Stick a fork in 'em: 2012 St. Louis Rams

[News Bot]

By Gregg Rosenthal
Around The League editor
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100000 ... louis-rams

Very little was expected of the 2012 St. Louis Rams. After three consecutive home wins to start the season, St. Louis was over .500 for the first time since 2006. They haven't won since.

Better days are ahead, but this Rams team won't be going to the playoffs.

What went wrong

The Rams are the 10th team we've forked, and this is the toughest time we've had in this section so far. That's a compliment to the Rams.

The Rams are improved across the board and not that terrible in any one area. They just aren't great in most places, either.

There is a foundation for a good defense, but the outside linebacker positions are lacking. A team with this much pass rushing talent should have more than nine turnovers on the season -- only 30th in the NFL.

The offensive line was poor enough that trading for the New York Jets' Wayne Hunter actually upgraded the group. The passing game has made modest strides, but it remains below average in all areas. Sam Bradford has enjoyed some strong moments (like his performance during a tie against the San Francisco 49ers), but he doesn't always seem as heady or natural as some other young starters around the NFL.

Danny Amendola is a great player, but would look better as a No. 2 receiver rather than a No. 1. Starter Brandon Gibson would look better as a No. 3 or No. 4 and so on. Rookie wide receiver Brian Quick hasn't made an impact, and tight end Lance Kendricks hasn't come along.

What went right

The defense is vastly improved overall. Teams like the Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots lit up the Rams, but there are pieces to build around. Chris Long and Robert Quinn are a great pass rushing duo. Cornerback Cortland Finnegan has been worth all the money as a free agent pickup. Rookies Michael Brockers and Janoris Jenkins both look like keepers. James Laurinaitis is a rock solid middle linebacker.

On offense, Amendola has earned a nice contract. They need to keep him. Rookie Chris Givens might be a one trick pony with his penchant for big plays, but it's a very valuable trick. Seventh-round draft pick running back Daryl Richardson has made a timeshare with Steven Jackson make sense. It's been a very good draft class for general manager Les Snead. That's huge.

This team fights. It's feisty. The Rams take some dumb penalties because they are too aggressive, but their effort bodes well for future years.

What still matters

The new Rams regime essentially chose keeping Sam Bradford over Robert Griffin III. The team picked up a lot of assets in the process, but Bradford still has to show he's a guy worth building around. His development remains paramount; Bradford is 24th in the NFL in yards-per-attempt. A strong end to the season would go a long way for Bradford.

The Rams might not be the favorite in any of their games the rest of the season, but there are plenty of winnable games left. As long the Rams don't completely collapse, Jeff Fisher's first season will feel like a success.

What changes are coming

It's hard to imagine Steven Jackson coming back. The Rams should get a nice compensatory pick for him when he leaves via free agency. Fisher could welcome "back" his buddy Gregg Williams as defensive coordinator if the NFL allows Williams back into the league. The Rams will look to fill the holes we mentioned above, with the offensive line taking precedence.

If Snead can have another draft like the one he had in 2012, this team will be hard to handle next year in a vastly improved NFC West.

Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.

 

[bluecoconuts]

Hard to disagree, it's a step in the right direction though. Still, it is technically possible to get to the playoffs, but we'd basically have to win out and get help. Not likely.

At least we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, this team should be ready to compete for the postseason next year as long as the front office keeps building smart.

 

[Ramhusker]

I was willing to let my optimism guide me into thinking the Rams COULD win out before that massive turd they laid out there against the Jets. Now, my expectations have been dashed to just not getting embarrassed down the stretch. Three more wins would be attainable I guess. I hate feeling like this already this season but I guess I should be used to it by now. And a win against the Cardinals this week will spark some insane homer hope. :bummed:

 

[stan]

Caveat to Kendricks would be he hasn't come around until lately. Other than that it is a fair assessment of the Rams.

 

[Memento]

Caveat to Kendricks would be he hasn't come around until lately. Other than that it is a fair assessment of the Rams.

Agreed on Kendricks. He may not have the recieving yards, but as a blocker and overall tight end/H-back hybrid, he's been extremely good. There's times where he's been the best run-blocker on the team. If we get a taller tight end with receiving skills (which I'm hoping we do; there's four in this draft), we could have a mismatch similar to what the Patriots have.

 

[Thordaddy]

I was willing to let my optimism guide me into thinking the Rams COULD win out before that massive turd they laid out there against the Jets. Now, my expectations have been dashed to just not getting embarrassed down the stretch. Three more wins would be attainable I guess. I hate feeling like this already this season but I guess I should be used to it by now. And a win against the Cardinals this week will spark some insane homer hope. :bummed:

I have as yet not seen the game against the Jets so I'll allow it may be we laid a turd as you say,I worried the entire week before that game that the upset would happen.
I'm not giving up yet , especially on going undefeated within the division.

 

[stan]

I was willing to let my optimism guide me into thinking the Rams COULD win out before that massive turd they laid out there against the Jets. Now, my expectations have been dashed to just not getting embarrassed down the stretch. Three more wins would be attainable I guess. I hate feeling like this already this season but I guess I should be used to it by now. And a win against the Cardinals this week will spark some insane homer hope. :bummed:

I have as yet not seen the game against the Jets so I'll allow it may be we laid a turd as you say,I worried the entire week before that game that the upset would happen.
I'm not giving up yet , especially on going undefeated within the division.

It was a turd. You're better off not having seen it.

 

[nittany ram]

Hard to disagree, it's a step in the right direction though. Still, it is technically possible to get to the playoffs, but we'd basically have to win out and get help. Not likely.

At least we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, this team should be ready to compete for the postseason next year as long as the front office keeps building smart.

I wasn't expecting a playoff run this year so not making them doesn't bother me. My expectations were to see a reasonable amount of improvement which I think we have seen.

However, it would be nice if the improvement could come in a nice smooth upward trajectory. Unfortunately that's never they way it is. There is an overall upward trend but it's full of peaks and valleys. This can make it a struggle to keep perspective.

 

[Thordaddy]

I was willing to let my optimism guide me into thinking the Rams COULD win out before that massive turd they laid out there against the Jets. Now, my expectations have been dashed to just not getting embarrassed down the stretch. Three more wins would be attainable I guess. I hate feeling like this already this season but I guess I should be used to it by now. And a win against the Cardinals this week will spark some insane homer hope. :bummed:

I have as yet not seen the game against the Jets so I'll allow it may be we laid a turd as you say,I worried the entire week before that game that the upset would happen.
I'm not giving up yet , especially on going undefeated within the division.

It was a turd. You're better off not having seen it.

And so we can expect that someone will say we CAN pick it up from the "clean " end

 

[stan]

Hard to disagree, it's a step in the right direction though. Still, it is technically possible to get to the playoffs, but we'd basically have to win out and get help. Not likely.

At least we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, this team should be ready to compete for the postseason next year as long as the front office keeps building smart.

I wasn't expecting a playoff run this year so not making them doesn't bother me. My expectations were to see a reasonable amount of improvement which I think we have seen.

However, it would be nice if the improvement could come in a nice smooth upward trajectory. Unfortunately that's never they way it is. There is an overall upward trend but it's full of peaks and valleys. This can make it a struggle to keep perspective.

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

 

[stan]

I was willing to let my optimism guide me into thinking the Rams COULD win out before that massive turd they laid out there against the Jets. Now, my expectations have been dashed to just not getting embarrassed down the stretch. Three more wins would be attainable I guess. I hate feeling like this already this season but I guess I should be used to it by now. And a win against the Cardinals this week will spark some insane homer hope. :bummed:

I have as yet not seen the game against the Jets so I'll allow it may be we laid a turd as you say,I worried the entire week before that game that the upset would happen.
I'm not giving up yet , especially on going undefeated within the division.

It was a turd. You're better off not having seen it.

And so we can expect that someone will say we CAN pick it up from the "clean " end

YES!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YDurhx8QyA[/youtube]

 

[nittany ram]

Hard to disagree, it's a step in the right direction though. Still, it is technically possible to get to the playoffs, but we'd basically have to win out and get help. Not likely.

At least we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, this team should be ready to compete for the postseason next year as long as the front office keeps building smart.

I wasn't expecting a playoff run this year so not making them doesn't bother me. My expectations were to see a reasonable amount of improvement which I think we have seen.

However, it would be nice if the improvement could come in a nice smooth upward trajectory. Unfortunately that's never they way it is. There is an overall upward trend but it's full of peaks and valleys. This can make it a struggle to keep perspective.

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

In 99 they started the season at the top. They were great coming out of the gates. It's just that nobody saw it coming and some didn't believe they were really that good until later in the season.

 

[diggity]

"Very little was expected of the 2012 St. Louis Rams."

J.M.H.O., but...I agree to a point.
The RAMS have clearly shown that they're much better than last season, as a team. But...players making foolish mistakes have killed this team. Much more than other teams beating a young "rebuilding" team.
The Detroit and 9er games stand out as blown opportunities. And, with those two more wins, this team is talking playoffs, instead of having a fork poked at 'em.
And, I don't count a lot of the mistakes that this team has made as mistakes that young teams make. A lot of the drive killing and game costing mistakes have been just plain old STUPIDITY and/or lack of concentration! Youth and inexperience has nothing to do with it. Some mistakes, sure. But, every week on every foolish mistake? Absolutely not.
GO RAMS!!!!!!

 

[Ram Quixote]

Hard to disagree, it's a step in the right direction though. Still, it is technically possible to get to the playoffs, but we'd basically have to win out and get help. Not likely.

At least we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, this team should be ready to compete for the postseason next year as long as the front office keeps building smart.

I wasn't expecting a playoff run this year so not making them doesn't bother me. My expectations were to see a reasonable amount of improvement which I think we have seen.

However, it would be nice if the improvement could come in a nice smooth upward trajectory. Unfortunately that's never they way it is. There is an overall upward trend but it's full of peaks and valleys. This can make it a struggle to keep perspective.

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

No it wasn't. The 2 previous years were clearly non-starters (at least from the view of the bottom-liners). In '99, everything they had been trying to do in Vermeil's first 2 years suddenly clicked.

I really wish people would stop comparing everything since then to '99. :roll:

 

[stan]

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

No it wasn't. The 2 previous years were clearly non-starters (at least from the view of the bottom-liners). In '99, everything they had been trying to do in Vermeil's first 2 years suddenly clicked.

I really wish people would stop comparing everything since then to '99. :roll:

Yes it was. Martz, Warner (as starter), Faulk, Holt on offense in '99 alone. They started off the season winning and remained so to a 13-3 record. Defense improved but it was the offense that went ballistic in '99. Vermeil also stopped practicing them to death in '99.

 

[Ram Quixote]

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

No it wasn't. The 2 previous years were clearly non-starters (at least from the view of the bottom-liners). In '99, everything they had been trying to do in Vermeil's first 2 years suddenly clicked.

I really wish people would stop comparing everything since then to '99. :roll:

Yes it was. Martz, Warner (as starter), Faulk, Holt on offense in '99 alone. They started off the season winning and remained so to a 13-3 record. Defense improved but it was the offense that went ballistic in '99. Vermeil also stopped practicing them to death in '99.

'99, as someone else said, was a consistent peak. There was a brief, upward tick from the first game culminating in the 49er game and from there on it was balls to the wall consistent.

As long as the fan base sees '99 as the model for Rams success, there will always be disappointment.

 

[stan]

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

No it wasn't. The 2 previous years were clearly non-starters (at least from the view of the bottom-liners). In '99, everything they had been trying to do in Vermeil's first 2 years suddenly clicked.

I really wish people would stop comparing everything since then to '99. :roll:

Yes it was. Martz, Warner (as starter), Faulk, Holt on offense in '99 alone. They started off the season winning and remained so to a 13-3 record. Defense improved but it was the offense that went ballistic in '99. Vermeil also stopped practicing them to death in '99.

'99, as someone else said, was a consistent peak. There was a brief, upward tick from the first game culminating in the 49er game and from there on it was balls to the wall consistent.

As long as the fan base sees '99 as the model for Rams success, there will always be disappointment.

Who said '99 is the model for success other than you? '99 trended up the entire season which in no small part was due to the lack of serious injuries during the season. They were able to play together all season and the chemistry was fully developed by the playoffs.

A case can be made for 2003 also coming off the '02 7-9 debacle.

 

[Ram Quixote]

'99 was a consistent upward trend.

No it wasn't. The 2 previous years were clearly non-starters (at least from the view of the bottom-liners). In '99, everything they had been trying to do in Vermeil's first 2 years suddenly clicked.

I really wish people would stop comparing everything since then to '99. :roll:

Yes it was. Martz, Warner (as starter), Faulk, Holt on offense in '99 alone. They started off the season winning and remained so to a 13-3 record. Defense improved but it was the offense that went ballistic in '99. Vermeil also stopped practicing them to death in '99.

'99, as someone else said, was a consistent peak. There was a brief, upward tick from the first game culminating in the 49er game and from there on it was balls to the wall consistent.

As long as the fan base sees '99 as the model for Rams success, there will always be disappointment.

Who said '99 is the model for success other than you? '99 trended up the entire season which in no small part was due to the lack of serious injuries during the season. They were able to play together all season and the chemistry was fully developed by the playoffs.

A case can be made for 2003 also coming off the '02 7-9 debacle.

You implied it by bringing it into the discussion.

The consistent upward trend that was talked about earlier in the thread was in reference to a season-to-season effect. '99 is a clear aberration in the history of the NFL (no other team has gone worst to Super Bowl champion in a single season). Even the Cowboys of the early 90's, aided by one of the most one-sided trades in NFL history, needed 3 seasons to get to the Super Bowl.

'99 is the exception to every successful turn around in NFL history.

 

[stan]

You implied it by bringing it into the discussion.

The consistent upward trend that was talked about earlier in the thread was in reference to a season-to-season effect. '99 is a clear aberration in the history of the NFL (no other team has gone worst to Super Bowl champion in a single season). Even the Cowboys of the early 90's, aided by one of the most one-sided trades in NFL history, needed 3 seasons to get to the Super Bowl.

'99 is the exception to every successful turn around in NFL history.

No I didn't. A statement was made that I refuted with the OBVIOUS reply for a Rams fan of '99. I also said '03 could be considered the same given the issues addressed with the '02 season. '99 (16-3) happened and it PERFECTLY fits the "upward trend" desired from the year before (4-12).

 

[-X-]

You implied it by bringing it into the discussion.

The consistent upward trend that was talked about earlier in the thread was in reference to a season-to-season effect. '99 is a clear aberration in the history of the NFL (no other team has gone worst to Super Bowl champion in a single season). Even the Cowboys of the early 90's, aided by one of the most one-sided trades in NFL history, needed 3 seasons to get to the Super Bowl.

'99 is the exception to every successful turn around in NFL history.

No I didn't. A statement was made that I refuted with the OBVIOUS reply for a Rams fan of '99. I also said '03 could be considered the same given the issues addressed with the '02 season. '99 (16-3) happened and it PERFECTLY fits the "upward trend" desired from the year before (4-12).

Nittany was talking about starting the season at the bottom and trending up throughout the course of the year (see eight posts above). He's right, that rarely happens, and that's why (according to him) we need to curb our expectations. In 99 we came storming out of the gates and stayed up there. We started kinda strong this year, but still lost, and it's been ups and downs ever since.