Power? What Power?
OK, I recognize that I may be some kind of rube. I certainly don’t have Dr. Z’s credentials. But wouldn’t you think a team should at least demonstrate that it can score a touchdown before it gets ranked #3 in someone’s power rankings.
I mean … well here’s what I mean: The Rams offense lined up in the red zone on five different drives in Sunday’s home game against the Denver Broncos and never came away with anything more than a field goal. And what’s more, they scored on only four of those five trips (the other two field goals St. Louis scored in its 18-10 win came on drives that stalled outside the red zone). The other time? Well, that came toward the end of the first quarter when the Rams offense started a drive at the Broncos 2 yard line after a Jake Plummer fumble. Did the Rams do the sensible thing and run, run, run ’til they made it into the end zone? No, because the Rams are coached by Scott Linehan, who consistently calls pass play after pass play when his teams are on the goal line (more on that in a second). They ran once for no gain then went to the pass. The result: second and goal from the 2, Marc Bulger called for intentional grounding, pushing the team back to the 16 with an attendant loss of down; third and goal from the 16, incomplete pass; fourth and goal from the 16, holding, moving the ball back to the 26; fourth and goal redux, Jeff Wilkins misses a 44-yard field goal attempt. A 44-yard field goal attempt. Capping a drive that began with first and goal at the 2. Great football there, gang. Great play calling, coach.
Now, what happened on those other pushes into the red zone that prevented St. Louis from logging a TD? Well, St. Louis fans will tell you Bulger goes soft inside the 20. I have to ask, why was it even on Bulger? Early in the first quarter, the Rams started a series at the Broncos’ 8. Three incomplete passes later they brought in Wilkins to bang home three points. Then, in the fourth, the Rams started a series from the Denver 9. On first down, Steven Jackson (who was averaging 5.5 yards per carry on the day) ran for three yards. (Note: three times three is nine.) On second and third down, Bulger threw incompletions. Then Wilkins came in to hit a 24-yarder. That’s not smart football. That’s not good football. That’s not #3 in your power rankings football, either. Not if you’re me, anyhow.
All in all, in those five trips into the red zone (including, you’ll remember, drives in which series commenced on the Broncos’ 2, 8 and 9 yard lines), the Rams ran the ball four times and passed 11. This with a running back on the field who was averaging enough yards to score touchdowns in just two plays on each of the series that commenced inside the Denver 10. So, I don’t know. Ranked #3? Not by me, friends. Then again, I’m no Dr. Z.
