The things that lead to the Rams offensive woes (a lot of hindsight in this thread)

[FRO]

Another thing that irked me this offseason was standing pat with our WR group. Brandon Marshall was obtained for a 5th round pick. Michael Crabtree was signed for a bargain. Both infinitely better than the guys we have now.

 

[LesBaker]

All in all, while some are furious with Fisher over the O's ineptness, I almost feel sorry for the guy. It's not like he hasn't addressed the offensive side of the ball...even if they didn't address it in ways a lot of fans agree with. If even half the O FA signings and/or draft picks had panned out to be 'solid contributors' (I'm not even asking for superstars), the Rams' O would probably be 'good enough' to at least get them to the playoffs. But the football gods have just farted on anything and everything they do for O player acquisition. It's stunning to me how 'unlucky' they've been, and I'm not much of a believer in such things.

Yeah the moves seemed OK, then turned to shit and that is the main reason this O is flailing away and even the deadly weapons aren't producing like they should because of it........it's easy to blame the QB but in this case I can't think of a single QB that would be doing well and I can't think of a single RB that would be racking up yards in bunches either. This OL would struggle to contain any DL in the NFL right now.

If that gets fixed this roster as is can get into the playoffs for sure.

 

[Fatbot]

I would add bringing back and continuing to play Scott Wells to this list.

I get that stuff happens and I have a jaded outlook on the Rams' luck (only 1 kind, the bad kind). So I think I have a vast quantity of patience when things go wrong and not pass out blame for things beyond control like injuries or when players don't pan out. I don't expect perfect scouting or everything to go as planned, but I do expect some level of urgency and intelligence when things are obviously wrong.

Like with the center position, on one hand I get that the Rams tried a lot of plans to try to solve it and it all went bad. However, the thing I can't forgive is how Fisher completely wastes opportunities to evaluate and fix things -- his approach to preseason is a perfect example, and bringing back and continuing to play Scott Wells long after he was a total waste of space will forever bother me. Even if injuries were screwing with long term plans and preventing young guys from getting a shot, someone else should have been auditioning for the center job of the future. Don't care if it was a sumo wrestler or someone from the Hy-Vee, keeping Wells around so long still boggles the mind and says way too much about the Fisher regime.

 

[OnceARam]

Don't forget that we didn't address the QB position either... But the TA pick takes the cake IMO.

 

[Athos]

Another thing that irked me this offseason was standing pat with our WR group. Brandon Marshall was obtained for a 5th round pick. Michael Crabtree was signed for a bargain. Both infinitely better than the guys we have now.

Fitzpatrick looks entirely different with the Jets having Marshall and Decker to pass to. Dude is in a top 10 tie with 20 TDs. He's completing below 60% of his passes, but he's finding the GD EZ and has the Jets as a top 10 scoring offense.

Amazing what a few WRs and a halfway competent (Fitz is more than that, just lacks the physical tools) QB will do for an O.

 

[FRO]

Fitzpatrick looks entirely different with the Jets having Marshall and Decker to pass to. Dude is in a top 10 tie with 20 TDs. He's completing below 60% of his passes, but he's finding the GD EZ and has the Jets as a top 10 scoring offense.

Amazing what a few WRs and a halfway competent (Fitz is more than that, just lacks the physical tools) QB will do for an O.

What were the Texans thinking there. Look at Fitz's 2014 numbers and tell me how they could reasonably think Hoyer and Mallet would do better. Houston is a playoff team with a bad QB. Their fans have to be upset. Good move by the Jets to get a solid QB. Fitz ain't a star and is a fringe starter, but I would love to have him over Foles.

 

[Ballhawk]

Having a coach that plays for a fifty plus yard field goal instead of going for a TD when there is plenty of time left for a drive.

 

[Ram_Rally]

All I'm going to say is that most posters wanted alshon when he fell to 33 in 2012, Keenan Allen in round 2 in 2013, and jake Matthews in 2014. If half of you were in the draft room we'd be a better team today.

 

[-X-]

All I'm going to say is that most posters wanted alshon when he fell to 33 in 2012, Keenan Allen in round 2 in 2013, and jake Matthews in 2014. If half of you were in the draft room we'd be a better team today.

Lotta people wanted Adrian Clayborn instead of Robert Quinn, and Justin Blackmon instead of everybody else too.
I'm just sayin'.

 

[Ram_Rally]

Lotta people wanted Adrian Clayborn instead of Robert Quinn, and Justin Blackmon instead of everybody else too.
I'm just sayin'.

I never heard anyone hating on the Quinn pick. At least those picks would've been arguable back then. Quick and pead over alshon and not taking Keenan Allen by the third round were just 2 that I remember were most griped about.

 

[-X-]

I never heard anyone hating on the Quinn pick. At least those picks would've been arguable back then. Quick and pead over alshon and not taking Keenan Allen by the third round were just 2 that I remember were most griped about.

I'm talking about the time leading into the draft. Nobody hated the Quinn pick - except for the dipshits who criticized the Rams for drafting someone with a brain tumor. That didn't happen here, of course, and it was just some different preferences. Like every draft.

 

[FRO]

I'm talking about the time leading into the draft. Nobody hated the Quinn pick - except for the dipshits who criticized the Rams for drafting someone with a brain tumor. That didn't happen here, of course, and it was just some different preferences. Like every draft.

You mean 101 defensive guru Rick Venturi who wanted Dorsey over Long and Claiborne over Quinn??? He may know his Xs and Os, but those are two major wiffs.

 

[fearsomefour]

Lotta people wanted Adrian Clayborn instead of Robert Quinn, and Justin Blackmon instead of everybody else too.
I'm just sayin'.

Yep.
I wanted Matthews and Donald....but, I loved the Quick and Pead picks....wasnt solid on Allen....so it goes. It is a bit of a crap shoot. It is easy to say, we took this guy and so and so was taken 22 picks later or whatever. It may be true but teams have a reason to take the guys they take. A good match for scheme pending free agents ect.

 

[junkman]

Quick (who?!?) was a head scratcher for me. Shoulda been AJeffery. Seriously, I was having Deaean Jackson flashbacks.

Pead was a head scratcher, shoulda been BWagoner or Kendricks (and getting Rok Watkins in the 5th didn't make up for it).

2014 shoulda taken Garaopolo in the 2nd or some QB in the 4th (Mettenberger?) instead of Mo Alexander. If memory serves, if we'd stayed put with our 2nd, we'd have had an extra 5th. Don't even remember what QB we wasted that 6th round pick on.

Mason coulda been Trai Turner or Gabe Jackson.

Whiff on Barrett Jones, including the continued faith in him. I guess it was just a 4th but... still... WHIFF.

----------------------------

I unearthed these gems for another thread... we loved Bulger so much that we skipped...
Jay Cutler to pick Tye Hill
Matt Ryan to pick Chris Long
Mark Sanchez to pick Jason Smith
Aaron Rodgers to pick Alex Barron

This is interesting now that we have historical perspective. We loved Bradford so much that we skipped
Blake Bortles to pick Greg Robinson.

History will tell on that one. Rams might go a long time before having another shot at an elite qb.

We had so much faith in Bradford's health that we didn't bother with Garaopolo or Mettenberger (or Kirk Cousins or Russell Wilson).

 

[Mojo Ram]

The only pick that REALLY bothers me is the Brian Quick pick. I just didn't think a team coming off a 2 win season and an offense that ranked last in the league could afford to draft a project WR that high.

I'm concerned with the Robinson pick.

I contend that overall they've drafted well, better than most, and i spelled it out comprehensively and with an out-of-the-box view HERE a couple weeks ago. So many teams miss badly, or fail to consistently draft impact players or even solid starters. One has to look at the big picture around the league instead of focusing in on the Peads, Quicks, Tavon trade-ups, and who we passed on. Unfortunately the point was lost on most, amidst all the myopic torches and pitchforks.

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

The moment Sam got injured the whole thing got derailed and never recovered.

I don't care about numbers. He was hitting his stride and knew the offense back to front. Of course not having a back up plan the next season lies squarely on Fisher and snead.

.

 

[junkman]

The only pick that REALLY bothers me is the Brian Quick pick. I just didn't think a team coming off a 2 win season and an offense that ranked last in the league could afford to draft a project WR that high.

I'm concerned with the Robinson pick.

I contend that overall they've drafted well, better than most, and i spelled it out comprehensively and with an out-of-the-box view HERE a couple weeks ago. So many teams miss badly, or fail to consistently draft impact players or even solid starters. One has to look at the big picture around the league instead of focusing in on the Peads, Quicks, Tavon trade-ups, and who we passed on. Unfortunately the point was lost on most, amidst all the myopic torches and pitchforks.

S'funny, I re-read the "Last 4 Years of drafting..." thread (a nice thread, btw, kudos for trying). I'm really starting to sound like a broken record in my posts. A crotchety and bitter broken record that only plays nightmarish polkas on a leaky accordion. So sorry for the pitchforks and torches, nothing personal, and certainly not directed at you. In my case, I typically wait for the season to be utterly and prematurely lost under an avalanche of injuries, bad luck, bad decision making, bad planning and myopic thinking to break those bad boys out. I find it cathartic, sorta like how the the Sadness character works in "Inside Out".

http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0463309/?ref_=tt_cl_t2

PS - I liked the your Gurley avatar better than the old Belushi one.

 

[Stel]

All I'm going to say is that most posters wanted alshon when he fell to 33 in 2012, Keenan Allen in round 2 in 2013, and jake Matthews in 2014. If half of you were in the draft room we'd be a better team today.

I wanted Cordy Glenn at #33, not a WR, in 2012. I liked the Quick pick after it was made.

In 2014, I wanted to drop down a few spots, picking up an extra day 2 pick, and take Lewan and Shazier in the first.

 

[Athos]

I wanted Cordy Glenn at #33, not a WR, in 2012. I liked the Quick pick after it was made.

In 2014, I wanted to drop down a few spots, picking up an extra day 2 pick, and take Lewan and Shazier in the first.

Wanted Glenn as well. Jeffery had all of Quick's body and athleticism + shit loads more experience and in a heavy run scheme, but concerns about his weight and desire, which ultimately proved silly when he ran a 4.38/40 at his pro day. That should have signaled the key that if they were going WR, it shoulda been Jeffery. Just a massive fuckup for a team that needed immediate, NFL-ready talent over projects. That's the main, well-deserved criticism for this regime. Too often fall in love with their own person analysis of raw upside talent rather than solid, proven guys.

 

[Merlin]

For my money and in order of importance:

1. OC hires. Fisher undoubtedly thought Schotty was on the verge of being the next great OC in this league and at the time was thought very highly of in league circles. So it is hard to question the hire even though I loathed it. But the real issue is Cigs let him down when he had an opportunity to get it right. And who knows, maybe he makes things hard on Cigs too with his defensive mindset, however I do think Fish can be a great head coach if he'd just get the effin OC hire right. That has been (outside of Dinger) and continues to be his biggest weakness as a head coach.

2. Injuries. It sounds like an excuse but Fish suffered significant injuries to QB and OL that adversely affected the team's ability to win. Many of them are self inflicted from signing and relying on guys like Jake Long and Roger Saffold, not to mention not drafting or bringing in a better backup QB option after Bradford missed that first half-year. But I gotta be fair and say that injuries to those two position groups have been significant.

3. Offensive identity. Gonna lump some different stuff in here in regards to pieces being added that don't fit. Cook, for starters, does not fit a power offense which Fisher has said he wants. Signing him to that big a contract based on upside was ridiculous when he cannot even take out a DB on a run play, plus he's got some of the worst hands I've ever seen for a guy who retains a roster spot due to his speed and athleticism. Just terrible man and even worse they still start the dude. Austin was a pick I loved, but he isn't really a fit for a power offense either. Only guy they brought in on offense prior to this last draft who was an actual fit was Quick and he was so raw that it was a ridiculous stretch to take him in round 2. Gurley clearly was a great fit, but it hurts that they couldn't have made that good a pick prior to year 4 for this offense.

4. Not starting earlier on the OL. Burning the occasional pick on guys like Rok Watkins in round 4 is not really addressing the OL. If I were starting somewhere as a head coach with a QB that I think is a franchise guy the first thing I do is burn some draft real estate surrounding him with big uglies. This allows for you to benefit from the OL picks while you're still the head coach, as they settle in over their first couple years. It's a "GM 101" type thing IMO. Even if you don't have the QB it is wise to draft some OL pieces to ensure the line has what they need first. Going with old FA types is very risky, and Fish got burned by it.