St. Louis Rams Weekly Roundtable: Austin Davis Saves the Day

5. The Rams are 1-1 and have a bye in week 4, before entering a brutal stretch of games: at Philadelphia, vs. San Francisco, vs. Seattle, at Kansas City, at San Francisco, at Arizona, vs. Denver, then at San Diego. If they lose Sunday’s game at home against Dallas, can we expect them to enter a free-fall and lose 9 games in a row? If they win, then re-group during the bye week, is there any chance they could be 6-5, let’s say, heading into the stretch run? If so–how do you see them doing it?

Sep 14, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; St. Louis Rams head coach Jeff Fisher looks on during the second half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. St. Louis Rams defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Nathan K.: I don’t put that much weight on this particular game, especially considering there is a week off to regroup and re-evaluate before taking on the gauntlet. Win or lose, this St. Louis Rams team is going to need to generate some type of plan, similar to that of the Kellen Clemens era at the end of last season. Every game is a new beast.

Arizona continues to lose key pieces. Denver struggles versus dominant pass rushing units. Kansas City looks awful, and just saw 80% of their offense (i.e. Jamaal Charles) get injured. San Francisco has had some trouble when playing the Rams. Seattle is a completely different team on the road. San Diego just lost their starting running back and will heavily rely on Antonio Gates, whereas the Rams are one of the best in the league at shutting down opposing tight ends. Philadelphia has been hot-and-cold in each game, and will have to face Jeff Fisher coming off a Bye week.

The St. Louis Rams are not a “finished” product. I wouldn’t be surprised if they lost every game in that stretch, nor would I be surprised if they came away with four or more wins.

Anthony K.: As I have for 25-plus years, I will remain hopeful, but that IS one brutal stretch of games. I would certainly feel a LOT more hopeful with a Rams win against the Cowboys heading into the bye week. Don’t underestimate the power a win like that could have for a young team that has lost two of its quarterbacks and its leader on defense. If the Rams beat Dallas, I could see them very easily ending up 5-6 or 6-5 at the end of that long stretch with a much easier final month of the season (minus the game at Seattle). Nate also brings up some great points about those teams’ respective weaknesses, so the Rams aren’t down and out by any means.

Blaine G.: That is going to be a brutal stretch, and one that if they survive it, will be a miracle. I see the Rams beating Kansas City and maybe defeating San Francisco or Seattle at home. I see the Rams going 2-6 in that stretch, but anything can happen on Sundays. We won’t know how these game play out until they happen.