Following the most turbulent weeks in recent memory that a team could ask for, the Los Angeles Rams travel to Foxborough for a tough game against the New England Patriots.
After an embarrassing Week 12 performance, the Los Angeles Rams needed a week of recharging and regrouping so they could put their catastrophic loss to the New Orleans Saints behind them and focus on the next matchup against the New England Patriots.
Even before the game against the Saints had come to an end, the week of distractions had already begun for the Rams when head coach Jeff Fisher and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams got into a visible shouting match on the sidelines during the 49-21 loss. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Fisher’s bizarre discord with the team’s legendary Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson has the fan base even more frustrated with their head coach.
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The banning of Dickerson from the sideline dominated television, radio, and social media from the moment the story broke, up until the next Fisher gaffe when he named “Danny” as a dangerous running back for the New England Patriots ahead of their Week 13 matchup. One can only assume he meant either Danny Amendola, who happens to play wide receiver, or Danny Woodhead, who has been on the San Diego Chargers since 2013.
All these gaffes and embarrassments are riding on the back of the fact that by the end of the season, Fisher will most likely surpass Dan Reeves with the most losses by an NFL coach in history, and could still earn a contract extension at the end of the season.
Now, the Rams face the seemingly unstoppable force that is the Patriots along with the baggage that Fisher has brought with them. Not to mention they have to deal with all of the rumors surrounding the San Diego Chargers nipping at their heels to join the Los Angeles market.
Even if tight end Rob Gronkowski won’t be catching any passes from Tom Brady, New England has been plugging guys in and managing personnel just fine when injuries strike for over a decade as they should have no trouble doing the same against Los Angeles. It has almost come to be known as Bill Belichick’s bread and butter when it comes to plugging guys in to fill voids.
The Rams’ defense will be tasked to subdue a high-powered offense led by a better quarterback and head coach than that of who tore them to pieces last week. As bad as it sounds, rookie Jared Goff will need to have the best game of his life just for Los Angeles to have even the slightest chance in this one.
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