The St. Louis Rams finish the 2014 NFL Season at 6-10 with a Week 17 loss in Seattle to the Seahawks. The script was all too familiar to Rams fans in St. Louis and abroad. A great 1st half defensive battle against a quality opponent. As a watcher of every Rams game, I knew what was to happen in the 2nd half. The other team would continue to play good defense, as would the Rams. The other team’s offense would move the ball a little bit, here and there. The Rams offense would make a tragically bad mistake that would directly lead to points by the opposition, either directly with a return, or set up an opponents drive in a quick-change scenario.
The ax in the spine for the Rams in Week 17 was one of worst forward passes in the history of the NFL, pre or post merger. The Rams were near mid field and were actually putting together a decent drive, with several 1st downs. Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer calls a screen after a Rams holding call on a clear Seattle flop. The Seattle defense sniffs out the screen play beautifully and Rams’ QB Shaun Hill decides to throw the ball at the feet of the defense and live to see another down. However, Hill is so inept that he threw the ball too high and Seattlle DT Jordan Hill dove and intercepted the pass, ending the Rams drive and killing all of their positive momentum. It will literally an LOL moment, but not surprising at all for those of us who have watched this team play all season.
The season in a nutshell: Rams play well, lose on a crucial play that could have been easily avoided. Offense is abysmal to below average, defense gets worn out with repeated long stretches on the field. Score is not indicative of the game. Sound about right?
The Week 17 loss to Seattle was nearly identical to the loss in Arizona earlier. Or the recent home loss to Arizona, or the loss to San Francisco in St. Louis. Or, any number of games that the Rams lost, in which they either lead early by a wide margin, lead late or were in the game for most of the duration.
It seems fitting for the Rams to lose in the manner they did this afternoon in Seattle. Play great defense, play great special teams, do nothing on offense. The vanilla offense the Rams put forth this year looks a like a trend developing for the next several seasons if there isn’t a change at coordinator and a new QB isn’t procured and secured.
The defense can only stand for so long before needing at least a shred of support from the offense. Another season is over, another disappointment. 6-10 is terrible, obviously for a record. I know that your record says you are what you are. It didn’t feel like a 6-10 team, most likely because the Rams played great in almost every game for at least a good portion. Wins over Seattle, Denver and San Francisco. How did this team go 6-10? I will follow up this week with an indepth look at each phase of the team and where they should go from here.
For now, just look at Week 17 for what it was. The Rams’ season in a nutshell. Playing hard, playing good defense, costly turnovers. No creativity on offense. Terrible QB play. Terrible OL play at the worst time possible. Injuries are certainly a factor for this team’s demise this season, but they are not, by a longshot, the determining factor for the teams lamentable 6-10 finish.
Next Up: Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher: Performance Review
Have a great night! Here’s to the Rams playoff push in 2015!
