Reality Check For St Louis Rams In Preseason Opener
The St Louis Rams preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts may have marked the beginning of a new season for the club which has struggled so mightily in recent years, but it didn’t look a whole lot different.
What stood out most was quarterback Sam Bradford and the relatively elementary reads that he was given during his time on the field. He did complete seven of nine passed for 57 yards, but six of those were check down throws that he was capable of making in his rookie year. Pressure clearly still has Bradford a bit rattled and those happy feet are not a good sign of what’s to come when the regular season gets underway. His apprehension under the gun is a real concern for a player entering his third year as a starter.
Some missed tackles, missed assignments, and general inconsistency left the defense looking relatively unimproved as well. The unit surrendered a touchdown on the first pass of Colts’ QB Andrew Luck’s career as well as a throw over the top of the defense for a score that looked much like the Rams of old. What was thought to be a vaunted area of the D looked pedestrian as well as the defensive line really didn’t apply much pressure to Luck or do anything spectacular throughout the game.
Clearly game one doesn’t dictate how a season will ultimately play itself out, but the St Louis Rams will have plenty to work on during the upcoming week of practice after their 38 to 3 defeat at the hands of the only team with a worse record than them in 2011. Head Coach Jeff Fisher has stressed that having a fundamentally sound team is the first step in changing the culture of the franchise. He needs continue instilling that in the bulk of this roster so they can see some significant progress as the preseason progresses.
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