Why can't the Rams win it all?

[Guest]

Will the Rams win it all this year? Maybe not. But tell me why they can't.

Do the Rams have any less talent than the two teams in the Super Bowl last year? I don't think so.

Do they have a glaring area of weakness that makes their downfall a certainty? No.

Do they have the ability to improve from last year, when they were only two games from the Super Bowl? Absolutely.

So, why can't the Rams win it all?


By the way, this is my first post. Nice place you guys have here.

[evil disco man]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Welcome to the ClanRam, Dr.Ram. :ramlogo:

Good post - I can already see some of the replies coming.

[AvengerRam_old]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Welcome to the Clan, Dr. Hope you stick around.

I agree with you. The Rams go into this season as contenders, and not every team can say that (the Whiners, for example!). Of course, a lot of things will separate the June contenders from the December contenders (injuries, player progression/regression, a bit of luck), but, right now, you have to feel good about the Rams' chances.

[general counsel]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Welcome Dr. Ram, great to have you with us. If we stay healthy, there is no reason we cant win it all. Sure we have a tough schedule and some questions, but sometimes on this board people lose sight of the fact that in the cap era, no team can really be without some type of shortcoming.

here are the big factors in my view

1) stay healthy (this starts in camp, and up front, assumes turley is recovered from back surgery)
2) improvement of bulger
3) Get Pace in camp and hopefully signed long term
4) Some luck here and there (this is always critical)
5) Improved run defense, starting with the improvement of the defensive tackles and the health of robert thomas
6) better run blocking, mainly out of the tight end and fullback spots
7) better play in the red zone, ie more conversions into touchdowns
8) Resolution of the leonard little situation in a favorable way
9) continued improvement of the young players, reflecting in our depth and especially the special teams play

I am sure that there are many other points for people to add, but I like our chances.

Ramming speed to all and welcome again,

general counsel

[Curly Horns]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Welcome to ClanRam Doc!

Why not indeed!

I think our Rams have as good of chance to win the Super Bowl as any other NFL team.

[coy bacon]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Ok, I'll play the devil's advocate here.
I don't think the Ram's will win it all this year because Bulger is not a killer QB, our running game is suspect, and our defense average.

I can think of Tampa Bay and Baltimore who have won SBs with average QBs, but both those teams had dominating defenses.

Of course Bulger must be given the opportunity to prove himself. And, there is no reason to think that he cannot improve and become a great QB. But judging on last season's performance alone, I don't think he has the tools to be a SB winning stud QB. Let's hope he's improved and his performance this year will prove me wrong.

Our run defense was not the best last year, and I don't see a great amount of improvement. If anything we are weaker by losing Young and Winstrom. I have no faith or confidence that our 3 first-round draft pick DTs will improve their game. I think that Lewis will prove, once and for all that he is a bust, Pickett will be average again, and Kennedy will show that he is essentially a rookie since he did next to nothing last year due to several excuses.

Last's years running game was mediocre; Faulk was dinged up again. I don't expect Jackson to be a stud running back in his first season. So, I see no significant run game improvement.

I think we have the finest corps of WRs, and are deep at that position.

Outside of the PK, special teams is still a weakness.


As one poster said, in this era of salary cap, anything is possible, and we certainly have a very good chance in going all the way. But my gut feel is that I doubt it.

[Bob L. Head]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Ok, I'll play the devil's advocate here.

Dr., I go into EVERY season convinced we're going to win it all. There's only two ways to convince me they won't:

1) We lose so many games we're mathematically eliminated. Sometimes even this doesn't work for me.

2) We start Steve Walsh at quarterback.

Of course some guys see the glass as half broken, though. (Devil's advocate my hiney.) Doctor, I think Coy is ready for his suppository now. :rolleyes:

[sbramfan]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Strenght of schedule.

That's why the Rams have great records every other year. Even though the new restructured divisions makes your record have less impact your next years strength of schedule, the rams again have a tough schedule after a winning season.

They did prove they can win close games last year, so that will help them along the way, but those close games probably shouldn't have been as close as they were.

I would definitely put them in a top 10 list of teams who have a shot at winning it all this year. And probably 6 of those are from the AFC, so that helps the Rams chances as well.

[AvengerRam_old]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Vegas agreees with you. I think the only NFC teams right now who are listed with better odds to win it all are the Eagles (TO and Kearse are mistakenly believed to be the answer) and Packers (will the Favre love-fest never end?).

[Dr.Ram]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

As for Bulger's potential to be a Super Bowl winning QB, I offer this statistic:

Career passer rating:

Marc Bulger 87.2
Tom Brady 85.9

Is Bulger as good as Brady. Maybe not. But he is certainly good enough to win it all with a good team around him.

As for the running game, why shouldn't it improve. It improved greatly last year when Faulk came back from injury and ran off a bunch of 100 yard games in a row. And why can't Steven Jackson come in and contribute right away?

[coy bacon]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

edited by Coy Bacon 6-14-04 :tongue:

[AvengerRam_old]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

Take a chill pill, Coy.

If you look at Dr.Ram's question, it is why can't the Rams win it all, not why won't they win it all.

As a wordsmith such as yourself can readily ascertain, those are different inquiries and your post seemed more responsive to the latter one, which was not asked.

[Bob L. Head]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

You know where you can stick your suppository. Enjoy it. In fact, take two.

Thank you, Coy. If those suppositories are ANALgesics, I may need them later this season if my #1 above comes true.

Didn't Stalin call such folk, "useful idiots"?

Hmmm...anything to get on Stalin's bad side would have seemed to me to be a good thing.

Anyhow, I didn't mean to offend, and am truly sorry if I did. I really didn't mean it personally. I guess in HIND sight it may have been a bit crASS of me. ;-)

Shoot, now elAcky's gonna come get me because I'm the one fomenting controversy!

[lakerams]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

do the Rams have any less talent than the two teams in the Super Bowl last year? I don't think so.

is it just me, or did the team that won it last year already beat the Rams in the SB?

yes, the Rams have equal talent. it is utilizing the talent the team has that is the problem. that is what may keep the Rams from winning it this year.

ego always gets in the way of the team game ( i.e. the Lakers losing to the Pistons ).

[Nick]

Re: Why can't the Rams win it all?

As for Bulger's potential to be a Super Bowl winning QB, I offer this statistic:

Career passer rating:

Marc Bulger 87.2
Tom Brady 85.9

Is Bulger as good as Brady. Maybe not. But he is certainly good enough to win it all with a good team around him.

Very interesting stat. And I agree with your viewpoint.

Personally, I'm still not convinced Brady is an elite quarterback. I think he's a smart QB with an accurate but not incredibly strong arm. But he's not in the same category as guys like Manning or an in-his-prime Warner. Last season, Bulger out-performed the Super Bowl MVP in completion percentage, yards per attempt, total passing yards, and had only one fewer passing TD (Bulger actually accumulated more total TDs).

I think the key for this team is going to be our defense. As much as Bulger needs to gain in consistency, the same can be said for our defensive unit. We're not going to get back to the big game if we allow over 200 yards rushing in the playoffs. We're not going to get back to the dance if we continue to base our defense around turnovers instead of basics like tackling and actually stopping the opponent. I hope Marmie can turn this unit around and utilize the talent that's there.