Bears vs. Rams: St. Louis Grades, Notes and Quotes
The St. Louis Rams (4-5) fell to the Chicago Bears (4-5) in a shocking 37-13 blowout loss. It's the type of loss no one—not the fans, players or coaches—saw coming. It was easily St. Louis' most inept performance of the year.
The Rams actually got off to strong start and appeared to be in control. The usually slow-starting offense scored a touchdown and a field goal in the first quarter. The Rams allowed an 87-yard touchdown reception by Zach Miller in the opening quarter, but it seemed to be fluke play that no one expected to snowball into a huge offensive game for Chicago.
Then, the Bears managed to score 17 unanswered points before halftime—an almost unthinkable feat against the St. Louis defense.
Two more second-half field goals by Chicago, followed by a fourth-quarter Jeremy Langford touchdown, turned the game into a blowout defeat for St. Louis. It was a nightmare outcome.
Fans will be questioning everything after this game. Whether it's the coaching, quarterback play or play-calling, everything will come under scrutiny, and rightfully so.
Things won't get any easier for the Rams, as they will now hit the road for back-to-back road games in Baltimore and Cincinnati.
As for the Bears, they'll have it tough as well, as they host the Denver Broncos next week.
For more on this game, including grades, takeaways and quotes, read on.
Position Grades for the Rams
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| Position | Grade |
| QB | F |
| RB | C |
| WR | D |
| TE | D |
| OL | D |
| DL | C |
| LB | D |
| DB | F |
| Special Teams | D |
| Coaching | F |
Nick Foles looked completely lost for a second-consecutive week. He completed an embarrassing 47.2 percent of his passes with zero touchdowns and was also picked off. This comes a week after his abysmal performance in Minnesota, where he was held to a 54.5-percent completion rate.
Foles' lack of chemistry with the receivers and his inaccuracy continue to stall drives time after time. After nine games and few positives to cling to, it won't be a total surprise if St. Louis decides to give backup Case Keenum a shot next week.
The running backs—Todd Gurley, Tavon Austin, Tre Mason—combined for a solid 94 yards on 21 carries. It's just a shame they weren't used more. Mason had a fumble, which hurts the grade, but the backs did a decent job moving the ball.
The receivers and tight ends were just as incompetent as Foles. Jared Cook had a 29-yard gain, Brian Quick finally got involved with a 37-yard reception and even Wes Welker made some noise with three catches and 32 yards in his Rams debut. Even so, the multiple dropped passes are impossible to forgive.
As for the offensive line, the run blocking was not terrible, but the penalties killed the offense. Greg Robinson alone was flagged three times for holding. Robinson, a former No. 2 overall draft pick, continues to disappoint.
Aaron Donald had a big game on the defensive line with 1.5 sacks and a 40-yard fumble recovery. Other than Donald, the St. Louis defensive line was surprisingly weak. Nick Fairley was flagged for a personal foul, and the run defense was soft.
The linebackers also contributed to the weak run defense. James Laurinaitis and the linebackers were out of position on many instances, which allowed Chicago to rip off big gains.
The secondary was awful. On many of Chicago's long gains, the defensive backs took terrible pursuit angles, which allowed the Chicago ball-carriers to gain major yardage. The secondary held Alshon Jeffery to 23 yards, but that didn't matter, as Miller and Langford shredded the secondary for over 100 yards receiving each.
Kicker Greg Zuerlein was money on his field-goal attempts, but punter Johnny Hekker's pass on a fake punt was terrible. He threw across his body—something even high school quarterbacks know to avoid—and his miserable throw targeted a receiver who wasn't even past the first-down marker. It was not a good day for special teams.
As for coaching, it's hard to give Jeff Fisher any credit. The team was not ready to play, the offense abandoned the run way too early and the game plan simply did not work.
Todd Gurley's Lack of Carries Was Baffling
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Normally, when a team is down two scores in the second half, it'll abandon the run and attempt to strike quick through the air.
Normally.
The Rams are not a normal offense, but they apparently forgot that. They entered this game with the 32nd-ranked passing offense in the NFL. Foles and the receivers have given us no reason to believe they're capable of carrying the offense in any scenario. Why the coaches felt putting the game in Foles' hands, when down by only two scores for much of the second half, is completely baffling.
Gurley has demonstrated time and time again that he's the only dangerous weapon this offense has to offer. The fact he carried the ball just 12 times, regardless of the score or amount of time on the clock, was a major blunder by the coaching staff.
After what we've witnessed this season, it's obvious that Gurley busting free for a long touchdown is far more likely than Foles leading a scoring drive through the air.
St. Louis' only hope of evening the score was to put the football in Gurley's hands. For whatever reason, that didn't happen, and he never had the chance. The Rams apparently felt that fake handoffs and play-action passes—using their only elite offensive player as a decoy instead of a weapon—gave them the best chance to score.
They were wrong.
Obviously, it's not ideal to run Gurley into the ground every week. That said, 12 carries is an embarrassment.
Wes Welker Makes Early Impact
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When the Rams brought in Wes Welker earlier in the week as a response to the Stedman Bailey suspension, it was unclear if the 34-year-old veteran would even be active.
Not only did Welker dress for the game—sporting a No. 19 jersey—but he made a moderate impact. Welker grabbed three catches for 32 yards, including a 14-yard grab. Welker's three receptions tied Gurley for the most catches in the game among Rams.
Welker only stepped on the field specifically for third-down packages, which makes his production even more impressive.
Considering Welker was unemployed a week ago and is already more productive than most of the St. Louis receivers says a lot. His presence is already highlighting how weak the position truly is for the Rams.
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Say Goodbye to Playoff Hopes
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If Arizona wins against Seattle, the Cardinals will have a three-game lead over St. Louis in the division. In the wild-card race, the Packers have a two-win lead, and the Rams are one of four NFL hopefuls with four wins entering this week.
Given the competition, one would think a 10-6 record is a necessity to advance to the playoffs.
Technically, the Rams go on a run and can still afford one more loss. However, given the unbelievable inconsistency we've seen from this team, does anyone buy that's even a remote possibility?
The Rams entered the second half of the season aware that they can only afford two losses in the final eight. With Arizona, Seattle and Cincinnati still on the schedule, it would have been ideal to save the losses for those games. Now, St. Louis must run the table with those three teams.
Before the Week 9 game in Minnesota—when the Rams owned a 4-3 record and were coming off a two-game win streak—it appeared the Rams were getting hot and could make a run. But after two straight losses against beatable opponents, those hopes are pretty much dead.
Like it or not, this loss to Chicago put a fork in St. Louis' playoff hopes, even if the Rams are still mathematically in it.
Steve Beuerlein on Nick Foles' Accuracy
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"They got to put the ball on the receiver and give them a chance to get the first down." -Steve Beuerlein on Nick Foles' accuracy during the telecast.
Execution was a major issue for the Rams on offense. Receivers dropped passes, and offensive linemen couldn’t avoid penalties, so it’s certainly not all on Foles.
Still, the Rams quarterback hurt the team with his play today.
The CBS commentators frequently pointed out his slow release on multiple throws. That’s a major issue, because not only does it mess with the timing of the receivers, but it gives defenders plenty of time to react.
The other big concern, as mentioned by Beuerlein, was Foles’ accuracy. He managed to miss a wide-open Kendricks in the end zone during the first quarter, and we saw plenty of uncatchable passes by Foles in this game.
To make matters worse, the few accurate passes were dropped by St. Louis receivers, which explains Foles’ horrendous 47.2 percent completion percentage.
We keep waiting for Foles to wake and flash some of the potential he showed in Philadelphia. It doesn’t seem to be happening, and it’s becoming harder and harder to believe he’s the long-term answer.
Jim Thomas on Aaron Donald
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"Well, at least Aaron Donald showed up today." -Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via Twitter.
As Jim Thomas mentions, Donald continues to be Mr. Reliable for the St. Louis defense. Even when the Rams put on a pathetic performance, you can count on Donald still playing well and making an impact.
With 1.5 sacks in the game, Donald’s sack total is now at six on the year, and he’s on pace for a double-digit sack season. With 35 tackles on the season, he’s just 13 shy of his 2014 total (48). He’s one of few NFL players who makes a positive impact on every snap, every week.
Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors are inevitable. He should be in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year, but unfortunately, as you might remember with Robert Quinn in 2013, voters are hesitant to award the honor to a player on a non-playoff team. Hopefully, Donald won’t miss out on a deserved honor because of his team’s overall performance.
Regardless of the awards Donald might win at the end of the year, he’ll continue to be a force in St. Louis for years to come.
Jeff Fisher on the Team's Performance
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"We got outplayed, out coached and just didn't play well." -Head coach Jeff Fisher, per the postgame press conference.
This quote sums up St. Louis' performance in this game. The Rams simply did not show up.
Unfortunately, that has been a trademark of Fisher teams. Every year, the Rams manage to secure a handful of quality wins, such as the wins over Seattle and Arizona this season. Those wins generate hype and keep the fans hooked, but in the end, the team disappoints.
The defense was no gem today, but the problem seems to be specific to the offense. Putting points on the board has been a St. Louis problem for a decade, and Fisher has done little to nothing to correct it.
Unless the offense does a dramatic turnaround in the final seven games, the Rams must seriously consider shaking up the leadership structure.
That doesn't necessarily mean cutting Fisher loose. The Rams have been tough and competitive under Fisher, and it'd be nice to keep that intact. However, it could involve bringing in a fresh offensive mind in the offseason and limiting Fisher's control over that side of the ball.
Whatever the franchise decides to do, it cannot continue to tolerate inept football on the offensive side. Something must be done.
Steven Gerwel is the longest-tenured Rams Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and serves as the Rams' 2015 game-day correspondent. You can find more of Gerwel's work by visiting his writer profile or by following him on Twitter.
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