USA TODAY International Edition
QB Goff’s shot as starter overdue
The future starts Sunday in Los Angeles.
Jared Goff, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 draft, finally will make his debut as the Rams’ starting quarterback against the Miami Dolphins.
It’s about time. Rams coach Jeff Fisher has tried to be patient and give Goff time to develop. But at 4- 5 and with the NFL’s worst scoring offense, the Rams can no longer be conservative with Goff.
Either the kid is ready or he’s not, and the Rams have to find out right away. They no longer have the luxury of patience. The fact that rookies Dak Prescott and Carson Wentz have been successful in Dallas and Philadelphia, respectively, only adds to the urgency for Goff to play and play well.
It makes sense that Fisher would make this move now. By allowing Goff to start at home, against a Dolphins team on the second game of a California road trip, saves the rookie from having to make his debut in front of a hostile road crowd.
But the bigger reason Fisher had to make the switch now is he can no longer justify having the No. 1 overall pick sit behind Case Keenum.
The Rams are last in the NFL in scoring, at 15.4 points per game. That’s the result of a dreadful red- zone offense and a disappointing running game that ranks No. 29 with fewer than 83 rushing yards per game.
Will Goff be any better than Keenum, who has nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions? Perhaps not, at least not right away, especially with a struggling offensive line and stagnant running game.
But the Rams can no longer afford to move forward with Keenum and a lackluster offense when Goff, a player the franchise invested so much in to draft, sits on the bench.