Fisher promised would fade after the preseason. The Rams commit too many penalties and remain inconsistent in their secondary. When a team negates the Rams’ pass rush as the Cardinals did Sunday, this defense is quickly exposed.
“Each year is different. I’ve been part of some teams that get mathematically eliminated from the playoffs and guys checked out,” said Laurinaitis, who took the floor during a brief postgame team meeting. “What’s important for us as a young team ... there’s no checking out.”
Most maddening is that after a 5-11 season the Cardinals have become what the Rams promised. Quarterback Carson Palmer’s arrival has meshed well with a ferocious defense. Inside linebacker Karlos Dansby intercepted Clemens for a touchdown and later leveled him with a blindside hit. Outside linebacker John Abraham was in the Rams’ backfield almost as much as Zac Stacy. Palmer missed on only five of 32 pass attempts. The Cardinals took 17 more snaps and converted 11 more first downs.
“There are some things that are hard for me to understand, for lack of a better word,” Long said. “We just got beat bad today. We made a lot of mistakes today. There were flags all over the place.”
“It’s frustrating to be fourth (in the division) right now,” Laurinaitis said. “We had much bigger dreams for the season. Quite frankly, with the talent we have on this roster we’re not playing well enough.”
