The Rams gave up a lot to move up to the first overall pick so that they could select quarterback Jared Goff, but a competition for the starting job with Case Keenum never really got going in the spring or summer.
Sticking with Keenum raised questions about the price paid to get Goff before the regular season started and they didn’t quiet down after the Rams were routed 28-0 by the 49ers on Monday night. Keenum was 17-of-35 for 130 yards and two interceptions in a dismal performance that wasn’t enough for coach Jeff Fisher to contemplate going in another direction.
The pressure for Fisher to change course will only grow with more performances like we saw on Monday. Keenum says that the key to doing a better job will be for him to have more trust in what he’s seeing unfold on the field in front of him.
“I was seeing ghosts,” Keenum said, via ESPN.com. “I was seeing things that weren’t there. I wasn’t trusting myself and my abilities. I tried too hard. I just have to let the game come to me, take what the defense gives me, trust my teammates -- they do a great job -- and get the ball out of my hands to the right place.”
In addition to any trust issues that Keenum might have had, a 49ers defender also said that they knew what was coming when the Rams were on offense based on their formations and pre-snap movement. That’s something that will have to change for better success with any quarterback and it will have to change quickly if the Rams are going to avoid another rough day against the Seahawks this weekend.