A lot of teams suffer Super Bowl hangovers. It’s real. The reasons why said squads don’t perform as well as the season before are different though. That’s where we get to the Rams. Almost every prognosticator expected Los Angeles to get back to its winning ways this season. To say it’s been a struggle is an understatement. Let’s try and figure out why the Rams are likely to miss the playoffs.
The offensive line
The Rams offensive line was great last year. They were one of the top units in the NFL. They were stacked with veterans who knew exactly what they needed to do and they stayed healthy. This year has been different. From the start of the season, the Rams offensive line has ranked at the bottom of most advanced analytics. They lost Roger Saffold — who hasn’t done well for Tennessee. Andrew Whitworth looks a step slower and a year older. The line hasn’t opened holes in the running game which makes the play-action passing game less effective. A lot of people want to blame this year on Jared Goff, but there’s a reason Goff hasn’t looked great this year and some of that falls on the offensive line. Speaking of Goff . . .
Jared Goff
Yea, he hasn’t been good. It doesn’t help he just signed a huge deal.
Those tweets were from last month and Goff hasn’t gotten better. Search the Twitter-sphere and you’ll find someone comparing Goff to Alex Smith. That’s not a compliment — even though Smith was a perfectly capable quarterback.
Again, it’s not all Goff’s fault but some of it is his fault. He’s regressed from a fringe MVP candidate to a middle of the road quarterback. He’s bad under pressure and there’s been a lot more pressure on him this year. He benefitted from Sean McVay’s system — which we will get to in a bit. This was a great call about Goff before the season even started.
Todd Gurley
For everyone that thought Gurley was on a pitch count and the Rams were saving him later in the season, there were a few who were more realistic. This is why teams shouldn’t spend a ton of money on running backs. It’s unfortunate to stay this, but they are replaceable and disposable.
Gurley has been a shell of himself all season. He hasn’t been the same player that excited L.A. fans and was always in the running for offensive player of the year. Gurley’s issues could also be a symptom of that offensive line problem.
Sean McVay
The easy thing to say is that Bill Belichick broke Sean McVay’s brain and the Rams head coach hasn’t recovered. That’s not right, but it’s not totally incorrect. Belichick saw something when the Bears defense shut down the — at the time — unstoppable Rams offense in the 2018 regular season. Belichick refined it and gave everyone the blueprint.
Teams simply aren’t falling for the jet motion pre-snap. Instead of getting all confused by the window dressing McVay throws out there, they are staying put and setting up to stop the zone rushes toward the edge. The Rams receivers aren’t getting open as much.
McVay’s young genius tag has taken a hit this year. He’s still a good coach, but he’s been saddled with a tough situation.
Depth
The Rams have suffered some injuries this year. Gurley hasn’t been healthy. The offensive line has had some issues. Brandin Cooks has missed time. The two starting corners from last year’s team are no longer there. The problem for the Rams is that it might get worse before it gets better. They have a lot of money tied up in a few players. They have to figure out how to pay a ton of cash to Jalen Ramsey. They don’t have a lot of draft picks because of their trading ways. There’s no easy fix there.
The division
Last year the Rams had an easy trip through their division. The Cardinals stunk. The Niners weren’t good. The Seahawks were competitive, but they were kind of in transition.
That’s not the case anymore. The Cardinals are fun and competitive. Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray may be a duo to contend with in the future. The other two teams are the teams of now. The Niners are an absolute wagon. They have one of the most talented defenses in the NFL. Their running game is strong and they are well-coached. The Seahawks have an MVP candidate in Russell Wilson. Pete Carroll continues to create defenses that give other teams problems. The NFC West is simply much better than it was last year. Sometimes it’s not about the team — the Rams — but it’s about the opponents.
