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Originally Posted by Azamien
I could be described as a casual Rams fan. The Broncos are still "my team" and will be forever, but I don't think I'd ever root against the Rams unless they're playing Denver. This comes from me having spent the first years of my life in Denver, then the next 20 near St Louis. (Which is why I'm a Cardinals fan and not Rockies... the Rockies didn't exist until I had already left Denver.) Anyway, now you know my personal sports history and I can continue...
I was amused when St Louis won yesterday because 8-8 teams shouldn't do that in the playoffs. But this morning as I was out in the cold smoking, I realized that this team is dangerous enough, and the NFC is weak enough, that the Rams could conceivably end up in the Super Bowl with a .500 record.
I know it's still very early, but does anyone think it's possible?
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Hardcore Rams fan here.
It's entirely possible that this Rams team, looking at their whole season, is the worst team ever to make the playoffs, (in a non-strike year, anyway) and the worst team ever to win a playoff game. The computer metrics I've seen consistently rated the Rams at the very bottom through most of the season, and though they got a bump from the screwy win against the ineffective Eagles backups two weeks ago, still rated them far lower than you'd expect an 8-8 team to be placed.
I think that's probably an accurate measure of their play. They went 5-1 against the NFC West, the worst division in football, and only 3-7 against the rest of the league, including the win in the exhibition game against the Eagles. They're a bad team, and they've had a bad season. The playoff win
came against a team which ought to have an asterisk placed next to their division championship, since their competition was the lousy Rams, the pathetic Cardinals, and the 49ers, who would be lucky to beat an SEC squad.
But. (There's always a but.)
All this comes with an enormous caveat. The Rams have sucked most of the season, but in the last two games, they've played well. Quite well. The Jets needed a win coming into their game at the end of the season, and the Rams beat 'em, with a good gameplan, and pretty solid play. The Seahawks had no competition, and losses to the Rams aside, aren't a bad team. The Rams played well again, took advantage of their matchup advantages, and had a good plan again. The offensive line, which has been horrifyingly awful the whole season, is giving Bulger time, and hitting some folks in the running game. The defense, which has been incapable of causing turnovers all year, is suddenly making breaks on the ball and making big plays. They're doing well right now, and nobody in the NFC is any great shakes.
Could they win it? They're certainly capable of beating any NFC team. They're not LIKELY to beat the Eagles or the Falcons, but there's a solid chance of it happening against either of them. The win over the Eagles doesn't mean squat, of course, but they actually match up fairly well against Philadelphia, IMO. They got pounded by Atlanta early in the season, but so much has changed since then, and the defense is playing so much better, that there could be a shock in store there as well.
In 1979, a 9-7 Rams team, coming off a decade of great teams that somehow never managed to reach the Super Bowl, somehow put together a postseason run to make it to the big dance, and put up a decent fight against the Steel Curtain squad. This could be a repeat.
The X-Factor is, of course, Mike Martz. When he puts together a smart gameplan, the Rams can beat anyone. Trouble is, he's just as likely to do something crazy as he is to do something brilliant. Which probably gives an 8-8 team a better shot in the playoffs than a slow-and-steady plodder would.
My predicition is that they'll lose next week, but I'll be rooting hard, and a win over either opponent wouldn't shock me.
-Spielman