If Rams offense is off, is it time for Jared Goff?

If Rams offense is off, is it time for Jared Goff?

By Rich Hammond, rhammond@scng.com, @Rich_Hammond on Twitter

[www.dailynews.com]

LOS ANGELES >> In terms of the Rams’ offense, it’s too early to worry, but not to wonder.

The NFL’s highest-paid offensive coordinator got fired this week, two games into the season and one day after his team (Buffalo) scored 31 points. The Rams, in last week’s season-opening loss at San Francisco, were shut out, had 10 punts and 10 first downs and never crossed the 49ers’ 20-yard line.

That’s not to say Rams offensive coordinator Rob Boras is on the hot seat going into Sunday’s home opener against Seattle at the Coliseum, but so far, the Rams’ offense hasn’t met even mild expectations.

“For everybody across the board – playing and coaching – it just wasn’t good enough, it wasn’t up to our standards,” Boras said of last week’s loss. “We all need to do better, starting, obviously with me at the coordinator position. But I think, to a man, everybody recognizes that we have a lot more in us.”

Will it come out this week? The Rams face a Seahawks defense that allowed only 214 yards and 11 first downs in a 12-10 victory over Miami last week, and traditionally is tough against the run and the pass.

The Rams, meanwhile, will send out quarterback Case Keenum, who admitted that he was so rattled last week against a mediocre San Francisco defense that he was “seeing ghosts” when he looked at coverage. It’s a near-certainty that the Seahawks will force Keenum to prove he can play better.

It worked for the 49ers, who loaded up at the line of scrimmage and held star running back Todd Gurley to 47 yards on 17 carries. Keenum, with some often bland playcalling, completed 17 of 35 attempts.

“Offensively, we couldn’t make plays,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. “It’s a combination of bad decisions at the quarterback position, and drops at the receiver position.”

More disturbingly, an anonymous 49ers player told NFL Network that, based on the way the Rams lined up and went in motion, the 49ers could determine which routes their receivers would run.

That sounds a bit far-fetched, and perhaps is a mental ploy, with the 49ers knowing that the teams meet again in December, but given how ineffective the Rams looked, it doesn’t seem impossible. Boras said he “did not have the perception” that the 49ers were jumping his play calls.

“Didn’t play up to our standard, didn’t coach to our standard, didn’t see it coming,” Boras said. “I think, across the board, coaches (and) players would say that we thought we had a great week of preparation and then obviously just didn’t live up to our standard, playing-wise (and) coaching.”

Boras might take some heat, but it’s not entirely deserved.

Formerly the Rams’ tight ends coach, Boras took over as coordinator last December after the firing of Frank Cignetti. Boras had never been an NFL coordinator, but in his four games last season, the Rams averaged 22.8 points and went 3-1. They had averaged nine points in Cignetti’s final four games.

Boras actually had the right idea last week. Knowing the 49ers likely would load up to stop Gurley, the Rams passed the ball on six of their initial eight plays. They actually moved the ball into 49ers territory, but then Keenum threw three consecutive incomplete passes.

The Rams never got going from there. They went a dreadful 3 for 15 on third down and Keenum was never enough of a threat to make the 49ers veer from their stop-the-run strategy.

So, Seattle could follow it. The Seahawks feature game-altering safety Kam Chancellor, who excels at creeping down toward the line of scrimmage and making plays. If the Rams can’t throw the ball against a talented Seattle secondary, Gurley once again might not find much running room.

“We’re going to have to take our shots,” Fisher said. “You make a couple of plays down the field, it changes things. But, we always subscribe to the philosophy that even if it’s loaded, we still have to find a way to (run the ball), especially at the end of the game.”

So, good luck, Case Keenum. The Rams already have elevated rookie quarterback Jared Goff to be Keenum’s backup this week. If Keenum, a former undrafted free agent and a practice-squad veteran, has another poor game, it’s reasonable to think the Rams might consider handing things over to Goff.

For Keenum and the Rams’ offense, it needs to be bounce-back time.

“I’ve got a chip on my shoulder,” Keenum said. “I’ve had it for a while. So, it’ll still be there, the same one.”