Tidbits of the Week: Fisher Introduced, Rams in London

Jeff Fisher was introduced by the Rams earlier this week, to the St. Louis media. Flanked by owner Stan Kroenke and COO Kevin Demoff, Fisher said choosing the Rams was an "easy choice", due to the ownership and quarterback that the team already had in place. Fisher didn't go into too many details about the Rams next move, which will be to fill out his coaching staff. Gregg Williams will be the defensive coordinator, but the OC spot is still in the air. Reportedly, Fisher has met with two potential candidates: former Jets OC Brian Schottenheimer and former Raiders coach Hue Jackson. Both would be okay picks, but I personally would rather have Hue. Jackson can be aggressive and conservative when it comes to playcalling, but his quarterbacks in Oakland have performed much better than anyone would have thought. Schottenheimer leaves the Jets amid ugly rumors of in-house fighting and frustration. Schottenheimer's advantage is he may stick around longer with the organization while Hue will surely be a head coaching candidate again in the near future. Either way, Fisher's statements on Tuesday of achieving greatness within the Rams surely must've gotten many fans pumped up.

News today from the NFL says that the next London game in Wembley Stadium will feature the Rams facing the Patriots in what is supposed to be a Rams home game. In fact, the Rams will be playing 3 "home games" in London over the next 3 years. I'm personally excited for this opportunity for the Rams to play on an international scale. Of course, this prompts most St. Louis fans to worry that the Rams may not move to LA, but instead move to London after the lease at the Ed Jones Dome is up. The talk of a move has been unsettling many St. Louisans, supported by the fact that Kroenke, during the press conference on Monday, did not fully crush the talk of such a move. Kroenke is a native to Missouri, but he also owns sports franchises in Colorado and the UK. For me, I wouldn't mind a franchise move, but then again I don't live in St. Louis. The Rams will always be my team, even if some of their next few games have a London Look.

Brian Schottenheimer=Rams OC?

There have been numerous reports of Brian Schottenheimer's impending offer from the Rams for the position of offensive coordinator. At least one report has said no offer has been formally given, but Schottenheimer did have dinner with new Rams coach Jeff Fisher. The Rams have begun their search for coordinators to fill out the staff, and Schottenheimer's hire is only the first step. Many fans do not approve of Schottenheimer, who apparently runs an offense more similar to Josh McDaniels than a conventional West Coast offense. Personally, I would like to see the Rams go back to the West Coast, considering the personnel they have. Sam Bradford also excelled in his rookie year under coordinator Pat Shurmur, who ran the West Coast in his only year with Bradford. The Rams will certainly be moving in a different direction, but they must also take into account the pieces they have in place. With Gregg Williams supposedly coming into the fold, it may turn out to be an interesting rebirth if the Rams can put all the pieces together.

Fisher to Rams

It's official: Jeff Fisher with be the next head coach of the St. Louis Rams. The news comes after a few weeks of speculation and interviews, but the last week was particularly arduous considering numerous reports that Fisher was supposed to make a decision earlier in the week, along with rumors of Fisher trying to cause a bidding leverage war between the Rams and the Miami Dolphins. Word is that Fisher was unsatisfied with the decision for Miami to retain GM Jeff Ireland, who has the final say in most team personnel decisions. So what's next for the Rams? With Fisher in, the GM search will have much more direction. Early rumors say that Titans executive Lake Dawson will join Fisher as the Rams' GM. Also rampant is word that Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams could join Fisher as well. As for offensive coordinator, Dirk Koetter of the Jaguars could be a possible candidate. With Fisher in place, the staff now has a chance to establish itself. Is the Fisher hire a good move? Well, it certainly is a move in a new direction for the Rams, who haven't hired a coach of Jeff Fisher's resume and experience since Dick Vermeil. And we all know what Vermeil did to help this franchise. If Fisher really wants to succeed, however, we'll need to wait to assess his team personnel moves. For now, though, a grueling week of anticipation seems to be over.

McDaniels to Patriots; Lloyd to follow?

It's been confirmed that Josh McDaniels will not return to St. Louis and will return to New England as an offensive assistant during the playoffs. McDaniels' high powered offense never came to fruition in St. Louis, and now his inevitable departure has left a void in the entire coaching staff. The positive to this is that the new head coach (Jeff Fisher?) can bring in an offensive coordinator that suits their needs. Fisher traditionally runs a power running attack, and thus McDaniels departure is a sure welcome to those who want Fisher to coach the Rams. There are negatives as well. Sam Bradford enters his tumultuous third season with a third different offensive coordinator. The offseason acquisition of wide receiver Brandon Lloyd could also be affected. Lloyd, scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, could very well follow McDaniels to New England, thus eliminating the Rams' number one receiving threat (leaving them back in a very familiar position). Sure, St. Louis could aim for the electric Justin Blackmon in the next draft. But one guy, particularly a rookie, cannot immediately change this team's passing deficiencies. Lloyd would be a critical loss for this team.

Welcome!

Welcome to Beyond The Horns! I'm League Beat Writer (LBW). Some of you may know me from the blog UTTQ, or Unabated to the Quarterback. After a successful year of unbiased writing for UTTQ, I had the urge to start my own blog where I could be as biased as I pleased. That's when I decided to create a blog covering my favorite NFL team, the St. Louis Rams. Over the past half decade or so, the Rams have been quite a miserable team to watch. I have found myself turning off the TV many a time in order to avoid watching another painful loss. This year, with a new head coach and seemingly no way to go but up, the Rams look to be quite the team to watch. I'll try to bring it all here, through observation and analysis in the eyes of a typical Rams fan. Hopefully I'll have enough time to bring you news like coaching hires, draft picks, player movement, and pre/post game analysis. It's sure to be a fun season, even if I have to slog through another disappointing streak of losses. We'll see how it goes...anyway, thanks for checking out Beyond The Horns!