Fox Bradshaw says LA Rams should ‘sit his ass down’ re: QB Goff

Fox Sports Terry Bradshaw said LA Rams should ‘sit his ass down’ when referring to ‘turnover machine’ QB Jared Goff before Arizona game

The LA Rams are back in the headlines, and it’s the controversy over the LA Rams starting quarterback Jared Goff once more.  This time, the turmoil is not about a sportscaster defending the Rams quarterback, but rather publicly calling for the Rams to take action to change quarterbacks due to Goff’s recent troubles of not turning over the ball.

Terry Bradshaw talked at length about how the LA Rams quarterback Jared Goff before the Arizona Cardinals game. Bradshaw did not paint a pretty picture of Goff, labeling him as ‘Goff has turned into a turnover machine’ and stating point-blank that the Rams will not win in the playoff or Super Bowl with Goff as their quarterback. See for yourself:

This was a pretty damning set of allegations to turn on the Rams starting quarterback.

Whoa, hold on there Bradshaw

If you recall, Terry Bradshaw won a number of Super Bowls while playing with the Pittsburgh Steeler. Of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ six Super Bowl victories, quarterback Terry Bradshaw helped the team earn four. His team triumphed in Super Bowls IX (1974), X (1975), XIII (1978), and XIV (1979). While he was deadly dangerous in any Super Bowl game he played in, getting him there upright and accurate was another matter altogether.

Bradshaw played in a different era. His career lasted from 1970 through 1983. He was once benched by head coach Chuck Noll in favor of QB Joe Gilliam in 1974.  Previously, Bradshaw had a dogfight for the starting position with Terry Hanratty in 1970. It was the way of the NFL in that era. Starting quarterbacks were tackled hard, played while limping, hobbled, and if they did not deliver, it was a sure-fire benching.

If you live in a glasshouse, don’t throw stones

Bradshaw learned the NFL mantra for quarterbacks when the mentality was ‘tough it out’, and quarterbacks who were knocked unconscious to a vicious blindside tackle found no sympathy in the stands. Bradshaw is a legendary HOFer quarterback, who also made an NFL career of throwing 212 touchdowns and 210 interceptions.

In fact, he did not throw more TDs than INTs until 1975, his sixth season in the NFL.  To compare, Jared Goff is in his fifth NFL season. He has only thrown for more interceptions than touchdowns in his first season, 2016. Today, Goff has thrown for 104 touchdowns to just 52 interceptions.

Not happening

The Rams are not going to ‘sit his ass down’ as Bradshaw suggests. Nor will the Rams be able to navigate some salary cap sleight of hand to afford trading for or signing Detroit Lions’ quarterback Matthew Stafford. For one thing, the Rams gave up a ton of picks and cash to have quarterback Jared Goff under center for the LA Rams for the foreseeable future. Secondly, Goff is just five seasons into his NFL career and has nearly half of HOFer Bradshaw’s 212 touchdowns, but only a fourth of his 210 interceptions.

Goff is not perfect. But I watched Terry Bradshaw play, and neither was he. Don’t get me wrong. Bradshaw played some of the gutsiest football under center in the history of the game. Yes, he earned everything he received in his NFL career.  But this is a different game from the 1970s version. This is a game that does not resemble clashes of gladiators.

New NFL era

Bradshaw was benched frequently in his career. That was how it ‘was done’ in that era of football. Now? That’s not how it’s done. And while Goff may struggle with a bad game, he is by no means the ‘turnover machine’ Bradshaw refers to.  One game, good or bad, does not define Goff. Perhaps that is where the disconnect is occurring.  Bradshaw was ruled with an iron fist when he played in the NFL.  Bradshaw did not have a quarterback coach or an offensive coordinator. He had head coach Chuck Noll.

Goff has Kevin O’Connell and Sean McVay. He has the benefit of new rules defining roughing the passer, and protecting defenseless receivers. Defenders can no longer go after a QB’s knees, put their hands to the quarterback’s face, or lead with a helmet in a tackle. All of these infractions were legal when Terry Bradshaw took the snap.

Goff will be the Rams quarterback this year, and likely will be next year as well. Sitting a starting quarterback with an 8-4 record makes no sense.  The Rams will likely reevaluate everything in the offseason once more. But in the meantime, don’t sweat the overreactions, whether from a basement podcast or a HOFer QB on Fox Sports.