SB Nation St. Louis - NFL Power Rankings: St. Louis Rams Finish The Season At The Bottomhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49009/stl-fave.png2012-01-03T15:31:44-06:00http://stlouis.sbnation.com/rss/stream/24438472012-01-03T15:31:44-06:002012-01-03T15:31:44-06:00NFL Power Rankings: ESPN Raises St. Louis Rams To No. 31
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<p>According to the latest <a href="http://espn.go.com/nfl/powerrankings">ESPN</a> Power Rankings, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> have begun a slow, unpleasant climb out of the basement simply on the merit of their decision to fire their head coach Steve Spagnuolo:</p>
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<p><b>No. 31, St. Louis Rams:</b> It's looking like Jeff Fisher could be the Rams' top choice after going 10-38 over three seasons with Steve Spagnuolo. (Sando)</p>
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<p>On Monday, the Rams announced they had <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/2/2676686/steve-spagnuolo-fired-2009-class-rex-ryan-jim-schwartz/in/2425808">fired Spagnuolo</a> and their <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/2012/1/2/2676493/bill-devaney-fired-st-louis-rams/in/2425808">GM Bill Devaney</a> after a fifth consecutive losing season. Rumors have begun to swirl concerning former head coach Jeff Fisher who appears as a likely candidate to take over for Spagnuolo.</p>
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<b>Related:</b> <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2012/1/2/2677060/jeff-fisher-head-coach-2012-season">Jeff Fisher Interviewing With The Miami Dolphins On Tuesday</a>
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<p>Fisher coached the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/">Tennessee Titans</a> for 17 years, leading the team to a 142-120 record and orchestrating an AFC Championship in 1999. He was fired after a 2010 season in which the Titans finished 6-10.</p>
<p><i>Stay tuned to <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/">SB Nation St. Louis</a> for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit <a href="http://www.turfshowtimes.com/">Turf Show Times</a>. Visit <a target="_blank" href="http://sbnation.com/nfl">SB Nation NFL</a> for more news and notes around the league.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/3/2679988/nfl-power-rankings-st-louis-ramsBradley Woodrum2012-01-03T14:27:11-06:002012-01-03T14:27:11-06:00NFL Power Rankings: CBS Sports Ranks St. Louis Rams No. 32
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<p>According to the latest <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/powerrankings">CBS Sports</a> Power Rankings, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> (2-14) have spiraled to the lowest rank in the NFL -- despite not even owning the top overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft:</p>
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<p><b>32, Rams:</b> Is this the landing spot for Jeff Fisher? It makes sense, since they have <span>Sam Bradford</span>.</p>
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<p>The Rams fired their <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/2/2676686/steve-spagnuolo-fired-2009-class-rex-ryan-jim-schwartz/in/2425808">head coach</a> and <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/2012/1/2/2676493/bill-devaney-fired-st-louis-rams/in/2425808">general manager</a> on Monday, making the St. Louis franchise a prime target for long-time <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/">Tennessee Titans</a> head coach Jeff Fisher, who has reportedly expressed an interest to return to the NFL.</p>
<p>The 2011 NFL Season did no go as planned for the Rams, as their franchise QB Sam Bradford struggled with injuries behind a porous offensive line, and the team had to turn to third-string QB <span>Kellen Clemens</span>, who actually finished with the highest QB Rating of all three Rams quarterbacks.</p>
<p><i>Stay tuned to <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/">SB Nation St. Louis</a> for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit <a href="http://www.turfshowtimes.com/">Turf Show Times</a>. Visit <a href="http://sbnation.com/nfl" target="_blank">SB Nation NFL</a> for more news and notes around the league.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/3/2679812/nfl-power-rankings-st-louis-ramsBradley Woodrum2012-01-03T09:52:54-06:002012-01-03T09:52:54-06:00NFL Power Rankings: SB Nation Bumps St. Louis Rams Up To No. 31 To Finish Season
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<p>The St. Louis Rams (2-14) had a terrible 2011-12 NFL regular season, and thus they are left with a terrible NFL Power Ranking by all the NFL experts.</p> <p>The 2011-12 NFL regular season is one the St. Louis Rams would like to forget, and one<a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/2011/12/26/2661767/st-louis-rams-steve-spagnuolo-hot-seat" target="_blank"> recently fired head coach Steve Spagnuolo and GM Bill Devaney</a> wished had never happened. The Rams entered Week 17 as the lowest-ranked team in the entire NFL, but for the final <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2012/1/3/2678767/nfl-power-rankings-2011-12-green-bay-packers-indianapolis-colts" target="_blank">NFL Power Rankings for 2011-12 on SB Nation</a>, Joel Thorman moved the Rams up one spot to No. 31 overall. It's still the worst ranking for an NFC team, but not the absolute bottom of the NFL, so that's...something.</p>
<p>As for the rest of the NFC West, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.ninersnation.com/">San Francisco 49ers</a> finished at No. 5, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/">Arizona Cardinals</a> made a move to No. 15 after a poor start and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.fieldgulls.com/">Seattle Seahawks</a> managed to fall in a No. 23. A top-five team and another in the top half of the NFL is good for a division that lacked a top team last season, but the Rams really drag down the reputation of the division at the end of the season.</p>
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<b>Related</b>: <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2012/1/1/2675472/nfl-playoff-schedule-afc-nfc-wild-card-times-tv-coverage">NFL Playoffs Schedule, Game Times and TV Coverage</a>
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<p>Here is what Thorman had to say about the final resting place for the 2011-12 St. Louis Rams:</p>
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<p>31. <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> (2-14, LW: 32): The Rams were in the last spot but they played the 49ers tough so I'm giving them some credit. The bidding for their No. 2 pick starts...now. </p>
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<p><i>Stay tuned to</i><i> </i><i><a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/">SB Nation St. Louis</a> </i><i>for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit </i><i><a href="http://www.turfshowtimes.com/">Turf Show Times</a>.</i><i> Visit</i><i> </i><i><a target="_blank" href="http://sbnation.com/nfl">SB Nation NFL</a></i><i> </i><i>for more news and notes around the league.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/2012/1/3/2679097/nfl-power-rankings-2011-12-sb-nation-st-louis-rams-49ers-seahawks-cardinalsSteve von Horn