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Feb. 12, 2008
Updated at 5:20 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 12
Overview: The Rams struggled mightily through one of the worst seasons in franchise history — and almost certainly the most painful. Head coach Scott Linehan was granted a reprieve as 12 of his players, half of them starters, finished the season on injured reserve. But despite all the key injuries on both sides of the ball, the offense figured to average more than 16.4 points per game and rank a lot higher than 24th in total yards, and the defense didn’t figure to suddenly surrender 89 points and 847 yards combined in the last two games after showing signs of improvement up to that point.
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Date
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Opponent
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Spread
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Result
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09/09/07
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Carolina
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-1½
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13-27
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09/16/07
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San Francisco
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-3
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16-17
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09/23/07
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at Tampa Bay
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+3½
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3-24
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09/30/07
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at Dallas
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+13
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7-35
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10/07/07
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Arizona
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+3½
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31-34
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10/14/07
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at Baltimore
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+9
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3-22
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10/21/07
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at Seattle
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+9
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6-33
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10/28/07
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Cleveland
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+3
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20-27
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BYE WEEK
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11/11/07
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at New Orleans
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+10½
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37-29
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11/18/07
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at San Francisco
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-3
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13-9
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11/25/07
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Seattle
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+3
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19-24
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12/02/07
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Atlanta
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-3
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28-16
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12/09/07
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at Cincinnati
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+10
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10-19
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12/16/07
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Green Bay
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+7
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14-33
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12/20/07
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Pittsburgh
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+8
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24-41
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12/30/07
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at Arizona
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+6
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19-48
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Team MVP: Because it was such a dreadful season for the Rams, this was a tough call. But starting FS O.J. Atogwe, a restricted free agent who isn’t going anywhere, got better and better as the year wore on, finishing the season with 75 tackles and an NFC-best eight interceptions.
Biggest surprise: The Rams drafted Adam Carriker in the first round with the intention of plugging him in for the next 10 years or so as the starting nose tackle. But plans appear to have changed, with 2007 fifth-round draft pick Clifton Ryan, who is more of a prototypical NT type than Carriker, proving to be a sleeper with a major upside. Ryan leveled off a bit as the season wore on, but he appears to be a solid blue-collar run stopper with a burst at the point of attack.
Biggest disappointment: So much more was expected out of an offense that had finished so strong the previous season, averaging 27.5 points in the final six games. Losing three starting offensive linemen for the season due to injuries — OLT Orlando Pace, OLG Mark Setterstrom and ORG Richie Incognito — didn’t help matters. Neither did the fact QB Marc Bulger and RB Steven Jackson each missed four games because of injuries. But Bulger significantly regressed in ’07 after having signed a hefty new contract, registering a career-low 70.3 passer rating and throwing 15 interceptions — the second-highest total of his career — despite missing a quarter of the season.
Offseason outlook: The Rams have a great deal of work to do — on a lot of levels. Starting at the top, they need to clarify the team’s ownership situation following the Jan. 18 death of team owner Georgia Frontiere. The team has hired longtime NFL personnel man Billy Devaney to take over a personnel department that appears to be badly in need of help, and he will be in charge of the Rams’ war room on Draft Day. After producing only one Pro Bowl player in the last five drafts (RB Steven Jackson), the Rams will be under pressure from their frustrated fan base to score big with the No. 2 overall pick in ’08.
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