Hard Knocks and China, Prove Stan Kroenke, Rams Not Focused On Winning

The Los Angeles Rams have been the standard when it comes to mediocre teams in the NFL over the last few seasons. With four consecutive years of winning no more than seven games and no fewer than six, the Rams still dont look to be trending upwards, and by the looks of it, the front office is content with that.

After his fourth consecutive non-winning season, Jeff Fisher became just the second coach in NFL history not to be fired after posting four straight non-winning seasons with a franchise. In fact, after the season, it was rumored that the Rams were interested in extending the mediocre football coach.

With over $60-million in cap space and after moving to Los Angeles, the team was thought to be big contenders in free agency. Instead they lost their number one cornerback and failed to bring in anybody worth mentioning. In fact, after being rumored to sign Rueben Randle of the New York Giants, the receiver finally decided to sign in Philadelphia rather than the coveted Los Angeles area.

The Rams finished the season in the middle of the pack, and so far this offseason, you really can’t say that the team has gotten any better. In fact, you could argue that they have gotten worse. By not doing anything in free agency it shows that either the team truly believes they are just one draft class away from getting better and making the playoffs or simply they weren’t interested in anybody on the market.

Rather than being focused on bringing in better players, the front office has been focused on expanding their international brand by agreeing to play a home game in China in 2018 and then agreeing to be featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks.

As COO Keven Demoff said regarding the Rams desire to play in China, “It’s a great opportunity to expand the brand.”

The deal to play in China is part of the team’s three year agreement of playing three international games over the next three years. The Rams have already been slated to play in London over the next two with next year’s game being played against the Giants.

If money wasn’t involved, it’s hard to imagine that the Rams and Stan Kroenke would be interested. Whether he would admit it or not, money is also something that prompted the team to move to Los Angeles.

And while it will be nice to see the Rams and the behind the scenes of training camp, it is also something that could become a distraction. Teams like the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks aren’t lining up at the door to be on Hard Knocks. This is clearly a money thing for the Rams or why would they do it?

Awhile back Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians was asked about Hard Knocks and said that it’s, “a total distraction, and I think it’s an embarrassment to players. I think when players are released, some of the things that are said between coaches and players are too personal, and nobody else’s business.”

By agreeing to play a home game in China and doing Hard Knocks, the Rams are in prime contention to become a joke of an NFL franchise. Like the New York Jets were with Rex Ryan, this is an organization that could become more of a reality TV show that is more focused on entertainment than a football team.

This is a front office that clearly  is not focused on winning and rather making money. While that’s all find and dandy as the NFL is a business, for the fans the truly love the team, its makes it extremely frustrating to see their team not focused on what matters, and that’s winning a championship.