Is anyone surprised? I mean, really surprised?
I'll let you folks answer that for yourselves. But, see, for me, this team is doing what Fisher Ram teams have always done. This Season fits his historical pattern with us. (I dunno about before he came to us.)
- Lack of preparation for Game 1? Check--every year but last year.
- Misleading "big wins" against tough teams, especially in our division? Check.
- Confounding losses against mediocre teams? Check
- Flashes of greatness from our defense? Yep
- Defensive inconsistency? Sadly, yes.
- Soft secondary conceding 1st downs? Yep
- Mediocre stats for a supposedly fine defense, especially in scores conceded? Again, yes.
- Offensive inconsistency? U huh.
- Struggling O L? Indeed. Even though, this year, we have personnel stability.
- Red Zone scoring inconsistency? Sure.
- Sloppiness, fluctuating competitiveness? You bet.
This is who Fisher is. He does it every year. And the "big wins" won't prevent another mediocre, sub-.500 W/L record.
We gotta remember--raising the talent level DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY RAISE THE COMPETITIVE DISCIPLINE OF A TEAM!
We are more talented than we used to be. For periods of time, we demonstrate that we can compete with anyone.
But we cannot sustain the sort of grit that leads to winning lots of games in a highly competitive league.
Now, I know Ram fans differ in how they see all this. I gather some of you still have at least some faith in this year's team and in Fisher's regime.
But, it's Year 5. And that's more than an abstract expectation.
It's Year 5 of an absolutely consistent pattern of mediocrity. We were doing the same thing 5 years ago with worse talent and we're doing it again this year with better talent. The same, flaming pattern everywhere you look.
I don't for the life of me understand why any 5 year Ram fan would look at this rock solid pattern of tiresome performance and expect anything other than more of the same.
But, hey. That's me. If your fan loyalty calls you in a more optimistic direction, that's cool. I just can't fathom it.
