Inside the Los Angeles Rams’ rapid decline

[Bootleg]

Rapid decline?

The Rams were one missed field goal away from making the playoffs last year.

 

[Merlin]

The article was a bit heavy handed. More accurate is that we got jumped in the division by the fucking whiners. Seahawks are right there with us but I won't say jumped because of a missed FG attempt that would have put us at 10 wins.

Anyway. As to why... It starts with the drafts. Whiners added two impact players in 2019 that made a big difference in relative roster strength on top of picking very early for a lot of years. Rams' last first round pick was 2016. No GM is so good that he can overcome that level of disparity, and vet/FA players can help however relying too much on them is unsustainable.

Second reason was Snead didn't restack enough of the OL in anticipation of fall off from two "short term" additions from the 2017 offseason (Whit & Sully). Relying on Whit still for 2020 is a bit painful, although maybe he has a great season we'll see.

But back to the draft it's going to be hard to level the playing field if the whiners use their picks right in this draft. If they can find an impact wideout and improve their run defense we're in fucking trouble.

 

[Ramon Ram]

The missed field goal doomed us along with that disgraceful display against Tampa.
That said it was the OL that killed us but it also shined a light on Goff showing that without perfection in front of him he is just average at best.

 

[So Ram]

I don’t see a decline in 2020

 

[PhillyRam]

Tough article but it is hard to call where we have significantly improved over 2019, forget about 2018.

DL may be a little stronger with Brock retuning and Robinson in the mix.

OL is a question with a 39 yo Whit manning the most critical slot.

LB will have three new starters.

Henderson is no pre 2018 Gurley, but maybe a step up from the 2019 version.

QB, WR, and TE (sure like to see more 2TE sets) are all +/- level.

I'd take our curent DB's over the that 2018 unit.

Improvement comes from the development of a young OL especially if they can remain healthy. That alone can be a huge upgrade. Add in a more explosive RB corp with Henderson & maybe a rookie, and that will be a huge upgrade combined with an improved OL, which then allows play action work.

Also Ramsey & Johnson for a full season should solidify the secondary.

BTW, the run defense will be better with a deeper DL.

The key besides the young OL will be the young LB corp. If they step up they can be very good on defense.

So yes there is a good argument that they can improve.

 

[thirteen28]

Jesus, rapid decline? With all the body blows this team took, from Gurley's knee going sideways, the offensive line spending more than half the season more unstable than a third world government, multiple concussions to one of our key receivers, etc., and we still ended up above .500?

Yeah, ok.

 

[BriansRams]

And here's a thought. Regarding our defense, who the heck knows yet. Brand new DC ... who's schemes and ideas might allow a lot of the same players Wade coached, to excel even more. It's not out of the question that our defense surprises us and plays very very well.

 

[payote75]

I'm not totally sold on Floyd but his ability to do many things will be quite useful especially and he can move around outside inside your blitzing him from different spots with Donald requiring at the very least a double team and Brockers and Robinson eating up oThe blocksFloyd could be running free a lot. Anyone one of the young guys steps up as a pass rusher or we are able to bring in a bargain and I think this defense could be very good.

Maybe I'm being to hopeful but I'm usually pretty hard on our Rams. I just feel this defense with a Trent Murphy type addition would be solid.

 

[MachS]

Who cares if the defense is middle of the pack, that's about where it was when we went to the SB. But what was different in '17 and 2/3rds of 2018 was our ability to score points. With a questionable running game and o-line AGAIN this season, what is the probability Goff leads us to the playoffs on his own? I wouldn't say rapid decline is fair because I think we have a shot to be pretty good on defense. I'm very excited about our d line and our secondary which should be nasty. If we figure out ILB the whole unit could be nice, but can you honestly say you're not concerned with the offense this year??? I mean Goff was horrible last season, there's no way around it. And you cant pretend a lot of these throws shouldn't have been picks. Majority of these throws he was not under pressure ( many more that were dropped ) . Without a great running game and o-line I just dont know alm:. The absolutely dominant games vs MIN, KC, and NO doesn't absolve him of the complete seasons of bad play, as well as not playing well in 3 of 4 playoff games. We need consistent greatness out of our #1 overall, $94M QB, and that's what he hasn't given us in 4 years. Does he finally mature and take the next step in year 5? Is he the type of QB that can overcome deficiencies in the running game or OL?

 

[RamsFanCK]

The relationship appears to have deteriorated with trade rumors surrounding Cooks he cryptically tweeted “free me” last week.

stopped right here, do none of these reporters do research!? It’s well notes that tweet was about the quarantine ffs

 

[bluecoconuts]

The relationship appears to have deteriorated with trade rumors surrounding Cooks he cryptically tweeted “free me” last week.

This is where I stopped.

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

I kept scanning to see how shallow his story would remain.

The Ramsey piece may have been the worst of the lot. Nobody cares what Peters did with ravens. He was awful with the rams, for whatever reason. And they weren't gonna pay him so why not ship him and get something in return.

The defense instantly became better when Ramsey arrived. Sure it went pear shaped against the ravens and cowboys but that was because the rams couldn't stop them running all game long.

.

 

[TexasRam]

What a Lazy person. Is this really all it takes to be a journalist?

Many points made can be easily disproven by a quick google, as Ram fans have shown above.

This article is in the same league as a tabloid.

Having said that, there are some legit reasons why the Rams could decline.

1. An aging Oline that is going through a youth rebuild.
2. A tragic premature end to Gurley's Career. A top offensive player in the league.
3. Overpaying Cooks, which I was never a fan of.
4. Inability to sign our own such as Littleton and Fowler due to the contracts of 2 and 3 above.

 

[dang]

2019 Defense. Peters sucked. Talib hurt and declining. Johnson hurt. No NT or ILB to stop the run.
2020 Defense. Ramsey and Hill seems very solid. Robinson added at NT. Johnson andRapp healthy. We need a solid Run stopping ILB and the D should improve tremendously. Injuries aside.

 

[Ramfansince79]

I stopped reading when he was comparing Ramsey and Peters. Don’t understand scheme fit and cover vs zone DB’s? Don’t write article.

 

[FrantikRam]

Obviously this guy doesn't really know much. The reason IMO articles like this come out is because NFL owners and GMs were so infatuated with what the Rams have in McVay, and for good reason: when you get a guy that young who also happens to be that good, you can see stability and consistency the likes of which have rarely been seen in the NFL.

As far as last season goes....if the Patriots had Russell Wilson and last year's Niners team in their division, there's a few years they probably would have gone 9-7 too.

For the Rams, Niners, and Seahawks, it seems anywhere from a first place to last place finish is in the cards for next year (I can't see the Cardinals winning the division but anywhere from 2-4 seems possible for them).

This guy could be right - the Rams could be in the midst of a rapid decline. But his reasoning is wrong - this was really the only season the Rams would be cap-strapped - and what he fails to point it out is that we somehow have spent nearly $40 million anyways. The contracts handed out this season: Floyd, Robinson, Whitworth - could all come off the books after this season.

We'll continue to see articles like this for the next few years though - being young and better at your job than older people is something this country has always had an issue with.

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

i think everyone except most of us in here think the rams are gonna suck this season.

i was in a ff forum and some guy said the rams are a hot mess right now. i asked him why he thought that an he pointed to all the players the rams lost, no cap space, haven't signed ramsey and the fact they don't have a 1st round pick for the next two years. that's the perception out there.

i set him straight but he didn't want to listen.

how can a team stacked like the rams not be competitive?

 

[snackdaddy]

I just the looked at odds for next Superbowl. According to the list I saw our odds are better than 19 other teams. Are these people talking about declining from a top tier Superbowl contender? I can see that. But did we fall apart? I don't see it. I don't expect another 13 win season. But I do expect a legit playoff contender. Get in the playoffs and its a new season. One thing we will be is battle tested. Anything can happen from there.

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

The only thing I agree with is our draft situation. I haven't looked, but it seems like we're 32nd in the league in draft capital right now.

The one thing we do have is Sean McVay. He's going to have an impact.

 

[So Ram]

Obviously this guy doesn't really know much. The reason IMO articles like this come out is because NFL owners and GMs were so infatuated with what the Rams have in McVay, and for good reason: when you get a guy that young who also happens to be that good, you can see stability and consistency the likes of which have rarely been seen in the NFL.

As far as last season goes....if the Patriots had Russell Wilson and last year's Niners team in their division, there's a few years they probably would have gone 9-7 too.

For the Rams, Niners, and Seahawks, it seems anywhere from a first place to last place finish is in the cards for next year (I can't see the Cardinals winning the division but anywhere from 2-4 seems possible for them).

This guy could be right - the Rams could be in the midst of a rapid decline. But his reasoning is wrong - this was really the only season the Rams would be cap-strapped - and what he fails to point it out is that we somehow have spent nearly $40 million anyways. The contracts handed out this season: Floyd, Robinson, Whitworth - could all come off the books after this season.

We'll continue to see articles like this for the next few years though - being young and better at your job than older people is something this country has always had an issue with.

I don’t think it is Mcvay, believe it is because The Rams did not make the Playoffs,Gurley got realeased,no first rd picks,RAMsey not signed,loss of FA’s
& a high salary cap.

That all said I think this young offensive line will be the key to The Rams success. Meaning cap value for starters. RAMsey still needs to get signed,but the you DB’s are another area of strength vs. cap.

The Rams need a couple more playmakers, especially a Stud RB.