What was the biggest distraction for the LA Rams this season?

I think the author makes some good points...

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What was the biggest distraction for the Los Angeles Rams this season?

The Los Angeles Rams 2016-17 regular season campaign definitely did not go how they had envisioned. They had the fifth worst record in the NFL which was a drop off from where they stood last season.

The team struggled with losing its focus at times but who could really blame them? They endured many distractions prior to the start of the season, and throughout it.

The Jared Goff trade, the move to Los Angeles, the Eric Dickerson drama, etc. This team dealt with more than it obviously could handle, and it showed in the overall product.

There were weeks where they looked entirely engaged and locked in. While there were others where they did not seem all there mentally or physically.

The six losses on the season by three or more scores would attest to that. They answered just as many questions related to the games as they did about outside noise.

Which distraction was it though? What distraction plagued them all throughout the season and consistently put them at a disadvantage?

There will obviously be differing opinions in regards to this topic but the best case can be made that it was former head coach Jeff Fisher. Fisher was a walking and talking distraction.

Fisher was at the root of a majority of the Rams’ discombobulation. Prior to the start of the season, news leaked about a possible contract extension between Fisher and the Rams.

This news drew attention to the franchise. Many outsiders did not think Fisher deserved an extension especially since his current contract was expiring this season.

Then came the regular season and with it, the Jared Goff decision. Fisher did not start Goff until Week 11 of the regular season. This occurred at a time when most of Goff’s contemporaries were playing at a high level. It put the microscope on the Rams franchise and brought their decision to draft Goff into question.

There was the Tavon Austin contract. Fisher, along with upper management, drew a lot of raised eye brows because of the contract given to Austin. Austin had not lived up to expectations at that juncture of his career, but they decided to pay him like someone who had.

The deal receives more criticism when including the fact that the Rams lost cornerback Janoris Jenkins in free agency due to his price tag. Jenkins was a player who actually deserved the big bucks. He proved it while playing for the New York Giants.

The biggest drama episode of the season was the beef between Fisher and Rams great Eric Dickerson. This drama affected everyone in the locker room and in a way forced people to take sides.

The Rams at this point had become the Kardashians of the NFL. Their baggage became their identity, rather than their play.

Fisher topped the icing on the cake when he confirmed his contract extension during the Dickerson drama. The franchise did not appear ready to announce the news despite Fisher’s affirmation.

This seemed to create a rift between Fisher and general manager Les Snead, despite their contentions that it did not. The culmination of all these events obviously took its toll on the team.

It was just one thing after another, with hardly any breaks in between each instance. Fisher’s firing led to much of the drama slowing down.

While many players and some upper management would contend that Fisher was not a distraction. The list of events tell a different story. Fisher was at the center of a lot of the Rams’ problems this season.

This team has the talent to perform much better than they did this year. It could all come to fruition next season now that things may finally be quieting down.