Jeff Fisher on Rams Quarterback Situation: “We’re Going To Get That Sorted Out”

If it’s one position that the Los Angeles Rams have a glaring need at, it’s at the quarterback position, and that’s for obvious reasons. Nick Foles was a huge disappointment last season and while he did manage to go 4-1, Case Keenum probably isn’t the long-term answer at quarterback.

Head Coach Jeff Fisher joined Marcellus Wiley and Maz Kellerman on their radio show on 710 ESPN in Los Angeles to discuss the move as well as the quarterback position. Here’s what Fisher had to say on the Max and Marcellus show

Marcellus Wiley: Coach, this year not a playoff team, but still, very talented team. You guys obviously have the Seahawks’ number, we could talk at limp about that. You look at this roster, you’re bringing in that talent, but there is a glaring weakness, lets just call it what it is, at the quarterback position. What are your thoughts about that position and any other things that you need to do to upgrade this roster?

Jeff Fisher: You know, I appreciate you asking and bringing that up. You know, were going to get that sorted out. You know, I took this job initially four years ago, particularly because of the owner, Mr. Kroenke, and then at that time, our quarterback Sam Bradford was elite. So you know, our first year where we started rebuilding we had same, we were 7-8-1, we were 4-1-1 in the division, but we didnt have good people around him. Then unfortunately we lost Sam for the next couple of years with back to back ACL’s. So I think we played six quarterbacks. Im REALLY pleased with how Case Keenum finished up. He’s a couple plays away from being 5-0 as a starter, so Im pleased there. So, you know, as we said when the season was concluded, Case is going to come back as our starter, Nick(Foles) is going to compete, as will Sean Mannion, and you know, in all likelihood, we’re going to draft and build for the future. So, you know, this team, was depleted when we got here. The record doesn’t necessarily reflect the success that we’ve had. You know, two years ago we had back to back shutouts on defense, this year we’re probably three field goals away from winning ten games. So you know, that’s how we look at it, thats how our owner looks at it, and I think that’s how the fans look at it. Especially this year, you know, with some flux at the quarterback play, we’re still 4-2 in our division and to be successful in the National Football League, you have to win in your division, and that’s how we’ve been built. You know, we’ve built our offensive line up. Obviously, my personal opinion is we have a back for our future that is going to be really really special, and that’s Todd Gurley.

Max Kellerman: Ya, I think it’s safe to say he’s a keeper. I would keep Todd Gurley around. I dont want to tell you how to do your job, but I would keep him in the fold for awhile. Beyond quarterback, coach, what would you say is the key for you guys, to sort of, taking that next step, because you guys have been seen over the last couple of years as this sleeper team on the verge, but we just advent seen that breakout season yet.

Fisher: Well, I think a big thing, and if you talk to a lot of different head coaches I think they’ll say, well we have to heal up. You know, ’cause, defensively, you know, we lost Alec Ogletree early in the season and who knows the plays that he would’ve made throughout the home stretch of the season. We lost T.J. McDonald. We lost, were about eight weeks without Robert Quinn. And so, you know, if we can just get these guys back and for all intents and purposes, they’re on their way back, they’re gonna be fine. So, I think that puts you over the edge and over the top. In addition to that we have to go through the normal things that we have to go through. We have some unrestricted free agents that we need back. We’ve got four defensive backs that I think are playing at a really high level that want to come back. We have obviously a great interest in getting back. So, we can just take the natural progression steps with the same guys that we finished the season with, provided we get some guys to heal up. Now, one of the other things I’ll point out is that, you know, I’ve personally wanted to have an offensive line draft since we got here. You have to build inside-out and you have to build up front, and we were able to do that this year. We drafted five offensive linemen, four of whom all got starting work. So, we’ve got a foundation to have an outstanding offensive line, and thats where it starts. We were first in the league in sacks, now we gave up 18 sacks this year. Now granted we were ranked 32nd in the league in total offense…

Marcellus Wiley: Hello(lol)

Fisher: We got better as it went on, but we protected our quarterback.

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Fisher interviews are always interesting especially when the answer is always some sort of “we’ll fix it” and then buttering up something that was terrible to make it look not so terrible. From the interview, it is clear Fisher is still very pleased with Keenum and this is about a month after the season when he has most likely seen the film. It looks like he will be the starter with Foles and Mannion competing.

While there is a chance that they draft somebody, unless they plan on cutting Mannion or Foles, or keeping four quarterbacks, it doesn’t seem likely they’ll draft one at the top of the draft. It will be interesting to see, especially of Paxton Lynch and Jared Goff are available when the Rams pick

You can listen to the full interview here:

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