Week 4 outcome could determine how LA Rams approach the remainder of the Rams schedule

The LA Rams, statistically through three games, are an above average team. The team can gain yards and put up points on offense. The team can defend and limit the abilty of opponents from scoring. Even the Rams punter and place kicker are better than the NFL average. But the Rams are still 1-2, and are facing the possibility of falling to 1-3. That is something that this team cannot afford to do this early in the season.

Beating the odds, fighting against the current, working against the flow, or bucking the trend are all ways of describing how historical trends have played out for NFL teams that struggle with no success in the early going of a new NFL season. The LA Rams could emerge from their early Week 4 contest with a record of 1-3 or 2-2. Let's hope that they climb to a record of 2-2, and here's why.

In 2015, 89 NFL teams had started out with a record 1-3 since 2002. Of that group, only 11 teams actually have made it to the postseason, or about 12 percent of that group. So basically starting out the season with a 1-3 record is about as good (or bad) as starting out as an 0-2 team when it comes to your odds of making the playoffs.

The key to it all is how quickly that rough start to a season can be offset by a winning streak. The faster that NFL team can get back to or past .500, the odds of competing in the postseason improve dramatically. But if the Rams drop to 1-3, the rest of the 2023 Rams schedule appears to be rather formidable.

Future success in Rams schedule will rely upon Week 4 inertia

Win or lose, the Rams will be expected to lose in Week 5 against the Philadelphia Eagles. But how well can the Rams compete against their next two opponents? The Rams face the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5, followed by the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 6. If the Rams climb back to 2-2 after they play on the road against the Indianapolis Colts, the Rams could be entering Week 8 with a 4-3 record. But if the Rans lose, and fall to 1-3, the Rams could just as easily fall to 1-6 as the team enters Week 8.

I'm not trying to establish a causal effect here. I am simply taking projections to where the evidence leads this team. If the Rams lose three consecutive games, that means that the problems that the team is encountering is not easily remedied. Difficult problems translate into reluctant solutions. Until the Rams can prove that this team has the ability to win again, it's a safe conclusion that they will not win.

The LA Rams absolutely have plenty of weapons on offense. And this defense is certainly exceeding all expectations so far in the early part of the season. But the Rams have to find a better strategy. This team has to do more than 'take what the defense gives us.'. This is a team that has to learn how to create turnovers, win the battle for Time of Possession, and lean more into the offense to allow a young defense and special teams time to develop.

The Rams need a win today. More than just one win, the Rams path to the NFL Playoffs is so much easier to accomplish if the Rams can turn the corner and get that Week 4 victory. In the end, the Rams need to show steady improvement. The problem is, with a solid start in Week 1, this young Rams team has not shown much improvement so far.