Do the St. Louis Rams Have a Quarterback Controversy?

By Curt Popejoy | Aug 25, 2015

There is an old adage in the NFL that says that if you have multiple starting quarterbacks then you don’t have any. I don’t think anyone thought when the preseason started that the St. Louis Rams would be having any trepidation about the starting quarterback position. Nevertheless, at the midway point, there are some legitimate doubts beginning to arise, which could grow into a full-blown quarterback controversy.

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The hope was when the Rams opted to swap quarterbacks with the Philadelphia Eagles that both sides would find the transaction mutually beneficial. St. Louis sends Philadelphia the talented, but oft-injured Sam Bradford, and get Nick Foles in return.

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On paper, this seemed like a perfect opportunity for the Rams to get stability and consistency at the quarterback position it has lacked over the past three seasons. This team is building their offensive line, adding a power ground game, so the job Foles had was going to be easy, right?

Well, two games into the preseason, things aren’t going exactly according to plan. While Foles is still the starter, he’s been the least impressive of the three guys getting the lion’s share of the reps right now. Foles has a disappointing 39.2 quarterback rating so far, only completing 50 percent of attempts. And his case was made worse with a dreadful interception against the Tennessee Titans.

Meanwhile, guys like Sean Mannion and Case Keenum have impressed in their reps. Mannion in particular has shown poise and accuracy that Foles has lacked. He has parlayed his effort into a 107.5 rating. Keenum has gotten the most reps of any quarterback in the preseason, and while he’s only completed 50 percent of his passes, does have a 91.4 rating in two games.

The reality is that this team is going to go through some growing pains regardless of who is under center. The offensive line is going to highlight two rookies, and rookie running back Todd Gurley is still on the shelf recovering from injury. I recognize that the Rams have too much invested in Foles not to start him. Whichever quarterback is back there is going to take some lumps.

However, if this team really stumbles out of the gate on offense. Say an 0-3 start and Gurley is getting up to speed, could the Rams bench Foles is he is playing poorly? The Rams are dying to have a successful season. If Foles continues to look scared and tentative, why not make a change to spark the offense? Or better still, if the Rams think Mannion or Keenum could steal a game Foles can’t, do you plug one in from the very beginning?

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