Los Angeles Rams: Jeff Fisher Somehow Gets Two-Year Extension
Head coach Jeff Fisher has signed a two-year contract extension with the Los Angeles Rams and nothing makes sense anymore.
Early in the 2016 season for the Los Angeles Rams, it somehow looked as if head coach Jeff Fisher might make everyone eat their words from all of the jokes. Despite their roster being wholly uninspiring and then keeping rookie Jared Goff on the bench, the team started 3-1. Of course, the narrative turned back to the norm as the Rams are 1-6 since then. And despite preseason reports of an extension for Fisher, it looked as if his job might finally be on the line.
Apparently the organization has been watching something different, though.
On Sunday ahead of the Rams’ Week 13 matchup with the New England Patriots, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport broke the news that Jeff Fisher had signed a two-year contract extension with the Rams. He added that it was indeed the extension that was on the table in the preseason, but that he signed it now:
Sources: #Rams coach Jeff Fisher has, in fact, signed a contract extension. The long-discussed deal is believed to be for 2 years.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 4, 2016
#Rams coach Jeff Fisher actually agreed to his contract extension in the preseason and officially signed it during the season, source say
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 4, 2016
Even if it was agreed to in the preseason, this is simply absurd. When you look at everything that’s gone on with the Rams this season, how is the front office even remotely still on-board with Fisher?
The jokes are always there about Fisher going 7-9 or 8-8, but he’s currently on track to finish even worse than his mediocre precedent. If that’s not enough for you, there was talk during the nine games started by Case Keenum that Goff must be a bust already because he couldn’t beat out Keenum. Though it’s been in two losses, that’s not been the case. The offense has been noticeably more lively with the rookie, making Fisher’s decision to keep him sidelined so long borderline indefensible.
All of this said, this extension isn’t a guarantee for Fisher because the Rams apparently have some semblance of common sense. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Fisher is still coaching for his job throughout the rest of 2016 and the team could still let him go following Week 17:
A contract extension does not give Jeff Fisher any more job security. Rams must win and play well down stretch or his job will be in danger.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 4, 2016
So perhaps this is all just a PR stunt by Fisher to make the Rams look bad if they let him go in five weeks. That’s a possibility in all of this. Or it’s also entirely possible that this organization continues to be run questionably—and that’s putting it lightly.
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Either way, Jeff Fisher getting an extension while sitting at 4-7 is probably the last thing any fan expected to see on Sunday morning. Yet here we are. And it’s every bit as confusing, confounding, and downright ludicrous as you’d imagine.