Rams’ Jeff Fisher Discusses Move to Start Jared Goff in Week 11

After a report surfaced that No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff would become the starter for the Los Angeles Rams in Week 11, head coach Jeff Fisher officially confirmed the move.

Los Angeles Rams head coach Jeff Fisher has made it official that Jared Goff is the team’s new starting quarterback, and thus the Goff era begins after 10 long weeks of waiting.

When talking to the media on Tuesday, Fisher discussed the highly-anticipated move to start the Goff, which comes just one day after he called the rookie the team’s No. 2 quarterback.

Here’s the important stuff, courtesy of Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com:

"“It don’t want to say it’s a new era, it’s a new start, but in a lot of ways it is,” Fisher declared Tuesday. “Jared Goff‘s going to be under center this week at home against a really good defensive team in the Miami Dolphins, so big challenge ahead.”"

Here’s Fisher on why he made the move and whether or not the decision was spontaneous:

"“We’re committed to this. We didn’t do what we did this offseason and trade for Jared to just spot-play him over the next five or six weeks. Even though there’s people out there saying, ‘Well you’re doing it now because your playoff chances aren’t real good.’ Well, no, our playoff chances are still fine. We’re doing this for two reasons.”“One, we feel like this is the best decision. Two, he has the chance to help us win football games.”"

It sure looks spontaneous from where I’m sitting.

In the last three weeks with Case Keenum at quarterback, the Rams scored a combined total of 29 points and lost two of those games. If not for the defense, the Rams easily would have had a loss in all three.

For the season, Keenum is among the worst quarterbacks in the league in total QBR, and the Rams’ offense as a whole ranks near the bottom of the league in per game averages of passing yards, rushing yards, and points.

The writing was on the wall for some time now and Fisher’s hand was rightfully forced after Keenum continued to struggle. He could no longer justify Keenum remaining as the starter for any other reason than Goff not being ready.

When asked if the playbook would change for Goff, Fisher claimed it would not, which is what quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke said not long ago:

"“I don’t go into games having concerns,” Fisher added. “I go into games having expectations. And the expectation is he’s going to run the offense and we’re not scaling the offense down. … I don’t have any concerns about Jared. I just have high expectations for him.”"

Jared Goff’s Time Has Come

Whether or not this turns out to be a success remains to be seen, but it was time for the move to happen. Keenum wasn’t getting any better and, as a result, neither were the Rams.

Sure, Goff is in a tough position out of the gates with a lackluster offense around him, however Los Angeles needs to see where Goff stands before the season ends so it can plan accordingly next offseason.

And that plan should also involve the decision on Fisher’s future, which will be heavily reliant on Goff’s success.

In Other News: Jeff Fisher Gives Robert Quinn Update

Here’s what Fisher had to say about Quinn, who has already been released from the hospital after reportedly suffering two seizures on Monday morning:

That’s great news and we’re happy to hear Quinn is going to be fine after suffering two seizures on Sunday.