Rams facing brink of extinction
The St. Louis Rams have all kinds of problems both on and off the field. Owner Stan Kroenke has not hidden the fact that he is hoping to move the team to Los Angeles, with a stadium being built on his land in Hollywood Park. The Rams once played in Los Angeles from 1946-94 (playing in Anaheim from 1980-94) before moving to St. Louis, and could be returning as soon as next year.
Meanwhile, the product on the field continues to be subpar. The Rams began the season with a thrilling overtime win over the Seattle Seahawks at the Edward Jones Dome, and had the envious position of playing the Washington Redskins in Week 2. However, the trip to FedEx Field ended up being a nightmare, with Washington upending St. Louis, 24-10.
In Week 3, the Rams held the powerful Pittsburgh Steelers to 12 points, but only could muster six of their own. The defeat left them at 1-2 and facing two brutal opponents on the road in Weeks 4 and 5, taking on the Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers. Neither team has lost a game yet in 2015.
St. Louis has not been to the playoffs since the 2004 season, when it lost to Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Divisional playoffs. Since that time, the Rams have been without a winning season and have endured a litany of quarterbacks including Trent Green, Ryan Fitzpatrick, A.J. Feeley, Sam Bradford, Austin Davis and now Nick Foles, who signed a two-year, $24 million extension this summer.
On the sideline, head coach Jeff Fisher is in his fourth year at the helm and has yet to see major returns. Fisher came in prior to the 2012 campaign and has compiled a record of 21-29-1 thus far. It stands to reason that both Fisher and general manager Les Snead will be gone should the Rams have another disappointing campaign, with Kroenke looking to put the proverbial fresh coat of lipstick on this pig.
If St. Louis wants any chance of making the playoffs, it needs to split the next two games. Beating Arizona seems much more likely than winning at Lambeau Field, if only because it is a divisional game. Additionally, the Rams do employ a tremendous defensive line against Arizona’s suspect offensive line.
The Rams are not a Super Bowl contender, but they have more talent than a team on the cusp of going 1-4. St. Louis needs Fisher to step up and figure out the stagnation offensively, giving the defense some form of support.
St. Louis might not be seeing professional football for some time after the 2015 season. The least the Rams could do is provide quality entertainment for a little while before slipping out the door.
