3 PHASES

In a season where NFL viewership is down, moving the Rams to LA may be the NFL’s ticking time bomb.

By: Kyle E. Castro

Photo by Erik Drost

Jeff Fisher is one of the biggest anomalies in professional sports. The mustache and the headset seem somewhat cliché of someone who would fit the old ball coach persona. In a way, we’ve all fallen for him, the guy whose job security is seemingly constructed from the nostalgia of one season. Maybe one play. I still get that feeling every time I see him, that “Music City Miracle” feeling. What a play. Again, what a play.

And the legends that spilled forth from that 1999 Titans team, they carry coach Fisher too. Javon Kearse, Samari Rolle, Eddie George, Steve McNair, Keith Bullock and the sure-handed Frank Wycheck ( so memorable, those are not listed from reference but from memory). Truly fitting of the “Titans” name. Newly converted from the Tennessee Oilers, the Titans made a Super Bowl run in their first year dawning the two-tone blue. And the miracle. What a play. It’s burned into many memories. Living in Nashville, you meet thousands who swear they didn’t leave early that day. It’s all tied together by that last, stretching reach of Kevin Dyson’s hand towards the goal-line as the clock hits zero. What a game. They almost had the “Greatest Show On Turf” pinned.

It’s all wind beneath Jeff Fisher’s wings. When you read about it, watch it, listen to it or think about it, you feel the mystique. It’s hard not to think that Jeff Fisher somehow eked years of job security out of this one season. This one play.

Fast forward to January of 2016, the owners agree on a deal that would bring the Rams to the LA (www.espn.com). Fast forward to yesterday. The newly located LA Rams announce that Jeff Fisher has been fired, in light of the contract extension that took place the week before.

The NFL had to get their share of the LA market. They just had had to. How had the NFL been out of the LA market so long? They pushed for years and it actually happened.  The Rams seemed to be an easy choice as they placed in the bottom quartile for viewership and attendance on a consistent basis. A revival seemed necessary.

There is nothing wrong with this in and of itself. The NFL to LA theory makes sense in capable hands. However, the NFL seemed to have such an eye on the market share and the greenbacks that the league was blinded to the tectonic catastrophes that were lying ahead.

“You see, before the season started, Jeff Fisher was only 9 losses away from becoming the losingest coach in NFL history.”

If the NFL had one shot at LA, it was a misfire. Admittedly, the NFL and the owners association had no way to foresee the catastrophe that laid ahead. Unless of course, they were keeping their eyes on the record book. You see, before the season started, Jeff Fisher was only 9 losses away from becoming the losingest coach in NFL history (www.stltoday.com).  On the day of his firing, Jeff Fisher had tied with Dan Reeves for all-time career losses at 165. To give you perspective, Don Shula is the NFL’s winningest coach at 328 wins. It only took Fisher 22 years to amass his 165 losses which is 9 more than Shula’s 156. The problem for Fisher is that Shula coached for 11 more years than Fisher which tips the scale just a bit. However, Stan Kroenke felt comfortable with Jeff Fisher paving the NFL’s way into the LA market. Even though in 22 years of coaching, Fisher averaged just 7.86 wins a season.

And then there is the draft/QB situation. Although we could get into scouting issues across the entire league, let’s focus on the Rams. The Rams made a blockbuster trade, sending a package of present/future picks to the Titans, receiving the first pick in the draft in return. With the first pick, they selected CAL’s Jared Goff(ironically, because of the Rams record, the Titans will get a top 5 pick in 2017). Ahead of future starters Carson Wentz and Dak Prescott, Jared Goff didn’t even dress for the active roster in week 1.

Think about that for a second…

The newly branded, trailblazing LA Rams, led by the soon-to-be losingest coach in NFL history, take a QB in the first pick of the 2016 draft who wasn’t even good enough to dress for the season opener. Instead, they opt for Case Keenum? That’s right ladies and gentlemen, the NFL BURSTS into the LA scene with Case. Keenum. In the pass happy, QB centric NFL-Jeff Fisher leads the charge with Case Keenum. Magic. Kobe. Dickerson. Koufax. Robinson. Keenum? The Mount Rushmore of LA sports molds before our very own eyes! And if we’re talking Canton, go ahead and make room for Tavon Austin and Kenny Britt.

And what about Todd Gurley? Last season, Todd Gurley was a revelation. He’s the kind of player that you can build an entire franchise around. This year? He’s the invisible man and by no fault of his own. With no line and the virgin, Jared Goff’s inept quarterbacking, Gurley has gained just 740 yards in the first 13 games of this season as compared to his 1,104 yards in 13 total games last season (www.nfl.com). His yards per carry are down from 4.8 to 3.3.  Somehow, the Rams offensive scheme has erased an elite offensive player from the league, who is quite possibly the closest thing the Rams have to a “face of the franchise”. Gurley supports this sentiment with his recent accusations of the Rams running a “middle school” style offense (Yahoo Sports).

So what does this say about the NFL? As they eye London and Mexico as potential landing spots for future NFL franchises, you have to wonder if Stan Kroenke’s mishandling is being taken as a precaution for future geographical misalignment. It makes the NFL look like they were so blinded by the opportunity that they chose not to anticipate the missteps buried just below the surface of the Rams organization.

“In the case of the NFL, it’s greed over game.”

Many obstacles stand in the way of the NFL gaining back its bountiful viewership. Anthem-protesting backup QB’s, election years and bad weekday games all pose a problem. Say what you will but it’s all about the product on the field. In the case of the NFL, it’s greed over game. Maybe next year we’ll see Josh McDaniel or some up and comer turn the LA ship around. Until then, there is unrest for the NFL in the land of Magic, Kobe, Koufax and Robinson.

A Giant Miss

Dak and WR’s stall during what might as well have been a playoff simulation.

By: Kyle E. Castro

Photo by Keith Allison

You might say that Sunday night’s game between the Cowboys and the Giants was a playoff simulation. Division games are always a clash, and you can argue that no one clashes harder than these two teams. The Giants have a history of ruining all hope for jockeying Cowboys teams. The Cowboys have shown a propensity to flail when it matters.

 

What’s interesting about Sunday night’s game is that Dallas actually played a near perfect game. When you exclude the performance of Dak and the receiving core, it doesn’t get much better. The league misnomer of that Dallas “bend but don’t break”, starless defense was completely annihilated. They forced 3 turnovers out of Eli Manning and could have forced three more. On the offensive side of the ball, Zeke Elliot compiled another MVP-esque night with 107 yards rushing. Sean Lee amassed 18 tackles and seemed to have a crystal ball when it came to filling the gaps in the Giant’s run game (2^nd in the league with 130 total tackles, www.teamrankings.com). With those types of numbers, combined with the momentum of this season, it’d seem to be a recipe for victory.

 

However, on this night, it came down to rookie Dak Prescott. Theoretically, solid defense and a controlling run game should have yielded Dak’s best performance yet. Instead, the rookie looked like a rookie. He was rushing his reads. Forcing balls. The play calling seemed off and the WR’s just weren’t getting open. It’s hard to tell where the blame lies. Where were the open receiving windows while Zeke was having another breakout game? Why was Lance Dunbar deployed as a blocker in 3^rd and long situations when Zeke is obviously the better pass-blocker/pass catcher out of the backfield?

 

LITTLE CHUNKS

Dallas Failed The Playoff Simulator…and that’s not all bad.

No one would play Dallas harder in the playoffs than the Giants. It doesn’t matter if Eli Manning is playing QB or a dead fish-these teams come to play. The run game and the elite defensive effort should have provided the ultimate opportunity for Dak to have his best game yet. However, it isn’t all doom and gloom. All in all, I think the Cowboys needed this loss to show them the flaws in their game plan. It’s safe to assume that this Giants team is as tough (if not the toughest) NFC challenge they’ll face.  Surely the giants couldn’t sweep this Dallas team if they meet in the playoffs?

Control Freaks

What happened to Dallas’s time of possession? Their whole bread and butter around this offense is eating up the clock and keeping the defense off the field. Although still ranked 2^nd in the league for TOP, they’ve been edged out by their last three opponents, of which the Giants are ranked 30^th(Redskins/Vikings edged them out by almost 5 minutes, www.teamrankings.com).

Dez Elite?

When Dez is on, he’s way on. Sunday, his one catch out of nine targets resulted in a fumble. There is no questions about Dez being an elite WR. However, at some point, we have to admit that his “demand” of double coverage limits him unlike that of Julio Jones. There are faint moments where you have to remind yourself why Dez got the big contract. I do expect him to avenge “The Catch” in a big way in the playoffs.

Romo Is Where The Heart Is

“People who were quick to bench Dak in their hearts on Sunday probably missed out on the 5 interception performance by Russell Wilson earlier that day. “

The biggest question we’ve been asking all season finally erupted last night. How long is Dak’s leash and when do we put Romo in? I don’t think we’re there yet. People who were quick to bench Dak in their hearts on Sunday probably missed out on the 5 interception performance by Russell Wilson earlier that day. Even the greatest of QB’s have their day. For Dak, it all comes down to Scott Linehan’s game plan. Some will argue that Dak’s scrambling ability gives him the edge up over Tony. We didn’t see that yield results on Sunday. The one thing that you cannot replace is the intangibility of the connection between #9 and his receivers. Sometimes, you wonder if Witten and Romo have telepathy. How many times have we seen a play break down and yet somehow, Witten, Bryant or Beasley know exactly where Romo will want to go with the ball? Linehan has to come up with a game plan that suites Dak’s ability and gets receivers open, especially Cole Beasley who is a matchup nightmare for the other 31 teams in the league. One more advantage that Romo has in the time of possession game is diagnosing blitzes and coverages. “KILL! KILL!” could be written on Romo’s headstone. He grinds up so much time adjusting the play call, it complements the run attack greatly.

In The End

This loss was necessary. Don’t freak out Cowboys fans. Did you really want this team to win out 15-1? I recall a 15-1 team of yesteryear that got smashed on the big stage. I expect a big outing this weekend.