Signing Orlovsky an indicator Rams are looking to 2018

Does Dan Orlovsky move the needle for the Los Angeles Rams? Odds are long that he does, but it does mean this year is for finding out whether Jared Goff can or cannot play. it just isn’t much about winning.

Los Angeles Rams fans must have done a double take when they noticed the team’s latest quarterback acquisition. Dan Orlovsky, a career NFL journeyman, was signed by the Rams to a one year deal.

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Orlovsky most recently played as a backup for a second time in Detroit.

And so it goes.

Los Angeles will see a battle of the backups featuring Orlovsky and third year quarterback Sean Mannion.

The prize? Being second on the Rams depth chart to Jared Goff.

Let’s be honest, as this latest signing doesn’t change a single thing in Los Angeles. The needle hasn’t moved. The Rams aren’t any better, and likely won’t be any worse.

The bigger question, or maybe reality, is that if you wondered about the Rams in 2017, wonder no more.

It’s become a wash to what has been a pretty mediocre decade.

Understand one thing: neither Mannion, or now Orlovsky, is a bridge to better days in LA. All the house money is now riding on Jared Goff. If you’re a ‘would be’ fan of his, you’ll keep your fingers crossed. If you’re a skeptic, same deal.

The Rams are a team looking like they are hedging their bet.

If Goff shows enough to ride it out beyond this season as the number one, then the trade to move up and select him is validated. If they give him every opportunity and it doesn’t work, they can say they tried.

That’s your 2017 Rams fans: trying.

It’s a plan that looks more and more like a season long audition, and you know what, I’m OK with that. It’s a team wreaking of youth and a top tier defense. How that plays out over 16 weeks is another story. But I do recall a less than sterling endorsement for Goff via Sean McVay. As I’ve said, the first year head coach has plausible deniability when it comes to owning the Goff selection. That’s on Les Snead.

So, OK. This is the deal.

Next: NFL Power Rankings: Rams edition

The Los Angeles Rams are playing for what might be not this year, but next.

Where have I heard that before?