SB Nation St. Louis: All Posts by Aaron Hooks

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: Vs. Vikings, a less-than-full dome sees what we should've expected

2012-12-17T15:00:42Z

I knew that that the line to get in the dome was going to be long, so I got there early. And at roughly 12:04 central time the Minnesota Vikings kicked off to the St. Louis Rams.

Thousands of empty seats littered the Edward Jones Dome.

Frankly I was embarrassed.

Just in case you needed proof, there is my tweet.

I pretty much had the article already written: St. Louis doesn't deserve a professional football team if we can't get a sell-out on a 60 degree December day with the playoffs hanging in the balance. All you ever ask for is a chance with 3 weeks to go.

To have what was basically an elimination game with the weather a non-factor? AWESOME.

There I was. In the stands. Questioning St. Louis as a sporting town. Ready to have the trollingest of headlines for this article...

Turns out I'm the idiot. I got trolled.

Because after not going out Friday night and taking it easy at a Christmas party on Saturday night--all so I could have a big time on Sunday--the Rams, as they always seem to do, made it tough to be a fan of this team.

They got decked on Sunday. Their faces rubbed in the turf. Laughed off the field and sent in to the top portion of the draft.

Yet again.

No, the people that didn't show up, that didn't buy a ticket weren't the dumb ones.

I was.

I blindly took the Rams' recent winning streak as a sign of something better. But I was wrong. Really, really wrong.

Instead you and I were treated to the Rams leaving the field at halftime down 30-7 and out of the playoffs. Another lost season. The epitaph written on a campaign that brought everyone no closer to respectability.

Ugh.

In a day that had Steven Jackson reach 10,000 yards in his career and Sam Bradford go for 377 yards and 3 TDs, it's still hard to find silver linings. Because when it REALLY mattered, Jackson was getting outshone by Adrian Peterson (212 yards/8.8 per carry) and Bradford was missing Danny Amendola wide open (4:33 in the 4th over the middle, effectively ending the game.)

If you need tangential proof, look no further than the referee coming on-mic multiple times to clarify that Sam Bradford was not intentionally grounding the ball. He knew what you were thinking and needed to get out ahead of it, I suppose.

No, it's over now. The Rams will go to Tampa Bay and Seattle before finding out where they draft in 2013.

People will talk about the Rams improving in 2012 and have hope for 2013. Perhaps when opening day of the season comes next fall, we'll feel better about the team.

But until further notice, this team doesn't deserve our trust. I'm embarrassed that I called out St. Louis for not coming out to make sure that the dome was packed for a playoff showdown.

I'm the rube.

The hopeless romantic that forgot the Rams, sans 1999, are the ones that specialize in one thing and one thing only...

Letting us down when we least expect it.

And then again when we don't.

Twitter Reacts:

What else can go wrong for the Rams? How about spiking a TD into an elderly usher's face.

I want to end this column here. I won't, but I want to. Nothing else is more symbolic of this game.

Said the official STL Rams account!

Just kidding. Just the defense of the STL Rams. Dude just placed himself in the thick of the MVP race AND to break Rams RB Eric Dickerson's all-time single season rushing record.

He bitch-slapped the Rams back into reality.

Ok. I'll stop after this one. But still, think about this. All week every single person you talked to was all "Rams got to stop A.D."

That was it. That was the conversation. The Rams had to stop A.D.

Yet here we are. The Rams gave up 200+ yards to A.D. STIIIIILLLLL less than a year removed from him blowing the heck out of his knee.

He shouldn't even be close to 100%. But he's somehow better than ever.

Love my man Bernie. Respect his opinion. And his article this week on Sam vs. RGIII was spot on... except for one point.

Sam Bradford doesn't inspire hope. RGIII does.

Washington fans are dreaming of Super Bowls and Hall of Fame speeches. Ram fans are hoping that Bradford becomes, well, reliable.

I respect the facts. And the stats. And rational talk. But sometimes you just have a feeling. And right now, three seasons in, Bradford FEELS like he's going to be a guy that doesn't hit his ceiling. RGIII FEELS like a guy that will exceed his.

Maybe it doesn't end up like that.

Hopefully it doesn't end up like that.

In the biggest games of his career (Seattle in '10/ Minnesota in '12) Bradford has played well, but the teams he's led have been thumped. Someone has to be the leader of an NFL team, and it's almost always the QB. Bradford is establishing a track record of losses in the big ones. If you really want to call those 2 games big.

A poor man's Matt Ryan.

There's time. But we have to see to believe. Bradford squandered another chance to shift the narrative. And with a TAINT and a missed Q4 pass over the middle, he, again, hasn't.

Years from now, some kid somewhere is going to become an NFL fan. And they're going to be doing some research on the NFL and stumble upon Steven Jackson's stats and pause.

Who was this guy? Why have I never heard about him? What the hell was going on in St. Louis?

And to that kid, all I can tell you is that I have no idea. To have a 10K rusher totally blow a career with a team that had one of the hardest things to figure out figured out, but still managed to never win... it's almost impossible to do.

The Rams have done the impossible.

Record: 6-7-1

Real Meter: (Where we predict the Rams win total for the year): 6

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: The wagons were circled but the Rams escaped

2012-12-10T15:01:33Z

Pump. The. Brakes.

The Sam Bradford fan club is in a full lather over the St. Louis Rams' comeback win in Buffalo. It's like a frothy mix of toldyaso and hesthegreatestever.

I get it. I like it. I want more of it. But there have been a plethora of Tweets like this:

Damn straight, that last drive to win the game was impressive. Love, love, LOVE gritting out a road win in December.
But if Austin Pettis doesn't make the catch of his career (yes, career), then we're all sitting around the campfire talking about seven points scored in a loss.

Point being, Sam Bradford deserves credit for leading a game-winning drive, but Brandon Gibson, Pettis and Steven Jackson also made plays that kept the drive alive above and beyond their normal job description.

I endorse the results, but the referendum on Bradford's ability to lead a championship offense will remain open for at least this season and into the next. 15 points won the game for the Rams on Sunday. 15 points wins very few NFL games overall.

Still, the Rams are right there in the thick of the playoffs, right?

EASY, big dog.

Getting to .500 (plus a tie) is a big damn deal for December and the Rams. But it's also going to take a running of the table and some help, since both Seattle and Chicago have 8 wins and the Bears have a tie-breaker against the Rams. Not to mention Washington, Dallas lurking.

Could it happen? Absolutely. Anything in today's NFL is in play. Will it happen? It's doubtful. Don't believe me, then check out Football Outsiders' DVOA playoff odds (through Week 13 at .9% for the Rams.)

I want to see the Rams in the playoffs. Bad.

But again, I think we're all wise to get another win at home against the Vikings in Week 15 and see how the action shakes out before we even start running these playoff scenarios through in our heads.

The D, though. How about those guys?

The first half the Rams were treating possessions like a Herpes outbreak... get out of the public view in as little time as possible and hope no one noticed.

But the Rams were only down six points at the half. One play from taking a lead.

Even better for the Rams is that they're still not all clicking on D at the same time. Big Mike Brockers had his most disruptive game as a Ram, while Robert Quinn was hard to find. Jenoris Jenkins got more physical with his play, but Cortland Finnegan seemed to be a step slow.

Imagine if all these guys start hitting on all cylinders at the same time? I don't know, they might end up being pretty good.

And they're going to need to eat their Wheaties before Sunday.

Adrian Peterson might not be human. We're still not a year removed from him shredding his knee, but he seems to rip off a 50 yard run every effing FOX game break.

Let's go to Curt Menefee in the FOX Studios... (Cut to Rams fans weeping silently in their chairs.)

The Vikings will end the Rams 7 game slate in St. Louis for 2012 and maybe one of the Rams will encourage us to get "liquor drunk" before the game. It seemed to work well for them.

The win against the Bills didn't hurt the Rams' playoff chances. But since Dallas and Washington both pulled out last minute slash overtime wins respectively, it puts that much more heft into Sunday's match up.

Finally. Some meaningful December football in St. Louis.

Twitter Reacts...

Real talk? This week's 'Twitter Reacts' is the toughest one yet. basically, it's a million people bagging on the Rams for 2 hours and 55 minutes, then a bunch of HOLY SHIIIIITTTTT Tweets after the Rams comeback to win.

That being said, this particular habit is something the Rams are falling prey to more and more often. WRs got to get to the sticks, and they're making for a real preponderance of 4th &1s.

This is fantastic. Just watch. And then know it's even better because they ended up losing.

We' re all too close to the situation to realize it... but the rest of the NFL HATES losing to the St. Louis Rams.

The Rams have been so bad for so long that unlike losing a close one to the Pats or Steelers, fans of the teams the Rams beat take these losses HARD. It's kind of funny, until you realize that they're truly enraged that the Rams beat their team.

Then it kind of makes me question what I'm doing. A little.

Case in point: the Rams are celebrating a three-game winning streak because it hasn't happened in 6 years. Think about that. It's been 6 years since the Rams had a three-game winning streak.

How are we still fans, again?

You're right, Spicy Firework. How do I even question my fandom? Thanks for the pick-me-up. Please work on standardizing your capitalization. It'll make me putting this up much more credible.

Record: 6-6-1

Real Meter: (Where we predict the Rams win total for the year): 8

Poll

Will The Rams Make The Playoffs?

Yes

27 votes

No

26 votes

53 votes | Poll has closed

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: The San Francisco Beat

2012-12-03T15:00:53Z

The St. Louis Rams and 49ers played 149:35 of a possible 150 minutes in the regular season. Every single one of them was damn good entertainment.

THIS was the first real football memory that I have. The Rams were new to St. Louis, but everyone informed me that I already had a duty—a sworn obligation, really. That if I stood by one thing in the NFL, it was that I hated the 49ers.

As they beat the snot out of the Rams twice a year, every year, it wasn't hard. Those bastards were the litmus test and the Rams never, ever measured up.

When the '99 Greatest Show on Turf ended a four year STL drought against SF with a win, I think that was the exact moment where all of us Rams fans stopped acting like we believed in Kurt Warner & Co., and started to ACTUALLY believe.

If they could beat the 49ers... this team was legit.

Turns out that the ascension of the Rams into Super Bowl contenders dovetailed with 49ers' slide into mediocrity. The Rams ended up joining them in the mid 00's and the juice doesn't get flowing as easy when both teams are 4-8.

And while the Rams are still a losing team according to their record, they're on the come. The 49ers are there now, with a young nucleus that is poised to make extended runs to the postseason over the next few years. For the first time in nearly a decade, the Rams and Niners are playing meaningful games against each other.

And, damn, did I forget just how great it is to beat those shit stains.

Down to the wire again?

Ties in the NFL just don't happen. And the Rams were a 50+ yard missed FG away from pretty much assuring that this was going to be the first time since the 60s that the same teams tied twice in the same season. Again, special teams—a shanked punt for the Rams, a missed David Akers FG for the 49ers—decided the fate of the game.

But ARGHHHH...

If the 49ers are actually the cream of the NFC crop, real Super Bowl contenders, then just why are the Rams sitting below .500?

Pissing away games against the Lions, Jets and Dolphins was painful at the time. But now? Now it's downright depressing to think about how much fun today would be if the Rams were playoff contenders. I want to be positive about this. I really do.

But the end-game of the win against SF is that the Rams get a worse draft pick. Sucks.

Credit Due.

Samuel Bradford didn't play great. But he did do the things needed to win an NFL game. The drive in OT with two long scrambles was pristine, if also aided by a stupid personal foul 15 yard penalty by SF. And the two-point conversion in Q4 was clutch, since a false start by Rodger Saffold put the Rams almost eight yards out from the end zone.

Bradford has two of the five highest passing totals against the 49ers in 2013. And that's minus Amendola and with Steve Smith's corpse out beating balls into the turf with his "hands."

We've said it for weeks, but Bradford is paid to make the big plays in the big moments. And Sunday, while not jaw dropping, was effective. Something to build on. A start.

It wasn't all puppies and rainbows, though.

Jenoris Jenkins knows that when it's 3rd and 3, that playing 8 yards off the line of scrimmage isn't going to end well, right?

If that Colin Kaepernick lateral pass doesn't go astray, the Rams lose that game, right?

Brian Schottenheimer knew it was 3rd & 1 when he called a deep bomb down the sideline out of nowhere, right?

Getting it to the 50 and hoping that Legatron makes a FG isn't an offensive strategy that Jeff Fisher is counting on for the long term, right?

Chris Long is still on the Rams, right?

Let's not linger on the negative after such a massive win. But this game was teetering on a razor's edge for the bulk of four hours Sunday. There are issues to address. There's room to improve.

Good luck to the 49ers in the playoffs. Just remember one thing, though - The Rams still own your asses. See you in 2013.

Twitter Reacts...

Rapper E-40 has made many bad decisions since leaving The Click, so it's not surprising that he's out making bad football picks on Twitter.

Also, he invested heavily in Microsoft and wishes he'd had put that $$$ in Apple according to his Wikipedia pag e.

Love Mike Brockers saying the rivalry is back. Love the talk that this could be a MNF or SNF game in 2013. Love that we already have something to look forward to next football season, no matter what happens the next several weeks.

Carl Cheffers sounds like the name of a bad ref. He did nothing to dispel this assumption on Sunday. Bitching about referees is about as entertaining as reading about as your fantasy team. Or your kids. So we'll leave it at read that Tweet again, research where Carl is going next week, go to Vegas... pay for the whole deal courtesy of Carl.

I thought about spinning this off into its own post when news broke earlier this week of Rams owner Stan Kroenke buying a huge ranch and 4,500 cows in Montana. Then I got sad thinking how we're probably going to look back on this in a couple years and realize that Mr. Kroenke was willing to spend $100+ million on cows, but because we the taxpayers won't buck up for a new stadium, he's taking his team to LA.

Sigh.

Damn straight, Rally Squirrel. Damn straight.

Record: 5-6-1

Real Meter: (Where we project the Rams win total for the year): 8

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: What's on the Rams' To-Do List?

2012-11-26T15:01:51Z

Sunday marked the end of 377 days without a road win for the St. Louis Rams. A streak that would be even more bloated, if it weren't for the Browns being unable to kick a two-inch field goal. (AKA, the play that gave Andrew Luck to Indy.)

It felt good.

If we're making a check list, Jeff Fisher's Rams are marking off some pretty significant boxes:

Win inside the division (3-0-1) - CHECK.

Establish a deep threat for Bradford (Chris Givens, with six catches and 115 yards, with most productive game yet) - CHECK.

Stay competitive to regain fan interest (sans London game) - CHECK.

Good. All of it good.

The Rams are on pace for six wins (and a tie) and that's a hell of an improvement from 2-14 in 2011. It's hard during the week to week grind of the NFL to take a step back and assess the big picture.

Then again, after the shape the Devaney/Spagnuolo regime left the Rams in, it was virtually impossible to regress.

With five games to go, what, then, do the Rams have to accomplish?

Figure out Sam Bradford.

Are we working with a superstar or do we have a bigger-handed version of Alex Smith?

8 of 17, 205 yards and 2TDs/1INT against the Cardinals. Not spectacular, but solid. And this came isn't an anomaly. Bradford has generally been a solid QB throughout his tenure with the Rams. Not bad, not great... but a guy that goes out, performs OK and sometimes makes a play.

Problem is, the Rams pay him to be THE star on this team. And he hasn't been that. For instance, will we ever get a performance from Bradford that looks like what RGIII did on Thanksgiving? Maybe a unfair comparison, since the skill sets are different. But I can't remember a game where we could all gather around Monday and just begin and end a conversation with "BRADFORD!".

You did however, do that with RGIII while eating turkey.

Next year will be year four. It's time for Fisher and Brian Schottenheimer to let it rip with Sammy B. See if he can carry this Rams team on his back. Empty the playbook and wow us.

Beat Minnesota.

Beating SF would be sweet. But that's a Super Bowl contender. It won't be easy, even if you think the Rams should have beaten the 49ers a couple weeks back.

The Minnesota game is the last home game of the season. The Rams will be officially eliminated from the playoffs sometime after that game, and the final two contests are on the road and in the midst of the holiday season. It's imperative the Rams leave a positive impression on the city about 2012.

Why?

Because more apathy from the fans means more apathy from the CVC in trying to get a stadium deal done and lock up the Rams in STL long-term.

No, it won't directly affect the negotiations. But the more excitement the members of the CVC in the community, the more onus they'll have to get a deal done.

Empower Janoris Jenkins.

The D-Line is set. They should be back and better in 2013. But the secondary, needs to be owned by Mr. Jenkins. Yes, the two pick 6's are wondrous. But it's a symptom of him playing with confidence.

He's the most talented Rams defensive player. We were all hoping against hope that he'd just make it through his first NFL season without doing something stupid.

He didn't. He was late. And he got suspended.

It appears, though, that he has learned from the tough love and is showing some of the same form he flashed early in the year. The coaches now need to phase him out of the 'learning rookie' mode and start shifting him into the leader of the secondary.

Those are the big ones. Plus, you know, figure out how to replace a Pro-Bowl running back that's basically be the alpha and omega of the franchise for the past decade.

No bigs.

Twitter Reacts...

Easy, BABE$Z.

Beating the Cardinals with something called a Ryan Lindley is one thing. But facing a 49ers D that 's working on playoff position, with a hot QB and a defense looking to atone for the shame of tying the Rams is not a good look for a win.

And is that TM really needed? Seems like an excessive expenditure to me.

Look at John. Bringing EVERYONE down.

Thanks John.

I spent an while trying to figure this one out. And I'm not sure if it makes sense.

Let's tease this out: So this girl is popular. She's in two weddings, and since most good GFs try not to get married close to one another, you have to assume that Bride A and Bride B aren't more than acquaintances.

The guy, on the other hand, also has to be fairly popular to get invited to two weddings as well, but not as popular as the bridesmaid, since it's way easier to get a regular invite than be in the wedding party.

Now, I've never found this stereotype of bridesmaids to be all that realistic. But for this Tweeter, maybe it is. The first time he took this lady home, it was what it was. But to do it again, in the same year, easy or not, is pretty impressive. There didn't appear to be any relationship there, so maybe the Rams are really good in bed?

Is that what I'm supposed to be inferring here?

When the hot girls notice, you're doing it right.

Ok, I was deep in Twitter trying to find some notable Tweets, when I came across this. Looks like last week, during the lead-up to the Cardinals loss, Stewart Bradley, the AZ Cardinals LB, had time to play Chess Free with his girlfriend.

Just a slice of life I thought you guys would enjoy. Oh, and good on these two for playing chess and working their brain muscles.

Record: 4-6-1

Real Meter: (Where we project the Rams win total for the year): 6

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: What do we have to look forward to?

2012-11-19T15:30:20Z

How does one measure irrelevance?

Because if Las Vegas is any indication, the St. Louis Rams have it in gobs.

NFL Sundays in Vegas are a big deal. Fans from all over the country go hair of the dog @ 10 a.m., getting up (or not going to sleep) before mixing in a little gambling with their football. With the Cowboys and Packers both playing early games, I figured it might be hard to get a good screen featuring two losing teams.

Bar 1: If you want that game, head to a sports book.

Bar 2: If it becomes close, we'll go to it.

Bar 3: Okay, but only in the front bar, and you have to pay $30/hr for a table fee.

But Hooks, NEW YAAARK. They've got a big fanbase. Surely they would be pulling rank.

Jets Fan in Bar 3 with 8:00 left in Q4: "Can we turn this game to the Packers?"

Sigh.

Even Jets fans weren't really excited about this win. Hell, I think a good amount of them wanted the Jets to lose, so they could have epileptic fits about losing to the Rams. Bart Scott's failed media boycott was of more interest to everyone following Gang Green than the game itself.

Here we are again. Five-game winless streak. Unsold tickets. No juice and no real meat on the bone, so to speak, in terms of things to get excited about.

Defense? Tied a 50-year-old record for the most consecutive games without causing a turnover (five).

Offense? One pump chumps, again scoring on the first drive (3rd game in a row) and then rolling over and going to sleep... leaving us all very unsatisfied.

What are we doing here, men?

I guess that's what it comes back to. We thought we were getting a ball-hawking, shit-talking, after the whistle-hitting defense that was going to punch people in the mouths.

Instead, a QB on the ropes comes into STL and pwns us.

The Rams were overmatched, undercoached and totally lethargic coming off an inspired tie the previous week in San Francisco. Resting on your laurels would suggest the Rams had earned some. But their record says otherwise.

The worst part is there doesn't seem to be improvement.

We knew this wasn't going to be a playoff team. But even if the Rams were out of it by Week 10, we were hopeful that they'd A) be in every game in the 4th quarter and B) be a team that no team with playoff aspirations wanted to see on their schedule.

Take the Chiefs out of the equation... is there any other team the rest of the NFL would want to play more right now? That's the litmus test. And the Rams fail. They're the chum in the water right now.

Plus, the franchise has gone all-in on Sam Bradford.

Take all of your money. All of your assets. Everything you can put a value on and say that number to yourself. Now I make you an offer: if the Rams win a Super Bowl with Sam Bradford as the QB, you triple that number. If they don't, then you pay me a thousand bucks.

Would you do it? What if I changed it to 'win a playoff game', would you do it then?

They seem to have confidence in Sam. But week after week I keep waiting for the seventh highest paid player in the NFL to make something happen. You know, like that last minute TD strike Aaron Rogers had in his game against the Lions. But week after week, we keep getting average to below average quarterbacking.

When can we expect our super star player to rise above and make a win happen when it shouldn't. Isn't that what the great ones do?

It's frustrating.

The Rams started out the season strong. Got people excited about the NFL in St. Louis again. Didn't even have to beg friends to go to a game with me for the first time in years. But with Thanksgiving on the horizon, the Rams have been exposed.

Even worse, heading in the wrong direction.

Again.

Twitter Reacts

Go home, Joe. You're drunk.

This was not me. And I'd like to know where he was sitting and shake his hand.

Well said Josh, I guess last week was 'good enough' for the Rams.

What does this even mean? Are the Rams Shotty? Is that 'shitty' mis-spelled? Is he calling the Rams shitty? Nevermind. He's probably right, whatever smack he's talking.

Ugh.

Record: 3-6-1

Real Meter: (Where we project the Rams win total for the year): 4

St. Louis Rams Real Talk: Tie Game Positivity (or Negativity) edition

2012-11-12T15:01:29Z

So that happened. The St. Louis Rams and San Francisco 49ers played to a 24-24 draw, opening up the dreaded third column in the record. You might hate ties, but newspaper editors, website coders and TV graphic artists DESPISE the tie. Plus, now we have to hear Chris Berman read like 400 disclaimers before all NFC playoff scenarios.

Trust me... this tie wasn't good for anyone.

The positive tie-ist is pumped.

The Rams went on the road, faced one of the NFL's elite defenses, and hung 24. Only the third time in 2012 they've been able to get 3 TDs in a game.

Steven Jackson finally had a Steven Jackson day. Almost 30 carries, 100+ yards, 25+ receiving yards, and a TD. The offensive line welcomed back LT Roger Saffold to boot.

For five quarters, the Rams slugged with a heavyweight and didn't cede an inch. A big part of growing as a team is learning how to win on the road. This is technically not a win or a loss, but it showed spine in the enemies' house.

The Rams beat the 49ers in 1st downs (27 - 25), yards per play (5.7 - 5.3) and total yards (458 - 341). And did it with their best WR and most talented CB sitting out for violating team rules.

The negative tie-ist, however is nonplussed.

Danny Amendola had about 150 yards called back on penalties by himself, including a back breaking 80 yard bomb for an illegal formation. 13 flags on the day, once again, sunk a winning effort.

The 49ers aren't exactly the '99 Rams, but take Alex Smith out of the equation and you've got yourself a real, live average offense led by Colin Kaepernick. Read that name again. Colin. You think there can be an NFL star named Colin? Smith was taken out of the game in the first half with a concussion. The backup was able to ring up 17 points.

Is there a bigger punch in the gut than seeing a 53 yard game-ending bomb sail through the uprights, only to have it called back? Please tell me, if there is.

It's just going to be up to you to decide how to parse this one out.

If you're having a shitty Monday, than you're probably more inclined to believe the Rams pissed a win away. If you're off for Veteran's Day, then it's probably a game that was entertaining and not a loss.... so you're not busted up over it at all.

Honestly, a great case could be made either way.

I'm going to reluctantly put myself in the 'this was good' camp, based only on the opponent. The 49ers are going to the playoffs and, if healthy, could come out of the NFC to represent it in the Super Bowl. They were coming off a bye (as the Rams were) and had time to exploit the Rams' weaknesses, but couldn't. If this exact game had been on the road, or against Arizona... then it'd be as good as a loss.

Rams can build on this, though.

Side: the all-time series is now 61-61-3 between the 49ers and Rams.

We can't just let Bradford off the hook totally, though.

And let me preface this by saying this is petty. But back in the day when Marc Bulger was the starting QB, November '09 to be exact, there was a play where Marc Bulger needed 6 yards for a first down. The pocket opened up he ran for 5 yards.

Then he slid.

No first down. Took a couple seconds to get touched. I knew at that moment that Bulger was done as the Rams QB.

Why?

Because the other players were going to watch that play in film on Monday and see what we saw - a guy that didn't have that burning desire to win. Marc liked to win. I'm sure he wanted to win. But he didn't NEED to win.

On the last drive of the game, the Rams were 1st & 10 on their own 38 yard line. Roughly 20 yards or so from a legit shot for a game-winning field goal. Bradford dropped back to pass and Aldon Smith was free on a jailbreak rush. Bradford went down unprompted, and Smith touched Bradford for the sack.

I can't say that Bradford wouldn't have not got mauled had he tried to make a move on Smith. Nor can I say that he had the opportunity to make a great play. But that play in particular kind of rubbed me the wrong way. It seemed like something Marc Bulger would do.

Again, maybe this is an overly dramatic reaction to what was horrible blocking by the o-line. I just can't square the play with the burning desire to win that say a Ben Roethlisberger might have on that exact play.

Twitter Reacts

NFL players are really bad about needing routines. They do everything on schedule. All week. Every week. Including having emotions, positive or negative, after a game. So I bet that was a confusing flight home. It's something they're not used to.

Well played, Rui.

I think that you're wrong here, sir. The finale was disappointing to some, I'll grant you that. But on a whole, I think that this was a good show.

True story, I bought a box of Capri Suns the other week. Just the perfect amount of juice-like substance in each pouch. Plus they made the straw poking area much easier to penetrate.

St. Louis... you ready to be in the middle of a genuine media circus? I think it might be coming to town this weekend.

Record: 3-5-1

Real Meter: (Where we project the Rams win total for the year): 5-10-1

NFL headsets, marketing, and how Motorola is the dumbest company on Earth

2012-11-05T15:01:07Z

Something is missing from the 2012 NFL season. It took about eight weeks, but I finally figured out what it was during the drubbing the St. Louis Rams took against the New England Patriots in London.

The camera panned to Jeff Fisher, staring out into nothingness, wondering what his next step was going to be in the revival of his mouldering franchise. The shot lingered for close to 10 seconds as Jim Nantz blathered about how Fisher will "get back to work" or some other Nantzian platitude.

Then it hit me: Motorola. Jeff Fisher looked different, because he didn't have the Motorola logo on his headset. In fact, no coach did.

What the hell happened to Motorola?

First, I looked to see if the company was still in business. I know that having a RAZR was pretty cool in college, but that was a long time ago. Apple still made computers for NERDS back then.

It is. Motorola is still making phones and other electronics for consumers and businesses.

But maybe they're just not sponsoring things anymore, right? After all, when companies hit tough times, they tend to cut marketing and advertising first. Was Motorola still laying out marketing $$$?

They are. They were the 16th biggest spender in the US for corporate marketing sponsorships in 2011, and just signed Bubba Watson to an endorsement deal right before The Masters this year.

So Motorola is still in business. And they're still spending $$$ on marketing? Then I'm confident in what I'm about to say next:

Motorola might be the dumbest company operating in America.

I spent Sunday watching the Red Zone channel. You want to know just how many times the coaches were shown?

Every play. That's how much. Every. Single. Play.

I started to try and count how many shots of coaches' faces were shown to make this piece more scientific. I quit because I should have been counting how many plays where the coaches weren't shown.

Try it next Sunday. It's like a laugh track. You can't ignore it once you've started to notice it.

Back to the Motorola people, though. How much exposure are they missing out on?

Some back-of-the-napkin math:

50 plays per game (conservatively) where the coach is shown with a logo on his mouth or ear or both. Times 16 games per week. Equals 800 shots.

Let's put those shots at three seconds per exposure (conservatively) and that equals about 2,400 seconds of exposure... in just the regular season.

Remember that this is in every game, every week, every market, in the most-watched live event on TV. So very roughly, you're reaching 25 million people each week through SNF, MNF and the regional CBS/FOX games. That's 400 million impressions (conservatively) that Motorola has passed on.

So, so dumb.

Worse—Nobody else wanted to buck up and put their logo on those headsets? We've got corporations paying millions of dollars to get their names on practice jerseys, but the headsets are the one thing the NFL can't sell? It's expensive, no doubt... but it's expensive because there is so much down time in football and the coaches are the only faces that aren't behind a mask.

I'm not sure why this bothers me so much. I have an iPhone. I wouldn't really consider a Motorola product at this point. Still, it seems bizarre to me that I'm the only one that's talking about this. You guys have noticed this, right? Motorola crapped the bed on this one.

But some marketing person in some meeting in some building somewhere saw the $40 million Motorola was spending in marketing on headsets and made a case to cut it out after 13 years.

That person has never been an NFL fan.

And if they become one, they'll probably want to quit Motorola for giving up the most unavoidable product placement in the history of sports.

Hell, probably in the history of TV.

St. Louis Rams Real Talk Week 8: International Beatdown

2012-10-29T14:00:50Z

Sorry, England.

If you brought your kids out to that nice little football tutorial session last week, please instruct your little ones to forget every single thing they were told. Better yet, if you can find Will Smith and a neuralizer, do so.

If you want the more positive view, well—at least the St. Louis Rams are now an international embarrassment, no longer constrained by the borders of the US.

The St. Louis Football Rams surrendered a home game in 2012 to play in the United Kingdom. And they used this opportunity to "grow the Rams brand" to open up a fresh round of questions:

Like, for instance: Were the Rams a 3-2 fraud? Are the younger players actually getting better? Was the cash grab worth it? Are these such things as football gods and, if so, why the hell do they hate St. Louis so very much?

Oh, and Steven Jackson? He's pretty much all but done as a Ram according to PFT and Adam Schefter.

Just a spectacular flop for the Rams. Really.

They took the worse case scenario and laughed in its face. They made the Patriots look like the Super Bowl contenders everyone thought they were 8 weeks ago.

Sam Bradford. Barely cracks 200 yards.

This isn't news. He's the kind of QB that treats 300 yard games like a venereal disease he's trying to avoid catching. But the Pats. The Pats had the worst secondary in the NFL. So you figure that even in a mauling, he'd get 300 in the air.

Nope.

Take away (a very nice) deep ball to Givens on the first drive and he's looking at about a buck fifty for the remaining 57 minutes of play. And in case you were wondering, yes, the Rams did lead in time of possession (31:06 to 28:54).

May I repeat: the Patriots had the WORST secondary in the NFL.

What do you even say at this point? We're half way through year 3 of the Bradford era and he's yet to emerge as a player that can rise above bad circumstances and lift the play of his offensive teammates. I'm not ready to throw in the towel yet, but how long should we wait?

Steven Jackson is probably done as a Ram.

If the Rams are going to make a move, it's going to be done this week while they're on the bye.

SJ39 has had a year voided (mutually) off his contract to make him a free agent after the season. He had a mysterious injury/benching. He's been taking every third series completely off so Daryl Richardson can get more PT. The Rams have made it clear that he's not in their long-term plans at his current pay rate.

Long story short: It's over.

Jackson is a borderline Hall of Fame RB that has put up sick numbers for terrible teams. He deserves a chance at winning something in his career. So it's the right thing to do. Many national media outlets are circling this story, so rather than endure 2 weeks of chatter around Rams Park... it's time to move on.

Many in St. Louis will be shocked with what the Rams get for Jackson. A 4th round pick might be too much.

Still won't help the bigger problem.

The Rams have to get a stadium deal done. Speaking as a fan, why would I endure the grossness of Sunday if I don't know that better days lie ahead.

Better days in St. Louis, that is.

The Rams are 3-5 and still have some games on the schedule that are pretty sure losses. They're going to finish under .500. And the Rams will be asking for a little more time, pointing out all the improvements in 2012.

Problem, though, is that we're really not ready to emotionally invest enough to endure this crap unless we're sure that the Rams are in it for St. Louis.

Worst, we thought all this was over.

That's why Coach Fisher is in St. Louis. No more 45-7 blowouts. He was the guy that kept teams in games no matter what. And when the odds looked stacked against him, he came out with some of his best efforts. The 35 point thrashings were left in the epitaphs of Scott Linehan and Steve Spanuolo.

Here we are, though. Swallowing hard at another sinister beating.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. The first few weeks were going to suck, then the Rams were going to coalesce and build for a great 2013 season. Instead, these guys appear to have peaked in Week 5. And since have regressed mightily.

Twitter Reacts:

I mean, it's funny. But on a serious note, there are people in England that don't know anything about our city but that Rams game. That's what they have to go on. Think about that.

By the way, 12 flags for 102 yards? That's an INSANE amount of penalty yards for the Rams. It's almost as if the Patriots are this golden team that gets preferred treatment from the refs or something.

I never liked Oasis. I was out on Wonderwall before you were. I promise you that.

That wont guarantee any more wins, just ask Gary Pinkel. HIIIIYYOOOOO!

These are the kind of Tweets you did up when 45-7 games happen. This girl has no interest in football. Whatsoever. But the Rams are an easy punchline again. Just when you think things are going in the right direction...

BTW, how do people put little images in their names? Like that yin and yang sign? I never trust people that have them in their handle, but on the other hand, am impressed they've worked the system to get them in there.

Record: 3-5

Real Meter: (Where we project the Rams win total for the year): 4-12