The Rams must have a lot of packing supplies on hand. They’ve gone from Cleveland (1936-45) to Los Angeles (1946-94, including a 15-season run in Anaheim) to St. Louis, and now they are coming back to Southern California.
It’s been a wild ride for the Rams, who have sandwiched Super Bowl appearances (1980, 2000, 2002) between long stretches of losing seasons and questionable management decisions.
Widely reviled team owner Georgia Frontiere died in 2008, and even though the Rams haven’t had a winning season since 2003, they still have a loyal and vocal fan base in this area.
In case you haven’t been paying attention to the Rams lately, here’s what you should know:
THE OWNER
Missouri native Stan Kroenke, 68, started out in real-estate development and married into the Walton family, which owns the Walmart franchise. Kroenke bought a share of the Rams in 1994 and supported their move to St. Louis the following year.
The Rams, for years, had made known their unhappiness about their stadium situation in St. Louis, and in Jan. 2015, news broke that Kroenke had purchased a large swath of land near the former Hollywood Park racetrack in Inglewood and intended to build a new stadium there for the Rams.
“Silent Stan,” as he is known for his quiet nature and aversion to publicity, has also owned NBA, NHL and MLS teams plus London-based Arsenal, one of the world’s most popular soccer clubs.
THE COACH
Jeff Fisher, born in Culver City and a football standout at Taft High in Woodland Hills and at USC, just completed his fourth season as Rams coach, with a 27-36-1 record and zero playoff appearances. Fisher came under some criticism this season after the Rams’ 7-9 finish.
Fisher has been through this before.
He coached the Houston Oilers for three seasons before they moved to Tennessee in 1997. Fisher had an extraordinarily long tenure (17 seasons) with that franchise, and in the 1999 season he coached the Titans to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Rams on a dramatic goal-line tackle on the final play of the game.
OFFENSIVE STAR
The Rams drew some sneers in April when they selected Georgia running back Todd Gurley with the No. 10 overall pick, given that Gurley tore his ACL five months earlier. Soon, the Rams looked wise. Gurley had four consecutive games in October and November in which he rushed for at least 128 yards.
Gurley’s numbers tapered off a bit near the end of the season, but he finished third in the NFL with 1,106 rushing yards, tied for fifth with 10 touchdowns and fumbled only three times in 229 carries. Running backs are famously unpredictable but Gurley, only 21, is set to be a focal point of the offense for years to come.
DEFENSIVE STAR
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald (No. 99), the Rams’ first-round pick in 2014, made the Pro Bowl as a rookie and followed up with an outstanding second season, one that has put him on some pundits’ short list for NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Donald, listed at 6-foot-1, 285 pounds, recorded 11 sacks, plus quarterback pressures by the handfuls. Rams defensive end Chris Long told ESPN.com last month that Donald is “just on a constant basis making people look silly.” Donald, 24 and a college standout at Pitt, also recorded 69 tackles this season and earned another Pro Bowl selection.
HISTORY
Highlight: Out of Iowa, where he once worked as a grocery clerk and an Arena Football League quarterback, came Kurt Warner (pictured), who in his first season as an NFL starter (1999) led the Rams to a highly improbable Super Bowl victory – their only one – and spawned “The Greatest Show on Turf.”
All-time regular season record: 540-542-21
Playoff record: 19-24
Most recent playoff appearance: 2004 season
Super Bowl appearances: 3 – lost to Pittsburgh, 31-19, on Jan. 20, 1980; beat Tennessee, 23-16, on Jan. 30, 2000; lost to New England, 20-17, on Feb. 3, 2002
Notable: Won 1945 and 1951 NFL championships
Hall of Famers (years with Rams):
Former Rams running back Eric Dickerson
George Allen (1966-70); Jerome Bettis (1993-95); Bob Brown (1969-70); Eric Dickerson (1983-87); Marshall Faulk (1999-2005); Tom Fears (1948-56); Bill George (1966); Sid Gillman (1955-59); Elroy Hirsch (1949-57); Deacon Jones (1961-71); Dick Lane (1952-53); James Lofton (1993); Tom Mack (1966-78); Ollie Matson (1959-62); Tommy McDonald (1965-66); Joe Namath (1977); Merlin Olsen (1962-76); Dan Reeves (1941-71); Les Richter (1954-62); Andy Robustelli (1951-55); Tex Schramm (1947-56); Jackie Slater (1976-95); Norm Van Brocklin (1949-57); Bob Waterfield (1945-52); Aeneas Williams (2001-04); Ron Yary (1982); Jack Youngblood (1971-84)
Retired numbers: 7, Bob Waterfield; 28, Marshall Faulk; 29, Eric Dickerson; 74, Merlin Olsen; 75, Deacon Jones; 78, Jackie Slater; 80, Isaac Bruce; 85, Jack Young blood
All-time leading passer: Jim Everett, 23,758 yards
All-time leading rusher: Steven Jackson, 10,138 yards
All-time leading receiver: Isaac Bruce, 14,109 yards
2015 SEASON
7-9 record; third place in NFC West
Things looked solid on Nov. 1, when the Rams were 4-3 and had allowed a total of 12 points in back-to-back wins, but the following week, an overtime loss to Minnesota was the start of five consecutive losses. They won three consecutive close games in December to make the season look respectable.
BIGGEST ISSUE
The Rams need a quarterback. This is not shocking news. In the past three seasons, they’ve gone through Sam Bradford, Kellen Clemens, Shaun Hill, Austin Davis, Nick Foles and Case Keenum. The Rams thought Foles, acquired in a trade last March, was the answer but he was (temporarily) benched after nine games.
WHAT’S NEXT
No. 15 pick in April’s draft
2016 home opponents: Seahawks, Cardinals, 49ers, Panthers, Falcons, Bills, Dolphins, Giants (in London)
2016 road opponents: Seahawks, Cardinals, 49ers, Saints, Buccaneers, Patriots, Jets, Lions
COACHING HISTORY
Coach, Year, Record (Playoff Record)
• Damon Wetzel, 1936, 5-2-2
• Hugo Bezdek, 1937-38, 1-13
• Art Lewis, 1938, 4-4
• Dutch Clark, 1939-42, 16-26-2
• Buff Doneli, 1944, 4-6
• Adam Walsh, 1945-46, 15-5-1 (1-0)
• Bob Snyder, 1947, 6-6
• Clark Shaughnessy, 1948-49, 14-7-3 (0-1)
• Joe Stydahar, 1950-52, 17-8 (2-1)
• Hamp Pool, 1952-54, 23-10-2 (0-1)
• Sid Gillman, 1955-59, 28-31-1 (0-1)
• Bob Waterfield, 1960-62, 9-24-1
• Harland Svare, 1962-65, 14-31-3
• George Allen, 1966-70, 49-17-4 (0-2)
• Tommy Prothro, 1971-72, 14-12-2
• Chuck Knox, 1973-77, 54-15-1 (3-5)
• Ray Malavasi, 1978-82, 40-33 (3-3)
• John Robinson, 1983-91, 75-68 (4-6)
• Chuck Knox, 1992-94, 15-33
• Rich Brooks, 1995-96, 13-19
• Dick Vermeil, 1997-99, 22-26 (3-0)
• Mike Martz, 2000-05, 53-32 (3-4)
• Joe Vitt, 2005, 4-7
• Scott Linehan, 2006-08, 11-25
• Jim Haslett, 2008, 11-25
• Steve Spagnuolo, 2009-11, 10-38
• Jeff Fisher, 2012-present, 27-36
Contact the writer: rhammond@ocregister.com
