Warner was playing through injuries but ultimately lost his job and was jettisoned by the Rams after a total of 7 games. He didn't "refuse" to go into a game he just talked Martz into not treating Bulger the way that Warner was treated. And he was right, by the way. Bulger rebounded. Warner said that a starter needs to be the starter and not be yanked in and out of the lineup just because things aren't going perfectly. Warner was not being given a chance to win his job back, he was just being asked to mop up that particular game.
Also, he wasn't benched for McCown in AZ. He'd hurt his knee and McCown was the backup. McCown initially played well so they let him continue as the starter but after a couple of games, he reverted to his backup level of play and Warner was again healthy and got the job back.
I agree that the Rams, or any team, can't wait "forever" for a QB to get back on track but pulling the plug on Warner after 7 games is what the problem is in this conversation. Added to that problem is the fact that there was a fix for his fumbling problem. The diamond handler gloves that he adopted were an instant fix. Maybe he wouldn't have discovered them at all if he'd stayed with the Rams but maybe he would have discovered them sooner? There's no way to know. Warner says that he got the idea to try them after watching Roethlisberger wear them. Pretty sure he says it was his own research and not a suggestion by Whisenhunt or Haley.
And, on top of all of that, it wasn't simply "that" the Rams moved on from Warner, Martz put him in a position to fail, called drastically different games for him compared to Bulger and put(let?) Warner try and play with broken bones in his hand. Warner was ostracized by Martz and the team(Turley). His work ethic and religion were brought into question and used against him.
No, to suggest that it was simply the prudent thing for the Rams to do is ignoring/forgetting all the details and circumstances. Warner was treated very poorly by the club and he rightfully doesn't embrace them now because of it.
